Bluesound Reviews 87

From rubber coating dissolving into a sticky mess to the perpetual calamity that is BluOS, to the manufacturer who clearly holds its customers in contempt; the experience has been zero stars if I could give it that. I’ve invested a couple of grand into this system and may as well have set fire to it. Avoid like the plague.

First i bought one Power node, and after a lot of trouble I had to make a factory reset, without any sucess. The dealership took responsability and gave me a new one. After a lot of trouble with set up with the second one, I partly suceeded with the setup process. However, after download of firmware it wound not install the update. I checked with the manual online, and did a factory reset a couple of times, but with no sucess. I wish I had checked with ratings first..

Bluesound issued a clearly faulty update to its Bluos operating system. This faulty update prevented users of Nodes etc from loading more than 50 songs from any playlists to the play queue and in effect overnight prevented their customers playing their extensive libraries of music. This facility is fundamentally the main reason for streaming devices. On being informed of this issue it was replicated by their engineers and the bug resolved. However this fix for their own self created problem was not released in a timely manner to their customer base. Customers who have paid significant amounts for audiophile quality components from this brand are forced to accept a significantly reduced audio experience. Bluesound appear to have little respect or integrity when it comes to their customer base, faulty software updates should be resolved with immediate effect so customers experience is not compromised. Despite a number of emails to their CEO no date for resolution was forthcoming and the problem is ongoing. A pretty rubbish approach to the people supporting their brand.

I was wanting to purchase your Vault 2i to replace my 11 year old Cocktail Audio Nova Fidelity X12 that has just failed and I am unable to find anything similar or as easy to use.
I have a usual moan...
But I just have to ask three questions, your Vault unit is not cheap and why should one have to pay extra for a remote control to be able to operate it. Secondly, again given the price, why could you not have put an actual screen on the thing so we can actually see what's playing which leads me to my third question and a particular rant of mine...why does every bloody thing these days have to come with or be operated via an app. I hate apps and I hate mobile phones.
Why can't you just make something easy to use out of the box without having to mess about downloading apps and needing some sort of technical degree to understand them. This maybe the future, or your future at least but not everybody wants it.
I imagine your limited market device is not aimed at me.

I bought a BluNode because it was supposed to work with remotes for different TVs. It turns out it only works with a small subset of remotes. That means I need to use an app just to turn the volume up or down.

The app also crashes, won't connect, etc.

Absolute garbage. Had two devices (node, vault) fail within 5 years of purchase - both had swollen capacitors on the power supply. Clearly a design issue, and if you search, multiple people have found this.

Their solution is to offer you a discount on a new device. No thanks.

Switched from Sonos to Bluesound and was regretting my decision almost immediately! We currently have poor internet signal for now but never really had much trouble with Sonos and found their telephone support very good. Being very non-technical this was extremely useful.

Started to have connection issues with the Bluesound players soon after connecting and found the app to be less than user friendly compared to Sonos. I became extremely frustrated and disillusioned with the online support offered by Bluesound and which was overly technical for me to fully understand! Following some very negative feedback from me I was eventually offered telephone support and a remote assistance service. I cannot speak highly enough of the patience and helpfulness shown by the gentleman who assisted me to re-set the system and which now appears to be working fine! Had it not been for this level of support I think I would have ditched the system and possibly returned to Sonos. Hopefully all will now be fine but I do feel Bluesound should offer this level of support as common practice.

I still think the App is poor compared to Sonos though?

Extremely disappointing experience with Bluesound Powernode – unacceptable service and product quality

I’ve been a loyal Bluesound user for over four years and own multiple products from their ecosystem, but my experience with the Powernode has been nothing short of frustrating.

The first Powernode I bought broke within just a few weeks — making loud cracking noises — and had to be replaced. Then, just after the 3-year mark, the second one failed. What did Bluesound offer? A 20% discount and a replacement unit… that turned out to be used. It was clearly second-hand and visibly worn.

Worse still, the replacement Powernode wasn’t even configured properly — it didn’t work out of the box. How is this acceptable from a brand that positions itself as premium?

The lack of proper warranty support, the dismissive attitude, and the fact that they think sending a refurbished device without disclosure is a solution — it’s truly shocking. I’ve never seen another audio brand treat customers like this.

Bluesound seriously needs to reconsider how they handle support. Until then, I cannot recommend their products to anyone.

Firstly, I am a Sonos refugee. Their software disaster on May 7th 2024, followed by thousands of complaints but no action, caused me to eventually give up and replace 5 of my 6 audio zones with equivalent Bluesound hardware. Sonos let many long term, previously loyal customers like me down, badly.

Am I happy? I'm delighted, the whole system works beautifully, the sound is great and my final zone (TV Room) will follow suit if there are any future problems and, ahem, I can afford it. The controller isn't perfect, but it's so much better than the Sonos abomination, which is still less intuitive and functional than the app it replaced!

Of particular note - DIRAC Live room tuning, which I paid a little extra for in my Bluesound NODE. Much to my surprise, it actually works and has made a huge difference to the sound in my main music/HiFi room.

Can't believe Bluesound only has an average of two stars here, it's certainly doesn't reflect my experience.

Seem to be mostly negative reviews but my experience has been (mostly) good. I’ve been using their speakers for a few years now, started with a Pulse Mini and have added a couple of Pulse Flexes. Any dealings I’ve had with customer support have been responded to in a timely and courteous manner.
Sound quality, for the price, is very good. Connectivity hasn’t really been an issue. Would have given 5 stars if it wasn’t for the rubberised case on the Pulse Mini which attracts dust like iron filings to a magnet, although I believe that material is no longer used. Would be good if a re-casing service was available, it really is difficult to clean. Other than that, all good.

Update: used surgical spirit (available from a pharmacy) and a lint free cloth on the soft-touch case of the Pulse Midi which did the job of cleaning it. Others might find this useful but would highly recommend trying it first on a small area of a non-visible surface before applying to the whole unit. Caveat - this is only my personal experience.

Excellent integrated music system. Responses to queries are prompt. With one query a techicain phoned from the states in the evening to sort out an issue.
The Node N130 is great. I bought three of them.
Very versatile options for listening. Even bluetooth headphones connect easily. I have a remote which is great for saving ten favorites so music can be instant.
Highly recommended. When I have had any issues for functionality Sevenoaks Hifi have a dedicated workshop to help fix problems.

Truly awful customer service. First thing they do is ask for your receipt, no matter what. No questions about your problem, even if it’s a brand new product. Zero interest in fixing your problem. Sent my product to one of their distributors 16 months ago. Inquired many times, told it was being fixed. Brand new item. 6 months later, after purchasing multiple items from their distributor, I was told the product would be ready in a week, if I paid $600. Brand new product, unused. Asked the distributor what is wrong, and they still haven’t answered me. They’ve had the product for over a year. Ridiculous. They don’t care at all. All marketing, no service.

I have used Bluesound products for at least 9 years and they have worked beautifully. I have found the technical support to be very quick to respond and excellent. Sound quality is excellent. Highly recommend Bluesound products. I have a Vault plus 2 Powernodes and currently considering adding a 4th item.

I was using Bluesound streamer for several years and everything was fine. Until they came with the new update version 4.4.19. Ever since the streamer plays a minute then it stops then continues and stops playing again. My connection to Bluesound is via Ethernet and my internet is fiber optic with 900 mb speed. Several email exchange with Bluesound has resulted nothing. They have a generic response saying "reboot your wifi reboot your network, bla bla. Bottom line, the streamer has become worthless.

great products, very poor service.
I contacted them in two different occasions and in both cases I have received a late and unsatisfactory response.
I have been able to fix the problems on my own, there's a lot of blogs and support online, but the official one is really below expectations.

I read a lot of the reviews on BlueSound once I was running into issues with my player. At the time, I agreed with everything that was being said. The instructions for me to connect to my MacBook and stream my high-res audio files were frustrating, and did not work. I messaged the company and waited two weeks for a response, which made me ever more frustrated.

However, once I was able to schedule a TeamViewer session with a member of BlueSound's staff, they fixed my issue quickly (I had to use my computer's IP address instead of the BIOS name). The person I dealt with was extremely friendly and helpful. They patiently showed me how I could fix this on my own going forward in very straightforward language.

Their customer service is not great, but it is very good once you are able to speak with someone. I would give them a full 5 stars if they had gotten back to me more quickly initially. I get the impression that they are a company whose physical product was far more successful than they planned for and are trying to catch up with their customer service department.

I had a choice of these vs Sonos and man do I regret buying 3 of these black sticky boxes of failure. They constantly disconnect from the Wireless and the UI is awful.
Mine are confined to the garden under the gazebo roof where I hope they get damaged so I can go and buy some new better Sonos ones.

I bought these to support the under dog - well I got bitten hard!

Don’t buy BS!
Frequently disconnecting from network, paired speakers disconnect and re-connect just to play music that’s delayed to each other - sounds like smoking weed! This is bs and it’s not improving at all. Never buy this!! It’s erasing your final nerves. Customer support? D‘Ooh!! Nothing but silence. Beware! The app is completely useless!! I’m trying to sell this already but customers ain’t dumb themselves. Them clever, don’t buy this rubbish either. Chainsaw it!!
Pulse 2i
Pulse Sub+
No other device in my home has any problems at all.

Years ago I had a Node 2i and was happy. So happy that, with the launch of Node X, I added the new product to my second system so they could integrate. It worked for a few days and then the app could only find one unit. I had to unplug, uninstall, reboot, etc to get things working but the solution only ever lasts a few weeks, then loses one or both players and I have to start again. Regarding customer service, I once had an issue with a health insurance bill and they were awful to deal with...but they eventually solved the problem. Bluesound emails to say they'll get back to me but never does. I call (during business hours) and the recording says they're closed. Last straw, my Tidal app is now having issues playing hi-rez (which might be the fault of Tidal) but the work around is to use the Tidal Connect app (which opens from the BluOS app). I did and it worked for about 2 days and now, no matter what I do, it can't find the players. Gone. Until this company is bought out by someone else and returned to a functional status you should not consider Bluesound as an option. Products are unreliable and I assume customer service is just a bot with an autoreply.

This product is ruined by a poorly designed app used to select and control music on the hard drive player. When I go to my library to select a CD I want to play (which is how I use the system 99% of the time) I can only see 3 album covers on my tablet at a time. What use is that when I have scores of albums I want to browse? I want to see a page of at least 20 album covers and scroll through them so I can quickly see my whole collection. Weirdly, one third of the screen is taken up with some bizarre queue of songs that I don't want or need and can't delete. I'm pretty sure who ever designed this has never actually used it because it is simply awful. It is incredibly frustrating trying to use this app and so I cannot recommend this product in its current form.