Calling all audiophiles! There’s a streaming platform called Qobuz that prioritizes hi-res audio playback. Here’s everything you should know about the service.
Are you a music lover who craves the highest-quality sound possible, but can’t quite afford the hefty price tag that comes with a top-of-the-line audio setup like turntables, integrated amplifiers, and hi-fi speakers? Fear not, my friend, for there is a solution — Qobuz, the ultra-high-quality music streaming platform that will have you listening and singing to the tunes of your favorite artists in no time.
While some audiophiles may argue that physical media is the only way to achieve true sound quality, the convenience and affordability of Qobuz is hard be beat. So sit back, relax, and let us guide you through everything you need to know about this music streaming service. Just be sure to keep it on the down-low from your vinyl-collecting pals — we wouldn’t want to start a music war.What is Qobuz?
Qobuz is a music-streaming platform with access to over 100 million songs, all of which are available in the hi-res FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) format. As far as quality goes, it’s tough to beat the kind of clarity, dynamic range, and definition you’ll hear on a Qobuz track, with the catalog being available from CD-quality (16-bit at 44.1kHz) up to 24-bit at 192kHz.
Desktop and mobile apps are available, but you can also use Qobuz’s browser-based web player. The platform offers two subscription tiers (covered below), algorithmic recommendations, album liner notes, and a host of other features. How much is Qobuz?
Qobuz offers two main subscriptions: Studio and Sublime. The former offers a Solo tier, aDuo tier for two people, and a Family tier for up to six people in the same household. Each tier will net you nearly all the benefits one can get from the platform, including access to the entire library, offline downloads, and 24-bit 192kHz FLAC songs and albums (when available).
Solo: $13 per month ($130 per year)
Duo: $18 per month ($180 per year)
Family: $22 per month ($216 per year)
Sublime comes with all the same base perks as Studio, plus up to 60% off hi-res download purchases, but the tiers must be purchased as a single-payment yearly subscription, which is a little confusing on the website, so be forewarned. Sublime also includes a Solo tier, a Duo tier for two people, and a Family tier that gives you up to six accounts in the same house.
Solo: $180 per year (equal to $15 per month)
Duo; $270 per year (equal to $22.50 per month)
Family: $350 per year (equal to $29.16 per month)How do you sign up for Qobuz?
You can download the Qobuz mobile app for iOS and Android devices. There’s also a desktop app for Windows and macOS computers and a browser-based web player.
Once you’ve entered your email and password, you’ll be taken to a personalization screen where you’ll be asked if you’d like to receive news and special offers from Qobuz and its affiliates. This panel also lets you pick a few of your favorite music genres to help Qobuz curate content for you. After you’ve completed creating your account, you’ll be taken to a Qobuz launch screen, where you’ll be able to download whatever desktop app your machine supports, or launch the web player.
Similar to Deezer, Qobuz (in partnership with Soundiiz) also offers a playlist transfer feature, which you should see a banner for at the bottom of the screen. You can also find the tool on the Soundiiz website.
