- Manufacturer & Model
- ifi Zen Air Blue
- MSRP
- $99
- Highlights
-
Easy to setup, great sound quality, a great value to add high res, high quality wireless audio streaming to any powered speakers, receiver or integrated amp.
- Summary
-
Stop throwing the baby out with the bathwater! Adding bluetooth streaming capability to a legacy receiver or amplifier has never been simpler. Add streaming to your vintage setup, tube amp, or powered speakers without starting over. This inexpensive receiver offers true plug & play performance with a price tag that will fit into nearly any stocking this year.
Let’s face it. Streaming music is here to stay. It’s convenient, it’s easy, and the quality has come a long way. But sometimes you want to stream your music without upgrading the 2-channel music system you’ve carefully built over the years. These days there are a huge number of ways to stream wirelessly, and there have been more and more devices designed to add HiRes audio streaming to your existing system.
The ifi Zen Air Blue is one such device that is capable of just about any format of audio and connects quickly and easily via bluetooth. Coming in at just $99, it’s priced perfectly to be a stocking stuffer for the audiophile on your shopping list this holiday season. I tested the Zen Air Blue with an iPhone 14 Pro and an old iPad playing back Apple Music, Amazon Music HD, and more, connected to a B&K preamp running Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 8000 powered speakers, as well as into my Jolida tube integrated amp powering Triad Bronze LCRs and found the sound quality to be nearly indiscernible from my Bluesound Node 2i. The main differences were the process of streaming and the compatible apps.
I was just spending some time with DTS PlayFi on my Anthem processor last week, and found the PlayFi implementation on my older processor was not able to play the majority of the content on Apple Music - specifically the lossless content - though Amazon Music HD played just fine. The ifi Zen Air Blue was fully capable of anything I attempted to throw at it. ifi has maximized the bluetooth implementation to squeeze every bit of quality out of the connection without bogging down the user experience with settings tweaks and workarounds. It's truly plug & play!
The ifi Zen Air Blue is a terrific value to add streaming capabilities to just about any existing audio system. Please be aware, however, that if you decide to order the Zen Air Blue, make sure you have RCA cables and a USB power plug, because they are NOT included in the box.
Learn more about the setup and operation of the ifi Zen Air Blue! Watch the video below!
ifi Zen Air Blue HiRes Wireless Audio Receiver
- Compatibility: AAC, AptX, aptX HD, aptxLL, aptX Adaptive, LDAC, LDHC, and SBC
- Bluetooth: v5.1 compliant
- DAC: Discrete ESS Sabre Hyperstream DAC chipset
- Output: Stereo RCA
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