Let’s talk tunes -- How do you listen to music in your Rivian?

[srnyoung]

How do you listen to music in your R1?

I’ve variously read that Tidal has better sound but less good interface, Bluetooth and FM are not very good.
I’ve mostly listened to FM (NPR Sustaining member! Goes along with the granola ) and YouTube Music over BT in previous vehicles - not had a new enough vehicle to have Android Auto. Considering the switch to Tidal but not sure it’s worth the time investment, especially considering I don’t know what the streaming situation will be post “membership“.

So, is Tidal worth it?

Is BT as glitchy still?

You can try to convince me to try Spotify but I feel like if I have to make a switch I want more than just a different player.

To keep it interesting, feel free to share your favorite R1 driving song/music/album.
TIA!

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[DaveA]

Amazon Music through Alexa is highest bitrate and best sound. Hopefully a full on app is coming in the future.

 

[CheezyNachos]

I use Spotify because I have a subscription and it is what I primarily used in prior vehicles.

 

[ElCapiTan]

I'm still all over the place. I bounce between Tidal & Spotify. My trial for Tidal just ended and I think I'm going to stick with a paid version of Tidal. The Tidal interface needs some improvements but I'm hoping they'll come with future OTA's.

I also listen to a a lot of NPR and I've been doing that through TuneIn. I frequently drive between radio station signals and being able to listen through Tune In makes it a tad easier.

edit:

I really need to try Amazon Music for comparison but I hate talking to Alexa.

 

[frostbit3]

Tidal sounds the best to me, much better than Spotify. But the Tidal app doesn't work very well, it doesn't properly show my search history, doesn't properly show my play history, and I sometimes struggle getting it to play properly. I have to switch from Tidal to another source and then switch back and it will start working again, but might take a couple times doing it.

Bluetooth sounds terrible, I don't advise it unless you're just listening to a podcast. I'm hoping we get USB audio support s00n.

 

[Firewired]

I think the Meridian sound system in the Rivian is great

I am trying Tidal right now, as I was able to find a $2 for several months trial online. I am not sold on it. If you have playlists on other music services, you can pull much of it into a Tidal playlist. I found that maybe 50% of what I have on my Spotify playlist was found on Tidal. I really try and hear the difference between tracks on Spotify versus Tidal, and honestly, to me, both sound great. I know the Tidal has a purported higher fidelity and does definitely take longer to cache songs, but to my 50+ year ears, both actually sound really good in the Rivian.

I doubt I will keep Tidal after the trial as there is less selection than Spotify and I find Tidal does a much worse job generating playlists when you like a track. I also like that in the Rivian I can like a track on the Spotify app via the screen which I haven't found a way of doing via the Tidal interface. It is worth trying out Tidal, to see if your ears can hear a difference, especially if you can get the cheap trial.

 

[bhlackey]

Can anyone get Amazon music through Alexa to play an album straight through instead of shuffled. Everything is always shuffled.

 

[SANZC02]

I chuckle reading people talk about sound quality.

After years of life in general my ears are the lowest common denominator with the quality of a 1960s AM radio.

 

[srnyoung]

Can anyone get Amazon music through Alexa to play an album straight through instead of shuffled. Everything is always shuffled.

One reason I may stick with BT / YouTube music from my phone is because I can reliably ask Google to play songs, playlists, podcasts etc.
I have no interest in turning Alexa on and being constantly disappointed.

 

[Donald Stanfield]

I listen to Tidal. I like their mixes and while the app isn't perfect it works better than CarPlay does in my Audi. I need to spend a little bit of time making mixes though.

 

[R1Tom]

I chuckle reading people talk about sound quality.

After years of life in general my ears are the lowest common denominator with the quality of a 1960s AM radio.

My left ear sounds like a door panel rattle with moderate to louder music. So I wonder is what I am hearing my ear....or a door rattle.... Too many 80's concerts too close to stage for me apparently....

 

[zefram47]

Honestly, I've stuck with Spotify since probably 2017 for its music discovery features more than anything. I've discovered so many bands that I wouldn't have with other services thanks mostly to their Release Radar autogenerated playlist that changes every week. It mostly populates with recently released songs from artists you've liked, but there are also a bunch of songs from similar artists. I have Apple Music as well, but really only use it on my Homepods because Spotify refuses to implement support. It's either that or NPR via FM for me.

 

[WSea]

Are there any stream quality settings in the Tidal rivian app like on the phone? I've looked but don't see any settings.

 

[DaveA]

Can anyone get Amazon music through Alexa to play an album straight through instead of shuffled. Everything is always shuffled.

Probably need to turn off shuffle in the app on your phone. Whatever that setting is is how Alexa will play it in the truck, since they are linked.

 

[ElCapiTan]

I listen to Tidal. I like their mixes and while the app isn't perfect it works better than CarPlay does in my Audi. I need to spend a little bit of time making mixes though.

I agree I tend to like the Tidal mixes over Spotify. I'm hoping Rivian updates the interface to allow me to like songs. I briefly looked at the Tidal web interface and it seems I can create mixes there that will show in the truck.

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