[Left Channel]

On an iPad Master quality (MQA) is not available using Tidal. So you can have Hi-Fi quality maximum using Tidal. Tidal says:

''MQA is only available in the latest desktop client version and the Android app for LG v30 phones only. It can be downloaded at tidal.com/download. Masters will be available on other mobile and web applications at a later date, however, we do not have a time frame as it has not been made available to us as of yet.''

Using the Qobuz app on iOS you can get the full 24/192 according to the Quobuz website. I don't use Apple so can't confirm though.

Tidal's website is often dated and contradictory. The Android info is no longer complete. Not that it matters to @wdh777 but just for completeness:
• as of last year the Android app also supported full 4x decoding on other LG phones in addition to the V30, including the V40, the G7 series, and some G6 models, as well as the Essential phone, and
• as of January 4th the app was updated to do 1x MQA software decoding on all Android devices, but
• in both cases the app allows the Android OS to resample 16/44.1 tracks to 48 kHz.

Qobuz, UAPP, and others have found a way around that last problem, so I don't know why Tidal cannot.

(There are other threads we should take this topic though, including a Tidal MQA Appreciation thread, an LG V30 Tips and Tricks thread, and more.)

 

[Left Channel]

Why? It would be interesting to read some compare and contrast comments.

Why do I prefer Qobuz over Tidal? Well for one thing, I like the sound of Hi-Res and Qobuz has a lot more of it. When made from the same master, a Qobuz Hi-Res track and a Tidal MQA track will sound equally good to me. Maybe I haven't yet put together a sophisticated enough audio system, but I have yet to hear the MQA "time domain" thing, and Qobuz offers about 1,850,000 more Hi-Res tracks.

For another, I prefer the Qobuz in-app experience — both design and discovery — and genre focus. I could go on about this at length, but I'll spare you for now. Main thing is, Qobuz seems more meant for me. Then there's the mobile listening experience. This is better with Qobuz unless you buy a third-party app, due to the CD-quality track resampling problem I mentioned above.

Lately I find myself always going to Qobuz first, and only turning to Tidal as a last resort when they offer a deeper catalog for that genre or artist. I'm looking forward to seeing how much Qobuz can license for their US launch. Could both services use some improvement? Of course. I'd be glad to go on about that as well. But for now I'll just mention one other thing: I listen to the Radio Paradise FLAC streams more often than either of these.

 

[golfbravobravo]

Why do I prefer Qobuz over Tidal? Well for one thing, I like the sound of Hi-Res and Qobuz has a lot more of it. When made from the same master, a Qobuz Hi-Res track and a Tidal MQA track will sound equally good to me. Maybe I haven't yet put together a sophisticated enough audio system, but I have yet to hear the MQA "time domain" thing, and Qobuz offers about 1,850,000 more Hi-Res tracks.

For another, I prefer the Qobuz in-app experience — both design and discovery — and genre focus. I could go on about this at length, but I'll spare you for now. Main thing is, Qobuz seems more meant for me. Then there's the mobile listening experience. This is better with Qobuz unless you buy a third-party app, due to the CD-quality track resampling problem I mentioned above.

Lately I find myself always going to Qobuz first, and only turning to Tidal as a last resort when they offer a deeper catalog for that genre or artist. I'm looking forward to seeing how much Qobuz can license for their US launch. Could both services use some improvement? Of course. I'd be glad to go on about that as well. But for now I'll just mention one other thing: I listen to the Radio Paradise FLAC streams more often than either of these.

Thanks for that! Thanks for the ROP link too, though it looks like Roon can't handle the flac stream at the moment

 

[wdh777]

Thanks for the radio paradise tip. Just downloaded their IOS app. Looks pretty cool!

 

[shultzee]

Thanks for the radio paradise tip. Just downloaded their IOS app. Looks pretty cool!

+1. Liking radio paradise.

 

[Left Channel]

Thanks for that! Thanks for the RP link too, though it looks like Roon can't handle the flac stream at the moment

Thanks for the radio paradise tip. Just downloaded their IOS app. Looks pretty cool!

+1. Liking radio paradise.

RP is great. I subscribe/support them, and was relieved to learn that they are no longer based in Paradise, CA. The whole town recently burned down to the ground.

In addition to the website and mobile apps, the CD-quality FLAC streams are supported by a free LMS/Squeezebox plug-in, and Roon might do the same work if enough people ask. Meanwhile it's also available in 320 kbps and lower.

Back on-topic, there is also a Qobuz plug-in for LMS/Squeezebox that supports Hi-Res, and a (non-MQA) Tidal plugin too. Rumor has it Qobuz and Roon have been in discussions.

 

[Richter Di]

On an iPad Master quality (MQA) is not available using Tidal. So you can have Hi-Fi quality maximum using Tidal. Tidal says:

Using Quobuz app on iOS you can get the full 24/192 according to the Quobuz website. I don't use Apple so can't confirm though.

I can confirm, but it is not bit perfect. I tested the same songs in HiRes from the iPad with Camera adapter to @Jan Meier `s „Soul“ DAC and headphone amplifier and it sounded much better from the PC. Same track.

 

[Left Channel]

Highlighted on the head-fi front page today:

Mike Dias interviews Qobuz's Dan Mackta
The Celestial Jukebox is Here and It Sounds Incredible. An Interview with Dan Mackta from Qobuz
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the...-interview-with-dan-mackta-from-qobuz.898037/

 

[Mike Dias]

Highlighted on the head-fi front page today:

Mike Diaz interviews Qobuz's Dan Mackta
The Celestial Jukebox is Here and It Sounds Incredible. An Interview with Dan Mackta from Qobuz
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the...-interview-with-dan-mackta-from-qobuz.898037/

Hi Left Channel - thank you for sharing.

I hope everyone enjoys the interview. The service is amazing. Of course I care about the audio quality but for me, the content is king. I love their layout, the UI & UX, and their curated playlists. For my world and needs, they simply nail it.

My family and I were making pizza at home a few weeks ago and we went down the Stevie Wonder rabbit hole thanks to the Qobuz editors.

Next on my list is to devour Coltrane's Impulse sessions.

 

[guitardave]

I keep seeing “Qobuz now available in US” which causes me to try to log in with the password I set up 6 months or so ago, and just get error messages. Yes I applied for beta and was refused. So to be clear, it is NOT currently available in the US, correct?

 

[SoundDouble]

I second that @guitardave . I set up an account a while back using UAPP and still waiting for the release.

 

[Peter Hyatt]

if you’ve had free trial, and app won’t process now, try deleting and reinstalling app.

If you see up old account, consider trying new?

 

[guitardave]

Thanks for the advice. I did that and still get
the same error message.
I did not renew my Deezer account assuming the Qobuz ap would actually launch. I still have Tidal and pandora. Thinking maybe I should just renew my Deezer now. I just hate being told something is available and finding it is not...

 

[golfbravobravo]

I keep seeing “Qobuz now available in US” which causes me to try to log in with the password I set up 6 months or so ago, and just get error messages. Yes I applied for beta and was refused. So to be clear, it is NOT currently available in the US, correct?

That is my experience exactly!

Cheers

 

[almarti]

From my listening to both Qobuz and Tidal you will hear less of the audible watermarking applied to some recordings on Qobuz than on Tidal. This is for non MQA files. I believe the watermarks are not applied to MQA releases on Tidal. To hear this yourself try this track first on Tidal then on Qobuz: "Morales: Requiem - Music for Philip II", track 7, listen to the massed voices. You will hear a warbling or flutter effect that is not there on the same track on Qobuz. Another good example is solo piano. Listen first to Yuja Wang's "Sonatas & Etudes" album on Tidal, from the first track you will notice a low level warble that makes the piano notes sound off. Switching to the same track on Qobuz you should notice right away how much more realistic the piano notes sound, without the warble. Overall I find the sound quality better on Qobuz than on Tidal. Depending on your tastes in music you might find more content you like on Tidal than on Qobuz.

Do you recommended Qobuz for jazz and classic rock lovers? I am at Tidal now.