The Difference in Audio Quality Between Apple Music and Spotify: A Detailed Explanation

If you're a music lover who uses both Apple Music and Spotify, you may have noticed that the audio quality between each service is quite different. Apple Music offers more dynamic high fidelity audio, which raises the question of why this is the case. The answer lies in several key differences between how Apple Music and Spotify approach audio streaming.

One of the main reasons for the difference in audio quality is the bit rate at which songs are streamed. Apple Music streams songs at a higher bit rate of 256 kilobits per second, while Spotify's free version streams at a lower rate of 160 kilobits per second. Even paid subscribers on Spotify have a limited option of 320 kilobits per second, which still doesn't match the standard option on Apple Music. The reason for this is audio compression, a process that reduces the size of files to make them more manageable and efficient.

Audio compression benefits streaming services in several ways. Firstly, it allows them to store millions of songs on their expensive music servers, taking up less space and reducing storage costs. Secondly, it enables faster loading times when selecting a song to play on your device, as the file is smaller and can be loaded more quickly. Finally, downloading a song for offline listening takes up less storage space, making it easier for users to listen to music on-the-go.

The way that audio compression achieves these benefits depends on the method used. Different methods deliver different levels of quality, file size, and cost. When Apple Music was first launched in 2015, it only offered songs compressed in its AAC format, which delivered better sound quality than Spotify's Aug vorbis format but did so by sacrificing some of the original audio data.

However, in 2021, Apple took things to a new level by offering lossless audio using its own compression format called ALAC. Lossless audio means that there is no data lost between the original song file and the compressed file, resulting in better sound quality. But this comes at a cost: larger file sizes. A 4-minute AAC song on Apple Music would be approximately 4 megabytes in size, while the same song in lossless format would be around 20 times larger, at about 80 megabytes.

Spotify has not offered true lossless audio since its launch, although it did announce plans for a new Spotify Hi-Fi streaming tier back in February 2021. This tier would have delivered lossless songs to users willing to pay a higher monthly subscription. However, despite the announcement three years ago, there have been no signs of this tier arriving, leaving many wondering if it will ever materialize.

On the other hand, Apple has not only delivered lossless audio on its streaming platform but done so without charging a premium. This is made possible by the company's AAC encoding technology, which delivers better sound quality than Spotify's Aug vorbis format while still maintaining a more manageable file size. But that's not all - Apple also created something called spatial audio, an upgraded version of surround sound where instrumentals or vocals can be placed in 3D space.

This technology is achieved by taking a 5.1 or 7.1 Dolby Atmos signal containing multiple channels and applying various audio filters and equalizers to create the illusion that the audio is coming from all around you. This creates an immersive audio experience similar to what you would hear in a movie theater, making it feel like the music is actually happening around you.

The key to this technology lies in Apple's use of sensors on AirPods, such as accelerometers and gyroscopes, which track your head movement and adjust the placement of the audio channels accordingly. As you move your head around, the audio seems to follow you, giving the illusion that it's coming from a fixed point in space rather than just from within the headphones themselves.

All of these technologies combined - AAC encoding, lossless audio, spatial audio, and advanced sensor technology on AirPods - make Apple Music sound better than Spotify or any other music streaming service. And it's all made possible by Apple's commitment to delivering high-quality audio experiences that enhance the listener's experience.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enif you use apple music and Spotify you may have noticed that the audio quality between each service is quite different with apple music offering more Dynamic High Fidelity audio so why is this well it's because Apple does quite a few things differently than Spotify first they stream songs at a higher bit rate 256 kilobits per second compared to 160 for free Spotify users and while paid subscribers do have a 320 kilobit per second option on Spotify audio quality still won't likely be as good as the 256 standard option on Apple music and the reason why has to do with audio compression you see streaming services want their file sizes to be as small as possible for several reasons that way storing millions of songs takes up less space on their expensive music servers and when you select a song to play on your device it takes less time to load and buffer finally downloading a song for offline listening takes up less of your storage space so smaller file sizes benefits everyone and the way that's done is through audio compression which can be achieved in a variety of ways with different methods delivering different levels of quality file size and cost when Apple music was originally released in 2015 Apple only offered songs compressed in their AAC format which while not retaining 100% of the original audio data did deliver better sound quality than spotify's Aug vorbis format but in 2021 Apple took things even further further by offering lossless audio using their own compression format called ala lossless simply means there's no data lost between the original song file and the compressed file this means better sound quality but also larger file sizes how much larger well a 4-minute AAC song on Apple music would be about 4 megabytes while the same song in lless would be about 20 so about five times larger Spotify on the other hand doesn't offer true loss less audio they did announce plans for a new Spotify Hi-Fi streaming tier back in February 2021 which would have delivered lossless songs to users willing to pay a higher monthly subscription but there have been no signs of it since and after 3 years many are wondering if it'll ever arrive meanwhile Apple not only delivered lossless audio on their streaming platform but did it without charging a premium and they didn't stop there Apple also created something called spatial audio which is essentially an upgraded version of surround sound where instrumentals or vocals can be placed in 3D space Around The Listener creating an audio experience similar to a movie theater this technology is achieved by basically taking a 5.1 or 7.1 Dolby Atmos signal containing multiple channels then applying various audio filters and equalizers to make it sound like the audio is coming from all around you again this is technology Spotify doesn't offer but Apple didn't stop there because airpods have sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes apple can track your head movement and adjust the placement of these audio channels As you move your head around this gives the illusion that the audio is coming from a fixed point in space as if you really are in a wideopen movie theater rather than wearing headphones that are stuck to your head so all of these things AAC encoding lossless audio spatial audio and head trck in make apple music sound way better than Spotify or any other music streaming service this is Greg with apple explained thanks for watching till the end and I'll see you in the next videoif you use apple music and Spotify you may have noticed that the audio quality between each service is quite different with apple music offering more Dynamic High Fidelity audio so why is this well it's because Apple does quite a few things differently than Spotify first they stream songs at a higher bit rate 256 kilobits per second compared to 160 for free Spotify users and while paid subscribers do have a 320 kilobit per second option on Spotify audio quality still won't likely be as good as the 256 standard option on Apple music and the reason why has to do with audio compression you see streaming services want their file sizes to be as small as possible for several reasons that way storing millions of songs takes up less space on their expensive music servers and when you select a song to play on your device it takes less time to load and buffer finally downloading a song for offline listening takes up less of your storage space so smaller file sizes benefits everyone and the way that's done is through audio compression which can be achieved in a variety of ways with different methods delivering different levels of quality file size and cost when Apple music was originally released in 2015 Apple only offered songs compressed in their AAC format which while not retaining 100% of the original audio data did deliver better sound quality than spotify's Aug vorbis format but in 2021 Apple took things even further further by offering lossless audio using their own compression format called ala lossless simply means there's no data lost between the original song file and the compressed file this means better sound quality but also larger file sizes how much larger well a 4-minute AAC song on Apple music would be about 4 megabytes while the same song in lless would be about 20 so about five times larger Spotify on the other hand doesn't offer true loss less audio they did announce plans for a new Spotify Hi-Fi streaming tier back in February 2021 which would have delivered lossless songs to users willing to pay a higher monthly subscription but there have been no signs of it since and after 3 years many are wondering if it'll ever arrive meanwhile Apple not only delivered lossless audio on their streaming platform but did it without charging a premium and they didn't stop there Apple also created something called spatial audio which is essentially an upgraded version of surround sound where instrumentals or vocals can be placed in 3D space Around The Listener creating an audio experience similar to a movie theater this technology is achieved by basically taking a 5.1 or 7.1 Dolby Atmos signal containing multiple channels then applying various audio filters and equalizers to make it sound like the audio is coming from all around you again this is technology Spotify doesn't offer but Apple didn't stop there because airpods have sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes apple can track your head movement and adjust the placement of these audio channels As you move your head around this gives the illusion that the audio is coming from a fixed point in space as if you really are in a wideopen movie theater rather than wearing headphones that are stuck to your head so all of these things AAC encoding lossless audio spatial audio and head trck in make apple music sound way better than Spotify or any other music streaming service this is Greg with apple explained thanks for watching till the end and I'll see you in the next video\n"