Qobuz vs Tidal

I used to have both services. I found Qobuz to consistently sound better than Tidal so I only have Qobuz today.  i was also using these services through a streamer with it’s own app (in my case at the time Auralic Lightning DS). Using either service is seamless through the streamer app - meaning that the software deficiencies mentioned above were not an issue for me. 

I would also note that Roon is not particularly transparent. I used to be a subscriber but dropped it when I compared streams from Roon with the same using the native app Lightning DS. It wasn’t close. So, it’s possible that  the differences between Tidal and Qobuz for some are being masked by Roon for those using that platform. Of course, Roon’s  interface is the best out there, but it may be negatively impacting the sound for some. 

But there’s another issue - and that’s what artists actually receive from various platforms. Tidal and Qobuz are vastly better than the others. But in this case, Qobuz wins again. A quick search will show that Qobuz treats artists the best of all the major platforms. 

@mgrif104 

I've been using the magnificent Room Nucleus Plus in my audio system for about four years now, and I get superb detail and transparency.  I know, there's always something better.  However, the Roon Nucleus Plus won me over for it's combination of superb sound quality, and it's simply phenomenal user interface.  Happy listening.        

I have both and I generally prefer Qobuz, but I suspect in a properly conducted blind test I wouldn’t be able to consistently tell a difference and I suspect that’s true for most, but each to their own

As someone noted, I’ve read that Q treats the artist better and that’s a big plus. I also saw that Qobuz recently released a video indicating that it’s connect feature is in beta testing so hopefully that’s finally coming.
 

I think both offer an incredible service for the money and most folks would be happy with either

@kennymacc +!

Great point on Roon Nucleus plus which i never tried and which certainly should be optimized to run Roon without any loss in transparency. 

While my gear was Roon certified, it certainly had a deleterious effect on the sound vs the native app. I likened it to how MSFT Windows must run on all PCs regardless of hardware configuration and companion software. It works, but the performance isn’t always equivalent. The native operating system and music management system could address the memory cache and buffers of that machine whereas Roon was not so optimized.

I’ve heard great things about the Roon Nucleus system and assume it’s fully competitive with other streamers anywhere near its price range. For those using something other than a nucleus, an audition may be warranted to see if there’s a negative impact.  I do miss that interface.

To that point, Auralic’s Lightning DS (LDS) is very good and I enjoy using it quite a bit in system 2, but it’s not Roon. And my T+A in system 1 has a streaming client built along with a network audio adapter (NAA) so I use their native app.  Its UI is rudimentary in comparison but sounds fabulous. 

And to that point, I find that Qobuz streams sound the same as files I ripped from a CD as FLAC and stored on a NAS, assuming they’re the same provenance (i.e. not a remaster). In sum, I can’t believe how good streaming from Qobuz can be. It’s been a while since I’ve done a comparison with Tidal - I’m guessing the same would be true there.

As audiophiles, who of us would have imagined twenty years ago how good we’d have it today? 

Best,

Hello all,

I think that one factor we have to include in our analysis is how much the streaming services pay back in royalties to the artists. From what I have read, Qobuz ranks on top of most analysis about this, but things seem to change and hopefully improve in this regard with many streaming services. 

Yes, music quality is very important, but supporting the artists that produce it (I am not one of those) should also be among our selection criteria. 

All the best to all of your… ears !