Apple Music Launching Spatial Audio With Dolby Atmos and Lossless Audio in June at No Extra Cost

[ThirteenXIII]

I am curious about the following;

• would this apply to purchase music from iTunes (or 'Music' or whatever its going to be called), as this would be awesome and would love to just consolidate to digital purchases through one store.

• and will this mean that the OS will no longer restrict or limit the audio rate when connected to hi-fi receivers or DAC? or will it be dependent on the external DAC?

 

[ThirteenXIII]

You can redownload your purchased files in high-res.

"To start listening to Lossless Audio, subscribers using the latest version of Apple Music can turn it on in Settings > Music > Audio Quality. Here, they can choose different resolutions for different connections such as cellular, Wi-Fi, or for download. Apple Music’s Lossless tier starts at CD quality, which is 16 bit at 44.1 kHz (kilohertz), and goes up to 24 bit at 48 kHz and is playable natively on Apple devices. For the true audiophile, Apple Music also offers Hi-Resolution Lossless all the way up to 24 bit at 192 kHz."

That seems to be specifically targeted to Apple Music subscribers ("streamers") rather than iTunes or Music purchases specifically or respectively...

 

[Unregistered 4U]

So, while I actually agree with the argument that purchases should also be upgraded (and I think it will happen, it just has not been announced yet), I don’t buy your back story.

It makes sense when you consider music as a utility. A tool with purpose. “These set of songs are 45 minutes and 32 seconds long, meaning by the time I get to that one song, it’ll be time for tea.” The music serves the same primary purpose as a stopwatch in this case, with the added benefit of connecting ever so slightly to the person that introduced it to you, perhaps. AND, why not have that music in the highest possible quality if you’re going to be listening to it for 45 minutes and 32 seconds at the same time every day?

 

[drlunanerd]

So AirPods, Pro or Max will not support Lossless audio I’m afraid.

Not that surprising, but it renders the Lossless part of this announcement a little moot given how many people use Bluetooth headphones nowadays.

AirPods Max don't support Apple Music's lossless songs, Apple says

Apple's new lossless Apple Music won't work with AirPods Max, Apple reportedly told T3.

www.imore.com

 

[PhillyGuy72]

AirPods Gen 2 will still support Dolby Atmos on Apple Music! Wild, but very cool.
I have both Gen 2 and AirPods Pro, but I can't use the Pro since they keep falling out of my ears. Great that both will now be supported.

I can't wear the regular Air Pods without these or else they would just fall out. (My goofy ears!)

These have worked great, but you have to remove them on - off after removing from case, putting them back in. Not a big deal.

Not familiar with the Pro Pods and the fit, they have something similar though.

Comply Foam Ear Tips for Apple AirPods Pro Generation 1 & 2, Ultimate Comfort| Unshakeable Fit| Assorted S/M/L, 3 Pairs

Similar to the original Apple silicone tips, these premium AirPods Pro foam earphone tips easily attach to the device. These replacement memory foam earbud tips feature a comfortable custom in-ear fit allowing the tips to fit in the charging case while charging, multiple sizes and were specifical...

www.amazon.com

 

[AdeFowler]

I have yet to meet a soul that will listen to music past a certain point, usually the decade that they were a teenager. Regardless, Beethoven isn't going to produce a new composition.

I'm 59, and this afternoon I've been listening to the new albums from Rag'n'Bone Man and London Grammar.

 

[BMox81]

So AirPods, Pro or Max will not support Lossless audio I’m afraid.

Not that surprising, but it renders the Lossless part of this announcement a little moot given how many people use Bluetooth headphones nowadays.

AirPods Max don't support Apple Music's lossless songs, Apple says

Apple's new lossless Apple Music won't work with AirPods Max, Apple reportedly told T3.

www.imore.com

Hi-res Lossless will require a DAC/cable, but Lossless will be fine with your AirPods.

 

[drlunanerd]

Hi-res Lossless will require a DAC/cable, but Lossless will be fine with your AirPods.

Nope. Lossless (ALAC) will not play natively on any AirPods. It will be compressed to AAC.

 

[Rigby]

So AirPods, Pro or Max will not support Lossless audio I’m afraid.

Not that surprising, but it renders the Lossless part of this announcement a little moot given how many people use Bluetooth headphones nowadays.

AirPods Max don't support Apple Music's lossless songs, Apple says

Apple's new lossless Apple Music won't work with AirPods Max, Apple reportedly told T3.

www.imore.com

As you say, that's not surprising. It's probably why they also introduce the "spatial" music mixes, so they have something for users of their wildly popular Airpods too. It would have looked pretty bad if they only introduced a feature that cannot be used by what is probably a majority of iPhone users and perhaps even damaged sales.

 

[djphat2000]

WhooHooOOOOoo! YES!! Thank you APPLE!!! This is FANTASTIC NEWS!!! HOLY COW!

 

[abbstrack]

I have and use Tidal HiFI as a complement to my own massive digital and vinyl music collection. Tidal has offered 360 spatial audio for quite some tme, in addition to HiFi and Master quality audio. I have a pair of old B&W P5's that I listen on, and I enjoy the experience. That said, If there's anything that would make me move over from Tidal, it's that they don't offer 360 audio on their desktop app, which means I can never just plug my headphones into my 16" MBP and get the same listening experience I can get on my iPhone and iPad. Not sure why it has never been addressed. If Apple Music HiFi is device agnostic, that's a draw for me.

That said, I enjoy being outside of fully subscribed to the Apple ecosystem, and have major problems with them swapping in edited/clean versions of my favorite albums at their whim, and that's been one of the major deterrents for me.

 

[ThirteenXIII]

I have and use Tidal HiFI as a complement to my own massive digital and vinyl music collection. Tidal has offered 360 spatial audio for quite some tme, in addition to HiFi and Master quality audio. I have a pair of old B&W P5's that I listen on, and I enjoy the experience. That said, If there's anything that would make me move over from Tidal, it's that they don't offer 360 audio on their desktop app, which means I can never just plug my headphones into my 16" MBP and get the same listening experience I can get on my iPhone and iPad. Not sure why it has never been addressed. If Apple Music HiFi is device agnostic, that's a draw for me.

That said, I enjoy being outside of fully subscribed to the Apple ecosystem, and have major problems with them swapping in edited/clean versions of my favorite albums at their whim, and that's been one of the major deterrents for me.

yeah I agree, there is one particular album that no longer has the unedited/nonclean version either to purchase or stream. or with some 'woke' artists that had certain tracks removed and now my album is messed up.

I am curious do you use any sort of DAC or receiver with your tidal listening? or is it just through headphones?

 

[Kaptajn Haddock]

The lossless war has begun!

Amazon Music HD hi-res audio tier is now free for all Amazon Music users

There's a new battleground in the music streaming wars: hi-res audio

www.whathifi.com

 

[ruka.snow]

The lossless war has begun!

Amazon Music HD hi-res audio tier is now free for all Amazon Music users

There's a new battleground in the music streaming wars: hi-res audio

www.whathifi.com

Since it is all about the same time, I expect the music labels were holding out till 'a' partner gave enough concessions.

 

[sebban]

Finally

I would have gladly played 20 dollars a month for this anytime since Tidal was never good enough.

Spotify still has an advantage though, they have social interactions for better discovery of music and what's trending. To know what's trending, how much a song been played etc... is something I really miss with Apple Music. But on the other hand, I really miss music videos and lyrics when I'm on Spotify, since Apple Music has those nailed.

 

[Lvivske]

You can redownload your purchased files in high-res.

"To start listening to Lossless Audio, subscribers using the latest version of Apple Music can turn it on in Settings > Music > Audio Quality. Here, they can choose different resolutions for different connections such as cellular, Wi-Fi, or for download. Apple Music’s Lossless tier starts at CD quality, which is 16 bit at 44.1 kHz (kilohertz), and goes up to 24 bit at 48 kHz and is playable natively on Apple devices. For the true audiophile, Apple Music also offers Hi-Resolution Lossless all the way up to 24 bit at 192 kHz."

if this is the case im curious about the "choose different resolutions per connection"

ie, if i can keep my AAC or matched song downloaded, but stream on demand

or would i need to delete my entire album ("remove download" button) and double click to stream? then go back into settings, down the quality, and download the standard again?

that'd be a mess

 

[Loge]

From far away the picture looks like an old iPod with a giant bezel.

 

[Fidgit]

I honestly can’t believe that they’re doing this at the base price, without a higher tier. Add that to the fact that they’re getting it out by June, beating Spotify to the punch. I’m beyond impressed! My thoughts of leaving for Spotify are melting faster than an ice cream cone on a hot summer day in the Mojave. With this in tow, I doubt I’d want to stop using AM even if I went to an Android phone.

Sad to see Luke Miani’s date end up being wrong though.

I tried to go from Apple Music to Spotify a while back (probably when I lay upgraded my phone last year) and it was fine, other than I really missed the discover weekly auto playlist thing every Monday. So much of my weekly music patterns all flow out from listening to that every Monday morning. I couldn’t find anything similar in Apple Music so just stayed with Spotify.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

The lossless war has begun!

Amazon Music HD hi-res audio tier is now free for all Amazon Music users

There's a new battleground in the music streaming wars: hi-res audio

www.whathifi.com

Finally, a war where no one can lose!


That IS what that means, right?

 

[krspkbl]

That’s a lie. Please edit your post and stop spreading misinformation.

Apple’s format uses roughly 1.4 Mbps worth of data and Bluetooth 5 can support up to 2 Mbps.

Awaiting an apology

AirPods, AirPods Max and AirPods Pro Don't Support Apple Music Lossless Audio

Apple today announced that starting in June, Apple Music songs will be available to stream in Lossless and Hi-Resolution Lossless formats, but...

www.macrumors.com

still spreading misinformation am i? You need wired AirPod Max for lossless. Lossless isn’t supported over bluetooth.

 

[AppleUser2]

I'm 59, and this afternoon I've been listening to the new albums from Rag'n'Bone Man and London Grammar.

Both great choices. Fireflies from Ragnbone Man one of my tracks of the year so far.

 

[Lvivske]

looks like the new apple music features are in the dev beta

Apple Seeds macOS Big Sur 11.4 Release Candidate to Developers - MacRumors

 

[Satanic Goat]

I can see both sides of this argument. I’m 46 and consume music. Constantly listen to new bands. New genres. It is sometimes a background soundtrack to something I’m doing but for the most part I actively listen to records or CDs. I own several Thousand. (Working in a record shop in my youth helped with that!) My best friend who I went to school with is completely different, he’s only stuck with bands we were into then albeit listens to their new stuff. I’m always trying to get him to broaden his horizons but mostly he just sticks to the same handful of artists. Different strokes. I’m looking forward to this personally. I have a Spotify family plan, which we all use, although mainly in the car for me. I have Apple Music as an extra with my mobile plan, which I listen to on my AirPod Max’s, think it sounds better than Spotify on them. I listen on them when I don’t want to disturb my family or when on trains for work. I’m really looking forward to hearing what spacial audio does to music.

 

[tooloud10]

Movies and books have value, they provide inherently new and unique experiences. I also started listening to music when I was 16 as it was suggested to me by a professor when I was in my first year of university to reduce my concentration instead of being too focused on one task.

So...kind of like music?

You appear to treat music as a utility rather than as art, and while that's totally your prerogative, you shouldn't be surprised when people point out that such a use case is incredibly narrow and not likely to be catered to by a service like this.

 

[clerkpalmer]

LDAC isn't "true lossless" either.

Correct. But it is hi res which cannot be achieved by AAC.