[CharlyBrown]

It’s now official, starting as soon as in June: Apple Announcement

- Spacial Audio
- Dolby Atmos
- Lossess at now additional costs! (Apple says 20 million songs will be available in Lossless Audio at launch, with the full 75 million songs available by the end of the year.)

W O W! This will give the other services a headache, I think!!

From macrumors:

Apple Music's standard Lossless tier will start at "CD quality," which is 16 bit at 44.1 kHz, and goes up to 24 bit at 48 kHz, according to Apple. Apple Music will also offer Hi-Res Lossless up to 24 bit at 192 kHz.

By default, Apple Music will automatically play Dolby Atmos tracks on all AirPods and Beats headphones with an H1 or W1 chip, as well as the built-in speakers in the latest versions of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, according to Apple.


Apple Music will be getting new Dolby Atmos tracks constantly and will offer a curated selection of Dolby Atmos playlists, according to Apple. Dolby Atmos albums will have a badge on their detail page for easy discovery.

Spatial Audio and Lossless Audio will be available on iOS 14.6, iPadOS 14.6, macOS 11.4, and tvOS 14.6 or later.

 

[CharlyBrown]

Add: Lossless seems to work with ANY kind of headphone, connected through external DAC/AMP:

How can I listen to lossless audio?​

You can listen to lossless audio using the latest Apple Music app on an iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV.7 ('https://www.apple.com/apple-music/#footnote-8') Turn on lossless audio in Settings > Music > Audio Quality. You can choose between Lossless and Hi-Res Lossless for cellular or Wi-Fi connections. Note that Hi-Res Lossless requires external equipment such as a USB digital to analog converter.

 

[snapandslide]

Ooof this seems a bit of a gamechanger - Apple flexing its muscle to provide better quality at no extra cost. Lets see what music selection they have in Lossless and Hi-Res. I'm still in my Qobuz trial, I may stick with them, but I'll certainly give Apple a whirl.

EDIT: Their entire catalogue will be made available in lossless.....

 

[PopZeus]

Being able to listen to Apple Music lossless on a few Apple devices with tinny speakers is hardly a game changer. Also, how many of their users still have wired headphones to even start to appreciate this feature? After the whole company doing just about everything they could to eliminate wired headphones from their entire ecosystem for half a decade, calling this a game changer is pure hype.

 

[snapandslide]

Being able to listen to Apple Music lossless on a few Apple devices with tinny speakers is hardly a game changer. Also, how many of their users still have wired headphones to even start to appreciate this feature? After the whole company doing just about everything they could to eliminate wired headphones from their entire ecosystem for half a decade, calling this a game changer is pure hype.

It's a gamechanger in what it is doing - putting pressure on those who rely on the additional revenue. Even Amazon has now relented and offering lossless for no additional cost. Spotify probably would have charged an additional tier, now they simply can't. Even those using Qobuz and Tidal will consider Apple Music for the convenience - remember Apple Music is also available on Android.

 

[jwbrent]

I wonder what Apple will be charging for hi res, certainly not $10/month I would think.

 

[new2mus]

Looks like Amazon responded by lowering the price of their Music Unlimited HD to $9.99 (or $7.99 for Prime members). Essentially, HD is now a free upgrade for existing Music Unlimited subscribers.

 

[new2mus]

I wonder what Apple will be charging for hi res, certainly not $10/month I would think.

Looks like its part of Apple Music for $9.99

 

[jamesofla80]

Excited to see how it will get implemented. If there will be a noticeable difference between Spatial vs Atmos recorded tracks. Also curious if Spatial will still require to use the iPhone/iPad gyro & accelerometers. Plus, will Apple TV finally support Spatial? Guess we will find out in June!

 

[PopZeus]

It's a gamechanger in what it is doing - putting pressure on those who rely on the additional revenue. Even Amazon has now relented and offering lossless for no additional cost. Spotify probably would have charged an additional tier, now they simply can't. Even those using Qobuz and Tidal will consider Apple Music for the convenience - remember Apple Music is also available on Android.

I don't see any mention of Android compatibility with Apple Music's lossless tier so far. Just more Apple hardware compatibility. But let's assume that Android version of Apple Music will have all the same features. You're right that this has forced some competition with the other streaming services. But again, is this *really* a game changer or is this just accelerating the inevitable? I tend to think it's the latter. Did people call Disney+'s 4k streaming a "game changer" or was it just old fashioned competition? I just want to actually apply value to these terms beyond how marketing departments try to use them in the moment to sell their wares. Tbf, the AirPods were more of a game changer than I'd like to admit! LOL

 

[utdeep]

I’m done with Tidal and MQA. This is a game changer for me.

 

[kumar402]

Even though it’s not a game changer but nice to have big players coming out with CD quality music at a very competitive price. Not long back we were paying $19.99 for Hi-res on Tidal

 

[PopZeus]

I’m done with Tidal and MQA. This is a game changer for me.

Ngl, I'm considering dropping Tidal as well. I just want to subscribe to a service that PAYS their artists. I did like that aspect to Tidal. Also the UI is very nice.

 

[visanj]

I'm using ipod 2019 (7th gen). so does the DAC support 192 khz/24 bit?

 

[CANiSLAYu]

I don't see any mention of Android compatibility with Apple Music's lossless tier so far. Just more Apple hardware compatibility. But let's assume that Android version of Apple Music will have all the same features. You're right that this has forced some competition with the other streaming services. But again, is this *really* a game changer or is this just accelerating the inevitable? I tend to think it's the latter. Did people call Disney+'s 4k streaming a "game changer" or was it just old fashioned competition? I just want to actually apply value to these terms beyond how marketing departments try to use them in the moment to sell their wares. Tbf, the AirPods were more of a game changer than I'd like to admit! LOL

"Game changer" means a significant shift in the way something was traditionally done. Apple did just change the game by making lossless available for the same price as "traditional" streaming. Previously lossless was at a premium price point if the service even had it available in the first place. Now consumer expectation will be that high resolution should be included at no cost. Amazon clearly seems to agree since they just changed their pricing structure in response. Now we'll see what Tidal, Qobuz, etc. do. Tidal's previous move last month looks ridiculous in hindsight now as they're looking to add an extra service tier slotted between standard and their previous premium offering.

This is the same thing Apple did with charging the same price for 4K movies and retroactively upgrading previous purchases to 4K. Previously retailers like Vudu, etc. were charging higher prices for 4K vs HD/SD, now they're the same price and consumers don't expect to pay more for 4K.

I think what you're speaking towards is "revolutionary." Is Apple Music lossless revolutionary? Certainly not, but the way they're doing it does "change the game" for streaming services. High Res is no longer a USP or worthy of an upcharge; Apple just made it an expectation.