It does seem a good deal, but an all-in-one just isn’t quite as flexible, so you have to take long-term costs into account. Yes, the Powernode does have some inputs, but not as many as a well-specified amp.
To be fair, Bluesound is a manufacturer that’s so heavily invested in their streaming platform that at least their long term software support should be better than most.
But if it was my money, and this is what I’ve done with both my systems, I’d get an amp with a decent DAC, and add a comparatively low cost streamer with digital output.
I’ve not heard the Bluesound Powernode but I’d be very surprised indeed it it came close to my Quad Vena II, although Jon Darko was impressed with it when he tested it with the KEF LS50 Metas.
Some of it will depend on precisely what you want from a streamer. I don’t have any downloaded music - I only want a streamer to run Tidal reliably and maybe Internet radio. So for me, the Audio Pro Link 1 ticks my boxes.
It’s not perfect, it doesn’t do gapless Tidal from within the Audio Pro app, I need to use Airplay for that, which it does do, but at £90 for the streamer, it leaves a greater chunk of the budget for the quality of amp, which is more important to me.
I do think having an amp with good quality digital inputs significantly widens your choices down the road though.
I have used Google’s Chromecast Audio as a streamer in the past and now the Audio Pro Link 1, and they’re both low cost streamers that sound excellent when I’m not using their own DAC and analogue outputs. (Although the Chromecast implementation of Tidal was appalling, hence the change to the Audio Pro).
However if you had an amp with only analogue inputs, then it perhaps limits you to better quality streamers with superior analogue output implementations. And then if you want to ditch the streamer in future it becomes a more costly prospect.
But all our needs and priorities are different.
Frankly looking at the development of the thread, I think you’ve probably reached the point where you’re near to a shortlist. So I’d recommend that you actually stop reading reviews and stop listening to all our recommendations because we’ll only end up confusing you further with ever more options
You’ve probably reached the point where you need to begin engaging your ears in this decision and visit a dealer and actually listen to stuff. It’s happened to me many times when I’ve read rave reviews on products I think look smart, but when I listen to them I decide within a few minutes that I don’t like the sound.
You can only read so much about sound. You have to experience it to really understand and make a proper judgement. So whatever you do, don’t waste your money and buy blind, unless the dealer has an excellent returns policy.