On December 4, 2025, Dan Mackta, Managing Director at Qobuz, jumped onto Reddit for a wide-open Q&A with users who had plenty of questions about the service—many of which don’t always get clear answers in the broader streaming churn. Before getting into the weeds on AI, Apple TV, Dolby Atmos, and long-term platform strategy, Qobuz dropped a genuinely meaningful update: Qobuz Connect, launched in May 2025, has already expanded to more than 100 hardware and software partners across hi-fi brands, multiroom platforms, and network/SDK ecosystems.
This session wasn’t just housekeeping; it signaled how aggressively Qobuz is moving to solidify its spot in the premium streaming landscape.
“Qobuz has reached a major milestone with Qobuz Connect. Launched in May 2025, it’s now integrated with more than 100 partners across hi-fi brands, multiroom operating systems, and advanced network and SDK platforms. Its rapid adoption has even been recognized internationally with a Planning Award at VGP 2025, Japan’s most prestigious audiovisual industry honor presented each year by leading critics and retailers,” stated Mackta.
What Qobuz Connect Does & Why It Matters
Qobuz Connect devices stream music directly from Qobuz servers without the need for a phone, tablet or laptop. This method ensures the highest quality music reaches your gear, without needing to pass-thru a phone or even transmit over Bluetooth. In addition, playback and control can still be handled by the Qobuz app on a phone, which essentially shifts to function as a remote control, while also saving its battery life. Playback begins instantly on a Qobuz Connect enabled device and continues uninterrupted even if the user closes the app, ensuring a stable, seamless listening experience.
Qobuz Q&A
Moving on, here are some selected questions and answers from the Dan Mackta hosted Reddit Q&A.
Note: Some wording has been lightly edited for clarity and flow, but the intent of both the questions and responses remains unchanged.
Q: Is Qobuz planning any support for the DIY community, such as a Qobuz Connect client for Linux platforms?
A: We’re working on a Linux version of the Qobuz desktop app. Integrating with open-source platforms is challenging due to label security requirements.
Q: What is Qobuz doing to prevent AI-generated content from bloating the music catalog?
A: We are evaluating several systems to accurately identify music created with generative AI. Once we select the appropriate toolkit, we will implement tagging, removal, and other measures as needed. A comprehensive announcement outlining our AI policies is coming soon.
Q: Are there any plans to improve the CarPlay functionality for Qobuz?
A: CarPlay is undergoing a total revamp, and you should see the new version early next year. (2026)
Q: Is there any chance of Qobuz licensing the digital masters from MoFi’s Ultradisc One-Step series?
A: Cool idea, we will reach out to them about it. We do a lot with MoFi and Music Direct already.
Q: Will it be possible in the future to donate money to (smaller) artists or to see how much money (as a percentage) of my monthly contribution has gone to specific artists?
A: We’ve talked about ‘tipping’ and things like this, and it’s definitely a possibility in the future.
Q: Could you consider a bundle subscription deal of Qobuz and Roon? Both in parallel are expensive.
A: We have looked at this and are always talking to Roon about ways to work together more closely. More to come on this.
Q: Will Qobuz always support Roon?
A: Yes.
Q: I just switched to Qobuz from Apple Music, and I’m loving it so far. Any plans for an Apple TV app?
A: Yes, it’s planned. No date yet.
Q: Does Qobuz have plans to stream Dolby Atmos and surround music similar to TIDAL?
A: We are in talks with Dolby about this. The main reason we haven’t done it so far is that there is a cost to us that may not be recouped by incremental new subscribers we might get.
Q: Will there be an Equalizer added to Qobuz?
A: We’ve talked about an Equalizer; it’s a maybe.
Q: Will you add Podcast or Audiobook functionality?
A: Not on the roadmap right now — being ‘just music’ is working for us.
Q: Any news on a partnership with Discord coming?
A: We have talked about it, but need to pursue.
Q: Can a sleep timer be added to the Qobuz app?
A: It’s a requested feature, and we are looking into it.
Q: I heard that your service pays artists well. What is the payout specifically, if that information is available?
A: The answer is at the following link: https://community.qobuz.com/press-en/qobuz-unveils-its-average-payout-per-stream
Q: Could you please pressure KEF to give their LS50 Wireless II Qobuz Connect support?
A: We are in touch with them – KEF says Qobuz Connect will be rolled out to more of their products in early 2026. I think you’ll be very happy.
Q: Will there be a Roku app?
A: The revenue share that Roku asks for makes it impossible for us; we’d be losing money from the start.
Additional questions focused on app navigation, feature requests, and broader usability concerns. Several participants mentioned they had moved from Spotify to Qobuz as their main streaming service, and there were repeated calls for Qobuz to expand its availability across Eastern Europe.
For more information, here is the complete Q&A Session on Reddit.
The Bottom Line
The Q&A made one thing clear: Qobuz is listening, even if some answers require threading the needle between user expectations and industry constraints. Qobuz Connect’s rapid growth is the headline, but the session also underscored how the company is tackling bigger issues—from AI-generated content and Linux support to long-requested app features like a sleep timer. Users want better navigation, broader platform availability, and regional expansion, and Qobuz didn’t dodge any of it. The takeaway is simple: Qobuz isn’t the biggest streamer, but it’s acting like the most responsive one, and its roadmap reflects a service trying to grow without losing the audiophile credibility that got it here
Related Reading:
- Qobuz Launches Google TV App, Bringing Hi-Res Music Streaming to Smart TVs
- Cambridge Audio Adds Qobuz Connect Support — Completing the Spotify, TIDAL, and Qobuz Streaming Trifecta
- Better Late Than Never: Qobuz Connect for BluOS is Finally Coming in September
- Qobuz Connect Comes to HEOS: Denon and Marantz Users Get a Real Hi-Res Streaming Option
Asa
December 8, 2025 at 10:32 pm
Thanks for the write-up, Robert. I read through the rest of the QA on Reddit. They seem to actually care (rare), and have picked up a bunch of new users along the way. Their libary isn’t quite as robust, but it’s catching up, and feel good about supporting them.
I jumped into the HEOS/Qobuz arena this last month and couldn’t be happier sound quality and it just works w/o the BT issues.
I picked up the Denon 350 speakers + sub for the living room and a pair of 250s for the bedroom. The HEOS app is where the magic happens. Pair the speakers to wifi, pair them to each other, add Qobuz as a ‘music service’ and play. You can also create presets for each pairing that lets you play any/all pairings together or play something different in each room. I have one preset for each room + a combo with both sets of speakers.
Having a Denon receiver is also handy if you want play something of out of it in the media room. Best overall setup I’ve had for streaming wirelessly.
Tabitha
December 13, 2025 at 7:38 pm
I hope they will begin to remove artists that use gen ai in their merch and music videos too, if they use it on those they could be using it on their music as well. Bands that have been using or suspected (till proven otherwise) of GEN AI. Some of these include: Three Days Grace, Stain’d, Tech N9ne, Ice Nine Kills, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Starset, Bring me the Horizon, Linkin Park (and Mike Shinoda in independent work), Avenged Sevenfold, The Junior Varsity, Nothing More, Ashnikko, Five Finger Death Punch, Ke$ha, Sabrina Carpenter, Guns N Roses, Serj Tankian, August Burns Red, All Time Low, Within Temptation, Disturbed, Taylor Swift, Currents, Mariah Carey, Iron maiden, Sabaton, Deftones, The Family Rain, Amaranthe, Black Eyed Peas, Megadeth, Sleep Token, Mother Mother, Until I Wake, Black Pink, Malta, Duran Duran, Stray Kids, Tears For Fears, Pink Floyd, Therion, Dream Theater, Blind Guardian, Asking Alexandria, Atreyu, Stray Kids, Lord of the Lost, Aqua, Coheed and Cambria, Kikuo, Empire of the sun, Dynazty, Trans Siberian Orchestra, Pitbull, In This Moment, Primal Fear, Gunship, Motionless in White, The Offspring