This Audiophile’s Experiment Suggests That CDs Sound No Better Than Streaming After All

Modern streaming technology has finally caught up with CD quality.

Popular wisdom says CDs sound better than streaming. But what if those differences aren’t as obvious as we think?

In a new blind test, Guido Guarducci, who runs the popular YouTube channel ANA[DIA]LOG, compared CD playback with high-quality streaming.

Turns out, the results might surprise you.

Test Setup and Methodology

Most of us have wondered if streaming can match the quality of our CD collections. So, to finally answer this, Guarducci set up a test that mirrors how we listen to music at home.

Using a T+A DAC 200 digital-to-analog converter, he compared audio from CDs against high-quality uncompressed streaming from Qobuz.

And, to keep things fair, both sources went through identical signal paths. The test captured analog outputs from the DAC at 96 kHz and 24-bit resolution rather than using direct digital rips.

Meaning, the CD player and streaming device are connected to the same DAC in exactly the same way.

Guarducci also carefully selected multiple tracks for comparison to make sure the results weren’t just a fluke.

He specifically chose recordings with subtle details that would typically reveal any quality differences between formats.

But, after testing dozens of tracks, his findings were consistent.

Technical Challenges and Real-World Impact

Despite identical performance in controlled environments, the real world throws a few more challenges into the mix. That is, at least according to Guarducci.

Think of it like watching Netflix. When your internet connection gets spotty, the picture quality drops. Similarly, mobile streaming may suffer from minor distortions, though not in the same way as analog signal degradation.

To prove this, Guarducci used packetlosstest.com to show how data loss can vary dramatically from perfect transmission to losing up to 80% of the signal when using mobile devices.

These losses primarily affect portable device usage, where network conditions fluctuate significantly.

According to him, several everyday factors can affect your streaming experience:

• Network configuration issues
• Connection quality variations
• Traffic congestion
• Device limitations
• Distance-related degradation

These interruptions don’t degrade the sound quality in the same way old cassette tapes or scratched records would. But, they can cause brief moments where the music doesn’t sound quite right.

But Does His Test Show the Entire Truth?

New developments in streaming technology tell a different story from Guarducci’s technical concerns.

For instance, his claims about the technical hurdles of streaming may not reflect the current state of digital audio transmission.

Modern streaming services employ error correction and buffering techniques that ensure bit-perfect playback under most conditions.

In fact, packet loss is rarely an issue in properly managed streaming playback.

Music data travels using TCP (Transmission Control Protocol), which functions as a digital postal service. So, all packets arrive intact and in the correct order.

This is entirely different from video streaming or gaming, where lost packets can immediately degrade the experience. Audio streaming might pause briefly for buffering, but it maintains its quality upon playback.

Furthermore, network speeds have vastly improved over the last decade.

Lossless CD-quality streaming requires only 1-2 Mbps, well below the 100+ Mbps averages seen in most developed areas. Meaning, for the majority of users, streaming reliability is no longer a concern.

Even in less stable conditions, playback interruptions occur far more often than any actual loss in fidelity.

Yes, mobile networks can still create fluctuations in streaming performance. But, the idea that packet loss routinely degrades audio fidelity is outdated.

With proper buffering, modern streaming services ensure that lossless playback is functionally identical to CD-quality audio in all but the most extreme conditions.

Expectation Bias and the Psychology of Listening

Sound perception lives as much in our minds as in our ears.

Scientific research consistently shows that our expectations powerfully shape how we experience music. And, Guarducci’s findings support this understanding through careful testing.

When listeners don’t know which source they’re hearing, the perceived differences between CD and lossless streaming often vanish.

The audiophile community has long debated streaming’s impact on sound quality. These test results suggest our expectations play a bigger role than many realize.

Listeners who believe that CDs or high-end physical media must sound better may “hear” differences that aren’t actually present when conducting sighted tests.

Blind tests like Guarducci’s strip away these preconceptions. And, based on what we saw, many perceived differences between streaming and CDs stem from our beliefs rather than measurable audio quality.

So,we can focus less on format debates and more on simply enjoying our music.