Although the unit is small, it feels solid, durable, and reliable. Also, it can accommodate the largest RCA plugs. Specifications I had one of these delivered yesterday to replace an old Yamaha amp. I'm all about the space savings at the moment. TV was previously connected to amp via additional Bluetooth receiver. Cannot get the TV to find the amp via Bluetooth. Mixing it up a little bit we swapped out the Ghosteen album for one of the greatest Tool albums of all time, Lateralus. Dropping the needle onto Lateralus was an absolute revelation and the Phono Box S2 was able to do the album complete justice. The guitar was so clear and crisp whilst the drums delivered a solid thud with every hit. Then there was Maynard James Keenans’ vocals, and wow is all we can say. His incredible vocal range and his unique tone was nothing short of amazing. Drawing on Project Audio System’s decades long experience in designing and manufacturing analogue turntables and Hi-Fi electronics, the dedicated high-quality analogue output buffer stage in the BT Box S2 HD ensures that the connection to your amplifier and loudspeakers is as robust and solid as it can possibly get. It is the ultimate fusion of cutting-edge digital and traditional analogue design principles. Setup is a relatively straightforward affair. An ethernet connection is effectively plug and play while wifi setup requires a short routine in the app to configure the unit with your home router. The latter method took a couple of attempts to complete successfully, though this is more likely as a result of a temperamental router in my home network than any failings with the Pro-Ject. When the S2 is connected to your system, audible prompts are then sent to indicate that the setup is successful or otherwise.

The case is elegantly constructed from aluminum in the tried-and-tested manner, and features a clear front with only two buttons. One button serves as a standby button, the second one is used for pairing with mobile devices and is labeled “Pair”. Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD – Audiophile wireless streaming The sound field of the Phono Box S2 comes with impressive micro-details, dynamics, accuracy, and clear, detail space. Whether you use MC or MM, this phono amplifier delivers a vast range of input settings for optimising its performance. Additionally, it has a switchable subsonic filter that keeps your speakers and amplifier protected from low-frequency rumble. The Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD measures no more than 116 mm in width, 37 mm in height, and 108 mm in depth including connectors. Thus, it weighs 320 g without the power supply unit.

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Bluetooth alone is supposed to be used here to transfer music streaming, for example, directly from the smartphone in hi-res audio to an audio system, whereby the manufacturer itself even speaks of an audiophile solution. Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD – An offspring of the Pro-Ject Box Design S2 series The case also comes with matte sandpaper feel while its faceplate is crafted from brushed aluminium. Do note that the area is only visible as a brushed portion when your lighting is near perfect. One-size-fits-all phono stages are one of the best today since they are easy to set up. While there are a lot of phono amplifiers, the ideal option is a versatile model offering clarity, precision, and detail. And the model that can give you all of these is the Phono Box S2. From the Pro-Ject 1, all turntables - regardless of price - were made with the same basic principles: It sports the new S2 style housing made from a combined metal and aluminium construction. This element doesn’t only provide outstanding aesthetics, but it also protects the unit from unwanted vibrations and electromagnetic interferences.

The power supply is, as already indicated, via an external power supply unit, whereby the connection for this is implemented in the form of a micro USB interface and is thus also designed for 5V. The matching power adapter in the scope of delivery supplies 5 V 1,000 mA DC. Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD – Audiophile wireless streaming State-of-the-art digital technology and traditional analog design principles. Leveraging increased Bluetooth 5.0 range and transmission bandwidth the new and advanced aptX-HD codec sounds crisp, detailed, dynamic and excellent at all times, even if the Bluetooth connection quality momentarily drops. This avoids typical lossy compression artifacts of other codecs. Drawing on Pro-Ject Audio System’s decades long experience in designing and manufacturing analogue turntables and Hi-Fi electronics, the dedicated high-quality analogue output buffer stage in the BT Box S2 HD ensures that the connection to your amplifier and loudspeakers is as robust and solid as it can possibly get. Pairing with source devices is as easy as can be, you just have to press the aforementioned button on the front and the connection is supposed to be established within a few moments. By the way, the Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD remembers up to eight devices. Output stage decisively To apply in store, simply call in to our branch and one of our experienced sales team will guide you through the application.The Phono Box S2 features a robust all-metal chassis and of high-quality for its price tag. It has a power button and a large grounding post for the tonearm cable’s spade terminations. The new Pro-Ject BT Box S2 HD uses Bluetooth 5.0 and A2DP. Initially, the lossy codec SBC is supported, but this only achieves a signal transmission with MP3 quality. More exciting is that aptX and even aptX HD are also supported, so that a signal transmission in “CD quality” or even the promised hi-res audio quality is achieved, even if it is “only” up to 24 bits and 48 kHz in the end. However, this only applies to smartphones with Google Android; Apple still does not use aptX or even aptX HD for the Apple iPhone. AAC is used here, with which you can achieve about “CD quality”. Inside, you will find the preamplifier itself. We chose the silver-coloured unit, and it looks incredibly sleek and classy.

The story stays the same regardless of whether the Pro-Ject is used with our laptop and headphones or as the digital hub in a two-channel speaker-based set-up. The Juke Box Highpower Supply is optionally available. It features up to 50% more peak power output, increasing dynamic and bass response. The true ground connection over a 3 pin power plug can dramatically reduce hum and noise under critical power conditions. The bass sounded more life-like, and the richness was optimised further. Of course, despite the enhancement, we didn’t experience any overpowering bass, and that was something impressive.

Features

No matter what we tried it with, and no matter the genre of music we played, the Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 made music better. It enhanced the sounds, improved the bass quality, and midrange was perfect. Tap on Settings, tap on Bluetooth, turn on Bluetooth. Your device will automatically start searching for available devices. Tap on "Stereo Box S2 BT" and confirm by pressing Input button on Stereo Box S2 BT when the blue LED of input 3 is blinking.” Spotify Connect is supported alongside Tidal via Pro-ject’s Stream S2 app, while radio fans are also catered for via iHeart and TuneIn apps. Apple and Raspberry Pi users can use the Shairport support to connect their devices using AirPlay. Multiple steam boxes can also be stereo paired to drive an active speaker setup while avoiding unnecessary cabling, alongside multi-room support for 10 or six devices over ethernet and wifi. Up to 24-bit/192kHz data quality is supported on a single device and 16-bit/44.1kHz for multiroom applications. DLNA and UPnP are also both supported and as with the majority of Pro-Ject electronics, it is very compact, measuring just 37x103x122mm (HWD). We try a range of headphones from the Beyerdynamic T1s and Grado’s RS1s to AKG’s K550s and the Pro-Ject is capable of a good level out of each of them. While it doesn’t have the outright transparency and resolution to make the most of the Beyerdynamics or Grados it doesn’t sound obviously overwhelmed in such company either. Verdict Our experience with the Phono Box S2 was great. It delivered subtle yet fantastic audio, which proves that it’s an upgrade from the previous Phono Box S. All of these were more than what we had expected from a low-budget phono amp.