It probably depends on which game you are playing.Sold my SD9 and bought an SMSL SMS200 ultra neo. Game over!
thats my worry. You already have it enjoy ittoday is my 2nd day listening to the Zen. So far no difference with my Pi4. I did a quick measurement using Rightmark audio analyzer, most of the numbers of the Zen are better than Pi4 but my ears couldn't tell.
Could you elaborate more on the versions you’re referring to? I bought one of the first run units and had connection issues until I upgraded the firmware. I’m running the latest beta (which can be accessed by connecting via iFi.local/dev and turning on Developer Mode) and connections are flawless. If you’ve found issues despite upgrading the firmware, what else was changed in later hardware versions?i have had mine for 2 months this may tell me that yours is a latter production run and hence no connection errors. this is my second unit that was probably built in late July. can i have your serial number? if this is true IFI should issue a recall on earlier units. have not heard from them btw. i agree the sound is very very good but for all the trouble and anxiety that this has added on top of Covid. i am tempted to go with a Auralic G1. life is short, this helps. please keep us posted, thank you.
I have an IFI iDSD pro. The software and app aspect are utter crap. Put me off the brand for QA reasons.Hi,
I want to choose a streamer / player for my existing system with dac. I can choose between SMSL SD 9 and IFI ZEN STREAM. What shall I choose? I currently have a Qobuz subscription which I prefer, but may well choose Tidal Hifi if the integration to the player is better. My current streamer is RaspberryPi 2GB with Volumio.
Best Regards
I have a Zen Stream that I’m extremely happy with. I am running it via an Audioquest Coffee 0.75m usb cable into a Topping D90se, an iFi Pro ICAN Signature amp and Focal Utopia cans. I considered higher priced streamer options such as Cambridge or Matrix Audio offerings but once I tried this I really couldn’t justify the extra expense, specifically because I use Roon as my music interface and the ZS is one of the few dedicated network audio streamers with Roon built in. The ZS has its own GUI and app that I find fairly limited, but with Roon it knocks it out of the park.Hi,
I want to choose a streamer / player for my existing system with dac. I can choose between SMSL SD 9 and IFI ZEN STREAM. What shall I choose? I currently have a Qobuz subscription which I prefer, but may well choose Tidal Hifi if the integration to the player is better. My current streamer is RaspberryPi 2GB with Volumio.
Best Regards
yesterday i went down to the local Nad dealer and borrowed a Node 2i. on sale now so i thought i would bring it back and see if it would work in my hotel environment without all the issues i had with the Zen Stream even with the latest firmware installed. first of all unlike the Zen Stream it was very easy to set up. no configuration, just plug in the ethernet, RCA, and power cord and than launch Roon and select the Bluesound. it plays without crashing, no dropouts, and the DAC is reseasonbly good. so the ZS must be allergic to my network here. anyway i will buy the Node. as a transport the ZS may be a hair more transparent, but its very close. maybe at some future date the Ifi will work here.Could you elaborate more on the versions you’re referring to? I bought one of the first run units and had connection issues until I upgraded the firmware. I’m running the latest beta (which can be accessed by connecting via iFi.local/dev and turning on Developer Mode) and connections are flawless. If you’ve found issues despite upgrading the firmware, what else was changed in later hardware versions?
I think you're going to be happy with the Node. I sure am with mine.yesterday i went down to the local Nad dealer and borrowed a Node 2i. on sale now so i thought i would bring it back and see if it would work in my hotel environment without all the issues i had with the Zen Stream even with the latest firmware installed. first of all unlike the Zen Stream it was very easy to set up. no configuration, just plug in the ethernet, RCA, and power cord and than launch Roon and select the Bluesound. it plays without crashing, no dropouts, and the DAC is reseasonbly good. so the ZS must be allergic to my network here. anyway i will buy the Node. as a transport the ZS may be a hair more transparent, but its very close. maybe at some future date the Ifi will work here.
Do you have multicast on in your router? That fixed a lot of issues for me. Glad you’re happy with your setup as is. I hope BlueSound releases the USB output patch soon.yesterday i went down to the local Nad dealer and borrowed a Node 2i. on sale now so i thought i would bring it back and see if it would work in my hotel environment without all the issues i had with the Zen Stream even with the latest firmware installed. first of all unlike the Zen Stream it was very easy to set up. no configuration, just plug in the ethernet, RCA, and power cord and than launch Roon and select the Bluesound. it plays without crashing, no dropouts, and the DAC is reseasonbly good. so the ZS must be allergic to my network here. anyway i will buy the Node. as a transport the ZS may be a hair more transparent, but its very close. maybe at some future date the Ifi will work here.
not sure what multicast is or if its on my router. for us non technical types the Bluesound is the way to go. just took five minutes to set up. and it just works, its stable and the internal DAC beats my old NAD D1050. wish i had done this months ago. would have saved lots time, $$$ and anguish.Do you have multicast on in your router? That fixed a lot of issues for me. Glad you’re happy with your setup as is. I hope BlueSound releases the USB output patch soon.
...I hope BlueSound releases the USB output patch soon.
And I say enjoy! I’ve just found that for multi room setups or with streaming, turning on multicast in the IPTV settings in the LAN section solves many problems. Peace!not sure what multicast is or if its on my router. for us non technical types the Bluesound is the way to go. just took five minutes to set up. and it just works, its stable and the internal DAC beats my old NAD D1050. wish i had done this months ago. would have saved lots time, $$$ and anguish.
since i was running the Zen Stream wired via ethernet, changing the router setting to multicast would not make a difference?And I say enjoy! I’ve just found that for multi room setups or with streaming, turning on multicast in the IPTV settings in the LAN section solves many problems. Peace!
I'm frustrated with their promise but lack of action on the USB issue.
I'm starting to think Bluesound was disingenuous from the beginning and used the USB Output as a marketing ploy
Depends on whether you’re running a mesh network. If you’re unit is connected to a node, then yes it may improve connectivity. As an example, I am using Roon over a mesh network. Without multicast enabled, my phone would drop the connection to the Roon Core when I moved from one room of my house to another. Multicast fixed this. It has the greatest benefit for multi room audio integration such as Sonos speakers, Roon, or other setups where a central aggregator is having to deploy signals to separate areas.since i was running the Zen Stream wired via ethernet, changing the router setting to multicast would not make a difference?