Experience with Bluesound Node 2 use with external DAC

Randyhat,

Bluesound Node 2 plus Nordost power cable and Acoustic Zen Matrix interconnects is what I have installed and it's the ideal player for me. Not to mention the interface the Node 2 has. It's the best product out there period. 

I have a very revealing system: Rogue 99 magnum preamp, Pass Labs XA30.8, Goldenear Tritons One, with sources fed clean AC via a PS Audio P5. The slightest weak link is ruthlessly revealed. I had thought my Bluesound Node 2 sounded great by itself initially, but it started to grate on me. The mids over time were harsh and the bass was not very full compared to my turntable. I suspected the built in analog section in the Node 2 was not up to snuff. After all, it's done with integrated circuits. So I picked up a used Bryston BDA-2 to fix the problem. And man does it sound awesome. The discrete class A output section in that unit is much better than the conversion in the Node 2. So yes, do yourself a favor and get a good DAC. You may not need the latest and greatest with regard to MQA and DSD. What really matters is the execution on the analog side, I believe. The BDA-2 is certainly up to the task for me for a while.

I'm fascinated to read so many rave reviews about the Bluesound.  Sounds like most folks have the Node, rather than the Vault.  Which makes me wonder where you are storing your music files, in the case of Node users.  Are you streaming music files from your computer, or from a NAS?  I have a MacBook Pro  - what's the SQ like with a Node streaming music from such a computer?  Is this done wirelessly or hardwired?  Thanks for your insights.

I wirelessly stream my ripped cds from my Vault 2 in my study to my Node 2 in my listening room. I was sold on the Vault 2 because it supposedly does a better job ripping than a regular cd drive on a computer by ripping a "bit perfect" copy to Flac, plus the Vault is always on, unlike my computer. I like having a dedicated server to play my music. I also store downloaded Hdtracks files on it.

As far as wireless quality in and of itself, I'd think the source wouldn't matter, whether it's your computer or a Vault, but that's just a guess. I do know there's no loss in quality from wirelessly streaming from a Vault to a Node vs having the Node also wired by Ethernet. I do get signal loss sometimes though. I'd like to run Ethernet cables in more of my house but I'm not ready to do that because it's quite a project.