First off I have to say that I am fiscally retentive. Yet, I have fallen into a hobby that can drain an ocean of resources pretty quickly. So, how do you have a listen before you buy?
I would love to subscribe to Tidal, the sound is spectacular for a streaming service but the classical selections are very limited and I really have fallen in love with classical and jazz.
I stumbled upon a resource that most of us have probably forgotten about....your public library. You can either borrow vinyl, CDs, HDCDs etc. or you can stream. The Toronto Public Library has a free streaming subscription with Naxos. Yes, the sound quality is not that great as the bit rate is usually choked from 320k to 128k (flash AAC) but I can still tell tell the difference between a recommended "quality recording" and one of the "mainstream recordings". I listened to the Yuko Mabuchi Trio and it was stellar despite the low bit rate. This is one CD that I will buy. Their Beta for the classical selection is easy to navigate and has a huge selection.
I am finding that it is a great way to listen to the suggested high quality recordings before I buy them.
I hope you find this helpful.
Paul Hirst