Amazon is no longer a option fo me and many others due to their recent behavior/
Amazon Launches Lossless "Hi-rez" HD Music Service
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Make sure you sign up for HD service and not the regular one. Their mobile app is not that great in showing track information, you are correct it doesn’t say if it’s “HD” or “Ultra HD”. I mostly use my Bluesound Node 2i and so far everything I have played is CD quality or 16 bit 44.1k, I have not seen anything better than that yet. |
Like @rbstehno I was disappointed to find out that I could not stream Amazon music files to a UPNP renderer. I worked hard to get off of USB and that’s a deal breaker for me. Yes that’s lame - but marginally excusable: AMHD is relatively new and doesn’t have much tenure yet out in the 3rd-party device/software environment, let alone the open-source audio ecosystem. But given Amazon-as-vampire-squid it’s hard to imagine any other approach other than one that benefits their businesses/services first. Short answer: don’t expect parity anytime soon with Tidal and Qobuz in support of the broader open-source audio community. AMHD ’lying’ about HD is also lame. So are its feature and UX shortfalls. Simple example: no user-facing feature to create ’stations’ from artists. That problem was solved years ago by the competition - and has been missing from Amazon Music since at least 2014. |
This is not hi-res quality music. Most songs seem to be redbook cd quality. Hi-res quality can be 24/192, but DSD and MQA are of much better SQ. Since I have hundreds of DSD or 24/192 songs ripped, and also stream Tidal MQA, I use roon. I will never use USB to connect to an external dac so I use Roon server on a Mac and my PS Audio DS sr dac is accessed using wired Ethernet. Right now, nobody else has perfected using Ethernet going to a dac. As soon as Roon has an update to gain access to Amazon so I can compare an Amazon HD song to a Tidal MQA song, I’m happy with Tidal |
While streaming, to me, is entirely viewable and listenable, I still get Blu-Ray discs from Netflix specifically as my understanding is that, regardless of the speed of your internet service, streams will always be of lower overall (audio and video) than BR discs. But a better reason is that the newest movies are only available from Netflix on disc. But this is really an entirely different subject. |
If you pay attention, you will realize that this is just a matter of semantics. Amazon calls 16/44 "HD". And anything above that is "Ultra HD".Yes....but anything "above" 16/44 or ULTRA HD (as Amazon claims) would have to have been originally recorded in a 24bit studio to be actually be superior to 16bit....and little has. |
I recently chatted with one recording engineer whom found some of work on Amazon that is being sold as HD when in fact it’s 16/44 .If you pay attention, you will realize that this is just a matter of semantics. Amazon calls 16/44 "HD". And anything above that is "Ultra HD". That said, I have found that a few titles are not in either. Just whatever the standard stream rate is, 320 kbps I am assuming. |
I enjoy streaming as much as the next guy however what is being offered as premium Hi-Res , HD and what have you at is not as advertised and all the services do it of course . Im going to be speaking with another recording engineer whom also subscribes to another popular streaming service whoms work he noticed at least one of his recordings is offered as Hi-Res which in fact was originally recorded on tape . |
I have been intrigued by the Amazon HD music service - and finally did get motivated to pay for streaming when Amazon entered the game. First impressions: sounds far better than the free services I have been tolerating for years. I have not run into a situation where I couldn't find something I was looking for. I do wish their playlists or recommendations were a bit more intelligent like Spotify, but I imagine things like this will get ironed out. Does it sound better than Tidal or Qobuz? A challenge difficult to abx objectively without the right gear in place. My biggest gripe? I can't use the android app to control the playback in hi-res formats ( per tech support ) when playing through AV gear... it only plays aac quality files. So if I want to hear hi-res in all its glory - you have to use the desktop app ( or a native app in a streamer ). Or use the app with some headphones plugged in. I am not sure this is the case with other services mobile apps. So, my immediate work around was to use HEOS on my Marantz AV7704 - but honestly the HEOS app sucks balls -- BUT -- it does allow me to play back content in hi-res. At least it worked. I am hoping that bubbleupnp or something like it - gains support for the Amazon Music service. There has got to be something better than HEOS. I am eager to see if Roon or others will support Amazon Music integration - when that happens I think Tidal and others will be put on notice to up their game further. The Amazon desktop app works, its stable - looks good, and is functional. On a side note: What is the best way to connect my laptop/desktop to my preamp for streaming?... usb vs hdmi vs spdif? |
I have been a subscriber to Tidal Premium for the past couple of years, but decided to take the Amazon Music HD trial to compare; the price going forward has definitely piqued my interest. I stream via Sonos Connect. So, I have run into issues with Amazon Music immediately with the first two albums that I have played: Peter Gabriel “So” - the track “Don’t Give Up” is not the original album track, but a live or alternate take on this song. Djabe “Life Is A Journey” - same issue, the opening track appears to be from the live album (Sardinia Tapes). Forgive me if this has been brought up before, but if not, has anyone else run into this issue? |
I first got an upsampling DAC about 10 years ago, PS Audio Digital Link III. While I intellectually understand that upsampling shouldn’t sound better, about 90% of the time it did. I listen primarily to Classical Music, and upsampling would increase the believability of the Sonic picture. The soloist, percussion, strings , brass and winds seemed to occupy their own little zones, as they do in a real concert, . My present DAC, the Bryston DAC3, has an upsampling feature and I don’t use it much, but the results are impressive when I do. I have to say that the algorithms that determine what should be added to a 16 bit recording do a damn fine job. Maybe it’s different for other genres, but I don’t listen enough to comment. I will now sit back and watch as others tell me that I shouldn’t be enjoying what I enjoy, and that I have no street cred as an audiophile. |
Bstatmeister said above: "...even if it is 16/44." Nothing at all wrong with CD quality 16bit/44.1khz. That bit and sampling rate was designed to fully cover the frequency and dynamic range of human hearing. Human hearing does not advance with technology...it is a constant. It is unlikely that even a TRUE, ORIGINAL 24bit recording could be distinguished by the average human. A well done 16/44.1 recording is all anyone needs. Anything else is an effort to deceive you out of your money. |
OK...I bit the bullet and started my 90 day trial. I've tried to listen to "Ultra HD" selections on multiple versions of the Amazon Music app. First of all...when you start the trial/subscribe...the welcome screen adds an "HD" to the "Amazon Music" logo. So right now I'm listening to "Ultra HD Fleetwood Mac" on my FireTV. I finally figured out that to see the resolution info I need to click on the more(...) selection...a screen comes up and tells me that to see resolution info I need to click on the bar on the screen and then "got it". It shows that the maximum resolution is 24/192, the device I'm using max is 16/48 and so I'm listening to it in 16/48 (Probably really 16/44.1 or CD quality). Other devices do something similar, although it isn't consistent. So it seems odd that my FireTV (I didn't yet mention that it is 4K...it is) only has 16/48 capability. Can someone tell me WHAT DEVICE has 24/192 capability? I was on chat and the phone with Amazon before I decided to just try it...they couldn't tell me how to see what the resolution of a particular selection is without actually playing it. The person on the phone tried to tell me there are 60 million Ultra HD selections....no not really true. The person I was chatting with went around and around before I figured out that HD means 16/44.1 and Ultra HD means something greater than 16/44.1 but not necessarily 24/192. So far I have only found a few Ultra HD selections. Don't get me wrong....this is a GIANT step in the right direction. Neil Young is actually telling people on Neil Young Archives "Sing Up!!!". Let's see where this goes..... |
People hearing a difference between two or more services are most likely hearing a Difference in the delivery of the music from the service rather than any increases in actual fidelity of the source file. Same as when people hear differences between FLAC, ALAC, WAV etc. As has been mentioned earlier, increasing bit rates into a larger package does not and will not ad extra fidelity, air, soundstage etc if not on the original master! If you exchange four quarters for 100 pennies do you have more money? 😂 |
Simao...I dont do Tidal. Your ears will often times tell you you are hearing what you anticipate hearing. But the fact is that fidelity ends with the recording session...typically analog. You cannot take an analog recording converted to 16bit digital and make it "better" by reprocessing it into a 24bit container. How could anybody believe that? Unless a recording was originated in a 24bkt digital studio, it can never be a "real" 24bit recording. An original 16bit (CD) recording can never sound better than the original 16bit recording no matter what you do. |
Has anyone checked out the http://steinwaystreaming.com/steinway/streamHome.jsp? All the best, Nonoise |
Don't get too excited about "Ultra HD" files on Amazon. Those files are merely standard resolution CD quality recordings re-processed into a 24bit container. You cannot add quality to an original analog (or digital 16bit) recording merely by encasing it in a higher bit rate package. That Amazon is involved in this deception is very disappointing. |
I’ve had the Ultra HD option for a few weeks now. Significant upgrade to my Tidal subscription. I think Tidal has an easier interface, but aurally Amazon seems better. The "Abbey Road" 50th release is expansive and enveloping through both; but Amazon has so many more layers. Amazon Ultra HD files of Janelle Monae's "Dirty Computer" reveal what a complex production that album is; the same can be said for the Heifetz rendition of Tchaikovsky's "Violin Concerto in D Major" - though none could hold a candle to my vinyl first pressing of the same. |
I need to update my experience with Amazon Music. It was essential for me, in order to get the best sound, to manually adjust the sample rate on my control panel in windows streaming Amazon Music through a laptop and Audioquest Red Dragonfly. The sound quality went from really bad (worse than mp3) to really good. I’ll have to listen some more and check out the music selection a bit more but Amazon Music jumped from last place to a possible first place for me. Exciting stuff! |
My nephew has worked for Amazon for years, presently working on some "top secret" stuff with one of their R&D labs. I sent him an email, with the Roon links, so if he knows someone who works over in the Amazon Music HD group, he (hopefully) will let them know of us audiophiles' interest in integrating the service with Roon. I hope it gets the ball rolling. |
Don't get stressed about that, bstatmeister. Unless you are trying to listen to a recording that was originally recorded in the studio in 24bit (few are), there is no quality difference between Amazon's HD and Ultra streams - a fact Amazon deceptively does not mention. And forever, it seems, Redbook CD recordings (16/44.1) have been referred to as "standard definition." Amazon has, in an equally deceptive decision, decided that their "CD quality" streams are now HD. Just listen to HD, enjoy it and don't fret over Ultra. |
Mofi most of my Bluesound issues related to not all 4 of my units in the house successfully updating in sync. The Bluesound updates were frequent and occasionally one player would get hung up. That somehow led to all of the players failing, and would require calls to Bluesound. My main system is my 2 channel system and the Vault2 there has been superseded by a Bryston BDA-3, but I kept the Vault2 in. My other systems have Node2 players. Life has been quiet in my Bluesound Universe by refusing to do updates, and it isn’t worth disturbing the peace to add Amazon. I’m pretty happy with Qobuz. |
but I am gun shy about doing a BluOS update, and have avoided doing them for months, because doing updates had led to problems in the past). I've had my Bluesound Node 2 for quite awhile now. I have done every update, (probably around 6-8 total). Never had an issue. None, nada. Went perfect every time. Not sure what problem(s) you encountered, but I sure haven't had any... |
Uber...do you still have your Bluesound equipment? I’m guessing not or you would have tried it by now. I upgraded to the Bryston BDA3 for my main system but there is no Amazon tab as of yet. I still have my Bluesound equipment (mainly using the Node2 into two HT systems elsewhere in the home) but I am gun shy about doing a BluOS update, and have avoided doing them for months, because doing updates had led to problems in the past). Maybe I will just wait for Bryston to add Amazon |
Fluffers...I’m all about great sounds in my ride which includes a JL Audio 12" sub. I usually play lossless FLAC files from a connected flash drive. But let’s get serious. Road, engine and wind noise is going to negate any benefit provided by high resolution music files. High bit rate MP3 is good enough...just don’t worry about it, crank up the volume and enjoy. |
FYI and interesting.... Dolby Atmos encoded music... https://www.soundandvision.com/content/amazon-music-hd-new-echo-studio-smart-speaker-support-dolby-atmos-encoded-music |
Finally got Amazon streaming in my main rig. Looks like the Ayre does not have an internally powered USB audio input which is most odd! So it relies on the source to provide the juice and an iPad just does not cut the mustard for that so that option went out the window. Thx Ayre! So I moved a Chromecast Audio puck to the main rig and fed that via mini toslink adapter into a toslink input on the EX8 and at least that is working. In fact it sounds pretty darn good I have to say. Nice to have options..... |
BluOS supports HD Amazon. Once you have the latest software on your control device ( I didn’t) ....it allows all supported Resolutions. The Bluesound Node 2 or 2i are relatively inexpensive, especially in the used market. Initial observations are that it sounds at least as good as Tidal.....perhaps somewhat more dimensional and detailed and more “Alive” sounding.....Tidal can be somewhat soft and a little laid back sounding....... Cheers..... |
