BY96

I have settled on Tidal. It is pricey, but I really like the user interface and find the algorithms for recommending music to be excellent. The sound quality is great even though I am not sure it is measurably better than some of the other services. I love the integration with C4, but again, that is probably common to other services too, including Amazon Music.

Deleted. Problem fixed.

If you have ever hooked up a computer or TV yourself, I think you could do most things needed for Control4 with the help of a remote dealer (though I don't know how complex your system is). Having had both an in-town dealer and a remote dealer, I think the latter is perfectly fine (and to me, actually preferable, as I prefer to do the wiring myself). @chopedogg88 has been great to work with and there are others on this forum who are excellent.

If anyone is interested, Amazon Prime Day has a two-pack of the Kasa plug ins for $12, a three-pack for $17, and a four-pack for $20. Thanks @SpencerT for this solution! Seems like the paid driver is well-worth it.

Thanks!! Just found a four pack of the Kasa plug ins on an Amazon Prime Day sale. Do these need a hub or will they work with C4 without one? Is the driver paid or free? Thanks again! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Anyone have a suggestion?

I know you aren't a fan of MQA, and MQA's lifespan is in question, but I did find that the C4 controllers can decode MQA themselves or send the signal, over digital, to an external decoder. (I attached the document from C4.) My research also found that external MQA recorder offer benefits over software decoders (which I presume is the method of C4 controllers). After looking at all my options, I purchased this relatively cheap DAC, which decodes (not just renders) MQA over digital coax (not just USB like most DACs I found). It got stellar reviews, and for $80, I figured it was worth a try, even if it only serves as a placebo. https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/smsl-su-1-akm-ak4493s-chip-xu316-dsd512-pcm768khz-32bit-usb-mqa-audio-decoder mqa-audio-setup-guide-rev-a.pdf

I mainly use Lutron Caseta for lighting, but my daughter has some twinkle lights that don't seem to work with the Caseta plug-in lamp dimmer. I even tried to plug in other devices into the other outlet of the Caseta, since that has worked with other string lights, but I don't think the twinkle lights are compatible with the dimmer feature. Does anyone have suggestions for an inexpensive plug-in that works with the new Z-Wave feature of the Core controllers?

I completely agree that a dedicate listing room and whole house audio are not in the same game. I do use my home theater set up for more critical music listening, but ultimately, I am not a music guy and don't invest a ton in two-channel listening. We (primarily my wife) mostly uses the whole house audio system for music listening and having moved from ABUS, my new setup with the Core3 and Episode Response are stellar. My dealer told me that the C4 controllers always use the digital output first. Right now, I am using a cheaper ($10 from Amazon) external DAC between the Core 3 digital output and the Episode Response. If I were to invest in a higher-quality (say $200ish) DAC, would there by a noticeable improvement for the whole house audio? If so, does anyone have any suggestions for a DAC? Maybe something like this? https://www.crutchfield.com/p_779DAC100B/Cambridge-Audio-DacMagic-100-Black.html?tp=59309

I have been experimenting more with the Pico Audio remote. I have figured out the button mapping and learned that the Pico remotes do not allow for multiple presses. Here is my current struggle. I have programmed buttons to start a Playlist in a room, skip ahead, and volume up and down. However, for the top button, I am trying to program both play and pause for the same button. Unfortunately, I am stumped. All I can do is use pause or play with the one button, not both. For the room, there is no conditional like "if audio is currently playing," or "if audio is currently paused," so I can't use conditonals for either situation. Does anyone know of a way to program the button to alternate between play and pause?

I noticed the same thing. However, the specs sheet for the EA-5 also don't mention MQA and yet, it is used in all the examples for MQA in the C4 literature. And I cannot believe they would take it away when the Cores are supposed to have better audio. https://www.control4.com/docs/product/ea-5/data-sheet/english/revision/B//ea-5-data-sheet-rev-b.pdf

Thank you. Yes, my research confirmed what you are saying. But honestly, I think the personalized approach of Tidal may actually be better than the "channels" on SiriusXM.

I guess I can dominate this thread since I started it, but I am wanting some input on another option. If I just go ahead and pay the $30 family plan for Tidal, since it is meeting most of my needs, would Tidal's "channel" options be a good alternative to SiriusXM, which I have been paying a ton for years? Does Tidal have good "channel" options? If so, I can save a lot of money canceling SiriusXM.

Well, I found three downsides for QoBuz for me. First, it does not include Dolby Atmos, which I have been using with Apple Music on my Apple TV. But since I get Apple Music for free from Verizon, I could continue to use it for spatial audio. Second, QoBuz doesn't have an Apple TV app at all, and I don't care for streaming from my phone. But I will primarily use QoBuz over my whole house system, using C4, not the ATV. Lastly, QoBuz, at least compared to Tidal, doesn't do the recommendation thing very well. I was already seeing great recommendations for my with Tidal.

My initial review was that Tidal had the best quality music available, but from reading reviews comparing the two it seems that QoBuz is on-par for quality depending on people's idiosyncratic views of MQA. For the price difference, I am thinking QoBuz is my better choice. I need to research it some more. I can get the QoBuz family plan with Hi Res audio (but not the Sublime plan, which seems pointless for me) for less than the single highest-end plan of Tidal. I really don't mind $20 for Tidal, but hate the idea of $30 for the family MQA plan.

With QoBuz, can you favorite your playlists to the C4 Room?

The only criticism of QoBuz I could find is the catalogue in the US is lacking compared to other services. Was surprised that a few songs I have on Apple Music weren’t available on Tidal, so I worry if QoBuz is even smaller. But sounds like you have found the catalogue sufficient. The price is much better than Tidal. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So many different options! I haven’t researched Qobuz yet but will add it to my list to look at. I did see there are people who don’t care for MQA. I haven’t used Tidal enough to have an opinion yet. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I joined Tidal last night for a 60 day trial. So far, I am very impressed. There are a lot more MQA songs than I ever expected. I also love being able to favorite the playlist to the room. Now, I am sure other services do that as well, just not sure which ones. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good. I just can't find any information online about MQA and the Core series. Everything is older about the EAs.

As a follow-up question, does the Core3 decode MQA? I can only find information about the EA controllers. (I am trying to decide if the extra $$$ for Tidal is worth it.)

Thanks! That makes sense. Any reason you chose it over Tidal, Amazon, etc.?

I have been researching Amazon Music and Tidal. Regarding Pandora Premium, can you create your own playlists and it will only play the songs on your list? My understanding is that Pandora will play whatever it thinks you like based on your prior likes, but I could be way off.

We have been using SiriusXM and Apple Music (using the Airplay option) with Control4. I really prefer SiriusXM, but my wife loves her playlists (especially around the holidays) and given the lack of full integration between Apple and C4, I am thinking of subscribing to a new music service that allows unlimited access to music to create playlists for my wife. I see that Amazon Music is $9/month, which is fine, but I wanted to see everyone's opinions about the options C4 offers for full integration. I will keep SiriusXM for a more "radio" experience, but which service does everyone recommend for creating your own playlists? Thanks!!

Now I just need a Halo Touch to use them on!!