Amazon HD Music?

[C.R. Rivian]

Sound system is great. So far, I've used it mostly with audio books and podcasts as well as selections from Amazon Music (if you've bought CDs or digital music from them, you can stream that content). Amazon has an HD music streaming option for an additional cost. Wondering if anyone has tried that and whether it makes a difference. I can get 4 months of their unlimited service including the HD option, but hate having to remember to cancel...that's, of course, what these kinds of offers count on.

So, if anyone has tried the HD streaming in the R1T, please share. Thanks!

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[godfodder0901]

Sound system is great. So far, I've used it mostly with audio books and podcasts as well as selections from Amazon Music (if you've bought CDs or digital music from them, you can stream that content). Amazon has an HD music streaming option for an additional cost. Wondering if anyone has tried that and whether it makes a difference. I can get 4 months of their unlimited service including the HD option, but hate having to remember to cancel...that's, of course, what these kinds of offers count on.

So, if anyone has tried the HD streaming in the R1T, please share. Thanks!

I use this daily. Night and day compared to the same song played through the in-built Spotify (I have premium there as well set to the highest bit rate).

 

[DJG]

Sound system is great. So far, I've used it mostly with audio books and podcasts as well as selections from Amazon Music (if you've bought CDs or digital music from them, you can stream that content). Amazon has an HD music streaming option for an additional cost. Wondering if anyone has tried that and whether it makes a difference. I can get 4 months of their unlimited service including the HD option, but hate having to remember to cancel...that's, of course, what these kinds of offers count on.

So, if anyone has tried the HD streaming in the R1T, please share. Thanks!

I have used Amazon Music through Alexa, and have the Unlimited plan which provides for HD/Ultra HD streaming quality. I also upgraded to Spotify Premium to get their "High Quality" audio as well.

However, I was quite surprised to find out when researching that they are nowhere near the same on paper. Amazon's definition of high quality is apparently 10x that of Spotify. Of course, it doesn't actually sound 10x better (to me at least), but there it is. It's also possible that with the Rivian system, there is downgrading happening. Because it's not native, what's actually occuring is that you are "casting" Amazon music through the Rivian (similar to how a Chromecast works). This is not Bluetooth streaming, so it should still be downloading/playing through the data connection just the same as Spotify. For this reason, it is also possible that it depends on your connection for whether you can reap the benefits. Would be worth trying while parked at home connected to Wifi.

One other tidbit that is somewhat related. I was driving in a rural are the other day, and was listening to a curated Spotify playlist. I lost service for a solid 15-20 minutes, and the music never stopped.

 

[C.R. Rivian]

Back in the day (2005), I had an Acura that came with DVD-A ( DVD-Audio - Wikipedia) surround sound...absolutely incredible. I hope that a future OTA update will allow music playback at a high bit rate via USB. There may be business reasons not to (Spotify contract, for example), but I'd like to hear what the system is really capable of. So far it sounds so good, but would be nice to take it further than Bluetooth or LTE streaming.

 

[pc500]

Most car audio environments just aren't great. Even a $400 set of headphones can often be much better. 192kbps VBR is typically good enough for anyone 30+ years of age, and then there's the data usage costs on top of this.

I wouldn't mind if they allowed the higher rates for offline download (wifi) or via USB though.

 

[FL_EV]

Has anyone been able to verify that upgrading to Amazon music unlimited actually provides a higher quality bitrate in the R1T? I chatted with Rivian and they didn’t know but are ”researching” it. I don’t expect to hear back from them. I know that upgrading to AMU provides a better music quality, but what I don’t know is whether the R1T can decode it? If no one knows for sure, I will probably try the “free trial” to see if I can hear a difference or if something visual shows up on the player.

 

[C.R. Rivian]

Might be in another thread...I have read that it does sound better and is superior to the Spotify HD offering...I haven't tried it; more of an Audible or Podcast listener...

 

[MNLightning]

I haven’t tested it A/B but Amazon SQ doesn’t stand up to Qobuz through my phone. Not sure how to confirm that I am actually getting a higher bit rate with my Amazon account in vehicle.

The whole infotainment system is a disappointment. It’s hard to be enthusiastic without knowing where Rivian is going with integrations.

 

[Underwhirled]

I’d definetly give Amazon HD a try if it is good quality and the music catalog is large enough.

My poor old aging 2013 Audi Q5 has the following for music

1) It has two SD card slots - Only used a couple of times
2) It has a CD/ DVD slot - used it quite often. The car has a very robust surround sound system for watching DVD’s
3) It has the built-in 50 Gig hard drive you can import and store your music to. I have many albums stored here in case I forget my phone, etc.
4) It has the Audi Music Interface (AMI) that allows you to connect devices and leave them in the glove box - I left an outdated iPod video in the with all my music and music videos on. You can switch the cables out to have different connections for your devices.
5) It has the iPhone Bluetooth connection where I always played music from Amazon music, Spotify, Pandora (long time ago), and Apple Music. Before you ask, Fangus was my cat’s name.
6) It had the ability to play internet radio stations from the Audi App that was on the phone. I used this before the car‘s built in wifi was downgraded to 2G thanks to Audi after about year 6 (service provider contract issues.

It will feel like quite a limited offering of ways to get music into the car once the Rivian arrives. Again, My Audi is a 2013.

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