Spotify Lossless has a problem
Video Overview & Insights
GoldenSound tested the new Spotify Lossless and as it turns out, it may not be quite as good as we hoped.....
Just a quick note as I'm sure many people will comment in regards to whether lossless is anything to care about anyway. Whether or not there is any audible difference is not the point of this video, that's a topic for another time. The point of this video is purely to discuss the objective aspects and whether the "lossless" claim is being delivered upon or not.
As said in the video, you should use the streaming service that has the features that you want at the price you want. Currently lossless services like Tidal and Apple Music are cheaper than spotify anyway, but if you really like some particular aspects of spotify and don't feel that lossless brings any audible improvement, you should use spotify.
Streaming services compared: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyUVF5Lcz-0
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/
Is it just me, or does it feel like the qualiy is back to the crappy normal sound even tho it says Lossless still?
I have felt this for a few months now - so I am trying to reach out to someone who could test this theory, someone who has the tools to do it. As it was a free "upgrade" by Spotify to all subscribers who has Premium of some kind - it feels like they could silently revert it too but only in quality and still leave the "Lossless" text there to fool us into believing it still is?
Tidal: https://tidal.com/
Qobuz: https://www.qobuz.com/
I'm not subscribed to youtube so I'm a regular user. But anyhow sometimes spotify streams seem so weak, so I go to regular youtube. Unfortunately I can find same song from youtube regular several times stronger and more detailed than spotify stream. For years I'm not sure spotify streams are genuinely "loseless" or at least "very high" quality. The only thing I'm excited with the spotif is their "music curation" skills level. At one point I've decided to quit spotify and begin youtube-music subscription; but as I continue to listen youtube lists or offerings for a certain cenre, that was a huge disappointment for me, most of the songs were barely related to the cenre they'd listed in. So I returned to spotify 😉
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/new
USB Audio Player Pro: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.extreamsd.usbaudioplayerpro&hl=en_GB
Is there a list of all these app and windows settings to change?
Audio Explained Series:
Headphone Drivers Explained: https://youtu.be/7fQCX4HeSJI
So DAP is the answer?
DACs 101: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOvubnenXyo
Amps 101: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--LEDxMs4yk
Honestly I am more concerned about getting musical dynamics crushed in favor of loudness than having lossless audio with crushed dynamics.
Balanced vs Unbalanced: https://youtu.be/tY0AqKthVPE
Amp Classes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8ug0NbaIds
apple music is cheaper than spotify platinum
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Your video is very informative. I can tell your a audio nerd like me. With apple music, your just getting a "lossless" bage with a number. Amazon Music i like because it tells you what quality the track is, the device quality, and the outpit quality. You said that Tidal gets around this. I believe you.
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How to read the new measurements:
for 99.9 % of the people this dont even is a thing but, at least for me, (mix engineer) hearing the actual file when I reference in the mastering stage is crucial.
for a trained ear, -55 db is pretty noticeable btw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWS-hIzI1KU
The 10 stages of headphone measurements
PENNYWISE!!
https://youtu.be/LrIoNMeo_GI
Sound quality in headphones explained: https://youtu.be/Km2DNLbB-6o?si=DkKz5tAnv42Tg9FF
Spotify has just recently released a feature in beta that allows you to bypass windows and output directly to your audio device. you can also bypass spotify's volume control so you can only adjust it from your DAC/Amp, it CLAIMS bit perfect audio but it would be great to see an updated video seeing if this is the case!
0:00 - Intro
1:00 - Is Spotify actually Lossless?
Spotify has launched the exclusive option for pc
4:57 - The problem explained
7:48 - Android testing
If Android reduces the sound quality, does that mean that Tidal doesn't offer lossless audio either?
8:37 - Spotify Connect
9:05 - Other drawbacks
They have exclusive mode now. Things changes?
12:23 - Summary
I am... Sorry.
More User Perspectives
They've added an exclusive mode recently, so hopefully we get an update video soon! 👀
@PyroSeekerWE NEED AN UPDATE! ... thanks :)
@Somethingelse309If you're not using any usb plug in for Android or Apple Play (wired) you're not getting the full potential of lossness. If not wired just stick to "high quality"
@junballs6576Most of the shared science is far above my pay grade. However, I find your steaming service recommendations to be useful.
@ilovephotography1254I'm from Russia. I don't want to complain, but I have to. Apple Music doesn't have any new music after 2022. I listen to American and English pop. Lady Gaga is my queen. I've been a Spotify user for years and I've been listening to music via bluetooth. I found out that there's a DAC, and you can only hear the quality through a wired connection. I immediately subscribed to Tidal through a third-party service, but it only works with a VPN. We have a lot of internet jamming, and they block VPNs, making it impossible to use Tidal (it's also an adventure to download the app through the Russian AppStore, as it's not available there). After a couple of weeks, I decided to switch to Qobuz, and I was very satisfied with it. However, it falls short compared to Spotify in terms of interface and usability. Today, I purchased an Indian Platinum subscription for \$13 per month, and I noticed that almost all the tracks are 16-bit. In Qobuz, this is not even considered lossless (I might be mistaken), and I realized that I can't comfortably listen to lossless without switching to Qobuz, which currently works without a VPN. Thanks! Thanks to you, I found out that we were slightly deceived....
@daniilkotinI'd like to see another test now that Spotify has an exclusive mode on windows
@patisaluzrSpotify have recently added an "exclusive mode" for "bit perfect" playback.
@Mertyboy1207Exclusive mode is now officially available on the Spotify UK windows app, working well with my Chord Qutest.
@Packet_of_Crispsfor poeple like me that uses linux, spotiy is a bit of joke. Just allow other people to make a application that will support loseless. This is why i stick with tidal as they really don't care.
@TheAsjdjhere after pc got exclusive mode
@prodbyallensoloMy Onkyo tx 8140 has Spotify built in. It's preset under 'net' along with deezer and others. You can log in and search on the amp interface. You can also use your phone app to control it but it's not connected via Bluetooth. It is connecting thru the wifi. I put it in 'direct' mode and use the line out to my preamp. Is that not getting lossless straight to the DAC from Spotify? What OS is that using? One built into the Onkyo?
@jimohicke9518Now that Spotify has implemented "Exclusive Mode" for the Windows client does this "fix" the issue that you have demonstrated here?
@darylholtz1560Exclusive mode for PC announced yesterday!
@jockeleuHey so they just fixed this problem..Spotify now has an exclusive mode for PC. So maybe you should upload a new video on it
@David-gp3fdGood news! Exclusive Mode is now available in the Spotify Windows desktop app for Premium users. This feature is important for listeners who want Bit Perfect playback from their audio device, and it pairs great with Lossless turned on for the purest audio quality up to 24-bit/44.1 kHz FLAC.
Exclusive Mode will be coming to the Mac desktop app in a future release.
What phone is that?
@didixtar2863i do dirty deeds for free , costless
@RealCunningStuntsPlease corect me if I am wrong: two scenarios : A. mojo2 + poly + android phone for Spotify control - spotify lossless go directly to poly with intended 44.1 khz Scenario B. Mojo 2 + android phone conected via usbC - we have android 44.1 conversion to 48 issue. Am I right to asume that streaming to spotify connec compatible device (toliau n my case poly used as example) and avoiding usb conectiom with dac solves the frequency scaling issue discribed in this video? Thank you in advance
@titovasssThis is the real way to analyse sound. James J Walsh in Limerick city Ireland 🇮🇪
@jameswalsh2427A few years ago, I had the same problem with Deezer. I was puzzled that changing the EQ on FLAC files had no effect at 32Hz. I used the free program Audiochecker and found that many FLAC files were indeed upscaled from MP3. Since then, I haven't used any streaming services.
@Frequenzy87Spotify is a shit music service now. Actually, they have been for a few years now. They use the .ogg file format for their music, versus Tidal and Qobuz using FLAC.
@LaughingSkull451All the geniuses in the comments:
My lossless tracks sound great on my bluetooth headphones... LOL
So this the audiophilia insanity they talk about
@Umidahh_5:44 44.1kHz
@prodbyallensoloMorty!
@astrix_mvp"wiggly air enthusiast" is a good line... Actually, it's good wiggly air
@HiddenRealmHiRes is a con
@onone4199shoutout to the plini track you had on your phone in the beginning.
@gabrielgyorffy1373I thought I was going crazy, I did think Apple Music sounded that better than spotify
@waseemali4047We are still using basic copper coil diaphragm 10mm drivers to drive our audio that bately tells a difference from 256 to 320. Masses are jot power users so keep audio on normal or high and forget the world.
@Dkm337Yeah, like it's the only problem it has...
@joetrollsonI'll be sticking to Spotify little man.
@onri_You missed an entirely crucial point regarding Apple "lossless. Yes the chain is lossless but that chain is from an Apple Master which is de facto NOT the original master! It has to go through Apple mastering "process" which is a "black box" to, as Apple puts it, ensures "optimal performance across apple devices". Apples lossless is only as "lossless" the EQ or altered as the Apple Master process happens to be. Comparing it to Qobuz or Tidal high rez streaming is a mistake. Run your comparisons and null tests on it. Till then you're drinking the Kool Aid.
@Wised1000I gave away my Porto Pros, now I'm Kossless
@bluemonstrosity259