Mytek Brooklyn Bridge II
Brooklyn Bridge II ROON CORE 4TB
There is one model of BB2 with 4TB of internal storage (in silver or black), with one year of Roon subscription included.
BROOKLYN BRIDGE II ROON CORE
ALL-IN-ONE ROON CORE STREAMER • DAC • HEADPHONE • PHONO• PREAMP
Brooklyn Bridge II is a major redesign of our best selling original Brooklyn Bridge (BB1).
The BB1 has been very successful, receiving the Stereophile Product of the Year and EISA award in 2019-2020 for its innovative, beautiful design and sound. The BB2 has the same award winning preamp and DAC circuits, but now also features a 90W linear power supply. In addition it features next generation smartphone/tablet accessible touch screen menus and a complete computer system bringing the 21st century iPhone-like operation. Brooklyn Bridge II has a built in Intel Core i-5 Roon Core computer combined with Mytek OS for easy touch screen operation from an iPad, smart phone, or front panel screen.
Brooklyn Bridge II is a complete all in one Roon system and designed to be used primarily with Roon playback software. In addition it will provide similar functionality to the original Brooklyn Bridge (Upnp and Roon End Point) and more (Bluetooth, DSP etc). You can think of BB1 functionality being a subset of Brooklyn Bridge II. It has the functionality of BB1 plus Roon Core computer, touch screen, toroidal linear power supply. Because the computer will be continuously updated over the life of the product, new functionality can be added, including new streaming and DSP options, file management, etc., which are not possible nor intended for the BB1.
The DAC and analog section is the same in both products, but because Brooklyn Bridge II has the linear regulated power supply, it subjectively sounds about 20% better than the BB1.
Using Roon with BB2 requires Roon subscription, which is why a free 1 year subscription is included in the purchase. Roon provides superior playback and browsing experience, especially with metadata (lyrics, credits, just like a vinyl album covers), not available with other playback software and preferred by thousands of music lovers. Roon also provides more options such as advanced playlist management, multiroom playback and ARC which turns your local library into your own, private streaming service. Roon will play any format including DSD256 and 384k PCM, while other software is limited to max PCM 192k.
BUILT IN ROON CORE i5 (11th Gen) Intel CPU - (more powerful than the Nucleus+) POWERED BY ROON OS: Brooklyn Bridge has all functionality of a Roon Core CPU combined with high performance DAC. Roon Software can be operated from Roon Remote App or from Mytek Web Interface from any device connected to the network. Bridge can function as a multiroom playback machine playing to different Roon end points.
SPECS -
Brooklyn Bridge 2 is all in-one Roon Core Streamer + excellent DSD/MQA DAC+ Analog (w/Phono) and Digital Preamp and a high-end headphone amplifier in a compact, modern beautiful chassis. It connects all your music sources in a highest sound quality hub before sending the music to amp and speakers or headphones.
Brooklyn Bridge II is powered by modern touch operated software - Roon for music browsing and streaming and Mytek OS for all other functionality. Software controls available on front panel are repeated on a wifi device: tablet or smartphone for comfort and convenience.
Music Sources -
Built in Roon Core: Tidal, Qobuz and local library in any format up to PCM 384kHz, DSD256 and MQA
Analog Preamp: Phono M/C and M/M and line RCA input
Digital Preamp: SPDIF and Optical inputs for disk players, or TV
Roon Ready DAC input for use w another streamer when required
Bluetooth 5: including hi-res audio (quality depends on cellphone) - For quick casual listening to any internet sound/music source.
Future Functions: Mytek OS is a software platform that is continuously expanded with new functionality added. Software upgrade happens the same way as on any computer: upon "new software" notification user can choose to download and update the system. New software contains new features and fixes.
In the future, Mytek plans to add alternative players such as Spotify and Tidal Connect and features like Apple Airplay etc. Their availability will be announced when software work on them begins.
Inside the shipping box: power cord for country of destination, usb 2.0 cable, code for 2 months of FREE Roon subscription. Current manual is available as a pdf download on this page.
CONVERSION
up to 384k, 32bit PCM, native DSD up to DSD256, DXD, 130dB DR, ES9028PRO chipset with superior Mytek implementation (HAT (tm) Harmonic Audio Tuning)
MQA HI-RES DECODER
DECODER: built in hardware MQA decoder, full unfold to original sample rate
DIGITAL DAC INPUTS
USB2 Class2 (OSX, Linux driverless, all formats up to 384k, DSD256), 2x S/PDIF, 1 Toslink optical (PCM up to 24/192k, up to DSD64 DOP, MQA)
ADDITIONAL DIGITAL INPUTS
Bluetooth 5 and Roon Ready Network Endpoint DAC input- PCM384k, DSD256, MQA.
ANALOG PREAMP INPUTS
Line level input (10k input impedance) or Phono M/M, relay controlled. All analog signal path to output.
2xUSB3/2 connectors
Can be used for:
1) Any music files on FAT/NTFS/Exfat drive or USB Stick. (SSD is recommended because of 1A current limit)
2) additional USB DACs for additional Roon Zones (2pcs or up to several can be connected if USB hub is used)
ANALOG OUTPUTS
RCA, balanced XLR, simultaneous, 10 Ohm output impedance
CLOCK
Mytek Femtoclock Generator(tm) 0.82ps internal jitter
HEADPHONE OUTPUTS
Reference High Current, High transient Headphone Amp, 500mA, 6 Watts, dual headphone jacks, designed to drive hard to drive headphones. Balanced operation with a 1/4" to 4 pin XLR adapter
VOLUME ATTENUATOR
Choice of 1dB step analog attenuator, or 1dB step digital 32 bit attenuator and purist relay bypass.
INTERNAL STORAGE
4TB of internal SSD (approx 6000 CDs). Internal storage is part of the system SSD on the main CPU board and it is fixed and not user-upgradable. Internal storage is accessed by the user as a network drive.
POWER SUPPLY
90W Toroidal Linear Power Supply powers the DAC and the Intel Core i5 CPU from separate windings. Auto voltage detection adjusts to the local line voltage (90-240VAC 50/60Hz)
WEIGHT
6lbs, 3kg
WARRANTY
2 years
DIMENSIONS
WxDxH=8.5x8.8x1.74”=216x225x44mm
WEIGHT
6lbs, 3kg
WARRANTY
2 years
Specifications are subject to change.
BROOKLYN BRIDGE II ROON CORE FAQ
What exactly is the Brooklyn Bridge II and why did Mytek built it?
Brooklyn Bridge II is an All-In-One High End DAC, Music Streamer, an analog and digital Preamp and a Headphone Amp. In short, it's a central music source capable of playing and streaming all music sources, with the highest possible resolution and quality. Brooklyn Bridge being relatively small and portable is an immediate, convenient source of hi-res music available immediately anywhere, to be connected (including via hotspot) and controlled with a smartphone. Mytek has 30 years of experience of building the best sounding mastering quality DACs. To create Brooklyn Bridge II, Mytek took an award winning Brooklyn DAC design and inserted a Roon Core (Nucleus+) in the same Brooklyn style box for the ultimate seamless experience which does not require Internet nor network expertise.
Why does BB2 use Roon as the main engine for playback?
Mytek has opted to choose and license Roon for its main playback engine, because Roon is the most advanced high end playback software available today. Roon has originated from the Sooloos software, a pioneering product from Meridian in early 2000's, and has consistently focused on providing the ultimate music lover experience and support of all music formats including hi-res PCM, DSD and MQA formats. Roon's ability to use recordings' metadata to provide an amazing record playback and studying experience is unprecedented and does not exist in any other playback software. Additionally Roon provides unique features such as unified library of local files and multiple streaming services, multiroom playback to multiple DACs and "own private streaming service" experience of Roon ARC. Roon was simply the best and that's why Mytek chose and licensed it.
How powerful is the Brooklyn Bridge II Roon Core?
Brooklyn Bridge II Roon core uses the Intel Core i5 11th generation CPU and is actually more powerful than the Nucleus+ because of this more powerful CPU. It's sufficient to handle a very large libraries, even exceeding the size of internal 4TB drive.
Why does Brooklyn Bridge II have the Bluetooth connectivity?
For convenience. Bluetooth connectivity is meant for all casual sound sources that user may instantly need to connect to speakers, such as podcasts, YouTube, music samples, etc. Bluetooth is extremely useful in daily situations where critical listening isn't feasible or expected. Mytek uses Intel Bluetooth 5 capable of all formats available on the source phone, including hi-res formats such as AptX and Sony's LDAC. Additionally, Mytek plans to introduce the Bluetooth playback capability in the future software updates in 2024.
How good is the DAC circuitry inside the Brooklyn Bridge II?
It's the same circuit based on our own special implementation of the ESS ES9028PRO chipset, same as in the original Brooklyn Bridge released in 2019. Thanks to the 90W toroid linear power supply and linear regulators; subjectively, the sound of Brooklyn Bridge II is noticibly better than the original Brooklyn Bridge. Also, the Brooklyn Bridge II DAC has a newly invented HAT(tm) Harmonic Audio Tuning feature which allows for "warm" sound setting where the even 2nd and 4th harmonics of the DAC can be increased for subjective sound improvement. There are no comparable Streamers in the market with this good hi-res DAC at this price.
How will the Brooklyn Bridge II software evolve?
Brooklyn Bridge II has a powerful Intel Core i5 CPU running customized Ubuntu Linux. Mytek has combined the Roon platform with its own Mytek OS Software Platform. Operation is akin to a computer or smart device is periodically updated with new OS versions adding new functionality. Mytek will continue developing and adding new functionality to Brooklyn Bridge II which will include new options for streaming, playback and connectivity and digital signal processing.
Can Brooklyn Bridge II be used without Roon or with services not supported by Roon?
Yes! Roon focuses on providing the best UI experiences for hi-res streaming services and local library. Some services, such as Spotify, are not supported by Roon. Mytek will be adding this extra functionality in a form of software upgrades. The first feature to be available in the subsequent software updates is the Upnp function, which allows universal network streaming. This feature will be gradually expanded, first providing connection via Spotify Connect, the Audirvana, and Jplay playback software and eventually more streaming services. Additional to the main Roon feature, the Brooklyn Bridge II software will be offering the most playback options available from any other music streamer on the market.
Brooklyn Bridge II can do this better because its Intel Core I5 CPU is about 20x more powerful that the A55 ARM CPU found in the entry level streamers. Because of this, going forward, the Brooklyn Bridge II will offer a plentiful of new features coming with periodic software updates over the next several years.
Can Brooklyn Bridge II be used as Roon Ready end point in a system with another Roon Core?
Yes. It is possible to turn off the Brooklyn Bridge II Roon Core in menu/settings and make the BB2 a Roon Ready DAC without Roon Core running.