4afsanakhan: I can completely understand why you heard the difference given the tests you ran. Airplay compresses and downmixes music to about 1/4 of what the original is - it is not a bit-perfect stream and it is not lossless. (It is very good - but with good ears - and a good system - and to know what to listen for - it's very easy to tell the difference and it is indeed inferior.) Test 2 - MQA is NOT a lossless format. Then test 3 - if Tidal is again using MQA between your setup - again - not lossless - and then Fourth test - I assume was the best (it's the only one of the four to not have something lossy in the signal path.) My guess between the transports that you reference might be the dac if you weren't using an external dac - and again - that would be totally logical to me where there is a distinctive difference in sound. So - what you go on to write later - it doesn't add up that those are the only two reasons why the music sounds different. There are technical, very discernable differences with the test you mention (which I am quite sure good listeners would be able to hear.)
And cleeds - you're explanation to the aforementioned user - the ECC built into a CD is absolutely ZERO match for ECC built into any modern ISP's network or a decently modern home network. Have you ever performed an update on any computer system and were able to install a corrupted file? No - the storage you have, or your memory, or processor, might corrupt the file, but what is delivered to you is always, bit perfect - hash tag matched - each, and every, single, time, provided the equipment used to send and receive is working as expected. On the other hand, give me a microwave or a piece of wadded up aluminum foil, and we'll compare how your "perfect cd" sounds to my bit perfect digital stream. Errors cannot, do not, "creep in" - they are clearly identified and rectified within milliseconds again, on any decent working network. And anyone that says otherwise has absolutely no idea what they are talking about.
Let me be absolutely clear about this too - some of you are NOT imagining sound differences here from streaming to cd's. George is ABSOLUTELY correct to cite how new albums found on streaming services are indeed, compressed from a dynamic range standpoint (Not a bit perfect or any change to the file compression, but rather compressed dynamic range.) There is an excellent youtube video here that's a minute or so long -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-v6ML2DsBfA but this perfectly explains what I believe many of you are hearing and why it does sound bad.
George - to answer your question - it depends. If you're talking about downloading a song to your system from a lossless streaming company - Apple, Amazon, Quobz, and Tidal (provided it is NOT MQA), AND, it is the same mixed version of the song you have on CD, then yes, it will be absolutely identical. However, if you deliver that file to your DAC via Bluetooth, Airplay, or Chromecast, then no - what is being received by your DAC WILL be compressed from a file size and amount of data standpoint. (Whatever device you are using in that signal path to "stream to your dac wirelessly (And using those three aforementioned standards) will compress the actual file to minimize the data being transferred to your DAC.) But if you're using something like a bluesound, or some cambridge audio products, or aurelec, there are many of them, then no, what is downloaded and then presented to the dac, provided it is the same mix, will be absolutely identical (and perhaps even better depending on the quality of your cd.) TO be clear, I have not run tests on these to confirm, but it is super easy and if something nefarious was occurring, I believe it would be known by now. (For example - MQA from Tidal - it is NOT lossless and the files are different.)
I believe all of you who say that your CD sounds better - and I believe those who say that your streamer sounds better. If you're sending the signal via a wireless protocol (that is NOT just wifi), then yes, the CD will sound better because you are not sending a compressed/ downsized file. For those of you streaming in high res correctly without lossless codecs in between - I can totally see why that sounds better especially when using hi-res mixed tracks. (That aren't dynamically compressed too much) But all things being equal, same dac, signal being sent correctly, there should be no change in sound.
