What Hi-Fi? is all about comparative testing, so we keep our Award-winners nearby to enable unbiased comparisons between new services and ones we know to have performed highly in the category. What is important in our reviewing process is that each service is compared to the best in its price and class. Of course, where streaming services are concerned, a dedicated listening facility isn't always necessary, but we make sure to test each streaming platform using a variety of portable and home products (and various headphones), using iOS, Android and desktop apps. We have state-of-the-art testing facilities in London and Bath where our team of experienced, in-house reviewers test the majority of hi-fi and AV kit that passes through our door. That said, Tidal has ensured its HiFi Plus tier has extra appeal for audiophiles and, besides, will no doubt still appeal to those with MQA-supporting hardware. This new subscription model puts Tidal's CD-quality offering more in line with the competition from Amazon and Apple, although its hi-res streaming remains at a premium that might put some people off. It is also the tier you have to subscribe to in order to listen to immersive music in Dolby Atmos Music and Sony 360 Audio. hi-res) by supporting Tidal Masters via Master Quality Authenticated ( MQA) technology. It brings audio quality up to 9216 kbps (i.e.

The top tier, formerly ‘Tidal HiFi’, is now known as ‘Tidal HiFi Plus’ and remains £19.99 ($19.99, AU$23.99) per month. Tidal’s basic Family Tier has also seen the same increase in standard bit rate streams. CD quality), as well as offline capabilities and access to features such as Tidal Connect, for that same monthly price. The 'Tidal Premium' tier (£9.99, $9.99, AU$11.99 per month) that offered 320kbps quality has now been rebranded as ‘Tidal HiFi’ and gets you audio at up to 1411 kbps (i.e. It launched in November 2021 and, at the time of writing, we have not yet reviewed the dedicated Free plan.įor anyone not domiciled in the States, a fee is still involved.

US customers can now gain access to the service’s first-ever free plan, called (unsurprisingly) ‘Tidal Free’, which offers streams of the complete library of 80 million tracks at 160kbps with “limited interruptions”.

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