In its virtual event ‘Stream On’, Spotify publicly announced its plan to introduce HiFi audio. The music streaming app has done a few trials of this high-quality streaming feature but it is only now that the app plans to launch it on a broader scale.
Spotify has recently announced that it is all set to bring the Hi-Fi audio feature to its platform later this year in India. This will enable the listeners present on the platform to stream high-quality music from their digital music playlist. The feature is expected to offer lossless CD-quality audio to the users with much more depth and clarity.
In its virtual event ‘Stream On’, Spotify affirmed its plan to introduce this new feature. The music streaming app has done a few trials of this high-quality streaming feature but it is only now that the app plans to launch it on a wider scale in selective markets.
Although pricing is yet to be announced, customers’ preference for the highest quality audio will definitely make this feature most sought after in the coming days. Moreover, as per various reports, Spotify may prove to be an outlier by launching this service of HiFi audio in India.
What is HiFi audio?
HiFi audio is High fidelity audio that tends to capture the full spectrum of the mix which is better than the CD-quality audio (48KHz or 20-bit and higher). In HiFi audio, the quality of music usually remains quite close to the actual recording of the song. But, then again, its usage comes with a caution that it cannot be experienced on any ordinary hearing device.
High fidelity audio entails sound reproduction over a full range of audible frequencies with a minute to very little distortion of the original sound. Hi-fi audio devices indeed promise to give an immersive experience that enables users to hear music while feeling every beat along with the elimination of unnecessary noise.
There are many people who have the urge to listen to the most superior quality of music, getting completely enmeshed into it, such people are known as Audiophiles and therefore, HiFi audio comes as a blessing for them as they use specific gears and listening devices like earphones, headphones, earbuds to have the maximum experience of the music they are listening to.
HiFi audio feature in India
Besides this, it is believed that Spotify’s HiFi audio update will take quite some time to get launched in India as it can be delayed due to various legal and governmental hurdles. In order to bring this new feature, the company has to seek permissions and licenses for the same. Also, once available, it will only be experienced using high-quality listening devices. Playing HiFi audio using ordinary speakers will not yield a better experience as it will not sound as good as it should be.
Other than this, there have been other applications such as Amazon Music which offer high-resolution audio with ultra HD services at 192kHz/24-bit and is better than CD quality at a price of $14.99 per month. Primephonic also streams western classical music at 24-bit in FLAC audio which is better than MP3 at $14.99.
HiFi vs HD audio
HiFi audio is on the concept of lossless audio which can easily reproduce an entire range of recordings that have been mastered from the quality produced by the CD. On the other hand, HD audio is loosely used by many people for high-resolution audio. High definition or HD is often used for the video quality but is also used for sound quality in a varied sense. Many audiophiles often defer themselves from using the term HD as it did not have a substantial definition on the basis of sound quality parameters.