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Streamer vs cd player

Playing CDs directly sounds to me a bit better than playing the same CD rips via the Node 2i - both in to the same DAC. Not loads in it but definitely there, side by side. If you really want to ditch CDs altogether it's nothing to lose sleep over though.

Comparing to Spotify is interesting as it usually sounds a different master, and can either be surprisingly ('live with') good or really quite flat/compressed. Never the same, from the few I've tried.

Have wondered about a LPS for he Node as the benefits it's meant to bring are what I hear between it and CD.

Also, I've heard better CD transports than this one.

Clear as mud :)
 
Abandoned CDs, along with a Linn CD12, many moons ago and not looked back. Started with an Apple Airport thingy and iTunes which was superseded within weeks by a Squeezebox Touch and LMS, which in turn was replaced by JRiver Media Centre, which was great for my own CDs but of no use when Qobuz later became my main source of music, so I now use Roon which does a good job of integrating Qobuz with my own rips and provides rich and interesting reviews, artist biographies, links etc.. and a good remote app, and has all sorts of useful features that I rarely use like DSP, multiple zones, Roon Radio etc.. Nowadays I rarely listen to my own rips; Qobuz has most of them, often in higher resolution.
 
Just installed a Raspberry Pi4 into my system, running Qobuz via Volumio. I can't see me ever buying another CD to be honest, unless it's the only availabe medium.

Cheers BB
 
I ripped all my CDs in 2018 and have been using Roon since then - if I kept them I don’t think I’d have the space in my living room to have them ready to play.

Current digital source is a Marantz SA8005 SACD player with DAC inputs which I use with a Chromecast audio for Roon, but I can play a disc if I really want to. The best DAC I heard in my system recently was the Marantz SA-KI Ruby - I’m not really a believer in big difference in digital sources but my SACD rips sounded noticeably better than before. Wish Marantz would make a cheaper DAC-only version.
 
nbaptista said:
As you should know I have a Bluesound node 2i . Before I used to listen cd´s, but now I am questioning myself if I should ditch the cd format and use only the streamer. Of course I´m not giving up my cd´s, just thinking not buy anymore cd´s and use instead the streaming solution.What you think ? I guess is useless buy cd´s if I can listen it on Spotify or Tidal.
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Cd sounds as good if not better than streaming...so there is that to consider? And if your WiFi goes up the lum? Then you can listen to cds instead?
 
dspatterson said:
For me (57 and age prob makes a difference) listening to music is an event, never for background. It involves effort (select disc whether cd or vinyl) and i listen from start to finish (never skipped a song in my life) If the artists album is loaded with duff songs etc i wont play it for one or two goodies.
For me Streaming (and i tried oh i tried) is not part of the enjoyment i want from the event of listening.
But its convenient for some, can sound as good or better than disc.
But im old and live in the past, so forgive me.
I do feel sorry for Artists now though, every song cant be a blockbuster but still deserves to be heard.
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I find streaming ok for event listening! 57 isn't old mate..qobuz every Friday is new music day..I wouldnt have heard all this new music if it wasn't for streaming! ( this is the main reason I have qobuz, all my saved music is stuff I wouldnt have known before..just brilliant! Ps what do you use to stream? Did you try qobuz?
 
"only you can decide. you and your ears."

Totally agree , i think it boils down to how good your CD player and streamer are . In my system i prefer the CD player , however on hires files the streamer is better .
Ive only recently got into streaming (Qobuz is excellent) my gut feeling is i will probably use the streamer more due to the convenience
 
Surely it depends on the gear you are using….and the SQ of the various sources….
I play CDs when I want to really listen to something….through my Naim set up….I just have a node for streaming and it’s a no contest but then I’m not pitching them either/or.
If I had an NdX2 with an XPS up it I might have a different view….
 
the caretaker said:
Shatters mate..Paul Mc is correct! my cd sound better than hi res on qobuz..but I do have a good cd transport and dac
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It took me 10 years to find a streamer that was on par with my CD player that i would be happy living with . Yes i still do prefer playing CDs vs CD quality via Qobuz , but i would be the first to admit on 24/96 &24/192 resolution the streamer deffo wins hands down . As others have previously mentioned how good is your Cd player vs your streamer/ vice versa
 
the caretaker said:
Shatters mate..Paul Mc is correct! my cd sound better than hi res on qobuz..but I do have a good cd transport and dac
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Carry I'm not your mate and I don't discuss such things with you again because if it doesn't make any sense. We agree to disagree.:rolleyes:
 
OK, this thread just motivated me to try something - a few years ago I digitized my first ex-wife’s CD collection for her - ripped to FLACS, windows explorer properties says 838Kbps for each file.

she never really listened to them via a USB disk I gave her, but I kept a copy.

Back then I had no interest in file based audio - now I have a Pi4 with Allo Digione hat feeding into a Wadia X-32 DAC, sounds fantastic with either Radio Paradise via RaspOS browser or movies via Kodi, or even better with a Sugden Optima CDP as a transport (Philips cdm9/44 and industrial servo and decoder boards).

I just tried using Kodi music to play back the FLACS - sound quality is same 2D overly edgy shit as I’ve always heard playing back digital rips, disappointed. Very detailed, but zero front to back stage depth compared to playing a CD through same DAC. Only listened to 2 tracks of radio paradise - sounded better than the files. But play a CD and the soundstage jumps out and around you.

With so many reporting file based playback to be equal to CD, what am I doing wrong? Is ripping to FLAC wrong?
 
Just bought Mozart Philips Complete Collection from 1991. All 180 CDs complete with booklets and great art work. Thought for ripping fills me dread. I love physical ritual of finding CDs, looking at the booklets and artwork, taking it out and loading the drive and seeing it load up. I’m not of the vinyl era so CDs are for me what vinyl is for my seniors. Classical metadata on streaming and Roon is a mess sadly.
 
I must admit I held off for ages with regards to streaming, but the deciding factor for me was the possibility of finding new music. I recently gave about 500 cd's to charity, though I still have about triple that amount, as well as hundreds of LP's - the fact is I needed some new stuff to listen to.

I went in to Richer Hifi ( not something I have done for decades ) for some cartridge leads and ended up walking out with a Cambridge CXNV2, a one day only offer at just under 600 quid. A subscription to Qobuz seemed the way to go. I can play HiRes via a Macbook usb and use my mobile via Chromecast. It's interesting to compare HiRes albums with 44kHz but of course nothing beats a great original recording in either format. As an added bonus the onbaord DAC is not a million miles away from my ANK 4.1 DAC. As for the new music, a few great tracks here and there but it's early days. I guess the next step is burning all my CD's.

As for sound quality, sometimes its really blown me away, particularly some ( not all ) of the HIRes stuff. Like I stated earlier though excellent recordings at 44kHZ are still superb via either medium.
 
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