Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsImpressive Bluetooth Bridge brings state of the art features to older stereos
Reviewed in Canada on January 17, 2024
This device has two features that I really like. The first is the Bluetooth 5.1 Qualcomm chip, that provides a plethora of high quality audio codecs, including the wonderful AptX HD codec. The second - and I will bashfully admit this - is the 3D Surround feature. It really opens up the sound space, and makes my aging stereo perform like it just popped out of the box.
Set up was a bit tricky, as I was trying to set up the unit to work with Alexa, and Alexa can be fussy. Asking Alexa to enter pairing mode got me no where. What worked was to first pair my phone with the B06+ device, then pair the Alexa app on my phone with the device. To do this you need to scroll down to the particular Alexa device you want to pair it with, and then tap (to select) that device. That opens a pairing screen, you get the B06+ into pairing mode, it shows up on the list, you select it, and hey presto! - you're done. But it took me about half an hour to figure that out.
While it's very, very good, this isn't the highest quality Bluetooth Bridge out there; if you demand the finest, you'll want to look at the B06S+, the B06HD+ or the B06pro+, as those all support the superlative Sony LDAC codec. This wasn't important to me, as I was linking the device with Alexa, where it is expected to live out its life; and Alexa is limited by an internal Bluetooth 4.2 and SBC codec which is pretty much on the opposite end of the scale in terms of quality. It's still surprisingly good, but paying extra for a codec that my device could never use, didn't make a lot of sense to me. It's also true that the B06+ supports the 3D Surround chip, whilst the other devices I mentioned do not. So for me, the lack of LDAC support was no biggie, and the 3D Surround feature was a definite plus.
A quick note on quality: everyone is agreed that the SBC codec that is hard wired into Alexa is poor, and audiophiles can readily detect the difference between SBC and higher quality codecs in blind testing. To give you a benchmark of what 'poor' sounds like, a high quality MP3 recording is in about the same ballpark as SBC. While unsuitable for audiophiles, SBC is still surprisingly good, and considered 'good enough' for a device not expected to perform at audiophile levels. Like Alexa. On the other hand, those same audiophiles could NOT detect the difference between the AptX HD codec and running hard copper lines. There's a difference, and a scope can readily show it. But the difference is so minor that even audiophiles, working with the best audio equipment, couldn't suss out the difference. So for me, with my tin ears, the lack of LDAC is not a biggie. AptX HD is good enough.
In a refreshing change of direction, 1Mii, the maker of the device, included an actual 5 Volt plug in adapter! There's been a trend away from doing this, and even Mii does not include adapters on their battery enabled devices intended for portable use. But they did include the power brick with this device, for which I was very grateful. They earned some points by doing that.
Staying on the plus side, 1 Mii also earned points by including both a 3.5mm to RCA pair cable, and a power cable to run from the power brick to the bridge. My complaint is that, while having them is nice, they're both very short. Another 3 or 6 feet of USB power cable would have made a big difference in terms of where I plugged the device in; right now it's plugged into the back of the receiver, in a plug that is switched. Alexa will turn the receiver off for me; but as soon as I do that the bridge will lose power, and Alexa won't be able to power the stereo back up. Clearly I need to run a longer cable to a different plug, and I'll do that. Had 1Mii included a 6 or 9 foot USB cable, it would have made my life easier.
Bottom line? This is a superlative Bluetooth Bridge, which works connectivity miracles for a mere pittance. I enthusiastically recommend this unit, and I hope it gives you as much enjoyment as it's giving me. Top marks!