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Level 1

7 points

How do I, or CAN I, buy Apple Lossless versions of albums for download?

I'm new to the Mac and iTunes world, so bear with me. I would like to start buying hi-resolution downloads instead of buying and ripping CD's, SACD's and so forth, but I don't want to sacrifice audio quality by purchasing MP3's or AAC's - and yes, I DO have the equipment to hear the difference. So, are all albums available as Apple Lossless files in iTunes, or only some, and how do I shop for those? Also, can I save a copy of an Apple Lossless file as something else, like a FLAC file?

Many thanks for the help!

Kind regards,

John

Mac mini, Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Feb 20, 2013 8:04 PM

41 replies

Gabe66

Level 1

8 points

Jun 17, 2014 9:59 AM in response to BassTone5

Have you ever tried a blind test to challenge your equipment and your ears? This blind test (cdvsmp3.wordpress.com) might be an interesting experience for you. You may be surprised at the quality AAC 256k VBR is able to deliver. There is also an interesting experiment about HD audio that I find revealing.

Jul 12, 2014 3:46 AM in response to BassTone5

I completely agree...I'm resolved to FLAC and Apple Lossless. Haven't read the whole post but wanted to let you know Bandcamp.com is a great site for uncompressed files. If you can find what you're looking for, you buy the album ONCE and can download as many times as you want in WAV, ALAC, FLAC, MP3 and AAC. Pretty cool site...plus some bands have current feedback to members, and membership is free. You can also find a lot of free DJ rips to download. Anyway, check it out...its a cool site. Just for good measure, I think I have every file type of the albums I purchased! Ha! Just cuz I can 😝

Jul 12, 2014 3:59 AM in response to RickCarlsbad

Was just saying exactly this tonight!! Thinking all audiophiles should start a revolution? 😉

ed2345

Level 9

62,462 points

Jul 12, 2014 6:07 AM in response to Jessie871

Jessie871 wrote:

Was just saying exactly this tonight!! Thinking all audiophiles should start a revolution? 😉

Jessie871 - No "revolution" is required. Audiophiles who wish to purchase lossless or hi-def audio downloads are more than welcome to do so at any of the many stores that sell them.

Jul 13, 2014 8:51 PM in response to ed2345

The problem is, some music is very hard to find. For example, I've looked for hours (and this is not an exaggeration) for several bands that I wanted to download either FLAC or Apple Lossless and out of all those, I found ONE band on Bandcamp. Mind you, the Bandcamp site is awesome, allowing you to download multiple times, any format you wish, but it is also limited as far as availability (for what I'm looking for). I have even gone to each band website and no dice (with the exception of Pet Shop Boys, but their downloads are limited as well to newer albums). If you're looking for 80's New Wave/Electronic music, you're out of luck. I found one site that carried the music, but its a European website that doesn't give access to the dollar. If you know of any websites that carry the following, I'd love to know.....Depeche Mode, New Order, The Cure, Joy Division, Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, House of Love, etc (I'm sure you get the picture. Btw, imports and 12" singles are particularly coveted. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I've begun buying CD's and converting myself, but I have noticed quality gets lost in the conversion...The download of FLAC from Bandcamp seemed a higher quality than converting a brand-new, imported, original recording CD. I'm always open for suggestions 🙂

ed2345

Level 9

62,462 points

Jul 14, 2014 6:33 PM in response to Jessie871

Jessie871 wrote:

The problem is, some music is very hard to find. For example, I've looked for hours (and this is not an exaggeration) for several bands that I wanted to download either FLAC or Apple Lossless and out of all those, I found ONE band on Bandcamp. Mind you, the Bandcamp site is awesome, allowing you to download multiple times, any format you wish, but it is also limited as far as availability (for what I'm looking for). I have even gone to each band website and no dice (with the exception of Pet Shop Boys, but their downloads are limited as well to newer albums). If you're looking for 80's New Wave/Electronic music, you're out of luck. I found one site that carried the music, but its a European website that doesn't give access to the dollar. If you know of any websites that carry the following, I'd love to know.....Depeche Mode, New Order, The Cure, Joy Division, Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, House of Love, etc (I'm sure you get the picture. Btw, imports and 12" singles are particularly coveted. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I've begun buying CD's and converting myself, but I have noticed quality gets lost in the conversion...The download of FLAC from Bandcamp seemed a higher quality than converting a brand-new, imported, original recording CD. I'm always open for suggestions 🙂

I don't know how available that stuff is in lossless format. (Ian Curtis must be turning over in his grave.) I did notice the New Order single "Video 586" in lossless format for $2.75 at Juno, so I know you will grab that one immediately.

Lossless rips from CD should not be losing quality. When possible, look for remastered versions, as CDs made in the 80s often sound tinny, both before and after they are ripped.

dpastern

Level 1

8 points

Jan 26, 2015 2:45 AM in response to ed2345

Sorry to revive an old thread, but many of the alternative high res download sites (store.acousticsounds.com and hdtracks.com) are mostly useless for anyone who lives outside of the US of A. The majority of high res stuff available for download is only available in the US. And don't be fooled - a lot of the high res tracks from hdtracks.com are heavily compressed, much like mp3s and modern CDs. Check the loudness war info website and you'll see what I mean (sorry, it appears that Apple's draconian control means I can't post URLs in this thread, even URLs that add to the topic at hand).

mp3/lossy format is a 2nd rate citizen in the audio world. True, it's good enough for the majority of people, but does this mean we should be happy with and accept "good enough", or should we strive for better/best? Modern consumers are used to 2nd rate mastering, where recordings are so heavily compressed as to be well, terrible. For old albums, my recommendation is to scour EBay and get CDs pressed from the 80s. For newer stuff, you don't have that choice and you're stuck with badly mastered material that's heavily compressed. If you can't hear the compression (and distortion), then you either need to get your hearing checked, your ears cleaned out, or learn to listen properly. As consumers, we've allowed manufacturers, including Apple, to peddle 2nd rate material for far too long.

It would be nice for Apple to offer a higher res download service (that you can subscribe to at an extra cost). I have no problem with paying a bit more for the higher res lossless downloads either. As long as the price is reasonable. If smaller outlets like the above mentioned ones can offer a certain set level of pricing, I would expect Apple to at least match, if not better that pricing, considering that Apple is far larger and has far more buying power.

But I guess Apple prefers to sell average goods, to average people.

I don't recommend using iTunes to rip your CDs either. Sub standard software imho. Use something like dbpoweramp, far better software for ripping CDs.

Dave