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Is Apple Music lossless/uncompressed?

I gave up following what the hell Apple was doing with music long ago cause it’s just been a confusing and disappointing mess, but a friend is considering using Apple Music and asked me if it’s lossless so thought I’d ask here to hopefully get the latest poop.  I thought I recently read they were introducing some new lossless format but I dunno about resolution or what it might cost?  Also, how does the music selection/resolution compare to Qobuz or Tidal, and does Apple Music offer hi res?  My friend is planning on using the Lightning connection from his iPhone to an AQ Dragonfly Cobalt in case that’s important.  Thanks for any thoughts/info. 

soix
caphill
673 posts
 

Tell your friend to go with Tidal and Qobuz instead of Apple Music as they sound better than Apple Music and will always be lossless no matter what device you are using. Tidal now offers Tidal MAX, which is hi res FLAC files up to 24/192 just like Qobuz. Tidal has recently dropped its MQA. Qobuz has bigger selections of hi res FLAC files than Tidal. But either Tidal or Qobuz would sound better than Apple Music even the lossless version of Apple Music. 

soix OP
9,358 posts
 

Yeah, the multiple different responses here are indicative of Apple’s lack of focus on music and why I even had to ask this question in the first place.  ALAC reminds me of Betamax back in the day minus the superior performance, and it’s not like they don’t have the capital to just hit the ball outta the park if they really wanted to.  In the end I just told my friend to compare Apple Music to Qobuz and/or Tidal, and if he couldn’t hear a meaningful difference in his setup to just go with the one that has the music selection that best matches with his music preferences.  Thanks for all the thoughts/info. 

oliver_reid
68 posts
 

The Apple Music app on Apple TV is easier to work with than using a phone, (although of course you need a TV to manage it) - it outputs digital over a HDMI cable, but reduces any higher res streams to 48kz

Almost all stereo tracks are 'lossless'.

I find the quality fine for everyday listening.

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