No more Qobuz Sublime

Mike-B posted:

Is it my imagination,  have Qobuz cranked up their prices for downloads recently. they seem around the same level as HDtracks these days.   HRA have the better prices it seems.    

I also wondered if prices had crept up.  In honesty I'm not sure.

I still see my Sublime user discounts if I click on an album - not purchased for a few days so not sure if the issue others describe is now fixed or if it's an issue at 'checkout'.

docbot posted:

I have been a very happy Qobuz Sublime subscriber for the last couple of years. It now looks like Qobuz no longer offer Sublime, only the expensive Sublime+. They are now offering “Studio” for high res streaming but no mention of discounted downloads. My subscription is up for renewal at the end of the month and will be most dischuffed if I cannot stay on Sublime. Any one with further info on this?

My Sublime renewed a few months ago.  I've been tempted by Sublime+ but I've not been able to justify it for a few reasons..

It's possible we'll be allowed to stay on a 'legacy subscription' I suppose just that it's not available to new subscribers.

http://blogsv2.qobuz.com/qobuz...eaming-subscription/

I do wonder if this may be some kind of restructuring to coincide with Qobuz availability in the US.

Very disappointing. I am sublime user and still want to buy the music that I really like (for the reasons that were mentioned above by others). Is it legally ok if qobuz stops the cheaper downloads they have promised for sublime users while the already paid subscription is still active? I do not think so. Maybe it only is a bug in their backend?

Before I renew my subscription I will check if the hires music that I have bought really is hires music. I have read so much about hires fakes (transcoded 16/44.1 music) that I start to get some doubts.

Probably I will go for the "Hifi" subscription to stream in CD quality. I am not sure if I really need and hear hires. If qobuz becomes more expensive, other platforms (like bandcamp) may become cheaper compared to them, so I will buy more music on other platforms than qobuz even if they only offer CD quality.

68p a day for unlimited HiRes streaming, or 82p a day for unlimited HiRes streaming and discounted downloads?  If you don’t think either of those options are incredible, amazing, wonderful, extraordinarily good value then.. tell me, what else can you get so good, so rewarding, so rich, so life enhancing,  for 68p a day? This is beyond any dream or fantasy a music lover could possibly have.

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

That would be a crime, I only got the sublime for the downloads not interested in the streaming at all..

Pev posted:

Innocent Bystander posted:

Buying

• gives you your own store that you can play any time.
• Is not reliant on internet connection to be able to play at all or without interruption).
• Is not dependent upon business continuity of a streaming service provider for you to be able to play music.

The first 3 points are really one - guaranteed access. I'm personally confident I will be able to access any music I want online from somewhere for the foreseeable future - see below.

• Has no need for monthly subscription in order to be able to keep playing music.

Yes but I pay way less a month than I would have spent on buying CDs so a huge money saver for me.

• Has surety of availability of the specific music you want to listen to, in perpetuity.

Depends how important "specific" is - some people care deeply about a particular master etc. - I just like the music and very few versions are bad enough to spoil that for me YMMV. There is nothing I want to hear that isn't available. Otherwise same point as the first three.

• Maximises sound quality.

Tidal is as good as rips in my system and MQA sounds better -  again YMMV. This seems to be system/network dependent

 

I'm keeping my CDs (have to anyway for legal reasons) and my rips, but I never play them and will probably never buy a CD again. The only scenario I can foresee or imagine where I cannot access all the music I want online somehow somewhere, involves the sort of armageddon situation where that would be the least of my worries!

For me quite some music is not available on streaming. So I would never want to move 100 percent to streaming, quality is also not the same..

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

likesmusic posted:

68p a day for unlimited HiRes streaming, or 82p a day for unlimited HiRes streaming and discounted downloads?  If you don’t think either of those options are incredible, amazing, wonderful, extraordinarily good value then.. tell me, what else can you get so good, so rewarding, so rich, so life enhancing,  for 68p a day? This is beyond any dream or fantasy a music lover could possibly have.

It is comparatively cheap I agree when 30 years ago I'd often spend £10-20 a week on a couple of LPs.

It has to be considered in the context of streaming services though which has devalued music for the masses.

I'm still hoping Sublime members can retain their plan or at least are offered an incentive to upgrade.

However - I had been hoping for a Qobuz family plan of some kind to allow me to ditch Apple Music as I'm not paying full price subs for immediate family members.  In addition whatever is causing the glitch the fact that gapless streaming is broken via Qobuz apps to newer streamers, as well as the fact I get songs restarting after 2-3 secs is something that's stopped me going to Sublime+ before as unless it works seamlessly it's frustrating (these issues may be due to Naim firmware not the Qobuz app, but if there is incompatibility it doesn't work out when using Naim kit).

I think their pricing plans are a bit odd to be honest - I can't really see many people paying £9.99 for compressed audio - most of these folks would just go for Spotify.  £19.99 is too high for unlimited CD quality streaming, but could compete at £9.99.

VladtheImpala posted:

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

Why do you download anything? Why can’t you just stream it? 15 albums a week is 750 albums a year -  2 a day.  Even at a fiver each you’re talking thousands of pounds a year for music most of which you can’t possibly listen to more than once or twice in your life. Why not just stream? Tag the good stuff in your favourites, cache the stuff you particularly like so that you can listen to it offline were the internet to fall over. But buying 15 albums a week when you could stream them for next to nothing? Why?

I just saved myself at least for some stuff. I pre-ordered a bunch of stuff I anyhow wanted. I got also the disturbing message on check out, but I did only pay the sublime price. I don’t know if it will stay like this but at least for these albums I got the good price....

Well, this is a bit disappointing. I'm a Sublime subscriber since 2015. I can't download at reduced price either.

So what happens at the end of the subscription period? Will we automatically be moved to Sublime+ at higher cost or to Hifi?

When something works well for you for too long, then someone comes along and spoils it: first the Linn forum, then Qobuz. Panta rhei!

likesmusic posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

Why do you download anything? Why can’t you just stream it? 15 albums a week is 750 albums a year -  2 a day.  Even at a fiver each you’re talking thousands of pounds a year for music most of which you can’t possibly listen to more than once or twice in your life. Why not just stream? Tag the good stuff in your favourites, cache the stuff you particularly like so that you can listen to it offline were the internet to fall over. But buying 15 albums a week when you could stream them for next to nothing? Why?

I didn't write that I download 15 albums every week.

As others have stated above, I prefer to have the files on my NAS (backed up of course) for when I want to play them - it keeps my set up simple for simple old me. Streaming doesn't always work so well in a household that uses many connected devices, so I download at my convenience. And subscription streaming services come and go...……….

Apparently, as well as being locked out of my download account, I'm also locked out of the streaming service as well.

VladtheImpala posted:

likesmusic posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

Why do you download anything? Why can’t you just stream it? 15 albums a week is 750 albums a year -  2 a day.  Even at a fiver each you’re talking thousands of pounds a year for music most of which you can’t possibly listen to more than once or twice in your life. Why not just stream? Tag the good stuff in your favourites, cache the stuff you particularly like so that you can listen to it offline were the internet to fall over. But buying 15 albums a week when you could stream them for next to nothing? Why?

I didn't write that I download 15 albums every week.

As others have stated above, I prefer to have the files on my NAS (backed up of course) for when I want to play them - it keeps my set up simple for simple old me. Streaming doesn't always work so well in a household that uses many connected devices, so I download at my convenience. And subscription streaming services come and go...……….

Apparently, as well as being locked out of my download account, I'm also locked out of the streaming service as well.

Locked out, that’s a disgrace, you paid for a service they are obliged to provide. The discount on downloads they might legally get out, but not the streaming aspect.

Ok, let's hope this is a stupid glitch but I can add a discounted hi-res download to my basket as a Sublime (not Sublime+) subscriber but am then warned I cannot purchase at this price as I do not have a Sublime subscription - utterly inept and poor customer experience.

Bert Schurink posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

likesmusic posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

Why do you download anything? Why can’t you just stream it? 15 albums a week is 750 albums a year -  2 a day.  Even at a fiver each you’re talking thousands of pounds a year for music most of which you can’t possibly listen to more than once or twice in your life. Why not just stream? Tag the good stuff in your favourites, cache the stuff you particularly like so that you can listen to it offline were the internet to fall over. But buying 15 albums a week when you could stream them for next to nothing? Why?

I didn't write that I download 15 albums every week.

As others have stated above, I prefer to have the files on my NAS (backed up of course) for when I want to play them - it keeps my set up simple for simple old me. Streaming doesn't always work so well in a household that uses many connected devices, so I download at my convenience. And subscription streaming services come and go...……….

Apparently, as well as being locked out of my download account, I'm also locked out of the streaming service as well.

Locked out, that’s a disgrace, you paid for a service they are obliged to provide. The discount on downloads they might legally get out, but not the streaming aspect.

How so if it was part of the subscription?

Alley Cat posted:

Bert Schurink posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

likesmusic posted:

VladtheImpala posted:

hungryhalibut posted:

I’m subscribed to Sublime until next July, but for some reason it’s not lettting me download at the lower price. I will see what their customer services have to say. I wonder if anyone else has hit the same problem. 

The same thing happened to me this evening. Apparently I need to be a Sublime subscriber - which I am until Feb 2019!

This is very annoying - I download something every week, often 15+ albums at a time.

Why do you download anything? Why can’t you just stream it? 15 albums a week is 750 albums a year -  2 a day.  Even at a fiver each you’re talking thousands of pounds a year for music most of which you can’t possibly listen to more than once or twice in your life. Why not just stream? Tag the good stuff in your favourites, cache the stuff you particularly like so that you can listen to it offline were the internet to fall over. But buying 15 albums a week when you could stream them for next to nothing? Why?

I didn't write that I download 15 albums every week.

As others have stated above, I prefer to have the files on my NAS (backed up of course) for when I want to play them - it keeps my set up simple for simple old me. Streaming doesn't always work so well in a household that uses many connected devices, so I download at my convenience. And subscription streaming services come and go...……….

Apparently, as well as being locked out of my download account, I'm also locked out of the streaming service as well.

Locked out, that’s a disgrace, you paid for a service they are obliged to provide. The discount on downloads they might legally get out, but not the streaming aspect.

How so if it was part of the subscription?

Because they have a sentence that a collection of ... will be offered at discounted prices, now you can reduce that to zero.

Alley Cat posted:

Ok, let's hope this is a stupid glitch but I can add a discounted hi-res download to my basket as a Sublime (not Sublime+) subscriber but am then warned I cannot purchase at this price as I do not have a Sublime subscription - utterly inept and poor customer experience.

I guess it’s not a glitch it’s new policies, but a disgrace how they implement by upsetting their old customers...

Bert Schurink posted:

Alley Cat posted:

Ok, let's hope this is a stupid glitch but I can add a discounted hi-res download to my basket as a Sublime (not Sublime+) subscriber but am then warned I cannot purchase at this price as I do not have a Sublime subscription - utterly inept and poor customer experience.

I guess it’s not a glitch it’s new policies, but a disgrace how they implement by upsetting their old customers...

Looks like a glitch. Despite the dire warnings that I wasn’t entitled to buy at Sublime rates, I carried on and was indeed charged only the Sublime rate.

Nick, great minds think alike! Or is it that fools seldom differ? Before reading your post I thought I’d be a rowdy rebel and just ignore the warning and see what happens. I’ve just bought the new Elvis Costello for £11.49 instead of £22.99 and the new Igor Levitt for £10.99. So that’s £15 saved in one go. I guess it shows why they want to charge us downloaders £300 a year rather than £219. 

"I carried on and was indeed charged only the Sublime rate.". Ah ok, I will try it this evening.

The problem for me is that it is difficult to check how much I have saved in the last years with the cheaper sublime prices. I can check how much I have paid. But often I have bought albums that were cheaper in a sales offer. Or the price has dropped until today regularly anyway. Also in the first year I think I have bought more albums than in the second year, because many of those which I was interested in I already owned in the second year.

I had an email from support telling me it’s a display glitch they’re working on and that discounts will go through at checkout.

Alley Cat posted:

I had an email from support telling me it’s a display glitch they’re working on and that discounts will go through at checkout.

That’s what they wrote me today too.

jfritzen posted:

Alley Cat posted:

I had an email from support telling me it’s a display glitch they’re working on and that discounts will go through at checkout.

That’s what they wrote me today too.

I can confirm that, I bought quite a bit of stuff, to be on the safe side. However I do see changes in the amount of albums offered with Sublime and the height of the discount sometimes. On the German side you don't even see the sublime discount anymore like on the French one.

gert posted:

"I carried on and was indeed charged only the Sublime rate.". Ah ok, I will try it this evening.

The problem for me is that it is difficult to check how much I have saved in the last years with the cheaper sublime prices. I can check how much I have paid. But often I have bought albums that were cheaper in a sales offer. Or the price has dropped until today regularly anyway. Also in the first year I think I have bought more albums than in the second year, because many of those which I was interested in I already owned in the second year.

I think it is relatively easy to calculate a safe saving. The normal album price is normally on a similar level  as others would offer it or better. However the sublime price seems to be in most cases 4,99 Euros or more less then the prices you could anywhere else. For instance most albums on highres audio are 15 euros or 17.50 euros. The qobuz price is somewhere between 8.99 and 10.99 on average. But also this morning I had two albums which have been even up to 10 euros cheaper. So it's fair to assume that you have on average 5 euros discount per bought album. So at the new sublime+ price for 299 euros you need 60 albums to break even. And most probably given some better discounts in reality at 55 albums. However keep in mind not 100% of the albums on Qobuz are discounted. And discount actions at other platform sometimes also reduce the difference to the 3 euros range.

Hope that helps a bit in making up your mind....