Bluesound Pulse Mini 2i Wireless Speaker - White

Product Information

Where was I? I’ve lost myself in strange thoughts of unlimited dim sum and latkes that I can no longer taste or smell over the past week and headphone listening has been impossible. The pressure inside my cranium has been enough that I get agitated when the kids listen to the home theater system above a whisper. The Pulse Mini 2i creates a much wider stereo image but it’s still not the same experience as two speakers placed 7-8 feet apart. It does deliver substantially more bass than its smaller sibling; if you listen to music with a lot of bass information — it’s clearly the better option. This is a maintenance release of BluOS 3.16.1 for NODE (N130), POWERNODE (N330), and PULSE SOUNDBAR+ ONLY. The 32-bit/192kHz DAC remains, as does its long list of connections, including RCA, coaxial, optical and subwoofer outputs, with physical inputs for optical, analogue and USB-A alongside wi-fi, Bluetooth aptX 4.1 and AirPlay 2.

Stereo amplifiers are not as clear and withdrawn as they were before. It is now no longer the standard to outfit them with only analog inputs and outputs, and a pair of speaker terminals. Your hi-fi universe should be based on an amp. It all flows in and all flows out of it. Overall, however, both my roommate and I have come to the conclusion that the sound quality of the Pulse 2i is about 20 - 30% better than the Pulse 2. Yes, this might not seem like what I would conclude after my previous statements about the Pulse 2i but the Pulse 2 really is a special speaker and the 2i does build on this but not as substantially as I would’ve hoped for. The added tweeters on the 2i is the biggest improvement. In addition, the Pulse 2 has one 5 inch woofer with two bass ports and the Pulse 2i has two 5 inch woofers instead. This is a maintenance release of BluOS 4.0.2 , ONLY for Bluesound VAULT(Gen1), VAULT 2, VAULT 2i, NAD M50 / M50.2. I really liked both Bluesound wireless speakers but I would buy a stereo pair of Pulse Flex 2i if you’re looking for a pair of wireless loudspeakers for the kitchen, outdoors, or even a small bedroom. The products Bluesound has altered least on paper are the ones that have seen the greatest upturn in their fortunes. The Node 2i (above) and Powernode 2i (below) are now simply the best performing products of their type available for the money.For everyone, Sonos Amp is not the best answer, and Sonos doesn’t have to get bothered. I think that any sales of Sonos Amp to custom installers can only be made because very few people now want to manage the wire for the speaker. The Pulse Mini 2i is its downsized sibling. It’s small but punches above its weight, delivering 100 watts of lovely NAD bi-amped audio via 4 PSB drivers, two 4″ mid-bass woofers, and two 0.75″ dome tweeters. The sound quality belies its miniature footprint. If you’re like me, you’ll catch yourself looking at this speaker in disbelief while putting together ingredients in the kitchen.

Maybe it’s an age thing. I’ve lived the first 50 years of my existence and I find myself perfectly fine with fewer boxes. I’m not willing to sacrifice sound quality for convenience but I found myself quite engaged by both Bluesound wireless loudspeakers and I loved the ability to merge my TIDAL and Qobuz accounts into the BluOS desktop app and have access to all of my music. The PULSE MINI 2i powered speaker takes decades of hifi audio legacy and squeezes it into a single box. Delivering rich and detailed sound, the PULSE MINI 2i can easily fit into small living spaces, all the while providing an outstanding high-res music streaming experience. You’ll enjoy the Bluesound Pulse Soundbar 2i because you like the devotion of Bluesound to hi-res audio, multi-room comfort, voice modulation for Alexa, and fairly discreet industrial design. However, the Sonos Arc is an outstanding all-in-one surround sound system if you want a minimalist surround sound kit and you have a square home cinema space. Amplifier Aside from their power and physical differences, Bluesound has designed both speakers with the same core feature set. Both support Roon’s most utilized formats: FLAC (up to 24/192kHz), WAV (up to 24/96kHz) MQA, and MP3. As well as AAC, WMA, WMA-L, OGG, ALAC, and AIFF. Rear-mounted connection points include: This is a maintenance release of BluOS 3.14.2 for PULSE SOUNDBAR+, NODE (N130), and POWERNODE (N330) ONLY.And certainly there are improvements in key areas, but, while the Pulse 2i remains entertaining, it is disappointing to have sacrificed the energy and composure for which we loved its predecessor. Sadly, for this price, you could do quite a bit better in this market. Bluesound has been developed by Lenbrook, a small electronics distribution firm, as it is a whole-home audio product targeted at audio enthusiasts who want the model of Sonos, but then again who wants a quality of sound. In an atmosphere that provides the highest listening content possible, Bluesound blends music and technological powers very well. With that said, I believe Bluesound’s strength is not only their pursuit of great sound quality but with their Roon integration. Bluesound is working tirelessly trying to make their speakers work seamlessly with Roon and every other source. For instance, I called Bluesound support because I could not adjust the volume of my Pulse 2 while listening to my TV through my Tivo Roamio Plus. This is the kind of stuff Bluesound is dealing with. My hat is off to them. Bluesound uses numerous innovations, among them sophisticated NAD Electronics amplification systems and world-famous PSB Speaker acoustic technology.

In addition to best-in-class dual band WiFi, the PULSE MINI 2i now has AirPlay 2 built-in for easy integration into the Apple ecosystem, making it more flexible than ever. Bluetooth performance is seriously stepped up with native support for aptX HD and the ability to transmit studio quality music to Bluetooth headphones and speakers. High-end DAC technology built into every Bluesound player can decode and stream MQA fi les in all their lossless glory. The Bluesound Pulse Mini 2i is an updated version of the speaker that aims to be especially versatile. It can be operated by Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant or an optional remote control. It handles AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect and Roon Ready, and can be paired with other speakers for home-wide sound. There’s a selection of touch controls, atop a moulded carry handle, although these are more token than practical. It should be said that this unit isn’t a portable as such. More likely, you’ll want to control the system using the BluOS app. This handles source selection, from streaming services and your own music library to locally connected gadgets. Additionally, if you simply want to add some extra quality or boost the coverage of your Mini unit, there is the option to pair a second unit. This will give a stereo sound like a traditional pair of loudspeakers and from our experience is a nice upgrade if you’re in the market to improve your existing system.This is a maintenance release of BluOS 3.20.45 , ONLY for NAD C 3050 LE, C 389, C 399, M17 V2, and T 777. Bluesound is more reliable with its products’ design and build-up process, even though it has some variance, particularly with the controls: you can get actual buttons (Pulse Flex), Touch controls depending on the product (Pulse Mini and Pulse 2).