I listen to WXRT FM 93.1 Radio in Chicago. They are the BEST!!
I would classify them as Adult Alternative. sorry you wont hear any Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber on this station!! I guess I like a lot of Adult Alternative music but I am having a VERY hard time trying to find a website that has a lot of Adult Alternative high-res files that I can download. I don’t want to do streaming. Streaming is like leasing a car. At the end you own nothing. I have invested probably at least $25,000 or more in high end audio gear so it would be great if I could find some actual high-res music files to download (higher than CD quality). What’s the point of listing to CD quality sound if I’ve invested all this money. Anyway I have been using QoBuz to download many of my audio favorites but they’re downloads are mostly only available in CD quality form. Any recommendations? Thanks —Tim
Everyone’s idea of Adult Alternative is different. Can you give a couple of Bands as an example.
Besides, Qobuz, I also download from these sites HDTracks, ProStudioMasters, Acoustic Sounds, and of course BandCamp (but that is for non major label bands).
You can do both, stream and buy and I know what you meant about owning. Personally I couldn’t afford to buy all the music I like and never have been able to. Through my life I missed so much music because of this but, with streaming, I am catching up.
A lot of music is probably not available in high res and never will be hence, dare I mention it, the sudden influx off high quality MQA music on Tidal. The world has changed and the music industry with it, for better or worse.
Some people prefer owning, some prefer streaming. I own no music and never will. I also own no 45’s, 78’s, LP’s, CD’s, DVD’s, cassettes, or 8-tracks. It’s just a different perspective.
Well, the older CDs can sound way better than newer hi res files. It is not about the resolution as much as it is the mastering. Plus, modern re-masters have gotten hotter and really crushed the musics dynamic range.
The goal I strive for is to find the best resolution of the best master. To that end, I have used Steve Hoffman forums which have a lot of discussion on the various masters. Now granted, it is a lot of research, but that is half the fun.
Also, part of my issue with streaming. Streaming companies will only offer the latest versions given to them by the labels. Can you listen to pre-2007 mixes of Genesis? No, you can’t. So, no one is hearing the actual original released music anymore.
Try a VINTAGE Sony ES cd player from the 7 series (just to keep it in a more than decent cost limits), and you’ll get the point (in time). Higher resolution doesn’t necessarily means better sound (whatever the definition of that may be for you)
We need a new website ($$$ money to be made here $$$$) to help us search for music.
Say I want to download (or stream) the track Cherub Rock by the Smashing Pumpkins. We need a new website where I can type in the name of the album or track that I want to download (stream). This website will search ALL of the hi-res music download websites and show me which website has the highest resolution that is available for the album or track I want. Indeed (the job searching website) when it first came out did this. It would search all of the other job websites. Right now it takes me way too long to find the highest resolution available for the track I want… I have to go to each of the music download websites one at a time and do the search.
Back in the day, we had to go out and buy music in shops 
This shows how far we have come I suppose. The highest numbers in resolution do not necessarily mean the best recording or even a track is a first second or third generation file.
I use the dynamic range database for this. Once I find the album I’m looking for, I sort by dynamic range. While the highest DR score is not always the best sounding master, this helps me to avoid buying remasters that were compressed for earbud listeners.
I then search discogs for the UPC code to find copies for sale. Sometimes, they are affordable. Sometimes, they are unavailable or cost hundreds of dollars (same thing, as far as I’m concerned).
I have bought some HiRes albums from https://www.highresaudio.com. They have a good selection of music, and they have the option to stream or download, so whatever fits you best.