TIDAL on ND5 XS

Posted by: Burgy100 on 04 November 2015

Well I will just like to put my thoughts together and let you know that I think whilst TIDAL is a very good streaming product, both my wife and I do not think it matches ripped .wav cd's via my US, I suppose it's hardly surprising really. The sound still feels claustrophobic and a tad boomy. Now don't get me wrong this is a really great addition to Naims arsenal and far out strips Spotify for sound quality....again you would expect that. Will I pay the monthly fee after the 3 months trial, dunno the jury is still out.

Posted on: 04 November 2015 by Simon-in-Suffolk

Yep in my opinion its to do with the transport and the fact it s FLAC and many people locally stream WAVs.

If you isolate this you find the media sounds identical (for the same master) to locally streamed media - and even looks similar on the wire, but currently one cant yet achieve that in my experience by using the Naim streamer alone with no added third party hardware such as a Sonos etc.

Simon

 

Posted on: 05 November 2015 by ChrisSU
I always struggle to find the right adjectives, but yes, I think 'claustrophobic and a tad boomy' sums it up quite well. I haven't experienced the regular dropouts others have mentioned on Tidal, but the sound quality doesn't quite match locally streamed WAVs.
Posted on: 05 November 2015 by Burgy100

Oh and the other downside is if you loose connectivity with the outside world and yes I agree with you Simon re FLAC files and ChrisSU, I listened to it a good 3 hours last night and had one small dropout. I have a very fast Virgin Broadband so I will put it down to my not so expensive Netgear hub!

Posted on: 06 November 2015 by Burgy100

I am impressed with TIDAL and I think I will use it to listen to albums before I buy, whether that be CD or download. Is it extravagant 'Yes' but will allow me to sample so much more music. I have Spotify but may well ditch it in favour of Tidal, unless Spotify come up with a higher res stream.

Posted on: 06 November 2015 by ChrisH

Thats my take on it too Burgy100.

Spotify is already binned.

I dont see Tidal or any lossless streaming service being my sole source due to the issue of not owning anything if you have to unsubscribe for any reason.

But while I am able to afford it, I will use it like you, for sampling new listening. 

I find it not quite as good as streaming from my Unitiserve, but perfectly fine for what I am using it for.

If Qobuz integration comes along through Naim streamers Im sure Ill switch to that to compare between the two, but for now its all good as it is.