The miniBlink support AAC natively, which is quite cool. If you play compressed MP4 audio, it gets sent as it is, without needing recompression.chebby said:Thinking of Arcam miniBlink (£90) at just over half the price of their rBlink (and both far more attractive and ergonomic too).
That's not a problem for me,Hi-FiOutlaw said:Naim UnitiQute 2 is a very nice unit, the only problem for me is only has one analogue input (1 for the TT and the other for the bypass on the AV)
The UQ2 is a swiss army knife, you wont regret if you get one! It drove my Dyns X12 very well, the DAC quality is the same that you find in Rega DAC and all those goodies in one box!chebby said:That's not a problem for me,Hi-FiOutlaw said:Naim UnitiQute 2 is a very nice unit, the only problem for me is only has one analogue input (1 for the TT and the other for the bypass on the AV)
More importantly, it has two optical digital rear connections (and another mini-Toslink on the front) as well as USB and coa-ax.
It also has a pretty respectable FM/DAB tuner with connection for roof aerials
It has plenty of power for my needs (I am not a head-banger) and it would - with the ATV3 - form the centre of an excellent radio system that also has provision for good stereo sound from the TV/BDP/PVR using it's second optical connection.
I almost bought one last year - until I found they took 2 months to order - but ended up sticking with my system as it is. It was to be an impulse buy. I had money on the hip and wanted to walk off with one right then and there. Naim don't do that. You order it and wait in your place in the line until they get around to making it. If it's their summer hols you add another few weeks.
Maybe next time I have a 'mad moment' there will be one in stock.
I would struggle right now to get a UnitiQute 2 (£1195) so, given that the cheapest Lyric is £2295 (5 version), I'm afraid that your suggestion is not practical.tino said:Chebby... have you looked at the Cyrus Lyric as a potential replacement for your Marantz? It has apt-x built in as well as DAB, Streamer, DAC and a CD Player.
I agree, find a way to spread the cost and get one.chebby said:I would struggle right now to get a UnitiQute 2 (£1195) so, given that the cheapest Lyric is £2295 (5 version), I'm afraid that your suggestion is not practical.tino said:Chebby... have you looked at the Cyrus Lyric as a potential replacement for your Marantz? It has apt-x built in as well as DAB, Streamer, DAC and a CD Player.
I don't mind about losing the CD player part. The one on my Marantz has barely been used in three & a half years. (Except to test it stil works a couple of times a year.)
Ideally someone would be making exactly what I need for about £750 - £900 all-in, but it hasn't happened yet.
TBH, it probably will end up being a UnitiQute 2. (There seems to be some kind of inevitability about it!) If I get lucky I might find one ex-demo at my local Naim dealer. (Then I won't need to bother about Bluetooth.)
I would prefer a Spotify app's GUI to any 'native'/built-in version. Then you are not peering down the length of the room trying to see a small LED display and having to operate via a remote control.davedotco said:...only the lack of full Spotify (or other comparable streaming service) support would rule it out.
i was about to say the same regarding Spotify, i prefer to use it in my ipad and stream it to ATV3.chebby said:I would prefer a Spotify app's GUI to any 'native'/built-in version. Then you are not peering down the length of the room trying to see a small LED display and having to operate via a remote control.davedotco said:...only the lack of full Spotify (or other comparable streaming service) support would rule it out.
In the same way, I have never used the built-in internet tuner on my Marantz. I far prefer something like TuneIn Radio Pro and/or BBC iPayer Radio on a smartphone or tablet. (And the apps allow the highest bit rate available - like 320K AAC - whereas the built-in internet tuner only goes up to 192K.)
That is exactly what I do at the present.Hi-FiOutlaw said:i was about to say the same regarding Spotify, i prefer to use it in my ipad and stream it to ATV3.chebby said:I would prefer a Spotify app's GUI to any 'native'/built-in version. Then you are not peering down the length of the room trying to see a small LED display and having to operate via a remote control.davedotco said:...only the lack of full Spotify (or other comparable streaming service) support would rule it out.
In the same way, I have never used the built-in internet tuner on my Marantz. I far prefer something like TuneIn Radio Pro and/or BBC iPayer Radio on a smartphone or tablet. (And the apps allow the highest bit rate available - like 320K AAC - whereas the built-in internet tuner only goes up to 192K.)
I do stream some flac and 320K files from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (the only AptX enable device I own) to my NAD D 3020 AptX blueotooth server and sound quality is definitely pretty much close to when I play files directly from the DAC.chebby said:I'd like to hear from anyone playing music (especially radio) using Bluetooth aptX between a smartphone / tablet and a good BT aptX receiver plugged into their hi-fi.