Lossless Audio Sounds Better, but You’re Not Getting the Full Experience

Lossless audio has become one of the most buzzing terms in the world of musical streaming. Apple Music offers it, as is Amazon, Tidal, Qobuz and others music. It is positioned as a big leap in audio fidelity – a way of hearing your favorite tracks as artists and engineers wanted it.

Loss -free audio sounds better than audio at a regular loss. More details, greater clarity and a wider dynamic range all await the patient’s listener. But for all the media, here is the cold truth: there is a good chance that you do not get the total experience without loss, even if you pay for that.

What is loss-free audio?

The term “lossless” refers to an audio compression type that preserves all the original information from a studio recording. This contrasts with “Lossy“” Formats like MP3 or AAC, which reject the data during compression to save on the size of the file. For decades, audio with loss was the standard for streaming and download, because it has balanced a decent sound quality with smaller files – an essential return compromise when mobile data and storage space were limited (and costly).

However, these limitations are no longer as pressing. In many countries, people have rapid internet access, sufficient storage on board and unlimited data. This is one of the reasons why streaming music services like Apple Music and Amazon Music began to offer an audio without loss at no additional cost. It is a relatively easy way to differentiate their streaming services and attract listeners concerned with quality.

Without loss may seem much better than with loss, but only in the right conditions. If you tend to make most of your listening in animated environments, such as public transport, urban sidewalks or noisy cafes, you will probably not be able to appreciate the additional level of detail provided without loss.

However, if you have a listening configuration dedicated to the house, where you can keep the noise at least, I think you will be aware of the advantages of Lossless. Many people who have gone from a streaming service at a loss like Lossless service like Apple Music said they could hear the difference.

Do you only need a lossless streaming service?

Although the subscription to lossless service is the first step is far from the last. One of the greatest myths concerning loss audio is that access means that you hear it.

Thanks to their undeniable convenience, their wireless headphones and their headphones are the way most people listen to music these days. As practical as Bluetooth, it was not designed for lossless audio. Because Bluetooth connections are limited in band and can easily be disturbed by nearby interference sources, Bluetooth Audio uses its own Lossy compression version on your music before being sent to your headphones. As your audio without travel loss of your phone to your headphones, it is no longer without loss.

Bluetooth compression is determined by the codecs supported by your phone and wireless helmet. Some, such as LDAC, Aptx HD and adaptive Aptx, are so effective that few listeners can say that they are with loss. But these codecs are not universally taken care of.

Apple’s iPhone, for example, only uses the AAC codec on Bluetooth. The AAC may seem fairly well, but it is always losing and in particular lower than the codecs mentioned above. In other words, your Apple Music subscription can provide loss -free files to your iPhone, but your iPhone throws a piece of this information before reaching your ears.

Wi-fi is not always better

In general, if you use Wi-Fi for audio (speakers like Sonos, Denon Home or Bluesound), you get an audio without loss. But there is a socket, and once again, it is an apple thing. Apple wireless protocol, Airplay 2, which works on Wi-Fi and is often considered a higher alternative to Bluetooth, does not support loss audio. In most cases, it compresses lossless flows to AAC, which means that you are probably not better in terms of quality.

In addition, do not forget to check the streaming settings of your application. Many streaming music services do not reach lossless. On Apple Music, for example, you must manually enter the settings and activate without loss or loss. Otherwise, you simply get AAC standard – again, perfectly well, but not the reason why you have registered.

It’s always a wired world

Unfortunately, at a time when everything is wireless, the best way to discover the audio without loss is to connect. Wireless headphones with available USB audio connection, such as the Beats Studio Pro, Bose Quietcomfort Ultra Helmet, or Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S2 and S3, are the most practical option. These cans are delivered with a USB-CO-USB-C cable which connects directly to an Android phone, the iPhone 15 (or more recent) or a computer, for a lossless connection that supports high resolution audio quality.

Alternatively, wired headphones and headphones (or wireless cans with analog entrances) can let you hear without loss, but they need help. Unless your phone is one of the few who still has a headphone jack, you will need a USB-C (or lightning) adapter external to 3.5 mm.

However, there is also a world of digital converters dedicated to high quality analog (DAC). These devices generally include better quality chipsets, resulting in less distortion and quieter operation. They can also treat audio without loss up to 24 bits / 96 kHz (and more), which is considered a real high resolution audio.

Only $ 59, the IFI GO link is an excellent entry-level DAC which is shipped with the USB-A-USB-C and Lightnning-to-USB-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-CAP, which makes it very versatile. It even supports the decoding of the MQA – a rarity at this price – for those who have a collection of songs in this format.

For a premium device, doing everything, the M18i quest of $ 399 offers you balanced (4.4 mm) and unbalanced (3.5 mm) helmet sockets, a decoding and high -level amplification, and it doubles wireless flavor and Bluetooth rechargeable with the LDAC support and each APTX flavor.

Certainly, these devices can become expensive and, as is the standard CD quality without loss, you will need a high resolution audio source. Fortunately, almost all the streaming services that offer CD quality also have a smaller library of high resolution tracks. Is it exaggerated for most people? Probably. However, if you appreciate the details, space and subtlety in your music, it is worth trying, especially if your headphones or speakers are considered to be of audiophile quality.

Related

Hi-Res without loss: What is the difference?

And which one is most important if you are looking for the best listening experience?

What is the future of loss audio?

By discussing Bluetooth Audio, I almost put the Kibosh on the idea that wireless headphones can take care of without loss. But technically, it is not 100% true. The Bluetooth APTX Codec without loss of Qualcomm promises to provide loss and loss without CD quality CD from 16 -bit / 44.1 kHz quality CD. The problem is that stars really need to align to get there.

First, your phone and wireless helmet should specifically list Aptx loss in specifications – not Aptx HD or adaptive APTX. Second, Aptx Lossless requires an almost perfect Bluetooth connection, using a complete 1 Mbps of bandwidth. Currently, I do not know any Lossless Aptx phone that displays the current Bluetooth connection speed.

Worse still, when Aptx Lossless does not have 1 Mbps with whom to work, it is automatically – and invisible – of the adaptive APTX emances. Adaptive is good (as I said earlier, most people cannot even say that it is not without loss), but it is not APTX without loss, and there is no way to know which codec is active at some point.

Related

Winding speakers against wire: what factors should you consider?

It is no longer a right quality and convenience decision.

However, there is hope on the horizon. Some companies work on ways to integrate Wi-Fi into headphones, which would give them loss-free connections. At the same time, other companies are studying how ultra-large Bluetooth (UWB) can be used for the same purpose.

It is unlikely that we will see the first of these products before the end of 2025, but the industry is looking for ways to bring reliable loss -free audio in the wireless world.