Article: The Next Track: Episode 159 | Amazon Music HD

[photonman]

Isn't it great to have so many options.

 

I am not the most patient person but I do believe that it is only a matter of short time before some software vendor integrates with Amazon HD and then this drawback is eliminated and the debate can really begin about the sound quality difference.   And I gotta believe Spotify might have something up their sleeve too because they cannot stay forever in their equivalent world of cassettes and 8-track tape.

 

I keep going back and forth between all these streaming services and I was content to settle back onto Spotify for all the aforementioned benefits (catalog, superior algorithms, UI etc.) but then Amazon has to rock my world.  I find Amazon's curated playlists pretty darn good and the music selection is great but that OCD thing about getting bitperfect has me swaying back to Spotify but I intend to take advantage of three free months with Amazon.   I figure if I set my Audio Midi to 24 bit/44.1 i am at least at Tidal level, except for the resampling of the higher rates but Amazon's catalog is heavy on the CD quality stuff.

 

What I find ironic too is that Amazon probably already runs some of their competitors' backends in their data centers so they make money either way.  Lets see what Amazon HD evolves to in a year or so.  It wasn't so long ago that we were buying our SACD's and Chesky CD's from them so this is just the next chapter of Amazon music.