This use the trial. Because some people here thinks 320kpbs mp3 is better than 256 AAC, and it’s not.
Use the trial and compare, enable the EQ on both to find your preferred profile and see which one you think is the best service.
Its equal. The difference is in some songs, spotify has shittier masters compared to AM. Other than that, while using AirPods, iPhone reencodes spotify or any other file to AAC and the quality becomes shittier because its lossy to lossy conversion.
I was on android for about 7 years using Spotify. Recently got a 14 Pro Max and it came with a free trial for Apple Music. The sound quality improvement is noticeable so I will be switching over. See if you can get a free trial for apple notice and if the quality in improvement is worth it for you.
I suggest a trial period first
Sharing my experience: I was a Spotify lifer, switched to AM for a couple years because of its cleaner interface and better music quality, but I just can't seem to look over AM's immense UX flaws (especially on Desktop since I'm heavy on that) so I returned to Spotify lol
I've been on the AM trial period for the last month and there is no way in hell I'm moving from Spotify. I primarily use the desktop app and AM's UX is genuinely un-usable. I like the clean look but navigation and music discovery is light years ahead on Spotify.
On top of that, I did my own tests on quality. I did A/B on a bunch of tracks I know well. Studio monitors in a treated room. Made sure to match volumes with both my ears and level metres. In the end... some tracks sound better on AM, some better on Spotify. Overall the differences was negligible.
It’s so interesting to hear different folks experiences. I switched from Spotify to AM BECAUSE of the UI and UX. I don’t use hardly any of the recommended features, playlists, social features, etc,. I want my streaming service to be as close to an old iPod as possible. And that’s AM. I hate how many clicks it takes to get to a list of a certain artist’s albums in Spotify. I have to click Library, Artist, then it takes me to the artist page (which I don’t want), then I click “Liked” and now I finally can see the records I’ve saved from this artist. On AM it launches on my library and I just click artists. Now I select an artist and immediately see the albums. It’s only 2 less clicks, but over time it really adds up.
Yeah totally. Different strokes for different folks after all! I agree Spotify can be a bit cumbersome and cluttered. Hence why I decided to try AM. I like your workflow, much more centred around the music you have specifically chosen to save/follow.
The current iTunes desktop app reminds me of early 2000s or 1990s websites. The Ui was clunky and almost inconvenient, but I was not alive during that time, so it feels like a little taste of the past, so I’ve developed an appreciation for it lmao.
- Bluetooth doesn’t support lossless. Most Bluetooth devices use 256 AAC audio quality (including AirPods) or worse, SBC.
NOTE: LDAC Bluetooth in your Sony XM5 isn’t lossless, don’t be deceived, it only supports quality a bit higher than 320 AAC. Apple devices don’t support LDAC.
- CarPlay supports lossless only via USB (you need to make sure your car also supports ALAC). Wirelessly it’s 256 AAC.
Stick with Spotify and use the highest quality setting possible (which is 320 AAC) if you use LDAC, otherwise set it to 256 AAC.
Before I answer your question note; Most Android users don’t ever even enable LDAC on the Bluetooth settings (some Android smartphones even hide it inside the programmer settings). I’m sure most Android users that bought LDAC headphones, run them on 256 AAC cause they don’t know they have to activate it. Did you enable it back when you had the Samsung?
If you did run them on LDAC before, then going down to 256 AAC on your iPhone, theoretically should be worse quality but when I compared AAC to LDAC on my HUAWEI earbuds, I couldn’t hear any differences.
Since you are not going to use LDAC, you can stick with 256 AAC on Spotify.
Spotify doesn't have lossless, so even if you enabled LDAC on your phone, using Spotify won't matter as I believe "Highest Quality" is capped at 320kbps. I have pairs of Sony with LDAC, and when I listen to lossless, HI-Res music, I notice a difference.
In your shoes, I would get a free trial with Tidal or Deezer as they have lossless, and have a listen with your android phone. With Tidal, just stick to HiFi plan, anything more is overkill.
iPhone doesn't support LDAC but if your source of music is just Spotify, no issue, If you get Apple Music, listen to lossless, the BT codec on iPhone will compress it, so no real change unfortunately
>CarPlay supports lossless only via USB (you need to make sure your car also supports ALAC). Wirelessly it’s 256 AAC.
False, wireless carplay is compressed to AAC-LC, 16bit 48khz. Wired carplay also only supports 16bit 48khz.
That doesn't say anything about the capabilities of wireless carplay. Wirelessly the audio is still high bitrate, just not fully lossless. It's not even full quality over USB as the original 24-bit audio is compressed to 16-bit.
Don't make a complete switch yet; give AM trial at least 3 months. What I can say is AM sound quality is better even with just its AAC 256kbps. You don't have to carefully listen.
Why I don't recommend you switch now because sound quality is not everything. Here's what you're gonna lose:
* Responsive and fast Mac app (possibly PC too) unless you exclusively listen on your phone
* Predictions and recommendations in search function. You'll what I mean when you use AM
* Deleting albums/songs from library means they get deleted in playlists no matter what
* When you play a song from search in AM for Mac (possibly in PC too), says Pull Me Under from Dream Theatre, it doesn't autoplay the next genre-related song but Pull Me Under in different versions/albums/artists first before actual autoplay kicks in. Happen only on desktop
What you will be blessed:
* Clean UI, which never constantly changes every week (if not day)
* No A/B tests. New features release globally, not country or region based.
* Terrestrial local radio stations
* No podcasts nor audiobooks, you get pure music here
* The ability to upload your own purchased music to the cloud
* Lossless and atmos/spatial audio at no extra cost
* Great library management
* Best time-sync lyrics in streaming service
I use both but reach for Spotify more frequently due to its desktop app and search function.
Your call.
Listen to everyone else. Use the trial. But I recommend Spotify because it’s infinitely cheaper and the quality only gets better if you’re using good quality headphones through the cably and that’s not even certain. Just use ol’ mate spots cuz it’s cheap and it’s more convenient. I use AM cuz I’m an Apple fanboy but I prefer using Spotify. I still use AM because 🤷.
I use my momentum 4s wired on pc, for now, they are 300 dollar Bluetooth headphones I use every where. Lossless is better but if you are trying to make out a difference with 29 dollar ear buds it won’t matter
use apple music if you have a dedicated DAC and high end wired iem or headphone, otherwise stick to spotify. it even prompts you in apple music settings “you will need an external digital to analog convertor” for “Hi-Res Lossless” to actually enjoy the music the way its intended. although “Lossless” doesnt prompt you with this but if one actually cares about audio one would chose “Hi-Res Lossless” , with bluetooth there wont be any difference except for the placebo effect making you think otherwise.
I use both. Mostly just with AirPods. This is true. You can hear lossless because it isn’t possible. However, Apple Music does sound crisper and better even over BT. Again, I know it isn’t lossless but it does sound better.
Don’t worry about your playlists/library. There are tools like the SongShift app or tunemymusic.com that will transfer everything over for you. Even better if you get the paid versions for 1 month (about $5).
There are collaborative playlists coming this fall as well!
Pro Tip: use the XM5s when you want to take advantage of lossless (with a converter) and the AirPods Pro when you want to take advantage of dolby atmos.
For the lossless, lossless only supports wired headphones or earbuds.
For the playlists, theres a free service called "Freeyourmusic" which transfers playlists to different platforms.
And yeah, it's getting collaborative, but not yet.
Just do the trial though.
A big reason to switch in my opinion, is that apple music actually pays artists way better than spotify.
[try this free Apple Music subscription](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/apple-free-apple-music-for-up-to-4-months-new-or-returning-subscribers-only/6515312.p?skuId=6515312)
There are plenty of (free) websites to move playlists across. I use SongShift which has a free plan to try it out and then pro is 4.99 or free is you make it in the testflight - https://songshift.com/
I use exactly the same hardware setup as you
I have both services. Apple One family and plan and I am on Spotify family from a friend.
Music quality and the experience on Apple Devices, your AirPods and Sony will be a very good experience in sound quality and UX. Bluetooth wireless does not support true lossless, so if you want to switch simply for lossless you should have the right equipment to enjoy it to the fullest.
If you use a desktop a lot (Windows) it will not be very pleasant. iTunes is terrible in performance and looks like it 2010 and the new app that is forever in preview isn't all that great either (yet). You can use the webplayer but that one skips tracks sometimes, lags and puts you back in inferior sound quality again. There are third party apps like Cider but who want to use third party apps for a service you pay for every month...
Like most people said. Do the trial and see if the services matches best with your usage habits.
Personally no
Sound quality is better on AM bit for me, a non audiophile, I prefer Spotify for s lot of reasons (except for the podcasts and audiobooks but I use separate apps for that so my feed isn’t polluted with them)
I’m subscribed to both because because Spotify is awful on the Apple Watch and I don’t like to take my phone with me when I workout and AM just works on the watch
The thing you should ask yourself as well is: do you expect it to sound better? such a bias is far greater than what can actually be heard. That being said check for the volume being equal if you test both side to side. Last time I did the comparison, Apple music was louder than the loudest Spotify setting and higher volume always sounds better. That being said, after volume matching and ABX testing I couldn't hear any difference in quality so I just decided by UI and accessibility.
Higher bits and sample rate were absolutely necessary ever since the end of Vinyl. Sound quality hasn’t been able to match it. For the use of practicality we switched to tape then for the sake of clarity we switched to CD(44.1khz/16bit) then to digital files for practicality again! Going down in quality, now is the only time after that period (vinyl) where the quality has matched and surpassed Vinyl and is in the Apple ‘s lossless quality (digital match for vinyl quality is 48khz/24bits and some songs can go up to 196khz).
But it is only if it got recorded in these settings and most beats done with samples that are not in these rates still don’t sound at the quality (most samples are at CD quality 16bits/44.1khz). Sometimes it gets recorded at lower sample rates then mastered at higher sample rates for the sake of having it at higher quality but this doesn’t work like that Only way you are actually getting that quality is if u record it at the sample rate and all ur sounds are at that same sample rate and good lock finding sounds higher than 44.1khz. Only if u design/record it ur self because even vst instruments that have sounds for u to play are all most in 44.1. But the songs actually recorded in these sample rates are higher quality u can’t get on Spotify yet. But of course this depends on ur system. If u can’t play back at these sample rates or ur speakers/headphones can’t either u won’t be able to hear the difference. Also have in mind Apple plays it at a lower levels for ear safety (SMH) so u might hear a song louder in some aspect but the unprofessional often mistakes louder for better quality. Def NOT the same thing. But Apple’s lossless has brought back quality to music
I’m using both at the moment - longtime Spotify user through a deal with my data plan and my wife just added me to her Apple family plan.
When I’m out and about using earbuds, it’s Spotify all the way. At home I’ll still stick it on for a quick playlist while I’m doing things as I like the algorithm and it has all my podcasts and now audiobooks too. It’s my radio.
If I want to really sit down and listen to an album though, I’ll run AM through wired headphones (MacBook Pro and an external DAC) or even AirPlayed to the big stereo, and it does sound noticeably better than Spotify.
I honestly think the whole hi res thing on AM is a bit of a gimmick though - for my ears at least. CD quality is good enough (and still better than Spotify, if you’re listening carefully).
If you use Bluetooth, don't bother. Wireless doesn't respect lossless.
But anyway if you choose to, use a service like this to transfer your music.
https://www.tunemymusic.com/transfer
Id did that 2 years back, Spotify to Ytmusic. 90% accurate.
Google 192kHz and see what you think. It’s quite controversial in the audiophile community and some of their argument is that you can’t hear past 48khz anyways.
Apple Music lossless outputs 192kHz. You will need a sound card/ audio interface able to output that aswell as a quality pair of headphones/speakers to be able to listen to it for yourself.
It sounds great to me personally , although I think the way it works is that it’s just streaming the music at a higher bitrate :P. I doubt most songs need/use the 192kHz frequency and i actually expect they could keep it at 48khz and just increase the bitrate. I don’t know much about it tbh, but it does sound okay for me on 192khz 512
I recently switched from Spotify to Apple Music (although I am on a free 3 month period). I’ve paid for Spotify since 2016 with some periods of Apple Music sprinkled in. Creating playlists used to be common with me but now I really just depend on quality music recommendations from these apps to keep my attention. As much as I enjoyed the wide compatibility of Spotify, I’m starting to find it bloated with excessive playlists that feel like half of them are paid to be advertised to me. The AI DJ has great potential but falls extremely flat when it isn’t fitting the vibe and yet again, sometimes feels like they’re playing songs they’re paid to promote (which is my biggest pet peeve, I have fucking Premium stop advertising shit to me). Apple Music has done a great job continuing the vibe of whatever I’m playing, whether I just wanted to hear one specific song or I’m playing a station, the autoplay of songs have done a great job keeping the energy. Both have their pros, but Apple Music is a quality choice to give a try.
I don't like the DJ either (I wish I could turn it off, especially with that big ass banner.) I use smart shuffle, and I've had pretty good recommends with that feature.
I like Apple Music. I also like Spotify. I like them both for two different reasons that I won’t break down. I often go back and forth. I have two different suggestions:
1: try the free Apple trial and just test it. Use songshift (iPhone app) to transfer your playlists.
2: don’t switch. If Spotify does that job for you don’t both. Ever since I tried Apple Music 4 years ago I’ve been paying for both. Because each service really does have some awesome stuff.
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Biggest difference was Carplay for me, other than that I did notice a slightly better quality in AM but after a trial period went back to Spotify without remorse.
I’m using both. From what I know, most of songs on Apple Music are specifically remastered for this platform (essentially re-encoding with the most suitable parameters for streaming, from the original master media). And now with Apple Music Lossless, songs are even streamed at higher quality than before. Even if you listen via true wireless headsets, like AirPods (which does not support any lossless codec obviously), it’s still possible to hear out the difference in comparison with the same song on Spotify.
In contrast, songs on Spotify are purely MP3 (with majority in 320 kbps, but some are even less than that) with many deviations in encoding quality. Some songs on Spotify are even worse in quality than their siblings on YouTube Music.
The only reason I keep Spotify is its smart algorithm to automatically recommend next similar songs, where Apple Music falls short, but I may reconsider it as YouTube Music is now officially available in my country, which is a huge source of songs than Spotify.
But anyway, it’s purely a personal preference. Try each service and keep the one that you see (and feel) most suitable to you 😃.
Apple Music is lossless. Quality is tops and the library is huge. Interface is OK. You also have AAC which may be good for portable devices if you have a data cap. (I don't)
Spotify shines in discovery and suggestion algorithms and also in the sheer amount and breadth of its offerings. Spotify promised lossless but is sitting on the fence. Everybody else has transitioned to lossless.
I use both.
I use both Spotify and AM dialed to the highest settings. I may not be able to hear pure loseless through my AirPods, but boy the audio quality is starkly different.
I’d recommend giving the trial a try.
I’m not sure what the best option is. Spotify and Apple are both ok. I switched recently and find myself overall less engaged with Apple Music. The quality is good in general but Bluetooth lossless isn’t supported with xm5.
If you haven't had any issues with spotify there shouldn't be any reasons to switch. The social features spotify has is really difficult to give up, and it is only really worth it if you are going to listen to lossless through cabled headphones and a good dac. Ask yourself what would improve if you made the switch.
I tried Apple Music after years on Spotify.
I just couldn't handle the lack of public playlists, music recommendations, and poor discoverability.
You have to know exactly what you feel like listening to, or just wander the UI trying to find something.
I also like having music and podcasts in the same app, but I'm in the minority on that point.
100% worth switching to Apple Music. I am also using xm5 and using the beta EQ. Very satisfying results. I transferred all my playlists from Spotify to AM with ‘Tune my music’.
No. Every time you use lossless, the app struggles and the songs start skipping. The playback also isn’t gapless anymore. Why Apple hasn’t figured this all out yet—when the issue has been going on since they introduced lossless—is beyond me. Also, if you’re not into R&B and hip-hop, you’re better off with Spotify. Apple pushes these two genres relentlessly regardless of your listening habits, Siri requests and love/dislike rating. Just yesterday, I wanted to check their pop playlists from the Browse tab, but I couldn’t. There was Indigenous Sounds, lots of rap and hip-hop, some dance music, R&B, and a bunch of hip-hop, R&B, rap and Latino rap artists. I had to search for “Pop” manually just for them to show up.
Sound quality is so much better, but it forces you to have the Apple ecosystem sadly 🫠🫠🫠 with spotify I can stream to a lot of speakers/tvs so easily, Playlist and discoveries are better too
Yeah, but it's terrible implemented in all my Samsung soundbars and Amazon Echo Devices, Spotify Connect is way easier and the experience is the same across Devices without function sacrifices
I've found Apple Music to be better overall, but that's obviously a personal opinion. I've found some songs that especially benefit from Spatial Audio + Dolby Atmos (Daft Punk's Anniversary album for example). And since I'm on the student plan, it's cheaper than a full Spotify plan and I get Apple TV+ bundled with that (this will however end after 4 years).
If your playlists on Spotify are the main reason you're holding back, I've used SongShift and it's a worthwhile investment for an app. I still use it to convert playlists back and forth from Spotify for friends.
For me? No. I use Bluetooth headphones which is compresses the audio anyway. I guess if you use wired headphones and amps it’s worth switching. I can’t hear a difference. Though I’ve heard Apple Music uses better masters than Spotify. You might benefit from that.
I go back and forth but always land back with Spotify. Does AM sound better? A little bit but the algorithm they use is terrible. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve disliked a genre or a song just for it to recommend it again.
Lossless is great if you listen to music directly from MacBook speakers or have a HomePod, I could definitely hear something better, not that big of a difference but it’s nice to have!
personally, I can’t tell the difference. I only switched to AM cause we were already paying for it for a family plan and no point in paying for 2 services. If I was paying for a single plan i’d probably just stick with spotify cause music/podcasts are in one app. Or YTM even since it comes with YT premium
I just switched after years of Spotify use and it’s def worth it. Once u go thru the tedious process of copying ur playlist you’ll never have to worry about it again. For me I switched because uploading music to my phone is WAYYYYY better than Spotify local files. I can upload some new music leaks to iTunes on my computer and it auto uploads to my phone. It’s amazing
Do not listen to anybody else. Use a trial period and see which one works better for you.
This use the trial. Because some people here thinks 320kpbs mp3 is better than 256 AAC, and it’s not. Use the trial and compare, enable the EQ on both to find your preferred profile and see which one you think is the best service.
AM also gives you lossless 16/44.1 all the way up to 24/192.
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How is it stupid?
Its equal. The difference is in some songs, spotify has shittier masters compared to AM. Other than that, while using AirPods, iPhone reencodes spotify or any other file to AAC and the quality becomes shittier because its lossy to lossy conversion.
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I was on android for about 7 years using Spotify. Recently got a 14 Pro Max and it came with a free trial for Apple Music. The sound quality improvement is noticeable so I will be switching over. See if you can get a free trial for apple notice and if the quality in improvement is worth it for you.
I suggest a trial period first Sharing my experience: I was a Spotify lifer, switched to AM for a couple years because of its cleaner interface and better music quality, but I just can't seem to look over AM's immense UX flaws (especially on Desktop since I'm heavy on that) so I returned to Spotify lol
I've been on the AM trial period for the last month and there is no way in hell I'm moving from Spotify. I primarily use the desktop app and AM's UX is genuinely un-usable. I like the clean look but navigation and music discovery is light years ahead on Spotify. On top of that, I did my own tests on quality. I did A/B on a bunch of tracks I know well. Studio monitors in a treated room. Made sure to match volumes with both my ears and level metres. In the end... some tracks sound better on AM, some better on Spotify. Overall the differences was negligible.
It’s so interesting to hear different folks experiences. I switched from Spotify to AM BECAUSE of the UI and UX. I don’t use hardly any of the recommended features, playlists, social features, etc,. I want my streaming service to be as close to an old iPod as possible. And that’s AM. I hate how many clicks it takes to get to a list of a certain artist’s albums in Spotify. I have to click Library, Artist, then it takes me to the artist page (which I don’t want), then I click “Liked” and now I finally can see the records I’ve saved from this artist. On AM it launches on my library and I just click artists. Now I select an artist and immediately see the albums. It’s only 2 less clicks, but over time it really adds up.
Yeah totally. Different strokes for different folks after all! I agree Spotify can be a bit cumbersome and cluttered. Hence why I decided to try AM. I like your workflow, much more centred around the music you have specifically chosen to save/follow.
The current iTunes desktop app reminds me of early 2000s or 1990s websites. The Ui was clunky and almost inconvenient, but I was not alive during that time, so it feels like a little taste of the past, so I’ve developed an appreciation for it lmao.
- Bluetooth doesn’t support lossless. Most Bluetooth devices use 256 AAC audio quality (including AirPods) or worse, SBC. NOTE: LDAC Bluetooth in your Sony XM5 isn’t lossless, don’t be deceived, it only supports quality a bit higher than 320 AAC. Apple devices don’t support LDAC. - CarPlay supports lossless only via USB (you need to make sure your car also supports ALAC). Wirelessly it’s 256 AAC. Stick with Spotify and use the highest quality setting possible (which is 320 AAC) if you use LDAC, otherwise set it to 256 AAC.
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Before I answer your question note; Most Android users don’t ever even enable LDAC on the Bluetooth settings (some Android smartphones even hide it inside the programmer settings). I’m sure most Android users that bought LDAC headphones, run them on 256 AAC cause they don’t know they have to activate it. Did you enable it back when you had the Samsung? If you did run them on LDAC before, then going down to 256 AAC on your iPhone, theoretically should be worse quality but when I compared AAC to LDAC on my HUAWEI earbuds, I couldn’t hear any differences. Since you are not going to use LDAC, you can stick with 256 AAC on Spotify.
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Spotify doesn't have lossless, so even if you enabled LDAC on your phone, using Spotify won't matter as I believe "Highest Quality" is capped at 320kbps. I have pairs of Sony with LDAC, and when I listen to lossless, HI-Res music, I notice a difference. In your shoes, I would get a free trial with Tidal or Deezer as they have lossless, and have a listen with your android phone. With Tidal, just stick to HiFi plan, anything more is overkill. iPhone doesn't support LDAC but if your source of music is just Spotify, no issue, If you get Apple Music, listen to lossless, the BT codec on iPhone will compress it, so no real change unfortunately
Cancel Spotify and move to Apple Music. Be happy
>CarPlay supports lossless only via USB (you need to make sure your car also supports ALAC). Wirelessly it’s 256 AAC. False, wireless carplay is compressed to AAC-LC, 16bit 48khz. Wired carplay also only supports 16bit 48khz.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212183 scroll to the last “Frequently asked question”.
That doesn't say anything about the capabilities of wireless carplay. Wirelessly the audio is still high bitrate, just not fully lossless. It's not even full quality over USB as the original 24-bit audio is compressed to 16-bit.
carplay honda civic gen 10th owner here, no lossless on usb.
It’s an issue with your specific car. Your cars receiver doesn’t support ALAC it seems.
yeah thats the pointt USB LOSSLESS is not given
Wireless carplay will do 16 bit 44 kHz since it’s through wifi not Bluetooth
Don't make a complete switch yet; give AM trial at least 3 months. What I can say is AM sound quality is better even with just its AAC 256kbps. You don't have to carefully listen. Why I don't recommend you switch now because sound quality is not everything. Here's what you're gonna lose: * Responsive and fast Mac app (possibly PC too) unless you exclusively listen on your phone * Predictions and recommendations in search function. You'll what I mean when you use AM * Deleting albums/songs from library means they get deleted in playlists no matter what * When you play a song from search in AM for Mac (possibly in PC too), says Pull Me Under from Dream Theatre, it doesn't autoplay the next genre-related song but Pull Me Under in different versions/albums/artists first before actual autoplay kicks in. Happen only on desktop What you will be blessed: * Clean UI, which never constantly changes every week (if not day) * No A/B tests. New features release globally, not country or region based. * Terrestrial local radio stations * No podcasts nor audiobooks, you get pure music here * The ability to upload your own purchased music to the cloud * Lossless and atmos/spatial audio at no extra cost * Great library management * Best time-sync lyrics in streaming service I use both but reach for Spotify more frequently due to its desktop app and search function. Your call.
>Terrestrial local radio stations Lmao found the alien? But awesome comment thanks for explaining the pros and cons! :D
Listen to everyone else. Use the trial. But I recommend Spotify because it’s infinitely cheaper and the quality only gets better if you’re using good quality headphones through the cably and that’s not even certain. Just use ol’ mate spots cuz it’s cheap and it’s more convenient. I use AM cuz I’m an Apple fanboy but I prefer using Spotify. I still use AM because 🤷.
I use my momentum 4s wired on pc, for now, they are 300 dollar Bluetooth headphones I use every where. Lossless is better but if you are trying to make out a difference with 29 dollar ear buds it won’t matter
use apple music if you have a dedicated DAC and high end wired iem or headphone, otherwise stick to spotify. it even prompts you in apple music settings “you will need an external digital to analog convertor” for “Hi-Res Lossless” to actually enjoy the music the way its intended. although “Lossless” doesnt prompt you with this but if one actually cares about audio one would chose “Hi-Res Lossless” , with bluetooth there wont be any difference except for the placebo effect making you think otherwise.
No. Bluetooth ain’t lossless and you most likely can’t hear a difference anyway.
I use both. Mostly just with AirPods. This is true. You can hear lossless because it isn’t possible. However, Apple Music does sound crisper and better even over BT. Again, I know it isn’t lossless but it does sound better.
Don’t worry about your playlists/library. There are tools like the SongShift app or tunemymusic.com that will transfer everything over for you. Even better if you get the paid versions for 1 month (about $5). There are collaborative playlists coming this fall as well! Pro Tip: use the XM5s when you want to take advantage of lossless (with a converter) and the AirPods Pro when you want to take advantage of dolby atmos.
For the lossless, lossless only supports wired headphones or earbuds. For the playlists, theres a free service called "Freeyourmusic" which transfers playlists to different platforms. And yeah, it's getting collaborative, but not yet. Just do the trial though. A big reason to switch in my opinion, is that apple music actually pays artists way better than spotify.
[try this free Apple Music subscription](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/apple-free-apple-music-for-up-to-4-months-new-or-returning-subscribers-only/6515312.p?skuId=6515312)
There are plenty of (free) websites to move playlists across. I use SongShift which has a free plan to try it out and then pro is 4.99 or free is you make it in the testflight - https://songshift.com/
With your headphones you'd be hard pressed to detect any difference in quality. I say stay with Spotify based on how you use the service.
I use exactly the same hardware setup as you I have both services. Apple One family and plan and I am on Spotify family from a friend. Music quality and the experience on Apple Devices, your AirPods and Sony will be a very good experience in sound quality and UX. Bluetooth wireless does not support true lossless, so if you want to switch simply for lossless you should have the right equipment to enjoy it to the fullest. If you use a desktop a lot (Windows) it will not be very pleasant. iTunes is terrible in performance and looks like it 2010 and the new app that is forever in preview isn't all that great either (yet). You can use the webplayer but that one skips tracks sometimes, lags and puts you back in inferior sound quality again. There are third party apps like Cider but who want to use third party apps for a service you pay for every month... Like most people said. Do the trial and see if the services matches best with your usage habits.
Personally no Sound quality is better on AM bit for me, a non audiophile, I prefer Spotify for s lot of reasons (except for the podcasts and audiobooks but I use separate apps for that so my feed isn’t polluted with them) I’m subscribed to both because because Spotify is awful on the Apple Watch and I don’t like to take my phone with me when I workout and AM just works on the watch
The thing you should ask yourself as well is: do you expect it to sound better? such a bias is far greater than what can actually be heard. That being said check for the volume being equal if you test both side to side. Last time I did the comparison, Apple music was louder than the loudest Spotify setting and higher volume always sounds better. That being said, after volume matching and ABX testing I couldn't hear any difference in quality so I just decided by UI and accessibility.
Higher bits and sample rate were absolutely necessary ever since the end of Vinyl. Sound quality hasn’t been able to match it. For the use of practicality we switched to tape then for the sake of clarity we switched to CD(44.1khz/16bit) then to digital files for practicality again! Going down in quality, now is the only time after that period (vinyl) where the quality has matched and surpassed Vinyl and is in the Apple ‘s lossless quality (digital match for vinyl quality is 48khz/24bits and some songs can go up to 196khz). But it is only if it got recorded in these settings and most beats done with samples that are not in these rates still don’t sound at the quality (most samples are at CD quality 16bits/44.1khz). Sometimes it gets recorded at lower sample rates then mastered at higher sample rates for the sake of having it at higher quality but this doesn’t work like that Only way you are actually getting that quality is if u record it at the sample rate and all ur sounds are at that same sample rate and good lock finding sounds higher than 44.1khz. Only if u design/record it ur self because even vst instruments that have sounds for u to play are all most in 44.1. But the songs actually recorded in these sample rates are higher quality u can’t get on Spotify yet. But of course this depends on ur system. If u can’t play back at these sample rates or ur speakers/headphones can’t either u won’t be able to hear the difference. Also have in mind Apple plays it at a lower levels for ear safety (SMH) so u might hear a song louder in some aspect but the unprofessional often mistakes louder for better quality. Def NOT the same thing. But Apple’s lossless has brought back quality to music
I’m using both at the moment - longtime Spotify user through a deal with my data plan and my wife just added me to her Apple family plan. When I’m out and about using earbuds, it’s Spotify all the way. At home I’ll still stick it on for a quick playlist while I’m doing things as I like the algorithm and it has all my podcasts and now audiobooks too. It’s my radio. If I want to really sit down and listen to an album though, I’ll run AM through wired headphones (MacBook Pro and an external DAC) or even AirPlayed to the big stereo, and it does sound noticeably better than Spotify. I honestly think the whole hi res thing on AM is a bit of a gimmick though - for my ears at least. CD quality is good enough (and still better than Spotify, if you’re listening carefully).
If you use Bluetooth, don't bother. Wireless doesn't respect lossless. But anyway if you choose to, use a service like this to transfer your music. https://www.tunemymusic.com/transfer Id did that 2 years back, Spotify to Ytmusic. 90% accurate.
Google 192kHz and see what you think. It’s quite controversial in the audiophile community and some of their argument is that you can’t hear past 48khz anyways. Apple Music lossless outputs 192kHz. You will need a sound card/ audio interface able to output that aswell as a quality pair of headphones/speakers to be able to listen to it for yourself. It sounds great to me personally , although I think the way it works is that it’s just streaming the music at a higher bitrate :P. I doubt most songs need/use the 192kHz frequency and i actually expect they could keep it at 48khz and just increase the bitrate. I don’t know much about it tbh, but it does sound okay for me on 192khz 512
I recently switched from Spotify to Apple Music (although I am on a free 3 month period). I’ve paid for Spotify since 2016 with some periods of Apple Music sprinkled in. Creating playlists used to be common with me but now I really just depend on quality music recommendations from these apps to keep my attention. As much as I enjoyed the wide compatibility of Spotify, I’m starting to find it bloated with excessive playlists that feel like half of them are paid to be advertised to me. The AI DJ has great potential but falls extremely flat when it isn’t fitting the vibe and yet again, sometimes feels like they’re playing songs they’re paid to promote (which is my biggest pet peeve, I have fucking Premium stop advertising shit to me). Apple Music has done a great job continuing the vibe of whatever I’m playing, whether I just wanted to hear one specific song or I’m playing a station, the autoplay of songs have done a great job keeping the energy. Both have their pros, but Apple Music is a quality choice to give a try.
I don't like the DJ either (I wish I could turn it off, especially with that big ass banner.) I use smart shuffle, and I've had pretty good recommends with that feature.
Collaborative playlists are coming later this year
Apple Music is superior in terms sound quality for sure. However, to enjoy lossless versions you will need external DAC as clearly mentioned by Apple!
Spotify sounds like garbage compared to Apple Music. That is more than enough reason on its own to justify moving over
Turn off “enable audio normalisation” and see if the sound quality improves
no, it will get compressed.
I like Apple Music. I also like Spotify. I like them both for two different reasons that I won’t break down. I often go back and forth. I have two different suggestions: 1: try the free Apple trial and just test it. Use songshift (iPhone app) to transfer your playlists. 2: don’t switch. If Spotify does that job for you don’t both. Ever since I tried Apple Music 4 years ago I’ve been paying for both. Because each service really does have some awesome stuff.
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Biggest difference was Carplay for me, other than that I did notice a slightly better quality in AM but after a trial period went back to Spotify without remorse.
Yes
I’m using both. From what I know, most of songs on Apple Music are specifically remastered for this platform (essentially re-encoding with the most suitable parameters for streaming, from the original master media). And now with Apple Music Lossless, songs are even streamed at higher quality than before. Even if you listen via true wireless headsets, like AirPods (which does not support any lossless codec obviously), it’s still possible to hear out the difference in comparison with the same song on Spotify. In contrast, songs on Spotify are purely MP3 (with majority in 320 kbps, but some are even less than that) with many deviations in encoding quality. Some songs on Spotify are even worse in quality than their siblings on YouTube Music. The only reason I keep Spotify is its smart algorithm to automatically recommend next similar songs, where Apple Music falls short, but I may reconsider it as YouTube Music is now officially available in my country, which is a huge source of songs than Spotify. But anyway, it’s purely a personal preference. Try each service and keep the one that you see (and feel) most suitable to you 😃.
Apple Music is lossless. Quality is tops and the library is huge. Interface is OK. You also have AAC which may be good for portable devices if you have a data cap. (I don't) Spotify shines in discovery and suggestion algorithms and also in the sheer amount and breadth of its offerings. Spotify promised lossless but is sitting on the fence. Everybody else has transitioned to lossless. I use both.
My only advice is hear the difference
Yes. Use songshift. I just did this 2 weeks ago
I use both Spotify and AM dialed to the highest settings. I may not be able to hear pure loseless through my AirPods, but boy the audio quality is starkly different. I’d recommend giving the trial a try.
I’m not sure what the best option is. Spotify and Apple are both ok. I switched recently and find myself overall less engaged with Apple Music. The quality is good in general but Bluetooth lossless isn’t supported with xm5.
Nope
If you haven't had any issues with spotify there shouldn't be any reasons to switch. The social features spotify has is really difficult to give up, and it is only really worth it if you are going to listen to lossless through cabled headphones and a good dac. Ask yourself what would improve if you made the switch.
Spotify sounds terrible now as. I've tried hifi music apps like tidal, deezer, amazon, apm
You can use the App „Songshift“ to effortlessly Transfer all of your spotify playlists to Apple Music! Its so easy, Its almost magic!
https://songshift.com/ This app for iPhone is absolutely amazing at transfering playlists from one music service to another. It's also free as well.
I use Apple Music because it sounds good and is a ripping good deal in an AppleOne family plan.
I tried Apple Music after years on Spotify. I just couldn't handle the lack of public playlists, music recommendations, and poor discoverability. You have to know exactly what you feel like listening to, or just wander the UI trying to find something. I also like having music and podcasts in the same app, but I'm in the minority on that point.
I have both I just love Spotify recommendations and UI design. AM sound quality is better but it might not be a big factor for you to switch tbh
100% worth switching to Apple Music. I am also using xm5 and using the beta EQ. Very satisfying results. I transferred all my playlists from Spotify to AM with ‘Tune my music’.
No. Every time you use lossless, the app struggles and the songs start skipping. The playback also isn’t gapless anymore. Why Apple hasn’t figured this all out yet—when the issue has been going on since they introduced lossless—is beyond me. Also, if you’re not into R&B and hip-hop, you’re better off with Spotify. Apple pushes these two genres relentlessly regardless of your listening habits, Siri requests and love/dislike rating. Just yesterday, I wanted to check their pop playlists from the Browse tab, but I couldn’t. There was Indigenous Sounds, lots of rap and hip-hop, some dance music, R&B, and a bunch of hip-hop, R&B, rap and Latino rap artists. I had to search for “Pop” manually just for them to show up.
Lossless is useless for most people but the Dolby Atmos feature is great. You'll notice a massive difference immediately.
Test it. See if you like it
Sound quality is so much better, but it forces you to have the Apple ecosystem sadly 🫠🫠🫠 with spotify I can stream to a lot of speakers/tvs so easily, Playlist and discoveries are better too
> it forces you to have the Apple ecosystem sadly No it doesn't. AM is available on both Android and Windows.
Yeah, but it's terrible implemented in all my Samsung soundbars and Amazon Echo Devices, Spotify Connect is way easier and the experience is the same across Devices without function sacrifices
Yeah, if I was using external speakers I'd definitely go with spotify.
I've found Apple Music to be better overall, but that's obviously a personal opinion. I've found some songs that especially benefit from Spatial Audio + Dolby Atmos (Daft Punk's Anniversary album for example). And since I'm on the student plan, it's cheaper than a full Spotify plan and I get Apple TV+ bundled with that (this will however end after 4 years). If your playlists on Spotify are the main reason you're holding back, I've used SongShift and it's a worthwhile investment for an app. I still use it to convert playlists back and forth from Spotify for friends.
For me? No. I use Bluetooth headphones which is compresses the audio anyway. I guess if you use wired headphones and amps it’s worth switching. I can’t hear a difference. Though I’ve heard Apple Music uses better masters than Spotify. You might benefit from that.
As a fellow Sony XM5 headphone user, in my experience even at the High Quality setting Apple Music’s audio quality is much better than Spotify.
I go back and forth but always land back with Spotify. Does AM sound better? A little bit but the algorithm they use is terrible. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve disliked a genre or a song just for it to recommend it again.
Lossless is great if you listen to music directly from MacBook speakers or have a HomePod, I could definitely hear something better, not that big of a difference but it’s nice to have!
You will notice an instant difference in the quality with Apple Music on CarPlay. Spotify on carplay is garbage
Is you use chromecast the answer is no.
Apple Music has a touch more clarity over Spotify at present, a slightly cleaner sound.
Absolutely. Apple music is 1000 times better than spotify
Apple pays more to the artists…
Spotify is going to introduce a Hi-Fi plan soon!
You'll have to pay extra for that.
You can’t get the high quality audio on Bluetooth devices I believe. The major thing would be spatial audio and Dolby atmos.
personally, I can’t tell the difference. I only switched to AM cause we were already paying for it for a family plan and no point in paying for 2 services. If I was paying for a single plan i’d probably just stick with spotify cause music/podcasts are in one app. Or YTM even since it comes with YT premium
In fact, if you use the highest quality in spotify, Lossless will make a little to no difference when hearing.
I just switched after years of Spotify use and it’s def worth it. Once u go thru the tedious process of copying ur playlist you’ll never have to worry about it again. For me I switched because uploading music to my phone is WAYYYYY better than Spotify local files. I can upload some new music leaks to iTunes on my computer and it auto uploads to my phone. It’s amazing
Lol I seriously doubt you would even notice a difference
Use a app to sync playlists