Powernode 2i and Vinyl

Answered
Neil Ingle

Hello group,

I am contemplating purchasing into Bluesound.  My listening habits are vinyl for 'sit down and listen properly' music, and digital for everything else (including multiroom streaming - I have a Squeezebox configuration).  I am most concerned about the vinyl quality.

So, with the above in mind, I like the idea of the convenience of plugging my phono preamp into the Powernode, but am concerned about sound quality degradation.  In which case, I'd consider the Node, and keep vinyl out of it (then I'd keep my old amp, which I wanted to replace).

How does the Powernode treat vinyl?  Is it straight in and out via analogue, or AD --> DA? (I accept that if I were to stream vinyl in future to other rooms then of course it has to be digitised).

Underpinning this question is the choice between Node + new amp vs Powernode, and I'm pondering that!

    Neil.

 

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3 comments

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  • Official comment
    Tony W.
    Product Support Manager

    Hi Neil

    Before upgrading my own gear with help from our friends down the hall with an NAD C658 and C268 (which include a phone pre-stage and analogue bypass built-in), I was using a POWERNODE and had an NAD PP2i connected via the analogue port. This setup admittedly converts the analogue signal to a digital 24/96. It sounds great but the newer setup (though a little more pricey) does have some added benefits such as a pure analogue signal if I'm not grouping my vinyl.

  • Neil Ingle

    Thanks Tony.  Do you mean that the Powernode 2i offers a pure analogue signal 'pass-through' over the Powernode 2?

    I did have a think about the Analog --> Digital --> Analog thing.  One of the big sound features of vinyl is the mix (which I find is more 'wider' than digital which tends to be more 'compressed') - if that mix is preserved in the lossless conversion to digital then there's no reason why it shouldn't sound the same on the way out.

    I will continue to ponder the merits of a Powernode 2i over a separate amp + Node 2i.  Thanks again.

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  • Tony W.
    Product Support Manager

    There is no analogue bypass in Bluesound Players, just in the NAD C658.

    And yes, I totally understand it is more about the mix. I had my turntable connected to the POWERNODE 2 for years and was quite happy. There were multiple factors why I switched and some were work-related. Visual aesthetics is a definite reason NOT to switch.

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