internet medicine streamersmay not be the most thrilling devices to look at ( OK , theWiim Ultrais pretty sweet ) . But if you ’ve perplex an older hi - fi system you make out , they ’re the best manner to add modern wireless medicine streaming and even multiroom smarts . Trouble is , the really good one are notoriously expensive , guide anywhere from $ 400 to $ 1,500 depending on features . That ’s what makes the Bluesound Node Nano so beguiling . At $ 299 , it ’s far more low-cost than the caller ’s $ 549 Node — which until now was its most low-cost waft — and yet it still delivers the core multiroom , hi - res audiostreaming capability that have make Bluesound a firm fan base .
To get to that $ 299 price , some features had to be sacrificed : There are no parallel input on the Node Nano , so it ’s strictly for playing digital medicine , and it ca n’t be used as a web bridge for your analog sources . On the other hand , as the name suggests , it has a much smaller step than its big brother .
The patronage - offs are totally worth it . The Bluesound Node Nano will thrill audiophiles who simply want to advance their live systems . It also comes at an interesting sentence . With Sonos owner still inhabit through one ofthe bad app updates in recent memory — one that has rendered the companionship ’s famously popularwireless speakersmuch less stable — the Bluesound Node Nano offer an well-heeled introduction toSonos ’ snug competitor .
Physically , the Node Nano is a sleek and slim little 5.6 - in x 5.6 - inch box that stand just 1.5 inch magniloquent . The matte - black plastic lodging will complement most hi - fi systems . The Node ’s angled front touch panel is both more attractive and well-fixed to apply than the front - facing controls of the Wiim Pro Plus or the top - mounted controls of the more expensive Node . TheSonos Port , by direct contrast , does n’t have any controls of its own . Behind that mite instrument panel is an infrared pass catcher — a ready to hand characteristic that neither Sonos nor Wiim supports .
Despite its size , the Nano is surprisingly brawny at 1.26 pounds . The bigger Wiim Pro Plus , which weighs just 14.1 ounces , is about 30 % lighter . Intellectually , I bonk there ’s no real connection between exercising weight and quality , specially in a product that has no battery , no amplifier , and no internal power supply . My lizard brain begs to disagree . It experience the solid mass in my script and wish it a good deal . Plus , when you place the Node Nano down on a smooth Earth’s surface , it continue put , even with a bit of cable’s length stress on the back .
Bluesound Nano specs
You ’ll see the ports on the back . A set of stereo RCA jak provide for analog output , and you get two flavors of digital ( coax and optical ) in case you want to practice your subsist externaldigital - to - analog converter ( DAC ) . An Ethernet interface gives you a wired connection option , and the USB port lets you tie in a aggregated computer storage equipment like a unvoiced drive . Any music that ’s saved to it can be indexed , look , and shared across any other Bluesound devices in your home .
You also get an IR stimulation ( for hidden installations ) and a 12 - volt induction output to wake up / turn on any connect amplifiers when you start play medicine from the Nano . king to the Nano comes via USB - C , which means you ’ll involve to use the included USB adapter ( with one of several international plug ) and cable or an equivalent weight .
On the bottom are two removable rubber gaskets . The large square ring acts as a nonslip ft and hides the case screws , while the central oval can be pulled away to reveal two four - way mounting holes — a nice touch give that most streamer need ancillary angle bracket for wall - mounting .
In the boxwood , you get the Nano , a USB adapter with four jade types , a USB - C power cable television , an Ethernet cable , and a stereoscopic picture RCA patch corduroy . The absence seizure of an optical or coax cable makes a fairly clear instruction : Bluesound wants you to take advantage of the Node Nano ’s DAC .
Getting the Node Nano congeal up using the Bluesound app ( useable on iOS , Android , Windows , and Mac ) is simple . secure the Nano into your profound system , stop up the Nano into the wall , and then follow the instruction in the app . Less than 2 minutes afterwards , you ’re good to go .
If you ’ve ever used Sonos ( prior to its May 2024 app redesign ) , or Wiim , or Denon ’s HEOS , you ’ll find Bluesound ’s BluOS app very conversant . It use a yellow journalism - based interface with Home , Favourites , Music , Players , and Search check .
From the Music tab , you’re able to append a motley of streaming euphony service to the app or get at your personal music program library if it ’s locate on a connection portion . Currently , BluOS supports dozens of major services likeTidal , Amazon Music , Spotify , Deezer , andQobuz , while famous exception includeApple MusicandYouTube Music .
Each can be browsed or searched , and if you ’ve got make unnecessary track , album , or play list , those will be approachable within BluOS . One area where the software is n’t as sophisticated as that of Wiim , HEOS , or Sonos is the lack of a universal search — search for medicine has to be done on a service - by - service groundwork .
Favourites bring the same way : you could have as many as you want , but to get at them , you ask to pick the relevant service from a drop - down listing first .
Presets are like favorites that you may assign to agile - access keys . The Node Nano lets you access your first two presets from the front controls , but you may store up to 40 within the app .
All of your Bluesound gadget can be recover in the Players tab , where they can be group , ungrouped , and modified via freestanding options Thomas Nelson Page for each twist .
Once you get intimate with where everything is , you notice how fast and responsive BluOS is . Whether you ’re jump out between tabs , searching for content , playing data track , or pass water change to volume levels , things happen very quickly . It ’s quicker than the Wiim app , and let ’s not even mouth about Sonos at the moment .
instead , you could dismiss the BluOS app entirely . The Node Nano works withApple AirPlay 2 , Tidal Connect , and Spotify Connect , plus Bluetooth . If you happen to own a compatible Android phone , it also run with theaptX Adaptive codec , which should give you considerably mellow - caliber streaming than with standardSBC / AAC codecs .
I ’m not sure how unbalanced I am about how the Nano address Bluetooth pairing . It’salwaysavailable to pair . On the good side , this mean your Guest can link up to it easily enough . On the bad side , anyonewithin Bluetooth range can connect to it easily enough . That could essay frustrating in condo life arrangements .
If you ’re a true audiophile , the Nano is alsoRoon Ready , give you yet another option for mastery and playback .
Unfortunately , Bluesound gimmick do n’t supportGoogle Cast , so if you do n’t apply Roon or Tidal Connect , the BluOS app is still your sound bet for mo - perfect , hi - res audio .
speak of Aloha State - res audio recording , I ’d be remiss if I did n’t point out one of the big reasons why audio purists tend to prefer Bluesound over Sonos : Bluesound ’s players and verbalizer can process a broad diversity of lossless audio formatting at up to 24 - bit/192kHz . For its part , Sonos maxes out at 24 - bit/48kHz , which take resampling of any subject with a higher sample charge per unit .
Since Tidalmoved away from the MQA format , the Nano ’s nativeMQAdecoding may not matter much right now . But from a future - proofing percentage point of perspective , it ’s still attractive . Bluesound ’s parent , Lenbrook , enounce it ’s partnering ona new streaming service with HDtracks that will have MQA as an option .
I prepare out to play as much hi - atomic number 75 content as I could , and the Node Nano sounded wild . Since I still had a fixed ofKlipsch ’s The Sevenspowered speakers on hired man from ourWiim Ultra review , they became my trial run organisation . In some style , given the Nano ’s cost , sizing , and features , it ’s the perfect companion to The Sevens . you could punch the Nano into the speakers ’ auxiliary comment and keep the speakers ’ phono input for an actual turntable .
To put the Nano through its footstep , I left all of the deeper options alone except for change the pipeline - out to a fix output level — no changes were made to bass or treble . I then took a deep prima donna through my usual favorites and test tracks on Qobuz , Tidal , and Amazon Music .
The detail and limpidity were immediately noticeable . Even with The Sevens cranked right up , the Nano produced no audible straining .
But The Sevens are great speakers , so to ensure I was n’t just imagining how well the Node Nano performed , I did three sets of A / boron comparisons with a Wiim Pro Plus ( $ 219 ) , a Wiim Ultra ( $ 329 ) , and a Sonos Port ( $ 449 ) . Again , I set all of the devices to their defaults , save for the line - out .
Without any point of comparison , the Pro Plus is more than adequate , as many reviewers have attested . But start bouncing back and forth between it and the Node Nano and that view may bulge out to reposition . I found the Nano to be smoother , with a slightly wider and easily defined soundstage , and it had noticeably white high .
That vantage held dependable when compare the Node Nano to the Sonos Port , but you had to give closemouthed aid to highs to hear where the Nano avoided the Port ’s slenderly crunchy pitch — they were very close .
The Wiim Ultra comparison proved to be the hardest to judge . I threw a number of tracks at the Ultra and Node Nano that should have revealed any implicit in differences , like Steely Dan’sHey Nineteen , Tracy Chapman’sFast Car , and Billie Eilish’sbad bozo . I just could n’t tell them asunder .
coincidently , the Node Nano and the Ultra habituate dissimilar generations of the same ESS DAC check . The Ultra house the ES9038Q2 M , which set up in 2016 , while the Node Nano uses the 2023 ES9039Q2M.
The one domain where Wiim harbour an advantage is EQ . The Node Nano , like the ease of the Bluesound family ( and Sonos ) preserve tuning options very simple : you get a ternary and bass slider . For most folks , this is probably rich . True audio grind , however , might wish for Wiim ’s astonishingly deep equalizer , with its traditional 10 - isthmus lifelike mode and parametric controls .
Many of the thing that have historically bugged me about Bluesound ( no world-wide hunting , no Google Cast , no Universal Plug and Play , no native musical accompaniment for Apple Music ) still bug me . And given that a companionship like Wiim has found solutions to all but the Apple Music issue ( and for a lot less money ) , I ’m even less uncoerced to cut Bluesound slack for these omission .
However , I ’ve still fallen for the Node Nano . It ’s still not as affordable as a Wiim Pro Plus , but at $ 299 , I ’m not complaining . It ’s beautifully designed and built , and the velocity and reactivity of the BluOS app is superb . Unless you ’re an Apple Music / YouTube Music endorser , you ’ll get top - notch audio character from the Node into your hi - fi system .
Yes , you could spend the extra $ 30 for the Wiim Ultra and be rewarded with a lot of extras like analog and HDMI input , a touch screen , a remote , and a headphone squat . But the Ultra is bigger , it needs a place of prominence among your other gear , and it does n’t support Apple AirPlay , something that has proven to be a deal- ledgeman for some would - be Ultra buyers .
There ’s something to be say for a gadget like the Node Nano , with its tight focus on streaming digital audio and crystal clear sound .
