Official Qobuz Issues Thread

[EP]

Hi, I registered an account to post in this thread. I have a Win/Linx dual boot PC connected via USB to an SMSL SU-8 DAC and a Topping L30 HPA. I am a longtime Spotify/FLAC file listener and I am trying Qobuz on a trial. I also stream to a Marantz AV8802A.

 

Thus far I have not been impressed.

 

Qobuz has fewer artists and albums available than Spotify. Fine.

 

Airplay/Linux systems appear to be limited 44.1 KHz. Fine. Not Qobuz's issue. I upgraded from Ubuntu 16.04 to 18.05 in order to try it; my complains about Ubuntu 18 are not Qobuz's fault. Fine.

 

The Qobuz Windows app, on first install, would only open after I double-clicked it 3-10x. Each instance would remain open in the background, sucking up CPU, and I'd have to close it in task manager. I filed a support request and never heard back.

 

When it did open, it would default to the lowest quality. WASAPI exclusive mode would usually not work. When it did work, music would play in half-time, taking a 96 KHz file and slowing it to 48 KHz. When WASAPI would work, the music would get choppy if I used the computer for anything else. It's a dual-core i7 with 16 GB of RAM, so I really don't think it should be struggling to play music and open a web browser at the same time.

 

I uninstalled and reinstalled the app, at which point it opened reliably for a day. Now, however, whenever I click to stream any music file, it crashes.

 

Actually, I take that back. Qobuz has now reverted to refusing to open.

 

Having tried multiple installations across three platforms (iOS, Linux, Windows), filing unanswered support tickets, and now posting across multiple forums in search of CS, I have to admit that this has been a very poor experience.

 

[EP]

1 minute ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

Do you think this is specific to you? I haven't seen many complaints like this. 

I have a very vanilla Win10 installation, updated regularly, and a very common DAC connected via USB, so I am surprised at those problems.

 

Most users, installing an app and having a bad experience, would not register forum accounts or file multiple support tickets describing their problems. They'd just keep using Spotify or Tidal.

 

That said, I am in a trial period to determine whether or not to subscribe, so the depth and breadth of problems - for what I thought was a mature product - is suprising.

 

 

[EP]

10 minutes ago, Tinnitus Andronicus said:

I had multiple performance issues with the Qobuz desktop app for Windows that never got resolved. On the suggestion of another user, I paid for Audirvana and used that to stream Qobuz and now I am a happy listener. The only time I open the Qobuz app is to do certain artist searches where I get too many unwanted results in Audirvana. So I paid $75 one time for Audirvana and monthly $15 for Qobuz Studio. I filed too many support requests and forum complaints for too long without any of the issues ever getting fixed, the Audirvana purchase was well worth it.

That's good to know. However, from a customer acquisition perspective, "pay for this other product so you can pay for our product" is a tough sell.

[EP]

Thanks for checking.

 

My Win system:

Version    10.0.19041 Build 19041

Hardware Abstraction Layer    Version = "10.0.19041.488"

 

Qobuz (just tried again) works upon a new installation. If you're interested, please do try and run the app again over the next day or two. I uninstalled and reinstalled again, and now it opens, streams music, and connects to the DAC over WASAPI exclusive.

[EP]

49 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

Do you have anything with ASIO drivers installed?

Not that I'm aware of. I do have the XMOS USB DAC control panel installed, for the SMSL.

 

It's certainly possible that some installation or project over the past few years left some audio detritus.

[EP]

5 hours ago, David Craff said:

 

Hi EP,

 

Sorry for the issue you get with our Windows application. Can you contact me in private so we can try to find a solution.

 

Regards

Hi David,

Thanks for reaching out. I did hear from someone in support, so I will let you know how that goes.

 

After a couple of uninstall/reinstall cycles, Qobuz launches reliably, so we're moving on the the downstream issues.

 

Does this forum have private messaging? If not, I will contact you via LinkedIn.

[EP]

On 9/23/2020 at 6:36 AM, The Computer Audiophile said:

Yes. 

Found it, thank you.

 

David, I sent you a PM.