The only way to know if a hi-res audio file sounds better is to listen to it, and that leads us into the heart of the problem … iTunes, Apple Music, iPhones, and FLAC It’s a controversial belief, especially among those who don’t think the human ear has the ability to discern this extra information. The belief is that these hi-res files can deliver a truer reproduction of what an artist created in the studio because they capture and preserve more of the detail than you can get in a CD. Hi-res files typically use 24-bit and sample rates that start at 48kHz and can go much higher. CDs are created at 16-bit depth and 44.1kHz sample rate.
If you wanted to buy hi-res audio from the many websites that sell it, it’s usually sold in the FLAC format.Ī hi-res FLAC file uses a higher bit-depth and sample rate than CD audio. This is known as hi-res audio, and it’s becoming a major trend in the digital audio world, especially among streaming music services like Tidal, Qobuz, and Amazon Music HD as they strive to differentiate themselves from Spotify and Apple Music. For this reason (and the fact that the format is license-free), FLAC has become the de facto lossless audio format, and it is supported by virtually all high-end audio components, which is why some many audiophiles have chosen to keep their music collection in this format.įLAC files have another strength: They can contain digital information that exceeds the quality of a CD if they are created from the same master recordings used to create the CD. FLAC files, with their lossless encoding, are still far smaller than the CD tracks from which they’re created, but they achieve this through compression only - no data is removed during the encoding of a FLAC file. Depending on the bitrate at which the MP3 was created, this loss of information can be barely noticeable, but to an audio purist, any loss is unacceptable. MP3 files are “lossy,” which means that in order to achieve a smaller file size, they discard some of the original information that was present on a CD track, and then compress what’s left. The “lossless” part is why it is often seen as superior to the ubiquitous MP3.
Best media player for flac files for free#
(Note: If you’re already generally familiar with FLAC files, feel free to skip to the next section.)įLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec. What are FLAC files, and what are their advantages?
Best media player for flac files how to#
Our handy guide will give you all the tools you need, letting you know exactly what FLAC files are, what their advantage is, and most importantly, how to play them on your iOS device. Still, despite Apple’s lack of helpfulness on this issue, it is possible to play lossless FLAC files in iOS.
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