In my experience, probably not in most cases.
Wasted Bits
First, some numbers.
Audio files have two relevant figures.
With a Hi-Fi setup like this, you might hear a difference.Johann Walter Bantz / Unsplash
For example, CD quality has a sample rate of 44.1kHz at a bit depth of 16 bits.
Drew Patrick Miller / Unsplash
In theory, the more, the better, right?
And when you’re recording and editing audio, that’s mostly true.
Hi-res audio is useful in the studio, but maybe not beyond that.Drew Patrick Miller / Unsplash
“AirPlay2 downsamples hi-res signals to CD quality only.
DTS Play-Fi allows wireless streaming up to 192kHz, which is the highest resolution offered by these services.”
Can you hear the difference then?
A trained listener, in action.Eric Nopanen / Unsplash
Eric Nopanen / Unsplash
One important part of that is the “trained listener.”
And there’s another big caveat, whether you’re listening through McIntosh amps or dime-store Bluetooth earbuds.
The difference between these audio formats is dwarfed by the differences between streaming services.
Try it, and you’ll hear a difference for sure, although perhaps you prefer Apple over Tidal.
But thenwe have to consider the “original.
And then those services may tweak them further.
Finally, there’s the question of data.
Hi-res audio files are way bigger than compressed AAC, OGG, or MP3 files.
They’ll burn through mobile data plans and eat up storage on mobile devices.
You’ll never hear the difference, and the cost won’t be worth the bother.
