Can you tell the difference between Tidal and Spotify


Hi Everyone,

I am in the process of putting my dream system together.  Mcintosh C2600, MPC1500, 2 Monoblocks (1.2Kw) and I am thinking B&W 802D3 speakers.  I have been listening to Spotify for a while now on my office system which is a peachtree pre-amp and peachtree amp 220.  The system is paired with B&W speakers.   

Will playing music from Tidal be noticeable on these systems?  Has anyone tried to compare the two?

Thanks in advance.

maxking
Yes. That doesn’t necessarily mean different will be better. I’ve taken some blind tests comparing 320 kbps (which is what the high quality version of Spotify streams) to FLAC files and while I could tell the difference between them, I couldn’t consistently identify which was which. Sometimes the 320 file sounded "better" (to my ears), than the FLAC file. Some with better hearing may be able to differentiate which is which, but you should try for yourself and see how much difference it makes to you. With Tidal you have the option of MQA files also. You might also consider Qobuz which has a larger selection of hi-res files and doesn’t require any special hardware to decode them.

How the recording was captured, mixed, mastered, compressed (or not), etc. is going to have more impact on sound quality than bit rates.  
I had both Tidal HIFI and Spotify at the same time and did compare them. For new albums I couldn’t notice any difference but old albums was slightly better on Tidal (Not sure maybe I thought it should be better) , my DAC doesn’t support MQA but ppl said albums in MQA format sound better though at that time Tidal’s archive was limited. Spotify has a bigger archive and I like its mobile app better, specially the ability to control other devices !
IMHO Spotify has never held a candle in SQ to Tidal or Qobuz.

But I am also probably one of the few people on the planet who thinks the Spotify interface sucks...lol

So WTH do I know!
🤔🤔
Tidal has better sound quality. Spotify has a bigger & more varied music library. I like having both.