Audison B-CON Hi-Res Bluetooth Audio Wireless Receiver Interface 24bit 96kHz

The Audison B-CON is a Hi-Res Bluetooth 5.0 wireless receiver interface supporting 24-bit/96kHz audio via LDAC, with RCA analogue and Toslink S/PDIF optical outputs. It is part of the Audison B-CON range.

Key specifications

• Bluetooth: 5.0 + EDR, A2DP 1.3, AVRCP 1.6
• Codecs: LDAC, AAC, SBC
• Bluetooth streaming: up to 24-bit/96kHz (Android LDAC devices)
• Outputs: RCA analogue (2 VRMS) and Toslink S/PDIF optical
• Optical input: S/PDIF, up to 24-bit/192kHz, with pass-through switching
• Signal-to-noise ratio: 100 dBA
• Supply voltage: 6 to 24 VDC
• Dimensions: 90 x 60.4 x 23 mm

B-CON Hi-Res Bluetooth receiver

Hi-Res Audio 24-bit/96kHz with Android LDAC

The B-CON is designed for streaming from Hi-Res players (FiiO, Sony Walkman and similar) and from current-generation Android and Apple mobile devices, while keeping the car's hands-free Bluetooth profile active.

It supports all audio formats and reaches maximum performance with uncompressed Bluetooth streaming (up to 96kHz/24-bit, Android LDAC devices only), whether playing local files or using Hi-Res streaming apps such as Tidal and Qobuz.

• Up to 96kHz/24-bit Bluetooth streaming
• LDAC codec for Android devices
• AAC codec for Apple devices
• Absolute volume function ensuring full dynamic range
• Pass-through digital optical input
• Digital output

What's a codec?

Audiophile Bluetooth performance comes down to the codec — the digital encoding format both the sending and receiving devices use to transfer audio data. During pairing, the two devices agree on which codec to use; only a codec supported by both can be selected.

All Bluetooth devices support SBC, the baseline codec in the Bluetooth specification. It is not lossless and, under some conditions, sounds poor. The Bluetooth specification allows a better codec to be used, provided both devices support it.

Some codecs claim high-resolution support, but connections may not always be established at the highest quality level — and because this happens invisibly at the wireless level, the user usually cannot tell.

B-CON uses a high-performance codec called LDAC

LDAC is available on many Android handsets and audiophile digital media players. Like most codecs, LDAC can operate at various quality levels, but at its highest level it is lossless. Audison's lab testing shows that over the highest-quality LDAC connection the analogue frequency response reaches 40kHz — the performance that earned the B-CON its High Resolution certification from the JAS.

What about Apple iOS users?

The B-CON also supports AAC, the highest-performance codec available on iOS. AAC (Advanced Audio Codec) is not a proprietary Apple format and is widely used across the tech industry. It is not lossless and does not permit high-resolution performance above 20kHz, but it still performs audibly better than SBC, so the B-CON delivers the best possible sound from iOS devices over Bluetooth.

In Audison's measurements, playing a White Noise 96kHz/24-bit at -3dB audio file via LDAC from an Android device yields a bandwidth of 20 to 48kHz. With Apple iOS devices, bandwidth is limited to 20 to 20kHz — a limitation of the AAC codec in the Apple device, not the B-CON.

Outputs, inputs and throughputs

The B-CON provides RCA analogue and Toslink S/PDIF optical outputs (digital output is 96kHz/24-bit). The analogue outputs are High-Resolution certified with a signal-to-noise ratio of 100 dBA.

The B-CON also includes a Toslink S/PDIF input and an internal digital switcher. Connect a Toslink source — such as an external preamp output — to the B-CON's Toslink input, and the B-CON's Toslink output to your bit device's Toslink input. When streaming from a handset, audio passes through the B-CON. When a phone call arrives, the B-CON switches seamlessly to pass-through mode, allowing the OEM hands-free device to handle call audio.