Apple Music LosslessSwitcher app for Mac

[sonitus mirus]

Can anyone else confirm? Seems like a revolutionary breakthrough if true.

 

[Χ Ξ Σ]

Does this app work when Apple Music is playing local files?

I have tried it and the sample rate doesn't change.

 

[alexeyi]

Yes, it works with local and streaming.
You start the Losslessswitcher app and then you start your music.

you can see in the console that it switched from 44.1 to 192 automatically based on played song.

 

[Χ Ξ Σ]

Well, still no luck here. The sample rate shown on LosslessSwitcher is stuck at the sample rate when it opened but doesn't response to further changes.

Maybe that's because I disabled Apple Music in Music app completely? I only use Music as a local file player.

 

[alexeyi]

Well, still no luck here. The sample rate shown on LosslessSwitcher is stuck at the sample rate when it opened but doesn't response to further changes.

Maybe that's because I disabled Apple Music in Music app completely? I only use Music as a local file player.

If I open the app downloaded from GitHub sometimes it’s not working for me either.
Instead if you right click on it and show files, then open the LosslessSwitcher from inside the folder of OS it works every time. How I can tell if the app is working, is if the console that you can see in my picture opens. If you do not have the console open, the app will not work.

 

[Zorlac]

Hello,
I am using it with Ventura 13.1 and it is working as expected.

Serious? This is big news! So you are saying that your DAC auto switches to different bit depths and sample rates depending on the track you are playing in Apple Music? To my knowledge, macOS has never been able to do this....only iOS and iPadOS has this capability.

 

[sarumbear]

Yuhp, such a great little tool - makes you wonder why apple didn't implement something like this, considering that they are the ones who are providing a lossless audio service through their iOS-exclusive music app....

It just works -- not!

 

[_thelaughingman]

Serious? This is big news! So you are saying that your DAC auto switches to different bit depths and sample rates depending on the track you are playing in Apple Music? To my knowledge, macOS has never been able to do this....only iOS and iPadOS has this capability.

I’ve been using the app for while and it’s iffy at best. Some days it works well and some days it stays stuck in whatever bitrate it was last at.

 

[alexeyi]

I’ve been using the app for while and it’s iffy at best. Some days it works well and some days it stays stuck in whatever bitrate it was last at.

For me it did work every time I used it, after I figured out it has to have the console/terminal of the app open and that works only if I open manually the application from the executable inside the package. But yeah, it is not like an official implementation of Apple, which at this time I’m not sure it is going to happen anytime soon. They release the lossless variants of music, but no exclusive mode to fully enjoy.. half implement solution Apple style.

 

[dufferdan]

Just so I am clear, because I haven’t really experienced this except in a few situations:

Playing Apple Music from my iPad connected via USB Camera adapter to Topping D70sMQA DAC, I occasionally get glitches at the very start of a song as the DAC adjusts to the new bitrate and depth.

Playing my late 2015 iMac via USB out to Schiit Modius/Magnius (I cannot recall which is the DAC and I am away from the house at the moment), using Apple Music on the iMac, the Schiit DAC won’t change bitrate unless I used this app? I have also experienced the static as the Schiit DAC seems to adjust but it does and away it goes. Or is it not switching?

Thanks for clarifying for me. My Mac is currently on Mojave? (One step before the current OS, Ventura?)

 

[Zorlac]

iPadOS and iOS devices will auto change bit depth and sample rate. macOS devices will not. Annoying that macOS still hasn’t had this fixed.

 

[musashino]

If I open the app downloaded from GitHub sometimes it’s not working for me either.
Instead if you right click on it and show files, then open the LosslessSwitcher from inside the folder of OS it works every time. How I can tell if the app is working, is if the console that you can see in my picture opens. If you do not have the console open, the app will not work.

Can I close the console, or have to leave it running the whole time for the app to work? Thanks.

 

[alexeyi]

Can I close the console, or have to leave it running the whole time for the app to work? Thanks.

I left in running all the time because it did not bother me, but you can experiment with it.

 

[leonidas]

This app is pure gold, why did I just learn about it today??

Now I can finally enjoy my music through my Mac instead of connecting an iPhone or iPad every time. This is great. Thank you 1000x to the developer if you read this!!

 

[acbarn]

This app is pure gold, why did I just learn about it today??

Now I can finally enjoy my music through my Mac instead of connecting an iPhone or iPad every time. This is great. Thank you 1000x to the developer if you read this!!

It’s working fine for me too. The big question is whether or not it makes an actual sonic difference. Can you hear a difference? At least for me, the answer is no. It seems resampling in Core Audio is not an actual issue…

MEASUREMENTS: Apple Mac OS X ("Yosemite") Software Audio Upsampling

A blog for audiophiles about more objective topics. Measurements of audio gear. Reasonable, realistic, no snakeoil assessment of sound, and equipment.

archimago.blogspot.com

 

[Music1969]

Early on there were bugs and I ditched it. Even spoke to the dev and he had lost interest because he couldn't overcome the bugs.

It seems like he managed to sort the issues though - many people reporting it works well these days.

Nice !

 

[voodooless]

iPadOS and iOS devices will auto change bit depth and sample rate. macOS devices will not. Annoying that macOS still hasn’t had this fixed.

There is nothing to fix. On MacOS an application has no exclusive access to the audio hardware, so any app can play any sound at any bit and sample rate and all of them in parallel. The OS mixer therefore resample a all audio to a fixed configurable rate.

 

[IPunchCholla]

There is nothing to fix. On MacOS an application has no exclusive access to the audio hardware, so any app can play any sound at any bit and sample rate and all of them in parallel. The OS mixer therefore resample an all audio to a fixed configurable rate.

Audivarna has the ability to run in exclusive access to the hardware mode, but when I tested it it was kinda glitchy. Is there any technical reason Apple couldn’t just allow the MIDI setup utility to run in exclusive mode?

 

[leonidas]

It’s working fine for me too. The big question is whether or not it makes an actual sonic difference. Can you hear a difference? At least for me, the answer is no. It seems resampling in Core Audio is not an actual issue…

MEASUREMENTS: Apple Mac OS X ("Yosemite") Software Audio Upsampling

A blog for audiophiles about more objective topics. Measurements of audio gear. Reasonable, realistic, no snakeoil assessment of sound, and equipment.

archimago.blogspot.com

Of course not haha This is all about psychology! It makes me feel better if I see 96khz etc. in the display. Like probably everybody else I cannot hear any sound differences above 192kbit/s mp3

 

[Dogen]

When they say a few seconds “interruptions” in music playback, does that mean gapless playback doesn’t happen? That would drive me crazy.