Apple Music vs Tidal for SQ

@lalitk , very different from 5 years ago. I have been using the DAC in my Marantz HT processor and have 3 different transports. A Bluesound Node (bluos OS is convenient and the SQ is OK), a Sony SACD/CD/ Blueray player (for discs and streaming via DLNA), and finally an X-Box Series-S for streaming online concerts and Tidal via Plex AND listening to Atmos music in my HT. This is where I set up the Apple Music app to check out their lossless and spatial audio.

My DAC was just upgraded today, I got a Sony Signature TA-ZH1ES headphone amp/dac/preamp. I just unboxed it and will set it up later. Will compare Quboz and compare..

https://www.themasterswitch.com/review-sony-ta-zh1es

@mofojo Anyone heard any news on Spotify Hifi. Sure are talking their time!

I’m hoping its great since my wife demands to have a Spotify subscription and I demand to have a "lossless" subscription.

Since 2017 Spotify has been dragging their feet on/off about lossless - closing out one community forum gripe post to the next by its paying members. Past two years in a row the’ve outright lied about making LOSSLESS available to its subscribers by "year end", a ploy to keep people hanging on tied to their special playlists and outdated learning engine. Both Amazon and Apple continue to surge ahead.

They are knowingly losing more customers to Amazon and Apple now. The latest excuses are around their inability to license content. My guess is their bean counters are being cheap again. WhatHiFi did an article on it months back.

In 2 years spotify stock has gone from $338 to $79, they better change to lossless fast.

Another happy Qobuzer here. 

I have Tidal and Qobuz.  I like them both for SQ.  Qobuz sounds a bit more natural and smoother and therefore better on my system.  Apple music and even mp3 files sound pretty good on my system, but you can clearly hear the difference between streamed Tidal and Qobuz songs and my CD collection ripped to FLAC on my Zenith MK2 streamer.

Tidal has more of the music I like (Old School R&B, Jazz, and Soft Rock) and the songs in their personalized playlists (mixes) are much better than the Qobuz playlists to me.