politbureau
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Nov 9, 2010
- Posts
- 107
- Likes
- 28
Hey Team HF!
Just picked up one of these little guys when they went on sale for C$79 (regular C$199) at my local computer shop. So far I'm super impressed - I'm really having trouble hearing any glaring anomalies. The sound is typical to what I generally feel about other Arcam DACs I've owned: a nice smooth presentation with no harshness or glare, but not the final word in detail extraction or soundstage presentation. This thing just sounds great! I'd go so far as to say that I've heard standalone desktop DACs costing 4-5 times more that don't sound this good - an impressive accomplishment considering this is all happening over Bluetooth!
Range is excellent using my Macbook Pro, and I've been able to get about 20' away (the furthest I can get indoors) with an intervening wall/floor without issues or packet loss/retransmission. OSX reports the MiniBlink as outputting 16-bit 44.1khz audio, with an effective bitrate of 352kb/s. The device must be well shielded, as I have no issues with cell interference even when I sit it on top of my phone and make calls using GSM/3G/LTE. The unit is unbelievable light - under 1lb - which makes it feel a little like a toy and not a high end piece of Audiophile gear.
My only major niggles are that there's no digital out (for using it as a wireless streamer and bypassing the internal DAC) and that it uses a 3.5 output instead of RCAs. I understand that this is to save space and meet the aesthetic criteria of the design, but RCAs would have been preferred. The included cables are also only 'adequate,' and I swapped in my trusty 1.5ft Monoprice 'Premium' 3.5>RCA cable.
I don't know much about AptX, but I have to say it's obviously doing it's job. Using the Hardware I/O Xcode Dev package, I was able to load up Bluetooth Explorer and force AptX on, increase the buffer sizes and disable the Handsfree profile. During my listening, I have had no dropped packets or retransmissions, as reported by Bluetooth Explorer.
Comparing it to a Melodious MXU8/Gustard X12 and Schiit Gungnir, is actually quite a surprising exercise. IMO, the Gustard setup using USB>I2S provides the biggest soundstage, finest level of detail extraction, and most musical presentation. The Gungnir is a little softer in the details, but otherwise gives me about 95% of what the Gustard provides. The MiniBlink is damn close - the biggest difference I hear is the size of the soundstage and some of the finer details being smoothed over. The effect is that the MiniBlink sounds a lot like someone took a great DAC and stuck a tube buffer in the output stage. On my Lyr 2 with Vokshod 75 Grays, the sound is very warm and full, though perhaps a bit too smooth. On my Asgard, the presentation is literally just right - very neutral, but forgiving and warm. That said, I think I detect the tiniest bit of sibilance in the upper frequencies on some recordings, but it's hard to tell for sure.
All in all, a great buy for C$79. If you're considering a bluetooth streamer like the rBlink or Audioengine B1, you might want to give this a try first, especially if you can find it for a good price.
Cheers
Just picked up one of these little guys when they went on sale for C$79 (regular C$199) at my local computer shop. So far I'm super impressed - I'm really having trouble hearing any glaring anomalies. The sound is typical to what I generally feel about other Arcam DACs I've owned: a nice smooth presentation with no harshness or glare, but not the final word in detail extraction or soundstage presentation. This thing just sounds great! I'd go so far as to say that I've heard standalone desktop DACs costing 4-5 times more that don't sound this good - an impressive accomplishment considering this is all happening over Bluetooth!
Range is excellent using my Macbook Pro, and I've been able to get about 20' away (the furthest I can get indoors) with an intervening wall/floor without issues or packet loss/retransmission. OSX reports the MiniBlink as outputting 16-bit 44.1khz audio, with an effective bitrate of 352kb/s. The device must be well shielded, as I have no issues with cell interference even when I sit it on top of my phone and make calls using GSM/3G/LTE. The unit is unbelievable light - under 1lb - which makes it feel a little like a toy and not a high end piece of Audiophile gear.
My only major niggles are that there's no digital out (for using it as a wireless streamer and bypassing the internal DAC) and that it uses a 3.5 output instead of RCAs. I understand that this is to save space and meet the aesthetic criteria of the design, but RCAs would have been preferred. The included cables are also only 'adequate,' and I swapped in my trusty 1.5ft Monoprice 'Premium' 3.5>RCA cable.
I don't know much about AptX, but I have to say it's obviously doing it's job. Using the Hardware I/O Xcode Dev package, I was able to load up Bluetooth Explorer and force AptX on, increase the buffer sizes and disable the Handsfree profile. During my listening, I have had no dropped packets or retransmissions, as reported by Bluetooth Explorer.
Comparing it to a Melodious MXU8/Gustard X12 and Schiit Gungnir, is actually quite a surprising exercise. IMO, the Gustard setup using USB>I2S provides the biggest soundstage, finest level of detail extraction, and most musical presentation. The Gungnir is a little softer in the details, but otherwise gives me about 95% of what the Gustard provides. The MiniBlink is damn close - the biggest difference I hear is the size of the soundstage and some of the finer details being smoothed over. The effect is that the MiniBlink sounds a lot like someone took a great DAC and stuck a tube buffer in the output stage. On my Lyr 2 with Vokshod 75 Grays, the sound is very warm and full, though perhaps a bit too smooth. On my Asgard, the presentation is literally just right - very neutral, but forgiving and warm. That said, I think I detect the tiniest bit of sibilance in the upper frequencies on some recordings, but it's hard to tell for sure.
All in all, a great buy for C$79. If you're considering a bluetooth streamer like the rBlink or Audioengine B1, you might want to give this a try first, especially if you can find it for a good price.
Cheers
