Tidal is no longer alone in the high resolution streaming space. As of today, the Qobuz private beta is over and the doors have been flung open for the France-based service. Competition is usually good for consumers, and while Tidal offers MQA options on the upper registers of resolution, Qobuz does deliver up to 24/192 files for stream and download.
Qobuz’s launch titles boast over 40 million tracks, something which it has had a little time to prep since its European launch in 2007. Also available at launch is Roon integration, which peaked its head out into our demo software just a few weeks ago. From today’s PR Release:
“Qobuz is on all app stores, and a summary of its features is below.
Streaming in up to 24-bit/192 kHz true Hi-Res FLAC (about 29x the audio quality of MP3) with compatible gear.
The option to stream and offline download an unlimited amount of music on all devices-including both mobile and desktop.
A parallel Hi-Res download store with files for purchase allowing for options that flow substantial revenues back to creators- premium pricing for Hi-Res masters is a growth area for record labels.
Exclusive, curated, and in-depth editorial content. Deep metadata, complete digital booklets, interactive articles, reviews, and playlists in-app on every platform.
Library spans all genres, including specialist areas like jazz and classical
Unique dynamic interface allows user-selected genre focus. Qobuz’ experts highlight music of interest based on user choices.
Full Roon version 1.6 integration available.”
US Pricing plans:
Sublime+: $299.99/year for full Hi-Res streaming and substantial (40-60%) discounts on purchases from the Qobuz Hi-Res (up to 24-bit / 192 kHz) download store.
Studio: $24.99/month for unlimited Hi-Res (24-bit /up to 192 kHz) streaming ($249.99 annually).
Hi-Fi: $19.99/month for streaming including 16-bit CD quality streaming ($199.99 annually).
Premium: $9.99/month for 320 kbps MP3 quality streaming ($99.99 annually).
More info: http://www.qobuz.com/