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Quad Vena ll play, talk to me

Tigerjones

Tigerjones

Bagpuss
This looks an interesting little box. Anyone got one? Does the Play-Fi work well over the wireless?

Cheers

Patrick
 
I’ve got a vena 2, not the play. The Bluetooth from phone to amp sounds as good as cd (e.g. using tidal), quite surprising really. I like it. It has a lovely tone with a very good phono stage. I’ve been trying other phone stages but will have to spend silly money (for me) to significantly improve.

I also use a rasberry pi4 with digihat into the dac in the amp, sounds very good. I also play the tv through it, all in all a very modern and flexible amp.
 
ossy said:
I’ve got a vena 2, not the play. The Bluetooth from phone to amp sounds as good as cd (e.g. using tidal), quite surprising really. I like it. It has a lovely tone with a very good phono stage. I’ve been trying other phone stages but will have to spend silly money (for me) to significantly improve..
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Right, so to use Tidal from a phone you don’t need the Play version?

Thanks for the reply.
 
Tigerjones said:
Right, so to use Tidal from a phone you don’t need the Play version?

Thanks for the reply.
Click to expand...

You can bluetooth to the Vena I or Vena II from phones or tablets

I don't have one, but the promo blurb suggests that the Play element connects to your home WiFi router and via that to other parts of your network, or the internet.
 
With the Vena Play you do the streaming by the Vena itself, while with the Vena I or II the streaming is done by your phone.

The advantage with the Play is that the battery of the phone will last longer and you don't need the further step of the Bluetooth for transmitting the data from the phone to the Vena.
 
Tigerjones said:
Will there be an audible difference using the Play-Fi over the Bluetooth?
Click to expand...

A lot will depend on where the Vena is in relation to your router.

I have the Vena 1 so can't do a direct comparison however I can say that Bluetooth playback from my Mac (using Audirvana) in the same room is very good and only marginally less quality wise than directly via USB or SPDIF. The Bluetooth does have limited range though .... so If the Mac were not in the same room things may get complicated.

However, playback from the same files on the Mac to an RPi via Wifi is pretty poor due to dropouts because the router is in another room with a hefty load bearing wall in between disrupting the signal.

The Vena Play may have a better Wifi reception or your router located so the signal is better so all of this may be moot, but it is worth bearing in mind.
 
Having looked at the Quad blurb in more detail, I would think it makes much more sense to use the onboard streaming capabilities via a direct ethernet connection and control with the Playfi app than sending to the Vena via Bluetooth. Quality will definitely be improved .... but perhaps that's what you meant with your last question :)
 
miktec said:
Having looked at the Quad blurb in more detail, I would think it makes much more sense to use the onboard streaming capabilities via a direct ethernet connection and control with the Playfi app than sending to the Vena via Bluetooth. Quality will definitely be improved .... but perhaps that's what you meant with your last question :)
Click to expand...

I struggle to hear the difference between the Bluetooth from my phone and the raspberry pi hardwired into the amp. The Bluetooth is cd quality, apparently.
 
miktec said:
Having looked at the Quad blurb in more detail, I would think it makes much more sense to use the onboard streaming capabilities via a direct ethernet connection and control with the Playfi app than sending to the Vena via Bluetooth. Quality will definitely be improved .... but perhaps that's what you meant with your last question :)
Click to expand...
Yes exactly.
 
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