@knock1 if your streamer and DAC don’t unfold MQA you are probably better off just playing 16/44 versions on Tidal.
One other suggestion, if you are using USB cable between streamer and DAC you can try a better cable. Might close the gap with the CDT some more.
Stepping into streaming, finally
As the title states finally I have gotten into streaming realm. Wanted ethernet streamer connectivity and started with Wiim feeding Denafrips Venus II 12th then into Pathos Inpol Remix and finally to Sonus Faber Venere. Well, I was not thrilled with the sound quality not to mention lack of cooperation from Wiim with pure ethernet path. Tried Bluesound Node, small steps. No dice with Node either. Came across EarMen Stacatto with exclusive ethernet connectivity and no DAC built in, exactly what I needed, very few reviews but took a chance. Well, all the boxes of my needs checked, with sound quality matching CDs, transported by Jay's Audio CDT2 MK3. I think that says a lot. Very satisfied, expectations exceeded.
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@audphile1 I am using coax Audioquest Cinnamon. The other option is toslink, but I do not have cable on hand to play with this one and remember that when I had Wiim and tried toslink, granted the one supplied with Wiim so might had been of not great quality, this path was worse than Cinnamon. However, as @romanesq suggested, I am thinking of revisiting this connection with good cable. Also, as I had mentioned, I was surprised with Spotify bettering Tidal, it was similar while using Wiim and Node. Spotify has three dimensional stage unlike virtually flat of Tidal with all three streamers and all other components the same. What gives? |
you should check your Tidal settings...even though you paid for highest tier, Tidal settings have 3 tiers to choose from, and you need to select the highest tier there..,it’s not automatic based on your subscription...sometimes people temporarily choose a lesser tier when signal is weak or there are data issues...Spotify should not sound nearly as good as top tier Tidal...checking this just now, I saw that the Tidal on my computer was set to lowest tier !!! |
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