Anyone not switching from Tidal to Qobuz?

[mrvco]

On 2/19/2019 at 10:27 AM, Samuel T Cogley said:

 

UMG has not fessed up to actually doing this.  I'm still spot checking Deutsche Grammophon titles on Qobuz (titles I ended up purchasing the CD for in exasperation) and haven't found a watermarked title yet.

 

FWIW, here's why I think the UMG watermarking debacle has flown under the radar for so long:

 

• Very easy to spot using headphones (mostly what I use), sometimes not obvious from speakers
• UMG has thus far made zero public comment on the practice
• Uncompressed streaming still not widely adopted by audiophiles
• People don't want to believe they're paying $20/month for adulterated media

 

The one thing that Qobuz seems to have over Tidal is a genuine desire to advocate for their customers.  While Tidal has vaguely acknowledged the existence of the watermarks ("as the label intended"), all they've done is shrug.  Qobuz markets themselves as an audiophile service and audible watermarking is antithetic to audiophilia, so Qobuz apparently made a business decision to not taint their library with that stuff.

 

I'm still checking for watermarking... 

 

Is it possible that Qobuz's UMG library has a newer implementation of the MarkAny technology that is less audible?

[Samuel T Cogley]

2 minutes ago, mrvco said:

 

Is it possible that Qobuz's UMG library has a newer implementation of the MarkAny technology that is less audible?

 

Interesting.  What information do you have on this new "less audible" version of MarkAny?

[jtwrace]

I thought I was going to switch to Qobuz.  Then I realized they aren't really ready for the market as "our library isn't 100% ready" yet they want to still charge full price for their service that can't compete with their competition.  Nope, not this guy.  Throw in the fact that their customer service is really poor, I'll stick with Tidal until they figure their shit out or one goes under.  

[mrvco]

2 hours ago, Samuel T Cogley said:

 

Interesting.  What information do you have on this new "less audible" version of MarkAny?

 

None other than it seems to be enough of an issue that I can hear the warbling on a pair of $150 headphones through Tidal.  I was assuming this issue was only now surfacing on higher bit-rate / lossless streaming services and it would need to be addressed , but apparently it has been reported on various streaming services since 2012.

 

Regardless, it does seem odd that it would be evident on Tidal and not Qobuz.  I'm in the US so I've only recently been able to access Qobuz, but is it possible that UMG is phasing out the use of audible watermarking and Tidal's library has yet to be refreshed?

[Ski Bum]

i will probably keep both, at least for the near-term.  I listen to Tidal and Qobuz through Roon, and I'm getting slightly better sound quality with MQA Studio Tidal files than Qobuz hi-rez files.  OTOH, I'm getting better sound quality with Qobuz hi-rez than non-Studio MQA Tidal files.  Go figure....

[Samuel T Cogley]

12 minutes ago, mrvco said:

 

None other than it seems to be enough of an issue that I can hear the warbling on a pair of $150 headphones through Tidal.  I was assuming this issue was only now surfacing on higher bit-rate / lossless streaming services and it would need to be addressed , but apparently it has been reported on various streaming services since 2012.

 

Regardless, it does seem odd that it would be evident on Tidal and not Qobuz.  I'm in the US so I've only recently been able to access Qobuz, but is it possible that UMG is phasing out the use of audible watermarking and Tidal's library has yet to be refreshed?

 

I'm trying not to make any assumptions on why I can't find the watermarking on Qobuz.  I'm just happy their catalog seems to be (mostly) clean.

[photonman]

I was originally planning to ditch Tidal for Qobuz but the lack of curated playlists that appealed to me is a deal breaker.  I need that channel for new music as I am too lazy for my own discovery chores.  

 

I really got spoiled by Spotify's custom playlist creations based on my listening habits.  Tidal now is doing this to with their "My Mixes 1 through 6" and they are pretty good. 

 

So for now, until Spotify goes hi-res or Qobuz implements customized user specific playlists, Tidal is my streaming provider.

[oneway23]

Currently too many holes in direct comparison between Tidal & Qobuz for me to consider switching to Qobuz at this time, beta status notwithstanding.  I do enjoy any and all genres, and, in my particular case, after spending a slightly unreasonable amount of time doing direct comparisons, I've personally found Qobuz to come up short.

 

Also, the oft-repeated point against Tidal as having some form of rap/hip-hop focus is simply a phantom argument, period...end of story.  I haven't been keyed in to that world since around 1996 (think the last rap CD I bought was Jurassic 5 in 2000) and I have no issue whatsoever with zeroing in on precisely what I'm looking to listen to, at any time, all without the feeling that I'm somehow, or in some way, being inundated with something I don't find enjoyable.  The front page, even without Roon (which I do use on my PC), is a complete non-issue.

 

Insofar as hi-res is concerned, while I've been quite an advocate in the past, I've grown quite weary over the last couple of years having to A. Wait for someone on SHF to take a bullet for the team, so to speak B. Buy it blind & hope for an improvement, and/or C. Find the release through "other means" and use that trial run as some sort of barometer to determine whether or not said release is worth owning.  In this instance, one would presume that having access  to a great deal of hi-res material would be ideal, right?  Well, maybe not.

 

In theory, it sounds wonderful.  In practice?  I'm not so sure, as of yet.  Is it cool? Absolutely!  Is it a vital part of your experience?  That's in the eye of the beholder.

 

As an early hi-res adopter, I've found, over the last couple of weeks during my trial, that I already own in hi-res most of the albums which I'd consider to be essential, and the ones I don't?  Not sure they mean enough to have them available in hi-res for the additional fee should I ever want to listen.  The value proposition here is tricky, since one who has never really dealt in hi-res before might consider this an untapped treasure trove, I don't know.  For me, I find interest waning and interesting releases slowing.  YMMV.

 

Sorry for prattling on.  Just some thoughts...Thanks for looking!

 

[Talisman]

Years ago, I tried Tidal for 60 days, but the crude, murky-looking apps and the streaming bugs (at the time) turned me off. Then I tried Qobuz for six months beginning Fall 2019. Qobuz got off to a poor start by streaming only 70% of my Google Play Music catalog. It's particularly weak on reggae and world music. Missing 30% of your songs is a real playlist killer. I hear Qobuz is great for classical and jazz, but I lean more toward the pop side of things.

 

Even after six months, with all their promises about signing labels, the Qobuz 70% figure has barely budged for me.

 

So now I'm back with Tidal. The apps look clean and modern, streaming is rock-solid, and I can't hear the sound difference between Tidal and Qobuz (although I read that some of you can). Best of all, I'm back to having all my thousands of favorites back. I don't wish to get into the MQA debate. Like everything else, your mileage my vary. Choose one or both, and enjoy the music!

[NOMBEDES]

I am like Amazon Music.  Do not see any reason to change.

[gellie]

I’m using both. Pulled my family off Apple Music for Tidal. Downgraded it to HiFi and I also have Quboz. Loving them both. 

[thyname]

I also have both. Tidal and Qobuz. Annual subs. For the moment, I need both. They complement each other. Ideally, I want to just have one. I feel I am not there yet

[The Computer Audiophile]

I have Tidal, Qobuz, and Amazon HD. I’d love to just use one, but music is so important to me that I’m willing to pay for that once in a while thing where one service has something the others don’t. It happens around once per month. 

[AudioDoctor]

I have both Tidal and Qobuz because there is music on one that's not on the other that I want to listen to...

 

I would prefer if it was all on Qobuz for two reasons.

 

1) I think Qobuz sounds better

 

2) Music on Qobuz is downloadable/purchasable

[SlimPickins]

Currently using Tidal.  The Tidal iOS interface is preferred by the family.

Since Tidal added a Roku app, the family probably uses that as much as anything.

 

Content wise, Spotify would be a better choice for music selection for everyone.

However, without hi-res, we aren't leaving Tidal any time soon.

 

Having everyone on board helps to justify the monthly expense.

 

We tried AmazonHD.  The iOS/Roku interface sux and its harder to stream.

 

[davide256]

I get Tidal for free on my cell phone service but I just don't use it, find Qobuz to be of better audio quality. $14.95 a month isn't a problem when it includes high res

and allows me to better screen possible high res purchases. Qobuz store prices for high res album purchases are competitive

[MartinT]

The base standard for wide catalogue range for me has always been Spotify.  I have seen Qobuz get steadily closer as they have filled holes in their range until now, when I can find almost everything I listen to on Qobuz.  There are some exceptions (for instance, Poco - Blue and Gray) , but they tend not to exist on any of the streaming services.  Tie that with the recent price reduction of Qobuz Studio and I'm using it as my primary source.  The hi-res streams are particularly wonderful and sound better than Tidal to my ears when I trialled it recently.  Just today I was listening to some remastered Chet Baker in 24/192 and it truly was an amazing experience.

[Boy Howdy]

I tried Qobuz several years ago, before they came to the US.  They were having technical problems with dropouts. I tried contacting their customer service people to help with the issues but rather than fix the issues, they just cut me off even though I had just paid for the next month only days earlier.  Then they wouldn't respond.  I like Tidal just fine.  8^)

[The Computer Audiophile]

58 minutes ago, Boy Howdy said:

I tried Qobuz several years ago, before they came to the US.  They were having technical problems with dropouts. I tried contacting their customer service people to help with the issues but rather than fix the issues, they just cut me off even though I had just paid for the next month only days earlier.  Then they wouldn't respond.  I like Tidal just fine.  8^)

Yeah, they probably weren’t geared to serve and support the US market as a whole back then. Some people had success while others didn’t. Now that it’s officially launched in the US, it works very well. 

[Miska]

It is easy choice:

 

[asdf1000]

9 minutes ago, Miska said:

It is easy choice:

 

 

They need to hurry with that because once Amazon Music HD expands beyond 4 countries and sorts out their app...

[Boy Howdy]

19 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

Yeah, they probably weren’t geared to serve and support the US market as a whole back then. Some people had success while others didn’t. Now that it’s officially launched in the US, it works very well. 

Chris:

My point was that Qobuz was interested in money and nothing else and their customer service was rude or non-existant.  They weren't serving “the US market as a whole,” just a few Individuals interested in hi res audio.  Scale that up to the whole US and you have a situation I will avoid.  Tidal customer service is a bit slow but MUCH more effective than Qobuz AND, Tidal is honest.  
Mike

[The Computer Audiophile]

50 minutes ago, Boy Howdy said:

Chris:

My point was that Qobuz was interested in money and nothing else and their customer service was rude or non-existant.  They weren't serving “the US market as a whole,” just a few Individuals interested in hi res audio.  Scale that up to the whole US and you have a situation I will avoid.  Tidal customer service is a bit slow but MUCH more effective than Qobuz AND, Tidal is honest.  
Mike

Huh?

 

Qobuz did a favor for the few US audiophiles who wanted the service even though it was unavailable in the US. It was a use at your own risk situation. Qobuz also could’ve lost its license to distribute content for going around its contracted area. 
 

I look at this as a “No good deed goes unpunished” scenario. They broke the rules for you, knowing they didn’t have the infrastructure to serve the US, and it came back to bite them. 

[tapatrick]

On 2/16/2019 at 4:52 PM, Emm said:

I don’t know anyone who had tried Qobuz after Tidal and hasn’t changed.

personally for me there was no way back although many albums are still not available in Qobuz.

I tried Qobuz after Tidal and have stayed with Tidal. Tried on 2 different occasions - last time only a few months ago. I wanted to like it but can't stand it when there are dropouts and interruptions. I found the service to be full of glitches and the support was erratic and mostly non existent... so wasn't a difficult choice. I heard it had got better but not my experience and I live in central London. Tidal is reliable and has all the music I ever need.

[Richard Dale]

I've just subscribed to my first streaming service with Qobuz HiFi Sublime+. I regularly download albums from Qobuz, and I've noticed the Sublime discounts, which would probably pay for at leat half the sublime subscription over a year. I've always thought with over digital 3000 albums, and pretty much as many LPs, I've already got more music than I can ever listen to. But it is pretty exciting to have access to a giant music collection that sounds as good as my local one to experiment with searching for new stuff.

 

For me, the main difference between Tidal and Qobuz is that Qobuz combines HiFi downloads with the streaming service. The fact that it doesn't use MQA is another big plus point, as it means I can play Hi Res Qobuz tracks via any DAC without worrying about whether the do 'first and/or second unfolds or no unfolds' or whatever.

 

I've been listening to Qobuz via mconnectHD on iPad Minis so far, into MoOde running UPnP on an Allo USB Signature. I have two iPad Minis, one is a 5 year old 2nd gen, and the other is a 5th gen from last year. I might be imagining it, but the older iPad sounds brighter, which the newer one sounds like tracks I play from my local NAS.