Qobuz offers a classical music stream in FLAC.
16 responses Add your response
I think this is the one that was discussed in that thread. |
The above link looks very interesting for streaming classicial music. Please note that the above link has been recently replaced by the link below: http://www.classicsonlinehd.com The info below was copied from their web site: "ClassicsOnline HD•LL is the first HD (high-definition) and Lossless (CD quality) classical music streaming service to use adaptive bitrate streaming technology which allows subscribers to listen to classical music at the highest possible sound quality available on their home or mobile networks with minimal loss of sound quality. Over 60,000 classical music albums from the world’s most pristine labels including Naxos, Sony Classical, Harmonia Mundi, Chandos and many, many more are available for streaming and downloading at recording quality up to 192khz/24bit. Full album downloads are also available in high-definition, lossless (CD Quality), and MP3 formats. ClassicsOnline HD•LL offers a wide range of classical music from the world’s leading independent and major labels for both streaming and downloading. High Definition (HD) recordings which exceed CD quality are available as are CD quality recordings which we call "Lossless". Over 60,000 albums are available from hundreds of labels including: Harmonia Mundi, Sony Classical, BIS, Chandos, Naive, Naxos, BBC Legends, LSO Live, Pentatone, Ondine, Delos , Signum, Hungaraton, and many more. To see the complete list of labels currently on ClassicsOnline HD•LL, go to "Search," click on the "Advanced" box, and open up the "Label" dropdown box. All albums available to download are also available for streaming with a streaming subscription. ClassicsOnline HD•LL subscribers stream at the highest audio bit-rate quality that the network connection can support. With a good network connection, subscribers can stream 16-bit and 24-bit music. No other music access service streams lossless audio higher than 16-bit, 44.1 kHz quality today utilizing our advanced "Adaptive Bit Rate Streaming" technology. The cost is $14.99 for a monthly subscription (First 28 days of listening FREE) or $149 for a yearly subscription (receive 2 months free)”. Has anyone tried using Classics On Line HD service? Any comments would be appreciated. |
I recently did the trial but did not subscribe because of the lack of a remote control app for IOS devices. However, I found the sound quality to be outstanding and the selection was considerably better than Tidal. If I had easier access to my Macbook pro, I would join in a heartbeat, but the way I currently have my system set up, it would be difficult to change the selection when I needed to. I am pathetically lazy. |
I am very curious - how does the sound on these various services compare to a decently-set up high end computer server containing ripped 16/44 tracks? I have a MacMini server that is somewhat tweaked but not tweaked to the max as some have done. I tried lossless streaming on Qobuz for a while as I do like their catalog. But ultimately I found myself not using Qobuz much, as I found that the sound from my ripped CDs was enough better that I always seemed to gravitate to the latter. I am waiting I guess to be able to stream from Qobuz or perhaps another source without any compromise relative to ripped CD sound. I wonder if I am missing something? For instance, does any one have a streamer/server set-up - Aries etc - which leaves them indifferent between the sound of 16/44 tracks streamed in from Tidal/Qobuz/HD Tracks versus music ripped from CDs? Thanks |
I have a subscription to: http://www.classicsonlinehd.com and enjoy many of their new albums each week. They apparently have some relationship to Naxos, generally don't have many of the "big name" conductors or performers, but the selection and sound quality is good. |
For ABACUS fans, you can try Swiss Classical either on the Web or http://www.radioswissclassic.ch/de/live/aacp.m3u (Classic) http://www.radioswissjazz.ch/live/aacp.m3u (Jazz) in iTunes or any music player. Very nice repertoire, no advertising.. The service by Classics Online HD linked above is very, very decent, e.g. I was able to find a rather obscure performance by Derzhavina that was released just a couple of months ago. It still suffers from rare technical glitches, but it well worth my support IMO |
I have tried Tidal with and without Roon. Without, it's a total mess, especially for Classical music. It's as if the library and cataloging were devised by a chimpanzee. With Roon, it improves considerably, though it can still be hard to find what you're looking for. I would say for the extra 50% that Roon adds to the cost, the functionality goes up by 500%. |
@depetri, I too had the same issue as you regarding not being able to control classicsonline from the sofa. Recently a member told me about "Google chrome remote desktop". I am EXTREMELY computer illiterate and I got it to work. Basically, now my ipad controls my Mac Mini as a remote control from the sofa. Look into it. |