Sound decisions: Which music streaming app and gadget is best for you?

But what is the best music streaming service and music streaming player for you?

The answers depend on your budget and how much sound quality matters to you.

Music streaming technology is, in short, services that use the internet to deliver music to your device in real time. When you use the service, you are accessing a vast library of songs stored on servers.

But the technologies are far more sophisticated than this short summary. They use content delivery networks (CDNs), music servers, compression and encoding, and personalised algorithms, to deliver high-quality audio to your device in real time.

A CDN uses servers around the world to deliver music to you quickly and efficiently. When you click “play” on a song on your app or device, a request is sent to the CDN to trigger the streaming process.

A music server is used to store a massive library of songs and uses sophisticated algorithms to match your choices with the music on the server. The CDN will locate the music server that is hosting the song you want to play and stream the audio data to your device.

To stream music over the internet, the audio data needs to be compressed and encoded to reduce file sizes. Popular audio formats used by music streaming services include MP3, AAC, and FLAC.

A stable and fast internet connection is crucial for a seamless music streaming experience.

Your favourite music streaming service will provide a user interface that allows you to browse and search for music, create playlists and control the playback. Algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) are also used to predict your music taste and suggest songs.

The most popular music streaming services are Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, and YouTube Music.

Spotify is among the most popular music streaming services in the world, with a vast library of songs, podcasts, and playlists. It offers both free and premium versions, with the premium version providing ad-free listening, unlimited skips, and the ability to download music for offline listening.

The premium versions are available at several price options – seven baht a day, 139 baht per month for a single account, 169 baht per month for two accounts and 209 baht per month for family use with six accounts. The account-sharing options must be used in the same house.
Apple Music is a popular music streaming service for Apple users, with a large library of songs and exclusive content. It offers both individual and family plans, and integrates seamlessly with other Apple products. It also has a karaoke option for enjoying sing-alongs. The service also has a huge selection of classical music.

If you buy an iPhone or iPad, you’ll get to try Apple Music free for six months, after which you will be charged 139 baht per month.
Tidal is highly acclaimed for high-quality audio and exclusive content. It offers a variety of subscription plans, including a HiFi plan for audiophiles. Tidal has two price options. The HiFi option costs 129 baht per month while the HiFi Plus option is 258 baht per month. The HiFi option streams music at the bit rate of 1,411 kilobits per second (kbps) while the HiFi Plus streams at 9,216 kbps. The HiFi Plus version is for enjoying high-resolution music, such as master quality authenticated (MQA), or Dolby Atmos.

YouTube Music offers a vast library of songs and music videos, as well as personalised recommendations and playlists. It also offers a free ad-supported version. You can try YouTube Music free for one month, after which you’ll be charged 129 per month if you continue the subscription.

Amazon Music offers a large library of songs, as well as exclusive content and personalised recommendations. It also integrates with other Amazon products and services. You are required to create an Amazon shopping account first before you can apply for Amazon Music account. The service offers a three-month trial option, after which you will be charged US$7.99 per month if you are a prime-type member. Ordinary members pay $9.99 per month.

Audio players

Apart from playing streamed music on your smartphone, you also have the option to play it via a stand-alone audio network player connected to your Hi-Fi audio system, an integrated amplifier with built-in music streaming function, or certain models of Bluetooth speakers.
One high-end streaming music player is Bluesound Node 2i. It supports a variety of streaming services, including Amazon Music, Tidal, and Qobuz. It supports high-resolution audio and can be controlled with a mobile app or with voice commands through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Bluesound Node 2i costs about 26,000 baht. It is available from the Conice Electronic shop on Lazada as well.

Another popular high-end streaming music player is Cambridge Audio CXN V2, which supports a variety of streaming services, including Spotify, Tidal, and Qobuz. It can play high-resolution audio and can be controlled with a mobile app or a remote control. The price for the Cambridge Audio CXN V2 is about 41,900 baht. It is available on Lazada from several shops, including HD HiFi.
A more affordable streaming music player is Arylic S50pro+. It supports most streaming music providers, including Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer, Napster, TuneIn, Internet Radio, iHeart Radio, QQ Music, QQ FM. It is available on Lazada for 7,900 baht.
Google Nest Mini is a compact and affordable smart speaker that can play music from a variety of streaming services, including Spotify, YouTube Music, and Pandora. It also has voice control capabilities and can be used to control other smart devices in your home. It costs 1,299 baht and is available from several shops on Lazada.

Marantz NR1200 is a two-channel receiver with 75w music output per channel. You simply need to connect it to a pair of passive speakers to enjoy the streaming services of Spotify, Deezer, TIDAL, Napster, Pandora and SiriusXM. It is available from the HD HiFi shop on Lazada for 22,900 baht.

In short, if you have a high-end hi-fi system and use a high-end streamer like Cambridge Audio CXN V2, you should go for Tidal service’s HiFi Plus service.

But if you are like me and enjoy music on headphones connected to your smartphone or desktop computer, the free version of Spotify should suffice.

After all, I enjoy music and often get carried away by the rhythm and melody of songs, so I don’t have to open my ears for the notes of musical instruments heard from much more expensive services and equipment.