Might have posted this in wrong forum my apologies if I did. Trying it here. So I’m streaming some Chet Baker. Switching back and forth between Apple Music and Qobuz. Using a WiiM pro plus hardwired with Ethernet . Willsenton r8 tube amp to Wharfdale Denton speakers. My Qobuz subscription expires in a week or so. Honestly Qobuz sounds amazing but on the flip side I can’t tell the difference between it and Apple Music. I’m 53 and sure my ears aren’t as sensitive as they were 30 years ago. Just wondering or wanting someone to decide for me lol. Is it worth keeping Qobuz? I posted some screenshots or the comparison
Need some help deciding
- Thread starter Bozzz
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Anglepen
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If you genuinely cannot hear a difference, and you enjoy the lower bitrate stream then save the money.
Enjoyment, not critical listening is most important.
Merry Christmas.
Enjoyment, not critical listening is most important.
Merry Christmas.
Balthazar B
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In which case with the higher quality service he's a winner all around. For a single user, Qobuz is marginally less expensive than Apple Music with an annual subscription (at least in my market). One could also suggest the first of those services with a Connect feature that works well in the WiiM ecosystem should get the nod (hint: it won't be Apple).
IMHO, though, one should choose based on what's important to that person in terms of his/her priorities. Sometimes it's cost, sometimes it's library, sometimes it's UX, sometimes it's compatibility with one's audio environment, etc. Qobuz recently releasing a Radio feature in their beta channel brings them more in line with the feature set of Apple Music (and Spotify, Tidal, etc.). Connect, if implemented well, might just seal the deal for me. But Apple Music is quite a nice service itself, even if it has several fundamentally frustrating "features" that Apple shows no signs of even acknowledging, much less alleviating.
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Anglepen
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If a prime subscriber it’s no additional cost.
Balthazar B
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Amazon Prime? Or do you mean Apple One?
Anglepen
Active member
Apologies, I mis read as Amazon music. My bad
It may be that I'm biased because I don't like anything about Apple, apart from the IPAD which is unbeatable. I don't like their absolutely closed ecosystem.
Even in streaming, with Apple Music you will only have the best with Apple devices. Not only that, it seems that Airplay 2 has made the situation worse, worse than Airplay 1. Limits always imposed by Apple.
I would therefore choose Qobuz without hesitation.
I have Qobuz and AmazonMusic UHD. Qobuz doesn't have Qobuz Connect yet, let's hope it arrives soon, and using Chromecast you are limited to 24/96, a limit not of Chromecast, but imposed by Qobuz, however you can override the limit and get to 24/192 using Bubble UPnP on Android or MConnect on iOS.
Happy Holidays
Marginal note to @Maurizio 's post 
You can absolutely bring Apple Music in full resolution to a stereo using Android! (And no job for a streamer.)
1. No problem for headphone usage, of course you need some dongle/mobile DAC and an Android device with USB C out.
2. A workaround, not very attractive, to bring Apple Music even on a stereo could look: Android phone or tablet, a dongle or mobile USB DAC (preferable one with its own rechargeable power, so that the DAC does not empty the Android device) and a 3,5 mm to RCA adaptor. All my tested DACs with displays showed the available correct resolution 44.1, 48, 96 or 192 ALAC. So, it works, but it is a little bit ugly
All these are wired connections. No Airplay knowledge or usage on my side.
You can absolutely bring Apple Music in full resolution to a stereo using Android! (And no job for a streamer.)
1. No problem for headphone usage, of course you need some dongle/mobile DAC and an Android device with USB C out.
2. A workaround, not very attractive, to bring Apple Music even on a stereo could look: Android phone or tablet, a dongle or mobile USB DAC (preferable one with its own rechargeable power, so that the DAC does not empty the Android device) and a 3,5 mm to RCA adaptor. All my tested DACs with displays showed the available correct resolution 44.1, 48, 96 or 192 ALAC. So, it works, but it is a little bit ugly
All these are wired connections. No Airplay knowledge or usage on my side.
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I like simple
That’s my understanding. I love Apple Music and Apple Music classical. But for what ever reason AirPlay down samples to 256 16/44.1. Frustrating company sometimes.
I love it too. I have several Macs in the house, Airport Expresses, Time Capsules, iMacs, you name it. But this Airplay business has me fleeing from it. I'm now using Audirvana and Wiim. For Classical music, tlhe extra resolution shows; a Mahler symphony is a complex piece of sound to record and reproduce. You don't need 24/192, but you do need 16/44.
Newb question…. What is Audirvana?
Balthazar B
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At a high level, Audirvana is in the same wheelhouse as Roon and LMS. For organizing and playing digital content from multiple sources.
I also love Apple Music and Apple Classical. But I fear, until today, we have to accept that they build their stuff for their gear. The few "audiophiles" are Plankton (Quote John Darko) for them.
And as a HiFidelist since decades I have to confess that even with this lossy 256 AAC it sounds incredible and impressive good with my Airpods. No idea HOW they do it, but they succeed.
And as a HiFidelist since decades I have to confess that even with this lossy 256 AAC it sounds incredible and impressive good with my Airpods. No idea HOW they do it, but they succeed.
I agree. Even at 256 16/44.1 it does sound very good.
Audirvana is like iTunes, but it's also a renderer, which means it's also an engine; iTunes with Airplay built in, and therefore can avoid all the Airplay problems. I open up Audivarna, select something, and it goes through the Wiim to my amp outfit and voila. It costs depending on choice, $100 per year or for a lifetime license.
Some consideration on the various streaming services 
Resolution
I am the first to admit that, at ear, I feel no difference between 14/44 and 24/192. But....my devices can reach the max resolution and I hate not having it for external limits. Even if this does not affect listening.
Services
I had Spotify Premium that I canceled because Lossy. I have Qobuz, which I always use, and Amazon Music UHD that I use rarely. Maybe I will delete the subscription. That said, these services are enough for me and advance. I have neither desire, nor need to throw money to the wind by signing all the streaming services that exist. The musical quality of the various services is practically the same. There may be a slight difference between the albums in the various libreries but really little differencies and in the end, if one or two albums are missing, I can live the same.
An exception could be Spotify where you could find even the darkest albums of Prog Rock, albums not present in any other service but, as I said, unfortunately it was and is Lossy.
For all this I chose a service, Qobuz, and I use that. Redundancy is useless and uneconomical.
Resolution
I am the first to admit that, at ear, I feel no difference between 14/44 and 24/192. But....my devices can reach the max resolution and I hate not having it for external limits. Even if this does not affect listening.
Services
I had Spotify Premium that I canceled because Lossy. I have Qobuz, which I always use, and Amazon Music UHD that I use rarely. Maybe I will delete the subscription. That said, these services are enough for me and advance.
I have neither desire, nor need to throw money to the wind by signing all the streaming services that exist. The musical quality of the various services is practically the same. There may be a slight difference between the albums in the various libreries but really little differencies and in the end, if one or two albums are missing, I can live the same.An exception could be Spotify where you could find even the darkest albums of Prog Rock, albums not present in any other service but, as I said, unfortunately it was and is Lossy.
For all this I chose a service, Qobuz, and I use that. Redundancy is useless and uneconomical.
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