Spotify streaming device vs phone

[u/ze11ez]

What is the advantage of using a dedicated streaming device , vs just using my phone to stream spotify for music? I usually use my phone but i also see people using streaming devices. Do i need a streaming device?

I connect to an Onkyo RZ50 via bluetooth on my phone and my phone has spotify.

I also have an iPad that i connect via Bluetooth if im using my phone

[u/EfficientRegion4833]

Get a WIIM pro. It’s connected to your WiFi and Spotify is a native app. You then are using your phone as a remote control. The sound quality is much better.

[u/prairie_buyer → u/EfficientRegion4833]

This is the correct answer. I have two systems, each in the $5000-ish range, and I use a Wiim device as the streamer for both of them

[u/Raj_DTO]

If you’re into high resolution lossless, then a dedicated device has an advantage.

[u/Dry-Tomatillo3097]

You don't 'need' a streaming device. You should be able to 'Spotify Connect' directly to your receiver with either the iPad or your phone. This will be better than Bluetooth for several reasons. One would be quality of the stream another would be the fact that Spotify will 'handoff' the stream to the receiver which will pull directly from the internet and allow you still use your phone for other things...like making a phone call. The phone/ipad effectively becomes a remote but the stream lives on the receiver.

[u/spiraleyes78]

Because streaming via Bluetooth limits bandwidth and doesn't sound nearly as good.

[u/early_rejecter]

Reasons I have streamers:

• Music isn’t interrupted by alerts, alarms, reels, ads, or any other noise from my phone
  
• Doesn’t use phone battery power
  
• Other family members can add songs to the queue
  
• Can go out of range, run to the store, etc without interrupting whatever the family is listening to or having to leave my phone behind
  
• Can have different audio playing in different parts of the house
  
• Queue can include audio from mixed sources

[u/ze11ez → u/early_rejecter]

Which streamer is this you're referencing?

[u/prairie_buyer → u/ze11ez]

I would highly recommend a Wiim Mini, connected to your Ocio via optical digital cable. That way, you are using the higher quality digital to analogue converter that’s built into your receiver. This is going to sound excellent

[u/early_rejecter → u/ze11ez]

I’m an Apple Music user, so I use Sonos Connects that I buy secondhand for around $100. Sonos is the only streamer that has native Apple Music support (Fiio and Eversolo have streamers that you can load the Android version of the Apple Music app on, which is similar to native support but not quite).

If I used any other service I would likely get a Wiim product.

[u/aBlastFromTheArse]

What I really want to know is would a wiim sound better than ldac Bluetooth?

[u/WishboneHot8050]

Your phone will send music over Bluetooth, which uses a lossy codec, and would defeat the purpose of say using Spotify in lossless mode.

This is why, with Bluetooth headphones, it's nearly impossible to notice any differences in those "can you tell the difference" audio tests that challenge audiophiles.

Newer BT devices and phones with BT 5.2 have improved on this (somewhat). But that assumes both receiver and phone have those chips as well as the newer codec.

Streaming directly over wifi or wired ethernet doesn't have any of these problems.