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Another Steaming Question

ks.234

ks.234

Half way to Infinity
Apologies for yet another steaming question but I’m thinking of trying something like Tidal.

However, I’m a long, long way from being tech savvy.

I currently have a RPi with allo digione into MDHT Orchid running PiCoreplayer with LMS. Also have Mac laptop, iPad and iPhone

Squeezepad on ipad

My questions are:
  1. which streaming service is best?
  2. Can I stream straight from iPad?
  3. Do I need any other equipment?
  4. Will I benefit from additional equipment? That is, get better sq?
  5. What the f*ck is Roon?
PS, I have Shair Tunes on the pi so can cast to pi from iPad easily
 
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I prefer Tidal. You can stream from the iPad using Ipeng. You can use a camera connection kit and a Dragonfly if you wish. Roon is an interface and more. Check the website. It's the best of its kind and has won a few awards. You can trial it if you wish. I really like it but some find it expensive.
 
I prefer Qobuz to Tidal because a) it suits people like me who like classical music and jazz and b) the hi res options are genuine, and will work with any DAC, whereas Tidal offers compromised and lossy MQA which restricts your choice of DAC. There are plugins for both in LMS, so just get free/trial subscriptions to either or both, enable the plug-ins in LMS, and enjoy. IPeng is a great remote control option. Roon is an alternative to LMS - a powerful and sophisticated media player which lets you integrate your own music and streamed music much better than LMS does, and also features rich metadata retrieval. I used LMS for years, but switched to Roon when I got into Qobuz, and have been really pleased. It can see you RPi as an endpoint and has an excellent iPad remote app. Again it has a free trial, so you can work it out for yourself. I’d probably leave Roon for a bit until you’ve got into Tidal or Qobuz.
 
Qobuz is equally good. I used to run it myself. I found Tidal to be the best compromise for me andI do favour Classical but enjoy other music as well. I don’t stream the MQA content myself though I have tried it through my Dragonfly. Didn’t really do it for me.
 
Del monaco said:
Qobuz is equally good. I used to run it myself. I found Tidal to be the best compromise for me andI do favour Classical but enjoy other music as well. I don’t stream the MQA content myself though I have tried it through my Dragonfly. Didn’t really do it for me.
Click to expand...

Tidal have a fantastic offer on at the moment - £5 for 5 months, which is ridiculously cheap. Qobuz have yet to respond in Europe, though they have lowered their prices in the USA. I guess the arrival of Amazon HD at an attractive price has worried them both.
 
Qobuz are offering £14.99 a month for Hi Res if you sign up before end of Jan I think as a direct response to Amazon.
 
ks.234 said:
  1. which streaming service is best?
  2. Can I stream straight from iPad?
  3. Do I need any other equipment?
  4. Will I benefit from additional equipment? That is, get better sq?
  5. What the f*ck is Roon?
Click to expand...
I stream with the Allo Shanti/USBridge sig/Digione sig and I've tried Tidal, Qobuz, Amazon Music "HD", Spotify premium and Apple Music (at CD quality or below).

1. Qobuz has the best SQ, Tidal 16/44 was worse and the MQA sounded weird to me (Roon users OTOH tend to report good results with Tidal). Spotify and Apple Music have the best apps and catalogue of music.

2. Yes, with an Apple a camera connection kit which I believe outputs USB up to 16/44. But my Allo Digione Signature player sounded quite a bit better than the iPad through a decent SPDIF converter. MacBook pro sounded worse than the iPad

3.& 4. There are lots of stuff you can do to improve computer audio SQ (upgrade PSUs, add Network bridges, buy a server, upgrade cables etc. etc.). Whether it's worthwhile vs spinning the CD (or vinyl) is another matter. Lots of fiddling and ultimately questionable results.

5. No idea
 
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Trial what’s available and make your decision.

A Mac Mini running Audirvana plugged in away from other stuff I don’t find lacking at all sound wise.
 
It depends on how simple you want to make it.

For info: Roon will need soemwhere on your network running a bit of software called 'Core'. This could be your Mac.

Roon is merely software that optimises all your streaming in to a single method as it were. It learns from music that you have ripped, selected, favourites, etc and suggests potential new music. & much else. I think it's quite costly and doesn't do much for me, but you may well find value in it.

I use Tidal, which I found best overall. i would strongly suggest you look at your overall streaming/network playing experience and make it as easy as possible. The app you use is critical.

I would suggest a Bluesound Node 2i. The app is really excellent and is always being improved and updated. Tidal integrates really well in to it (i.e. you just use the Bluesound app to control all your sources, including Tidal, or other music services if required.

You also get AirPlay for easy playing from an iPad if desired.Plus Bluetooth as well.

If you have any existing music on your network, you can play that if you set up a network share for the music location.

A subscription to Tidal would also allow you to download content for sue when off line (travelling, etc) [using Tidal app]

You could use the Node 2i digital out to your DAC, if you want. Or you could use its analogue out. if you do the latter you'll get the full MQA unfold (provided your subscription allows for this). MQA is not for me, but at least you could make up your own mind.

If you buy at a good price you can easily try it and sell on if not like.

Trust me on this; I've had very many different streamers and network players. Bluesound Node is by far the easiest to use, most stable and integrates all you're ever likely to need.
 
I believe the makers of Bluesound Node are affiliated with NAD electronics so should be nice piece of kit. You can also use Airplay on Ropieee now.
 
...I would add that as you already have the iPad and RPi/Digione, the simplest way to answer Q.1 is to just sign up for a trial with each service and use the corresponding native iOS app over Airplay into your RPi.
 
Heckyman said:
...I would add that as you already have the iPad and RPi/Digione, the simplest way to answer Q.1 is to just sign up for a trial with each service and use the corresponding native iOS app over Airplay into your RPi.
Click to expand...

Simple yes. But Airplay is not the same quality as a direct stream. If tried that way, then SQ is not optimal, but would be an easy way to see if you like the concept of Tidal. I have the Tidal App and Tidal via my Bluesound Vault 2i. I much prefer using the BluOS app to the Tidal app. The ease and flexibility of use of the app is absolutely key, IMO.
 
There’s many different solutions, but given what you already have I would suggest the following:
- A Qnap NAS of some sort running Roon core, left on 24/7. Ideally in another room if it has a fan.
- use your rasberry Pi as a Roon endpoint.
- Tidal or Qobuz subscription.
- Control everything from the Roon app on your ipad.

If you need the NAS in your main listening room, it might be worth considering an innuos server running as a combined core/endpoint. This is what I do, it is about the same cost as a fan-less NAS.
 
ks.234 said:
Apologies for yet another steaming question but I’m thinking of trying something like Tidal.

However, I’m a long, long way from being tech savvy.

I currently have a RPi with allo digione into MDHT Orchid running PiCoreplayer with LMS. Also have Mac laptop, iPad and iPhone

Squeezepad on ipad

My questions are:
  1. which streaming service is best?
  2. Can I stream straight from iPad?
  3. Do I need any other equipment?
  4. Will I benefit from additional equipment? That is, get better sq?
  5. What the f*ck is Roon?
PS, I have Shair Tunes on the pi so can cast to pi from iPad easily
Click to expand...

To answer your questions...

  1. That depends on your taste in music and any hardware or software you plan to use. Spotify is the market leader and reputedly has one of the largest catalogues, but Spotify keeps tight reins on third party integration options. Some services offer lossless CD quality and high resolution tiers promising superior sound quality.
  2. Yes you can. AirPlay is probably the simplest option as it is built right into every iOS device as standard, but there are other options too.
  3. Not necessarily.
  4. Quite possibly. Other equipment might provide sound quality improvements and additional features.
  5. Roon is just another music streaming platform. Think of it as an alternative to LMS, but very highly polished and with a few extra features thrown in.
 
Apologies for asking a question not directly relevant to the OP: how can I remotely connect an iPad/Phone to a PC running Qobuz, which is in turn connected to a DAC? Can I remotely control Qobuz and retain the CD quality streaming it offers?

Someone mentioned IPeng in an earlier post. Will this app do the trick?
 
Schnitger said:
Apologies for asking a question not directly relevant to the OP: how can I remotely connect an iPad/Phone to a PC running Qobuz, which is in turn connected to a DAC? Can I remotely control Qobuz and retain the CD quality streaming it offers?

Someone mentioned IPeng in an earlier post. Will this app do the trick?
Click to expand...

There is no Qobuz app that will allow you to remotely control Qobuz via an iPad or iPhone.

Here are some options.

Use the Microsoft Remote Desktop app on your iPad. Free. Let’s you control your pc from your iPad - your iPad kinda mirrors your pc. A bit klunky, laggy and can be annoying, but hey, it’s free and it works. You can run anything on your pc via it.

iPeng is an iPad remote control app for the Logitech Media Server. (LMS). It is very good. You would run LMS in your pc, connect it to your music library and to your Qobuz account and you would be able to play your own music and music from Qobuz from your pc and control it all from your iPad/iPhone. LMS is free, iPeng is a few quid.

If you have a bit more dosh, and want more, you could look at Roon. This is a very fancy media player with much closer integration with Qobuz than LMS. Lots of fancy DSP and searching options. Great remote app for your iPad/phone. You can get a two week free trial.

This is the path I’ve taken. Qobuz was great, got fed up leaping up and down to my laptop, got the Microsoft Remote Desktop, drove me nuts, especially switching to my own music, got back into LMS (I’d used it for years with a Squeezebox Touch), was happier for a fair bit but the more Qobuz stuff I favourited the more annoyed I was that I had to search in two places - Qobuz and my library - for stuff. So got into Roon. Can’t see there’s any competition. (well, there’s Audirvana, but meh)
 
Schnitger said:
Apologies for asking a question not directly relevant to the OP: how can I remotely connect an iPad/Phone to a PC running Qobuz, which is in turn connected to a DAC? Can I remotely control Qobuz and retain the CD quality streaming it offers?

Someone mentioned IPeng in an earlier post. Will this app do the trick?
Click to expand...

You could use LMS and a suitable control app like iPeng as @AndyU suggests.

Another option is Audirvana and their matching Audirvana Remote app. Audirvana costs a little bit more but nothing exorbitant.

Yet another option is Roon. This costs more again but I would argue that it provides just about the best streaming experience available today and a useful mix of extra features, some of which can dramatically enhance your listening experience.
 
In the old days I used to run a headless mac mini with audirvana and a remote desktop app on the ipad. It was an awful experience because you had to try and navigate a mouse pointer with touch gestures and read minuscule fonts. The mac would often have popups demanding some sort of software update which would block the remote desktop software working, so I would have to fanny around connecting a display to the mac.

I wouldn't go near a mac or pc now for a hifi system when there are such cheap audio servers available with dedicated ipad remote apps. I think a fantastic bang for buck solution is an Auralic Aries mini, which you can get for about £300. The auralic native ipad app is quite good. It supports Tidal and Qobuz etc. You can also use the Aries as a Roon endpoint when you upgrade. Once you go to Roon you will never go back. It is worth every penny of its asking price.
 
Many thanks to everyone for their help and advice.

I’ve jumped in with a trial of Tidal. Seems OK so far but not sure of difference between ‘hifi’ quality and ‘master’. I thought ‘hifi’ was lossless CD quality, so what is better than lossless? Also, not a lot of ‘master’ content. Need to wait until we haven’t got a houseful for a proper listen to see if there’s any discernible difference.

Also, Tidal app on iPhone doesn’t talk to app on iPad, to which I guess the answer is get iPeng?

Finally, will getting a NAS improve SQ?
 
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