Music file bitrates

Question

Music file bitrates

Hi

I have been revisiting subscribing to Apple Music now they have implemented lossless and have a couple of questions I hope someone can answer.

First, if I have a low quality file, say 192kbps which matches in Apple Music. Can I delete the file on my Mac and it will replace it with a lossless file much the same as iTunes Match used to do with a 256kbps file?

Second, much of my music collection is lossless. If the file isn't matched and it is therefore uploaded, will the lossless file be streamed or will Apple Music output it at a lower quality eg 256kbps?

Any thoughts/help would be appreciated

Posted on Oct 26, 2021 4:32 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

ed2345

Level 9

62,948 points

Oct 27, 2021 5:31 AM in response to rickyfrommansfield

Ricky,

Match works the way it does because it is getting the AAC/256 copies from the iTunes Store. However, Apple's new lossless offering is only about the streaming service, not about the Store. (They don't make that super clear, but they do say "If you subscribe to Apple Music, you can redownload music in lossless only from the Apple Music catalog." )

If you remove an existing file to replace it with a lossless version, make sure you have a copy in a safe place. In fact, make sure that your whole "permanent" library has a good backup.

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Answer 2

ed2345

Level 9

62,948 points

Oct 26, 2021 5:31 AM in response to rickyfrommansfield

First, if I have a low quality file, say 192kbps which matches in Apple Music. Can I delete the file on my Mac and it will replace it with a lossless file much the same as iTunes Match used to do with a 256kbps file?

Ricky,

Yes and no. If the lossless version is available in the Apple Music catalog, and you have a subscription, you can download a lossless copy. However, it will be a protected track that is only playable while your subscription is active. In that respect, it is different than Match, which provided an AAC/256 unprotected file for your "permanent" library.

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Answer 3

Oct 27, 2021 1:29 AM in response to ed2345

Thanks for the info ed as I had incorrectly assumed it would work in the same way as Match.

If I unsubscribe from Apple Music will my lower quality file still be there, or would I need to import it back into my permanent library from a backup?

Does the download option delete your original?

If so, I’m guessing to preserve the permanent library its best just not to download on the Mac if I already own the file. Presumably if I download files to my iPhone or iPad this does not affect my permanent library as the files will come from the cloud.

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Answer 4

Oct 27, 2021 7:22 AM in response to ed2345

Thanks again, that makes it very clear and I will make sure my library is backed up.

For my use case, I only very occasionally play music from my Mac library into a Dac which then goes into my old Hi-Fi where I have my computer.

Most of the time I am streaming from my iPhone into an Airport express which is connected on the optical output to another amp with a built in dac. So I’m thinking matched files will all be lossless, uploaded will be 256kbps unless I have the lossless file from my library on my phone, though I haven’t yet worked out if I can do this.

Im probably overthinking this and my ears probably can’t tell the difference anyway, but I like to think I’m getting the best possible sound quality if at all possible.

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Answer 5

ed2345

Level 9

62,948 points

Oct 27, 2021 9:47 AM in response to rickyfrommansfield

Ricky,

Yes, once you have your library backed up outside the library, you will be free to experiment.

Just one caution on streaming lossless from the iPhone: if you are roaming around, it can chew up lot of cellular data.

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Music file bitrates

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