For followers of high-fidelity audio, Spotify HiFi could possibly be the Holy Grail. After unveiling its plans for lossless, CD-quality audio in 2021, audiophiles world wide have been patiently ready for Spotify to bridge that hole to competitor providers like Tidal and Apple Music. Although we nonetheless regard it as one of many greatest music streaming providers, Spotify has but to ship its extremely anticipated HiFi tier – and it has been virtually 5 years.
In relation to the hi-res audio recreation, Apple and Amazon are leaps and bounds forward of Spotify. Since 2021 subscribers of each providers have been capable of reap the advantages of lossless audio high quality at no additional value, so what’s gone unsuitable with Spotify? It is a query we’re nonetheless asking ourselves to today, although the extra Spotify unveils about its new plans for brand spanking new tiered subscriptions, the nearer we get to having our arms on its lossless audio.
Sadly, even when Spotify HiFi does drop, we’ve motive to consider that it’ll solely be out there in “choose markets” to start out. And whereas Spotify hasn’t mentioned precisely how a lot the service will value simply but, we’re assured that the Spotify HiFi tier will value greater than the present commonplace premium subscription which sits at $11.99/ £11.99/ AU$13.99 – and there’s no assure that each tune in your complete Spotify catalog may have a HiFi model out there.
Regardless of this very clear draw back, we’ve good motive to consider that Spotify HiFi songs shall be out there to avoid wasting and obtain to your units for offline listening, which suggests it’s best to have the ability to take your new lossless music library with you anyplace.
Able to make the leap to lossless? This is the whole lot we find out about Spotify HiFi.
Spotify HiFi launch date rumors
To chop a protracted story brief, we do not have a selected date we are able to level to. It has been 5 years since Spotify unveiled its plans to introduce lossless audio to boost music listening for its subscribers, which was anticipated to reach in 2021. One of many first leaks we got here throughout was again in 2021, when a consumer on Reddit shared a video with the caption ‘This is a sneak peek on the upcoming HiFi onboarding course of from modifying the app’, and seems to offer potential HiFi customers a backstage tour of the service:
This is a sneak peek on the upcoming HiFi onboarding course of from modifying the app from r/truespotify
Regardless of sharing this in its 5 Issues to Know About Spotify HiFi weblog publish, and confirming that it will be out there as an improve to Premium, there’s nonetheless been no addition of HiFi audio.
In 2021 Spotify acknowledged the next; “Starting later this 12 months, Premium subscribers in choose markets will have the ability to improve their sound high quality to Spotify HiFi and take heed to their favourite songs the way in which artists supposed,”. Nevertheless we have been ready fairly some time for an additional official replace, and now that we have reached 2025, we actually don’t know when Spotify HiFi will lastly launch. Even Spotify CEO Daniel Ek is not sure, claiming that the delay in including Spotify HiFi largely comes right down to licensing points.
Except for licensing rights, the Spotify HiFi delay may be attributed to its undivided consideration to its social options similar to Spotify Wrapped, and its mission to carry extra AI integrations to its consumer expertise; its jarring AI DJ function and generative Daylist function (one which I frequent often) are two of its hottest AI instruments. Lately, we reported on Spotify’s plans to ‘double down’ on music in 2025 which we consider might go down certainly one of two paths; both the long-awaited HiFi tier or extra AI developments.
It is also price specializing in that choose markets bit because it means we received’t see Spotify HiFi going reside in each territory on the similar time. Beforehand, when Spotify has rolled out new options it often begins with the US and Europe, however now that the service is offered in additional than 180 markets, it’s onerous to say which shall be among the many first to get the brand new service.
The opposite subject you’ll run into relating to Spotify HiFi’s launch date – every time it’s ultimately introduced – is that it’s unlikely that each Spotify Join gadget will get the improve on the similar time – which suggests some audio system like, say, the Sonos One and PS5 would possibly get it lengthy earlier than your barely older AV receiver.
Spotify HiFi value predictions
As of proper now, there’s no set value for Spotify HiFi so, for now, all we are able to do is speculate. We had motive to consider that Spotify HiFi can be launched as a model new subscription tier, however we have since discovered that it could not be a standalone tier, nor a new Music Professional function, but it surely could possibly be a $5 add-on for the Premium Plan. Spotify Premium at present stands at a month-to-month value of $11.99/ £11.99/ AU$13.99 subsequently if the $5 add-on rumors are true, we might enterprise a guess that Spotify HiFi might value between $14.99 and $19.99 which appears like a protected wager.
What’s additionally influencing that guess is the competitors: a Tidal subscription will run you $19.99 per 30 days, whereas Hello-Res Audio streaming providers like Qobuz and Deezer value $14.99 and $11.99 per 30 days. Amazon Music Limitless and Apple Music are a bit cheaper and now embody lossless streaming choices, and it is doable Spotify HiFi might be across the similar value if it ever launches.
Spotify HiFi audio high quality
So, simply how good will Spotify HiFi’s lossless audio be? It is going to supposedly sound, on the very least, pretty much as good as a CD does – and possibly a bit higher.
In accordance with Spotify, Spotify HiFi will stream CD-quality lossless audio to your units. Ideally, these units shall be linked to a community and able to utilizing Spotify Join, in any other case, you’ll must pipe it over Bluetooth which is able to doubtless diminish the standard.
Within the absence of Spotify HiFi, you’ll be able to amend your audio streaming high quality in your account settings so as to add considerably of an enchancment to your listening expertise. Simply go to your Spotify settings, and faucet ‘Audio High quality’.
That’s a heck of quite a bit higher than Spotify’s present providing of 320kbps, and can doubtless carry the service’s potential audio high quality as much as par with Tidal, Deezer, and possibly even Apple’s Digital Masters. Talking of Apple Digital Masters, there’s at all times an opportunity that Spotify may additionally go above and past hi-fi with 96kHz / 24-bit audio, however we’re not holding our breath.
So what does that every one imply? In a really sensible sense, lossless audio codecs have extra particulars and information than their lossy counterparts. Which means listening to new particulars in songs you’ve by no means heard earlier than that in any other case would possibly’ve been minimize out when the info was compressed. It also needs to sound a bit wider and extra immersive, although, lots of it can rely on which headphones or audio system you utilize, too.
Spotify HiFi tune catalog
The murkiest element of all for Spotify HiFi is what number of – and which – songs from Spotify’s greater than 100 million-song catalog shall be included. The most secure assumption we are able to make is that it will not help each tune in Spotify’s huge catalog, however tens of millions of them needs to be.
Amongst these will doubtless be prime hits from main file labels which already distribute the recordsdata to different providers, whereas some music from smaller labels and older legacy titles doubtless received’t make the minimize. We’ll preserve our ears to the bottom for extra particulars on which songs will make the minimize, however for now, it’s in all probability greatest to maintain your CD assortment proper the place it’s till new particulars emerge.