You didn't admit that you analogy was poor though: what you did was insinuating that I was not familiar with analogies and an unsuitable party for debating based on it...
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Apple TV Won't Support Hi-Res Lossless at Launch, AirPods Max Wired Playback 'Will Not Be Completely Lossless'
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You didn't admit that you analogy was poor though: what you did was insinuating that I was not familiar with analogies and an unsuitable party for debating based on it...
You don't need to: the goal is to determine discernible differences: if the differences are not discernible it's exactly the point for a human not being able to pick them up.
It sure can, we do have short-term memory. The need to use short samples is exactly because the methodology acknowledges and takes into account the limitations of human short-term memory.
The former is absolutely false; it wouldn't be news to various enthusiasts if most didn't. A significant amount of people can tell the difference. It's just that a smaller segment of audio equipment buyers are willing to pay or can comfortably afford the equipment required.
It's just like 120hz monitors vs 144hz monitors or HDR10 vs 4K Dolby Vision HDR buyers. It seems indistinguishable until you consume the same content with the different hardware that also costs a lot more.
Again, lossless is lossless. The playback will always be exactly like the original source. If there's an error due internet protocols the file will be corrupted. It can happen to any kind of file out there. So lossless is lossless.
Its not noticeable in all music but occasionally you hit a song that lossless audio really makes a difference. I wouldn’t stress over it though, wireless headphones aren’t gonna support it, the Airpods Max are primarily a wireless headset with wired connection as an after thought. If anyone needs losslessss then invest into proper hi-fi headphones or analytical headphones like the Sony 7506.
I get that, but from a practical perspective I don't see why Hi Res Lossless is a big deal on the Apple TV unless you have a very high end receiver/speaker system as your surround audio. I am much more excited about the Spatial Audio, since my surround sound speakers are fine but not mind-blowing.
Kind of like playing 4K Bluray on 720p TV set and coming to conclusion the difference is not substantial enough for you to upgrade to 4K TV.
If i get the announcement right people will get the ability to play Hi Res Apple Music (24-bit/48 kHz) to their wired up AirPods Max, sounds like an upgrade from 16-bit/44.1kHz (current Apple Music standard) for me, even if the procedure (digital-analogue-digital-analogue) is not „Lossless“.
Would be nice if Apple would/could incorporate e.g. LDAC into future iOS/MacOS (and Airpods Max Firmware) versions. I think the encoder can be used free of charge and is already available on Android, decoding devices like the APM would need a licence though. => It is also not „Lossless“ but seems to be a good option for wireless Headphones that can take advantage of it.
Edit: Mixed up the tier names, correction see post below 👇
Would be nice if Apple would/could incorporate e.g. LDAC into future iOS/MacOS (and Airpods Max Firmware) versions. I think the encoder can be used free of charge and is already available on Android, decoding devices like the APM would need a licence though. => It is also not „Lossless“ but seems to be a good option for wireless Headphones that can take advantage of it.
Edit: Mixed up the tier names, correction see post below 👇
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48kHz is not considered "Hi Res" (at least in the Apple document: in general your mileage may vary), that would be higher than 48kHz. 16/44kHz covers already the human audible spectrum, so assuming the mastering is done properly there will be no perceivable difference between 16/44kHz lossless and anything higher.
The "real" upgrade is more that the current Apple Music standard is not lossless, it's AAC 256.
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How about a bowl with 100 yellow m&ms. Then a bowl with 80 yellow and 20 red.
You can obviously see the difference. That’s like a bad compression algorithm for music.
99 yellow and 1 red?
Depending on how it’s mixed and presented, you may not see the difference. That’s a good compression algorithm.
Uh i see, i made a mess out of the naming scheme of the tiers. ☺️
Seems it should be like so:
Apple Music standard Lossless - "CD quality," which is 16 bit at 44.1 kHz, and goes up to 24 bit at 48 kHz.
Apple Music Hi-Res Lossless - up to 24 bit at 192 kHz.
So people will get the ability to play “Apple Music standard Lossless“ (up to 24-bit/48 kHz) to their wired up AirPods Max, instead of 16-bit/44.1kHz AAC 256 (current Apple Music standard).
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... so, what's wrong with doing it? At least I own it, it's something I can touch and makes sitting down listening to music an event rather than just selecting from the digital library.
Given that the iPhone can server as a wi-fi access point, can't you have wi-fi headphones, you'd have enough bandwidth then for full HD or would that use too much power?
Apple today shared a new support document confirming that the HomePod and HomePod mini will gain lossless audio support for Apple Music in a future software update, and the document also reveals some other tidbits.
First, the document indicates that the Apple TV 4K "currently doesn't support Hi-Res Lossless," with only the standard Lossless tier ranging from 16-bit at 44.1 kHz to 24-bit at 48 kHz to be available on the Apple TV 4K at launch. Apple's use of the word "currently" leaves the door open to a future software update with Hi-Res Lossless support for the device, but Apple has not confirmed this at this time.
Second, the document says that Apple Music "will not be completely lossless" during wired playback with the AirPods Max:Lossless audio refers to a form of compression that preserves all of the original data, which can result in an improved listening experience, although to what extent is debated. Apple's support document acknowledges that the difference between Apple Music's standard audio and lossless audio will be "virtually indistinguishable."
Lossless audio will be available in June for all Apple Music subscribers at no additional cost on devices running iOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.6, macOS 11.4, and tvOS 14.6 or later, according to Apple. Apple Music will have 20 million tracks available with lossless audio at launch, and Apple said 75 million tracks will be supported by the end of the year.
Apple Music will also be gaining support for Spatial Audio in June. Based on Dolby Atmos, this feature will provide an immersive three-dimensional audio experience that will make music sound like it is coming from all around you. Thousands of Apple Music tracks will support Spatial Audio at launch, with more added regularly.
Article Link: Apple TV Won't Support Hi-Res Lossless at Launch, AirPods Max Wired Playback 'Will Not Be Completely Lossless'
I gave away my LPs about 20 years ago when I moved across the US. I just kept my CDs. But thinking back there was something special about holding the album cover, looking at the art and reading the liner notes that came with playing vinyl that is lost now.
In a typical Apple way, that doesn't even work. Want to listen to a digital output of your iPhone? Convert it from digital lightning to 3.5mm Analog via a dongle, then from 3.5 Analog to lightning digital via a cable.
There's no reason why Airpods Max can't be connected to iPhone via purely digital lighting-to-lightning connection except that Apple doesn't wanna.
Still... owning a CD does count as holding something physical. Plus, these are the new days of vinyl, so it's not too late to get back into it.
What on earth are you talking about?!? It seems you don't know what the term lossless means. Lossless means you compress data in a way that it can be decompressed and then be bit for bit identical to the original data. The term doesn't just apply to audio, it can apply to photos too. Lossy compression of audio goes beyond just compression. They drop samples and filter out frequencies that the average human can't hear... and then they compress it. The only thing that may make those online tests snake oil is if the original source was of low quality before compression.
Any update to this with tvOS 15 or 15.1? Or do we still have no high res lossless Apple Music on Apple TV?