So, after a careful review of the options, I’ve just subscribed to PrimePhonic because I’ve concluded that their classical catalog including opera is the best overall (including best organized). And I’ve hit an immediate issue connecting to my Uniti Nova. Or 2 issues.
Chromecast from the Chrome browser on my Windows desktop works ok but the audio lacks depth and sounds low bandwidth. Chromecast from the Primephonic app on my Samsung S8+ is unusable. Totally broken. I get sound for a few seconds; then silence. Depending on the piece, anywhere from 20% to 80% sound, the rest silence. BUT when there is sound, it is excellent…far superior to that from my desktop.
Fyi: I have a gig internet connection and mesh wireless that regularly tests around 275 mbps, so that’s not the issue.
I’ve messaged PrimeSonic and awaiting their comments.
Any insight? Many thanks.
What you describe with Google Chrome is a know issue within Chrome:
Why google’s own browser can’t use their own device properly is beyond anyone I guess.
There’s an experimental Firefox extension for ChromeCast support you could try, but I haven’t used it for audio myself yet, so can’t comment on quality: https://hensm.github.io/fx_cast/
I would guess your best bet is the app getting fixed.
@Shirazsun Thanks for the report of your experiences. I’m not sure I can help much but I’ve been wondering about Primephonic too. Please let us know if you get a helpful reply from Primephonic.
One question I have is whether gapless worked when you used the Chrome browser. I have been put off trying out Primephonic because of the difficulty of getting Chromecast to play without gaps, which is essential for classical music. I have some SQ concerns too. For music on my NAS I have also found the SQ from streaming directly is superior to chrome casting from Bubble UPnP on my NAS. I did think of running Primephonic on a Macmini which I might have spare soon and running a Toslink cable to my Atom. I’m afraid for the interim I’m probably going to take the easy path and subscribe to Qobuz. But I will monitor the situation.
@n-lot I don’t think the OP is using the dongle. Since the Nova has Chromecast built in it isn’t necessary.
Roger
Thanks for responding, PeakMan. Yes, connecting from my Windows 10 desktop via Chromecast using the Primephonic “web player” (play.primephonic.com) resulted in gapless playback BUT the sound quality was inferior. It lack depth and resonance…sounded like 8 bit or something. Note the insight provided above by n-lot (thanks, n-lot!). The sound from the Primephonic app on my phone (Samsung S8+) was quite a bit better when I got it…that is, between gaps. I received a quick, helpful reply from Primephonic seeking the expected info (android version, app version, wifi info, etc.) and am waiting to hear what’s next. That’s an interesting workaround you’re considering (the Mac Mini and toslink). If you do it, please report.
It’s a Google Chrome, the browser, issue. Not an issue with any device. So whether he uses the dongle or built-in ChromeCast is irrelevant. See the link I referenced.
Not a big fan of Chromecast to be honest.
With Qobuz could never get gapless via their iOS app.
Roon might be supporting Primephonic:
Somewhat mixed comments here on audio quality vs downloads, and comments it’s hard to know what quality stream you’re getting:
Sorry, I dont use PrimePhonic but does their desktop app offer any improvement over Chrome assuming there is an option you can use to play via that?
Alley_Cat, they don’t have a desktop app. Apparently they were working on one during the winter but references to it seem to have disappeared from their website. They have a browser page (play.primephonic.com) which they call a “web player” that I can connect to my Uniti Nova with Chromecast. That combo provides a consistent connection but the sound quality is inferior.
That’s a real shame, though it might not necessarily have fixed the issue.
I think music streaming services and hardware manufacturers are having to make difficult decisions about content delivery and things are not really that mature yet - Naim certainly has several options covered with Bluetooth, Airplay and Chromecast, but they all have their foibles and quirks. Bluetooth won’t cut the mustard sonically for most, Airplay is excellent and handles gapless well but won’t do hi res audio and is limited pretty much to Apple ecosystems, chromecast seemed to offer a lot more but I can’t get it to do gapless with the Nova and it seems to struggle with hi-res audio.
Roon would be a good solution if they incorporate Primephonic, but would need a host computer.
Hopefully someone might be able to point you to software that would allow you to use your Primephonic credentials to allow a more reliable/sonically pleasurable stream - many ways to crack a nut.
Chromecast Audio can do up to 24bit/96Khz. Issue is that many providers, including Tidal, use Chrome for their web client, and the Chrome browser seems to be horribly messing things up. Which is extremely weird considering it’s the same company. If anyone can explain it please do.
Android apps are mostly fine AFAICT regarding sound quality. Gapless is a different story.
To each of you who has provided some insight to my issues (Alley_Cat, n-lot, PeakMan), many thanks and very best wishes. For me it is now open hand to forehead time. After a couple of email exchanges with PrimePhonic customer support (who were responsive and helpful, btw), I reinstalled the PrimePhonic app onto my Samsung phone and rebooted my Nova. Voila! Working beautifully and the sound from my system (and the Primephonic “Platinum” FLAC streaming) is excellent. I don’t know whether it was the app or the Nova reboot (should have done them sequentially) although I suspect the latter; it hadn’t been restarted for months. Regardless, good to go and I love the smart people on this list.
James
Great to know it’s sorted - you never know it might even have been an issue at their end they’ve now fixed since you contacted them.
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