Bluesound releases 2024 ICON streamer

[rdytro]

Well, all the issues here, elsewhere and the shop that told me it had been delayed due to QC issues saying they're not ordering more at this point due to issues they'd had with the initial batch has been enough to put me off. That and virtually all the 'positive' stuff in this and other forums being from people who appear to be affiliated in some way with Lenbrook or their products.

 

[sapphari]

Now the real question is how the Node Icon measures. The QRONO d2a will hurt THD on synthetic tests, but the real question will be residual noise, crosstalk, and AC mains noise.

@GXAlan Can you expand on why Qrono will hurt THD? Does that mean Qrono is a bad thing, or THD measurement is not an accurate reflection of sound quality?

 

[pogo]

all the issues here, elsewhere

Can you list the confirmed issues that can be attributed to the Icon? This could be helpful for future purchasing decisions.

 

[mermayer]

Well, all the issues here

I would also be very interested in these known issues. Thanks.

 

[darth]

WiiM Ultra does not seem to power down (or go into standby) with CEC power down.

Circling back on this, my Wiim ultra goes into standby as soon as I turn my TV off. LG G4 in my case. Node icon did not. Also I do like I can adjust the standby time for wiim whereas the node is fixed at 15min. Also contrary to posts in the Wiim ultra thread, I have yet to experience an audio drop out (but I do have a DAC between it and speakers via USB)

 

[castalla]

Circling back on this, my Wiim ultra goes into standby as soon as I turn my TV off. LG G4 in my case. Node icon did not. Also I do like I can adjust the standby time for wiim whereas the node is fixed at 15min. Also contrary to posts in the Wiim ultra thread, I have yet to experience an audio drop out (but I do have a DAC between it and speakers via USB)

How do the 2 different screen sizes compare? Is the icon better at a distance?

 

[darth]

How do the 2 different screen sizes compare? Is the icon better at a distance?

For me, they both meh, but the icon does have a larger screen, so will be better. The font face changing on Wiim seemed better. Wiim in general seems to have a more feature rich and intuitive app/software. Both show volume UI similar. Wish it was larger though. But I am 10 feet away, and the only things I care about are volume meter and clock. Rest is pretty much unreadable and useless if like me you are primarily using it via HDMI arc.

Since WiimU doesn't have airplay, I will have to use my apple tv to airplay/stream. I could airplay directly to node. Since Node doesn't have Google cast, I was using my Google TV to cast. I can Google cast directly to WiimU. So in that regards I loose out on 1 and gain the other lol. I am an android phone user and an iPad user. In an ideal world each of the devices will have Google cast and airplay, maybe they will some day via firmware upgrade. Till then I am stuck with using either the Apple TV or Google TV.

The icon's top controls are quite unintuitive, borderline poor design/accessibility. WiimU round button control is better.

Forgot to mention, 1 big thing missing from WiimU is lack of USB input. If that's important, Node icon will be better. Since my wiimU is connected to a DAC, I will just use the dacs USB input if I need to connect directly to the speakers. But yeah, its definitely an additional device and more wires. Node was just a single box, albeit 3x the cost.

Now that I know that the WiimU can control the USB out volume (something the node icon could not), I might drop the DAC and replace it with my QU02 DDC. In this way I can just feed my powered speakers digitally over AES.

 

[castalla]

For me, they both meh, but the icon does have a larger screen, so will be better. The font face changing on Wiim seemed better. Wiim in general seems to have a more feature rich and intuitive app/software. Both show volume UI similar. Wish it was larger though. But I am 10 feet away, and the only things I care about are volume meter and clock. Rest is pretty much unreadable and useless if like me you are primarily using it via HDMI arc.

Since WiimU doesn't have airplay, I will have to use my apple tv to stream and can airplay to the apple tv also. I can Google cast directly to WiimU. Since Node doesn't have Google cast, I was using my Google TV to cast. I could airplay directly to node. So in that regards I loose out on 1 and gain the other lol. I am an android phone user and an iPad user. In an ideal world each of the devices will have Google cast and airplay, maybe they will some day via firmware upgrade. Till then I am stuck with using either the Apple TV or Google TV.

The icon's top controls are quite unintuitive, borderline poor design/accessibility. WiimU round button control is better.

Forgot to mention, 1 big thing missing from WiimU is lack of USB input. If that's important, Node icon will be better. Since my wiimU is connected to a DAC, I will just use the dacs USB input if I need to connect directly to the speakers. But yeah, its definitely an additional device and more wires. Node was just a single box, albeit 3x the cost.

The lack of chromecast & upnp, plus dependence on TuneIn, is pretty much a deal breaker for me. The Eversolo looks like a better option.

 

[Vive la dissonance!]

...virtually all the 'positive' stuff in this and other forums being from people who appear to be affiliated in some way with Lenbrook or their products.

I wrote positive comments in this thread, and I am not "affiliated" with Lenbrook, nor any other tech or audio products company.

I am very well pleased with the Bluesound Node Icon.

 

[darth]

Resolving Ground Loop Noise Issues with the NODE ICON and XLR Connections

The Bluesound NODE ICON is a two-plug power product with no ground. It has a floating ground as it is the preferred grounding style for audiophiles. The NODE ICON does not have the provision to con...

support1.bluesound.com

Looks like they officially said, go figure it out on your own, we aren't changing our "audiophile" design.

 

[GXAlan]

Where downmixing is possible, theater mode should also be possible

Should is different from actual implementation. Lots of Dirac enabled products should support ART.

(but I do have a DAC between it and speakers via USB)

Interesting. I didn’t think about using the WiiM Ultra when I had it that way. If the DAC had XLR out, it might have avoided the hum I got with my WiiM Ultra.

Waiting with trepidation for my Node Icon to arrive. At the very least, I didn’t have to have to pay full price for my Icon.

Resolving Ground Loop Noise Issues with the NODE ICON and XLR Connections

The Bluesound NODE ICON is a two-plug power product with no ground. It has a floating ground as it is the preferred grounding style for audiophiles. The NODE ICON does not have the provision to con...

support1.bluesound.com

Looks like they officially said, go figure it out on your own, we aren't changing our "audiophile" design.

It’s definitely not 100% straightforward.

Sound System Interconnection

RaneNote 110 explains the cause and prevention of ground loops and how to interface balanced and unbalanced gear with proper connections and wiring.

www.ranecommercial.com

Ground Loops 101

< Author's note: Like many of these articles, this one is about ten years old and could probably be updated. Maybe when I retire... Until then, the basic information should still prove useful. I hope. - Don > This article is to help show what causes those pesky ground loops many of us have had...

www.audiosciencereview.com

@DonH56 , can you add some insights to this? Short summary is that the Bluesound Node Icon is a balanced differential source with a floating earth ground. People are getting ground loops with XLR connections which can be homebrewed reduced but not eliminated by tying RCA shields to earth ground, etc.

How does it work when you have a mix of floating ground source with three prong amplifier/active speaker. We usually think of unbalanced connections as being more susceptible to ground loops, but in this case, it sounds like switching to unbalanced connections reduces the hum.

 

[pogo]

Lots of Dirac enabled products should support ART.

Correct.

 

[Esprit]

Resolving Ground Loop Noise Issues with the NODE ICON and XLR Connections

The Bluesound NODE ICON is a two-plug power product with no ground. It has a floating ground as it is the preferred grounding style for audiophiles. The NODE ICON does not have the provision to con...

support1.bluesound.com

Looks like they officially said, go figure it out on your own, we aren't changing our "audiophile" design.

What a stupid answer they gave, they basically got the design wrong.
It's full of double insulated devices that obviously don't have "hum" issues.

 

[James240]

My local shop has an Icon reserved for me, it should arrive in 4 days. Will be picking it up provided I don't get cold feet for some reason!

Does this thread give you cold feet ! i was pondering how much of a upgrade icon will be over the wiim ultra

 

[castalla]

Does this thread give you cold feet ! i was pondering how much of a upgrade icon will be over the wiim ultra

The only plus over the Ultra is a larger screen. In other respects the icon has many fewer features.

 

[GXAlan]

Correct.

But ART is still only available on one device. So suggesting that the Node Icon works as a home theatre L/R is probably best avoided no matter how much of a NAD/Bluesound fan you are (unless you have some insider info).

What a stupid answer they gave, they basically got the design wrong.
It's full of double insulated devices that obviously don't have "hum" issues.

Agree. It would be interesting to see how it measures. If it measures well, then it’s well engineered but with different set of priorities.

If you look at Meyer Sound gear they talk about avoiding connecting to chassis ground.

Does this thread give you cold feet ! i was pondering how much of a upgrade icon will be over the wiim ultra

I got my WiiM Ultra right before Christmas when it was just $270 and returned it. Imagine how cold my feet are (!)

What I really want is a Fosi ZD3 Ver2 with more reliable HDMI CEC power. The Fosi was perfect except for that HDMI CEC bug.

The only plus over the Ultra is a larger screen. In other respects the icon has many fewer features.

	WiiM Ultra	Bluesound Node Icon
Ground Loop Resistance	Grounding point	XLR out
Mobile integration	Chromecast	AirPlay 2
HDMI	ARC	eARC
RoomEQ	PEQ only (amplitude)	Dirac (amplitude and phase) with added cost
DSD local file support	No	Yes
Phono Input	Yes	No
Requires Precise Location Privilege for iOS app	Yes	No
Digital Filter	User selectable	Fixed, QRONO d2a
WiFi	802.11ax	802.11ac
Headphone Out	Mediocre	THX AAA
1 kHz SINAD	116 dB	???

 

[darth]

Bluesound will likely have less SINAD if you compare the posted THD+N values? But then again can't compare 2 manufacturers this way since we don't know their test params.

USB out from wiim ultra can work with volume control and doesn't work with Node. Or atleast didn't work with 2 of my devices while wiim worked with both.

$330 vs $999

 

[robsonj]

Am I the only one that could hear a sound difference between the wiim and icon? Other people on this thread that had or have both, what is your take? For me, I returned the wiim

 

[sapphari]

Does this thread give you cold feet ! i was pondering how much of a upgrade icon will be over the wiim ultra

It doesn't. I've not seen any deal breakers.

Of course I've considered the Wiim like others have. I will be connecting a turntable, and the phono stage in the Wiim just doesn't cut it. The RCA input on the Wiim is ok, probably good enough for phono with an external phono preamp. What really interests me in the Icon is Dirac. I run it in my car stereo and it's just amazing. So I'm keen to hear it in the home.

 

[pogo]

But ART is still only available on one device.

But hopefully that will change this year with Dirac, i.e. they have incorporated their improvements. Lenbrook/NAD has already announced a stereo device that will receive ART.