Mytek Brooklyn Bridge II Streamer Review

[Tks]

When getting into audio a few years back I recall seeing this company's devices, but nothing in terms of serious performance measurements of note. The price was high back then, and it seems even higher now. So glad I went the RME route instead (I was mostly looking for all-in-one desktop devices, so while I don't have streaming, I get basically everything else I needed).

I always have a sneaking suspicion of literally any electronic producing company that actually works in NYC metro area. They all strike me as pretentious overhyped marketing nonsense. In audio we have Gradio's headphones (who's heads have gone on record saying "we don't listen to measurements, we listen to audio"). And now we have Mytek selling $5K audio devices that questionably clear CD quality on some fronts. It seems anyone working in this city is willing to spend every single cent on perception of their product rather than using the supposed prestige one might assume when you say your company is based in NYC and makes products there.

I get labor costs, and just cost of business here is high. But come on, have some pride and stop being a bunch of charlatans goodness.. As if NYC doesn't have an image problem enough as it is. Get your products at or above competition if you're going to vye for prestige and a higher asking price.

 

[Short38]

Thank you Amir. Another manufacturer to be avoided at all costs.

 

[levimax]

While it seems like a cool idea to have all this functionality and an internal PS stuffed inside such a compact enclosure there is a reason it isn't done often and even more rare to see it is done well.

 

[Blumlein 88]

When getting into audio a few years back I recall seeing this company's devices, but nothing in terms of serious performance measurements of note. The price was high back then, and it seems even higher now. So glad I went the RME route instead (I was mostly looking for all-in-one desktop devices, so while I don't have streaming, I get basically everything else I needed).

I always have a sneaking suspicion of literally any electronic producing company that actually works in NYC metro area. They all strike me as pretentious overhyped marketing nonsense. In audio we have Gradio's headphones (who's heads have gone on record saying "we don't listen to measurements, we listen to audio"). And now we have Mytek selling $5K audio devices that questionably clear CD quality on some fronts. It seems anyone working in this city is willing to spend every single cent on perception of their product rather than using the supposed prestige one might assume when you say your company is based in NYC and makes products there.

I get labor costs, and just cost of business here is high. But come on, have some pride and stop being a bunch of charlatans goodness.. As if NYC doesn't have an image problem enough as it is. Get your products at or above competition if you're going to vye for prestige and a higher asking price.

Mytek could benefit from buying the RME ADI 2 Pro FS just to measure their products. Not as good as an AP, but good enough for designing so they could make much better gear. That is somewhat amazing about this and some other over-priced vs performance gear. For $2k they could have something to measure well enough to improve their gear or at least have a real idea of how well it does. That way they wouldn't be terribly embarrassed when it is measured. I guess if they thought this way they wouldn't spend all their effort marketing BS like analog power supplies.

 

[dtaylo1066]

If you have a $20,000 door in your house you now have a worthy door stop. I personally have never heard a Mytek product but from the company reputation was expecting this to have stellar measurements. Inexcusable performance for the cost. Booooooooooo.

 

[dtaylo1066]

I'm never dabbled with dedicated streamers or even the PC version of it, but theoretically even an Android phone plugged to a USB DAC can do everything they can.

My Asus Tinkerboard running Volumio via USB input to my old Emotiva Stealth DAC (with analog input) is looking pretty good right now, despite being 7 or 8 years old and costing a total of $600.

And it all runs just fine on my Galaxy Android tablet, iPhone or my wife's i-Pad.

 

[CleanSound]

$5k. . .good lord.

Amir, "The Ripoff Slayer"

 

[Highvolt60]

Looks not so good in a S-pile review also.
https://www.stereophile.com/content...bridge-ii-roon-core-preamplifier-measurements

You can only put so much shit in a little box (a phono preamp with all the one & zero's floating around too).

 

[sam_adams]

As if NYC doesn't have an image problem enough as it is.

As any born-and-bred resident of the borough will tell you, Brooklyn is not New York City.

 

[GPJ]

Sheriff Amir waylays another Rhinestone Cowboy .......

 

[DWPress]

Voted "poor" on price alone.

 

[JaMaSt]

I don't know that I would ever name something I'm selling the "Brooklyn Bridge." I'm just saying....

For those outside the US.

George C. Parker - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Tks]

As any born-and-bred resident of the borough will tell you, Brooklyn is not New York City.

Meh, I guess Jersey and Staten Island getting dogged on wasn't enough? Though to be fair, Jersey isn't NYC

 

[Pinkynator]

When I first started reading (it's 6 in the morning right now), I thought it's not THAT bad for a $500 device.

Then people in the comments started mentioning $5.000 - surely they misread the correct price.

I scrolled back to the top.

 

[Blumlein 88]

I don't know that I would ever name something I'm selling the "Brooklyn Bridge." I'm just saying....

For those outside the US.

George C. Parker - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

So maybe it was appropriately named.

 

[DHT 845]

Now it's time for Playback Designs MPD-8.

 

[audiotron]

I thought Chord Electronics was bad...

 

[Billy Budapest]

Performance is meh, but functionality is great. Price is high and value proposition is horrible. Still, I couldn’t get myself to give it a poor rating, so a ‘not terrible’ it is. The fact that as a DAC the $16 Apple USB-C headphone adapter outperforms it is telling.

 

[Rja4000]

Thanks for this review.
Another brand with strong marketing but poor engineering.
Very disappointing.

I was balancing between "Not terrible" (you still cover 16 bits audio) and "Poor".
But this filter justifies the "Poor" rating, IMO.
Especially when added to the price and to the disappointment.

 

[KSTR]

Looks like any analog/instrumentation design experts have left the company long ago.
That power supply design was doomed to fail right from the start unless you have real experts at work but it's good for marketing (they even proudly printed "linear supply" on the case).