Why were my music files downloaded as HLS and not ALAC in Apple Music?

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Why were my music files downloaded as HLS and not ALAC in Apple Music?

Yesterday, after reading the following: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212183 I signed up for Apple Music Premium because I wanted to start re-downloading my entire music library in ALAC.

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Here's the relevant bit from the support article:

What you need to know about lossless in Apple Music

* Streaming lossless audio over a cellular or Wi-Fi network consumes significantly more data. And downloading lossless audio uses significantly more space on your device. Higher resolutions use more data than lower ones.

* AirPods, AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, AirPods (3rd generation), and Beats wireless headphones use Apple AAC Bluetooth Codec to ensure excellent audio quality. However, Bluetooth connections aren't lossless.

* To get a lossless version of music that you already downloaded from Apple Music, just delete the music and redownload it from the Apple Music catalog.

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I tried this on my M1 Macbook Air running Big Sur 11.16.3 but I couldn't get it to work. The songs that get downloaded are still showing as AAC / MPEG (when downloaded via iTunes Store) or HLS (when downloaded via Apple Music) instead of ALAC.

Here's an example of what I did:

1. On my iPhone, I set the download quality to lossless in Apple Music.

2. I did the same on my M1 MBA.

3. I download a new song that I had never downloaded before (Long Way by Eddie Vedder) in the iTunes Store and then deleted it.

4. I then searched for the song on Apple Music Streaming App and added it to my Library.

5. I pressed the download button in Apple Music and noticed that in finder, the file is not ALAC - it is an HLS media file: https://developer.apple.com/streaming/

https://i.imgur.com/vBiHkNn.png

What did I do wrong? If nothing, how can I get a local ALAC file as the original support article above stated?

Posted on Feb 14, 2022 8:55 AM

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Answer 1

Feb 14, 2022 9:54 AM in response to Mity85

Hi,

HLS is the copy protected version of ALAC. Apple does not sell lossless music but provides access to lossless music via their Apple Music subscription. Tracks that have been matched or purchased from iTunes Store were originally 256 Kbps AAC format. With Apple Music subscription you now have the option to download or stream those tracks as lossless or hi-res instead of AAC.. Not all music is available in the latest format and you only have access to the lossless music whilst you have an active subscription. Make sure you backup your original files.

Jim

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