For more than a decade, Bluesound’s Node streamers, introduced in 2014, have impressed us with their performance and minimalist design. The Node Icon, the latest addition to the series, has gone far beyond the earlier models in both respects. According to Roger Kanno, who reviewed the Node Icon on June 1 on SoundStage! Simplifi, it “provides an unbeatable combination of sound quality and practical features.”

The Node Icon (US$1199, CA$1399, £899, €1099) is enclosed in a black, squarish, aluminum case that is somewhat taller than previous Node models. It needs that extra height to accommodate the 5″ color screen. It’s a non-touch display, but there are touch-sensitive buttons on the top panel. Inside the Node Icon are two ESS ES9039Q2M DAC chips; MQA Labs’ Qrono D-to-A technology, which is said to improve impulse response and transparency (MQA Labs is a sister company of Bluesound under Lenbrook Industries); a THX AAA headphone amplifier with dual ¼″ outputs (one on each side); and a digital signal processing (DSP) engine capable of running Dirac Live room-correction software. Dirac must be licensed separately—it currently costs $159 for the limited-bandwidth version (frequencies below 500Hz) and $249 for the full-bandwidth version. A USB microphone is also required for Dirac, available from Bluesound for $49.

On the back panel of the Node Icon are one pair of balanced (XLR) and one pair of unbalanced (RCA) analog outputs, a single analog subwoofer output (RCA), and two S/PDIF digital outputs: coaxial (RCA) and optical (TosLink). Above the analog outputs is a pair of unbalanced (RCA) analog inputs. Digital inputs, in addition to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and ethernet, include an optical (TosLink) S/PDIF connector, two USB Type-A ports, for connecting external storage devices, and one USB-C connector, for attaching to a computer.

In the Audio Settings menu of the BluOS Controller app, the Node Icon can be configured to output fixed-level audio, for use as a standard DAC and streamer, or variable-level audio (through digital volume control), for use as a streaming preamplifier.

Roger connected the Node Icon to his reference system: a Lyngdorf MXA-8400 amplifier, MartinLogan ESL 9 electrostatic speakers, and a JL Audio E-Sub e112 subwoofer set with the BluOS Controller app to a 60Hz crossover point. He began his audition with no room correction and found the Node Icon’s performance to be fantastic. He was very impressed by the Icon’s playback of Elvis Presley’s 1997 compilation 24 Karat Hits!, remastered in DSD. Roger observed excellent delineation and balance of elements on various tracks, strikingly wide instrumental dynamics, and startling vocal presence.

Activating Dirac Live room correction elevated the Node Icon’s performance significantly. This was clearly evident in another track from this album, “In the Ghetto.” Roger writes: “the speakers seemed to vanish from the room, leaving an expansive wall of sound in their place. The bass was tighter, and a slight smearing in the midrange that had previously been present was now cleared up, making the orchestra’s strings and horns sound more forceful and realistic. The multiple drum fills were infused with authentic snap and speed.”

The benefit of Dirac Live room correction was once again apparent on “Looks Like the End of the Road” from Alison Krauss and Union Station’s album Arcadia. Roger recounts: “Jerry Douglas’s sharp, twangy dobro solos sliced through the darkness like a fleeting, shining beacon. Krauss’s singing was crisp and forward without sounding etched.”

To sample DSD playback from the classical genre, Roger played a 1958 recording of Béla Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The strings in the opening movement, he writes, emerged on an expansive soundstage with a velvety texture and weight. Then, “the wind instruments were depicted in well-defined images with contrasting sharp tones.” In the frenetic Finale, the Icon “presented the dueling horns and strings distinctly in the spacious soundstage and with great gusto.”

To evaluate the Node Icon’s headphone amplifier, Roger connected his HiFiMan HE400se headphones to one of the two ¼″ jacks. He found its performance exceptional. Listening to Lana Del Rey’s "Hope Is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman like Me to Have – but I Have It" from her 2019 album Norman Fucking Rockwell!, he felt enveloped by Del Rey’s sonic image: “The effect was eerie and created an intensely intimate presentation.” Roger was so impressed with the THX AAA output that he now considers the Node Icon a reference against which to evaluate other built-in headphone amplifiers.

Roger compared the Node Icon to the similarly equipped but pricier Cambridge Audio EXN100 streaming preamp ($1799), which he reviewed in March 2025, and the Eversolo Audio DMP-A8 ($1980), a recipient of both our Reviewers’ Choice award and Recommended Reference Component designation, which he reviewed in November 2024. In terms of sound quality, Roger found the Cambridge Audio and Bluesound streamers similar, but the Icon gained the edge because of its ability to run Dirac Live. Dirac improved the performance of his system to “dazzling effect” and offered “a thoroughly satisfying listening experience.”

When Roger auditioned the Eversolo, he was impressed by its incredible build quality and fantastic performance. While the Eversolo also provides room correction, Roger found Dirac Live room correction to be superior: “The Eversolo’s support for finite-impulse-response (FIR) filters improved its performance—particularly in the low frequencies, to a lesser degree in the midrange—but the effect in my system was not as pronounced and beneficial as that of Dirac Live with the Node Icon.” He also notes that the Eversolo’s subwoofer integration leaves much to be desired.

When we tested the Node Icon in our lab, it exhibited excellent performance as a DAC, headphone amplifier, and preamplifier. The only source of concern was the rising THD ratios with higher frequencies when the DAC section was fed a steady-state, full-scale (0dBFS) sine wave above 1kHz. Bluesound designers are aware of this behavior but assert it is a nonissue during music playback. Still, they are working on a firmware fix. When we repeated the tests with an input signal just 2dB lower in amplitude, the problem vanished. We found no other issues with the Node Icon in our measurements lab, only praiseworthy performance.

Roger’s conclusion that the Node Icon “provides an unbeatable combination of sound quality and practical features” and offers “exceptional value“ earned it a Reviewers’ Choice award when the review was originally published. The Bluesound Node Icon’s strong performance compared to the Cambridge Audio EXN100 and Eversolo DMP-A8, along with its impressive lab-test results, leaves little doubt in our minds that it merits the Recommended Reference Component award as well.

Manufacturer contact information:

Bluesound
633 Granite Court
Pickering, Ontario L1W 3K1
Canada
Phone: 1-855-531-4666
Fax: (905) 831-6936

E-mail: support@bluesound.com
Website: www.bluesound.com