Two questions.
Hands up
anyone who wants to stream music to just about any room of their home?
Just as we
thought, everyone wants a slice of the wireless, multi-room streaming
experience.
And why wouldn’t they want an effortless way of enjoying their favourite music
without a tangle of expensive wires?
Second and
most vital question.
Pinkies
skywards for all those who want their music streamed in a 24-bit native,
high-resolution format? Again everyone answers in the affirmative.
Just as
well. There are dozens of competing and some very well entrenched, wireless
systems that boast the ability to fill every room with wirelessly transmitted
audio.
Truth is
there’s only one brand to turn to for high-resolution, multi-room wireless
bliss. That’s the one and only Bluesound.
Launched
recently in Australia following its American debut, the very talented range of
Bluesound models have created quite a buzz in the wireless audio space.
We were
quick to borrow samples from the Australian distributor, Convoy, preceding the
launch. Our verdict was overwhelmingly positive: this new brand has re-imagined
how consumers want to use this technology and come up with a clever blend of
performance and convenience.
Quite simply
and hands on our hearts we have to report the Bluesound family, called the
NODE, POWERNODE, VAULT, PULSE and DUO are sonically in the premier league when
it comes to great sound.
In
comparison, the rivals, as good as they are can’t challenge the Bluesound range
when it comes to quality of sound.
Little
wonder Geoff Matthews, Convoys CEO is smiling.
“We’re
extremely proud to introduce Bluesound to Australia”, he says.
”We
understand what music lovers need to get the perfect wireless, digital era, perfect
listening experience. So we are understandably excited about launching the
Bluesound family of products into the hands of Australian consumers.”
The Bluesound platform is clearly deeply talented and handles a
mountain load of streaming services. Popular services such as Spotify Connect,
Rdio and Tunein are inbuilt, as is the new Lossless subscription service from
Tidal. The latter delivers access to over 25 million songs in CD-quality
resolution, enabling owners to fully enjoy the superior sound performance of Bluesound provides.
All Bluesound models carry a decent 2-year warranty and the Bluesound
range is only available exclusively through a carefully picked network of
trained Specialist retailers throughout Australia.
The
Bluesound range kicks off with the NODE. This svelte model is a non-amplified
wireless streaming music player designed to link all of your digital music to
any existing stereo system that has a digital or analog input connection, and
the majority do.
The NODE is
all about 24-bit high-resolution music and supports all streaming music formats
such as MP3, AAC, FLAC, WAV and more. Price is $749.
The
POWERNODE is all of the above but adds a patented, award winning premium grade
DirectDigital (DDFA) stereo amplifier to its heady list of features, for a mere
$450 more. While it only draws half the power of most of its rivals, output is
a hefty but energy efficient 90-watts. POWERNODE operates using a 35-bit/844KHz
DDFA technology to efface any noise or distortion. Price is $1,199.
Bluesound’s
contribution to a bit-perfect CD-ripper complete with an acoustically silent 2TB
hard drive is called the VAULT. We used our sample to rip fave CDS. But you can
rip an entire collection quickly and effortlessly using lossless high-resolution
formats without a computer. Price is $1599. Of course with 2TB of storage on
board, the VAULT is the ideal place to host all your digital files – right up
to 24-Bit, 192kHz HD resolution- for seamless access from Bluesound’s slick
control App. Speaking of which, the powerful and appealing interface known as
BluOs- 100% owned and controlled by Bluesound, is available for most touch
devices including iPad, iPhone, Android and Kindle Fire, and there’s also a
desktop app available for Windows and Mac users. Have they overlooked anything?
We think not.
Space
challenged music lovers should note that the VAULT is a bit larger than the
NODE. The VAULT is 293mm wide and the
NODE is 205mm wide.
A compact
speaker system that’s also a powerful music streamer makes great sense.
Bluesound’s all-in-one solution is called the PULSE. What’s more it was
designed by famous speaker whiz, Paul Barton and it’s custom tuned for 24-bit
listening pleasure. Inside the enclosure and providing the scintillating sound
are two full range 2.75-inch aluminum cone drivers and a 5.25-inch subwoofer.
Price is $1,199
Who wouldn’t
want high quality sound to match a high quality TV picture? Now you can by
linking the DUO, Bluesound’s compact powered subwoofer and satellite speakers,
together with a POWERNODE, to a slinky flatscreen telly.
This
combination featuring an 8-inch powered subwoofer and satellites with 4-inch
woofers and 1-inch tweeters generates 280 watts. It also offers precision-tuned
digital equalization with the POWERNODE’s DirectDigital amplifier. Price is $1699.
For more
information: www.convoy.com.au
