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Cambridge Audio CXN V2 Measurements (Streamer & DAC)

Mindhead1

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I have an Aune X1S DAC connected to my CXA81 amplifier, I need a streamer option, is it a good option to buy a CXN V.2 device to connect it to my audio chain?
For the nice stack look with the CXA81 the CXNV2 is a winner. The CXNV2 is also easy to use and sounds great. It’s an overall excellent piece of equipment.

That said, the price of new units is $1400. I’m not sure I can justify the unit at that price point if all you primarily need is a streamer. The DAC in the CXNv2 is really good. In fact I wouldn’t recommend the CXNV2 at the old $1100 price point as a streamer only. I picked mine up for $750 from the CA Refurb store on eBay. It’s like a brand new unit as far as I can tell. If you need a DAC and streamer the CXNV2 is a strong recommend to me at $750, It’s a stretch at $1100, at $1400 I’ll pass.

If you are happy with the X1S I would check out the WIIM Mini Streamer or the iFi Zen Stream. If you don’t mind a little DIY a Raspberry Pi running MoOde audio is also a good option.
 

Etienne

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Thanks for the review! Well written and clear. @VintageFlanker I wondered if you measured the output impedance of the CXN V2 when you tested it. Cambridge Audio doesn't share this detail anywhere. I am wondering whether I would get any audible benefit adding a preamp between my CXN V2 and my amp (Decware Zen Ufo2 with XLR driving Klipsch Forte iii) that needs 2V input and have an input impedance of 100kHz. Actually, I am not sure how important input/output impedance matters (I just know about this 10-20x rule of thumb factor one needs to maintain). It seems from your review the preamp mode of the CXN would be dynamic enough.
PS: preamp I am considering is the Topping pre90
Cheers
Etienne
 
OP
VintageFlanker

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I wondered if you measured the output impedance of the CXN V2 when you tested it.
I did not.:confused:
It seems from your review the preamp mode of the CXN would be dynamic enough.
As for audibility alone, it would be OK. Problem with CXN's volume control is that it only has 30 steps, so not very precise and too sensitive, as @biglebowski said.
 

Snoopy

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I don't mind the upsampling the CXN V2 does. I let roon upsample and add my DSP settings up to 192khz. And the CXN V2 does the 384khz step.

I let Roon upsample to 768khz to my SMSL D300 just for fun and compared both with my Singxer SA1 and Aeon 2 noire. And I can't really tell the difference.

I use the XLR connection for my headphone setup.

The USB In works in UAC1 & 2 so it's great for gaming consoles.

And airplay supports the apple TV as well shows the content on the display.

Pretty nice device if you get it refurbished or as open box.

I wouldn't pay what they are asking after the last price increase
 

octavius

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I'm on 80% decided to buy CXN V2. But may I have one question to owners please? My wife has a habit from FM tuner to control it without application just use remote control or directly from the unit. Is possible just listen internet radio after turn on button? I mean if there is a simple way to turn on internet radio and change preset stations? On the raspdac mini lcd is program Volumio with plugin autostart it means it play last radio station after raspberry boot. She has an idea if something similar is also in cxn v2....
 

Jimbob54

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I'm on 80% decided to buy CXN V2. But may I have one question to owners please? My wife has a habit from FM tuner to control it without application just use remote control or directly from the unit. Is possible just listen internet radio after turn on button? I mean if there is a simple way to turn on internet radio and change preset stations? On the raspdac mini lcd is program Volumio with plugin autostart it means it play last radio station after raspberry boot. She has an idea if something similar is also in cxn v2....
You can add digital stations to presets (think 6?)
 

octavius

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Aha, thx 6 is enough for she. ;) It's possible to change them through the remote control or directly on the unit?
 

Jimbob54

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Aha, thx 6 is enough for she. ;) It's possible to change them through the remote control or directly on the unit?
Cant recall. It's easier to set them up on the app then just select from unit /remote
 

octavius

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Great! I can set it up in application and she can control and change preset through the remote control. That's fayn :))
 

Jimbob54

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Great! I can set it up in application and she can control and change preset through the remote control. That's fayn :))
Actually, just tested. You can find a station through just the device using the wheel and clicking on letters on the on screen keyboard then assign it to a preset by just using the on device controls. But it's a faff! However selecting a preset channel to play via just the on device controls is easy. Even easier with the remote as its one button press.
 

Damned

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I bought a CXN in... (let me check) in late 2015 (wooa that old !) and this little piece of audio gear never stopped to amaze me. Reliability is fantastic as I use(d) it almost everyday for countless hours since then and it still automatically updates its firmware every now and then, yes after 7 years it still does and it's flawless without any intervention. I used it with high end hifi and around tv. I even use both xlr & rca outputs with an svs sub all the time (and flying mole mono amp). I also used it with lots of active studio monitors, (even Kii tree) and my Buchardt A700. So yes its definitely a nice, reliable, versatile and not overpriced piece of audio equipment. I just ordered a Sandoz SGD1 Dac that will - maybe - make a nice dac upgrade, we'll see. My 2 cents. NB. In 7 years they just released a V2 with airplay 2, only difference.
 
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Deleted member 48437

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Cambridge Audio CXN V2 Measurements (Streamer & DAC)

View attachment 197254

Hey folks,

Here is a quick review, measurements-based, of the Cambridge Audio CXN V2 streamer and DAC. It has been kindly loaned to me by @biglebowski. It was released in 2018 and is somehow quite popular in Europe. Actual MSRP in France is 1139€. This testing happened, coincidently, with the (terrible) review Amir just published for the CXA81 amplifier. Hopefully, the performance here does have nothing in common with the aforementioned.

View attachment 197255

The unit does have a bunch of digital inputs and outputs, with a lot of wireless support : Wi-Fi, BT, Chromecast, StreamMagic app, Roon Ready, Airplay, DLNA, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect, Qobuz Connect and so on... Overall build quality is good, I just found it to be a bit light for its size. UI is smooth and fast and the (not notched) volume knob has a good feeling and feedback.

CXN uses some very old Wolfson WM8740 DAC chips, that were quite popular in the early 2010's and known for their "warm and dynamic sound", if I recall correctly.:cool: Cambridge also advertises this to use internal (and non-bypassable) 24b/384Khz upsampling. Honestly, we should not pay attention to this kind of gimmicks. What we care about is what comes out of the analog outputs. Let's see how this affects (or does not) the performance...

Disclaimer: Measurements you are about to see are not intended to be as precise or extensive than what you get from a 30k€ AP. There is obviously both hardware and software limitations here, so not quite apples to apples comparison with Amir's testing. For example, I estimated SINAD (AKA THD+N) to be usually 5 to 6dB worse with my measurements rig, when compared to ASR reviews of the exact same products. Still, this data is enough to have a pretty good idea if the gear is bad or not, stellar, broken, or sub-par...

- ADC : E1DA Cosmos (Grade B), set to 4.5Vrms input for measuring XLR, or 2.7Vrms for RCA. Minimum phase filter. (3.5Vrms and 1.7Vrms have been used for preamp)
- Software : RMAA 6.4.5 PRO and Multitone Loopback Analyzer 1.0.13.
- Method : 8 runs for each test, then I chose the closest to the average. All tests are running 24bits / 44.1Khz.
- Cambridge CXN V2 : Fixed XLR outputs and USB input for most tests, unless specified otherwise. I cannot measure its output voltage precisely, but it is no doubt higher than the 4.1Vrms out of my Matrix, since RMAA sees the CXN at least 1dB stronger.

RMAA Summary
Test
Results
RMAA rating
Frequency response (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB
+0.02, -0.07
Excellent
Noise level, dB (A)
-117.4
Excellent
Dynamic range, dB (A)
117.4
Excellent
THD, %
0.00055
Excellent
THD + Noise, dB (A)
-101.0
Excellent
IMD + Noise, %
0.00084
Excellent
Stereo crosstalk, dB
-116.5
Excellent
IMD at 10 kHz, %
0.00084
Excellent

Frequency responseView attachment 193670

Left​
Right​
From 20 Hz to 20 kHz, dB
-0.19, +0.02​
-0.18, +0.02​
From 40 Hz to 15 kHz, dB
-0.07, +0.02​
-0.07, +0.02​

Noise level

Left​
Right​
RMS power, dB
-116.1​
-116.1​
RMS power (A-weighted), dB
-117.3​
-117.5​
Peak level, dB FS
-91.0​
-90.8​
DC offset, %
-0.0​
+0.0​

THD + Noise (at -3 dBFS)View attachment 193667

Left​
Right​
THD, %
0.00057​
0.00053​
THD + Noise, %
0.00078​
0.00074​
THD + Noise (A-weighted), %
0.00093​
0.00088​

Dynamic rangeView attachment 193669

Left​
Right​
Dynamic range, dB
+116.1​
+116.2​
Dynamic range (A-weighted), dB
+117.3​
+117.4​
DC offset, %
-0.00​
+0.00​

Intermodulation distortion (swept tones)View attachment 193671

Left​
Right​
IMD + Noise at 5000 Hz,
0.00100​
0.00090​
IMD + Noise at 10000 Hz,
0.00078​
0.00073​
IMD + Noise at 15000 Hz,
0.00084​
0.00077​

Intermodulation distortionView attachment 193673

Left​
Right​
IMD + Noise, %​

0.00085​
0.00082​
IMD + Noise (A-weighted), %​
0.00071​
0.00068​

Stereo crosstalkView attachment 193675

Left​
Right​
Crosstalk at 100 Hz, dB
-111​
-112​
Crosstalk at 1000 Hz, dB
-116​
-115​
Crosstalk at 10000 Hz, dB
-116​
-116​


RCA Measurements
View attachment 193679
Test​
Cambridge CXN V2 USB (RCA)​
Cambridge CXN V2 USB (XLR)​
Frequency response (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB​
+0.02, -0.07​
+0.02, -0.07​
Noise level, dB (A)​
-110.1​
-117.4​
Dynamic range, dB (A)​
109.8​
117.4​
THD, %​
0.00121​
0.00055​
IMD + Noise, %​
0.00189​
0.00084​
Stereo crosstalk, dB​
-104.4​
-116.5​

Performance goes down quite a bit using RCA outputs. Please note that my Cosmos ADC is not optimized for unbalanced measurements. Still, I've got better results from either Topping E30 or my Matrix Mini-i Pro 3 when measuring SE outputs. I consider this to be "good enough" for transparent music listening, but I would recommend to better use XLR outputs if you plan to buy a CXN.​


USB versus S/PDIF
Test​
Cambridge CXN V2 USB (XLR)​
Cambridge CXN V2 S/PDIF Toslink (XLR)​
Frequency response (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB​
+0.02, -0.07​
+0.02, -0.10​
Noise level, dB (A)​
-117.4​
-117.0​
Dynamic range, dB (A)​
117.4​
116.9​
THD, %​
0.00055​
0.00056​
IMD + Noise, %​
0.00084​
0.00083​
Stereo crosstalk, dB​
-116.5​
-115.9​

Performance is mostly identical with whatever USB, Coax, or Optical input.


"Digital Preamp" mode
Test​
Volume 25/30 (relative to 3.5Vrms input)​
Volume 20/30 (relative to 1.7Vrms input)​
Frequency response (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB​
+0.01, -0.08​
+0.02, -0.07​
Noise level, dB (A)​
-113.7​
-102.1​
Dynamic range, dB (A)​
113.7​
101.9​
THD, %​
0.00019​
0.00033​
IMD + Noise, %​
0.00084​
0.00274​
Stereo crosstalk, dB​
-112.5​
-101.1​


That is expected behaviour: only SNR goes down along with the signal, which is typical of digital attenuation. I found no other issues which would not be related to higher noise with lower signal.​


Multitone Analyzer (100 tones, 5 averages)

XLR
View attachment 193864

RCA
View attachment 193865

Multitone tells the same story : you get good performance out of balanced outputs, and not that great (yet acceptable) from RCA. In fairness, tho, even RCA did still perform a touch better than the Schiit Modi 3 I measured in this same test.

Conclusions
Unlike the CXA81 that is supposed to be paired with, the CXN V2 did not fail to produce good results. What you do not have here is State Of The Art performance, when comparing to some budget DACs from most famous Chinese manufacturers. What you do have, tho, is audible transparency, along with tons of features and connectivity. These are what you pay for. This review being focused on objective performance only, I let @biglebowski comments about regular usage.

Flanker rating: Competent (XLR). Good enough (RCA).
I need a streamer with XLR outputs. If this one doesn’t make u jump out of your seat, which one in that price range or under do u recommend? I need XLR outputs. BTW, my Cambridge 851A does not have digital inputs
 
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Deleted member 48437

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With the Cambridge do u need anything proprietary like a subscription to use your cell on top of the Quobuz subscription?
 
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Deleted member 48437

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Actually, just tested. You can find a station through just the device using the wheel and clicking on letters on the on screen keyboard then assign it to a preset by just using the on device controls. But it's a faff! However selecting a preset channel to play via just the on device controls is easy. Even easier with the remote as its one button press.
What is a faff, please? Good or bad thing?
Apologies if misunderstood or I wasn't clear, however I did not mean all Cambridge products and I assumed (wrongly it seems) people would understand that being a comment in this specific review thread. I see now the comment I replied to was more general, so I should have specified myself in my response.


JSmith
u r fine
 

diddley

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Yes the so called Stream Magic does tidal deezer apple music spotify amazon and lots of radio stations
 
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Deleted member 48437

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does the CXN v2 have an internal amplifier? I would not be using that if it did.
I did not understand what Quobuz native means. Is that the one where I need another software or can just use it right on the front face of the machine?
Lastly, does it have a video out or if my tv is connected to the same LAN can I see what my music selection will be from my tv screen?
 

JSmith

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What is a faff, please?
1655430540236.png

In the used context, it meant the process was a bit of a hassle or slightly annoying.


JSmith
 

Somafunk

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You can use the excellent Cambridge audio phone/iPad app (StreamMagic app) to control everything and see what is playing or use the front panel or the remote control, qobuz compatibility is built in to the cxnv2.

You will connect to your 851a using the xlr from the cxnv2 output into the 851a xlr input and the 851a will power your speaker, the cxnv2 does not have an amplifier
 
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