Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

Amazon will reportedly launch a hi-fi version of Amazon Music Unlimited

Simon Cohen
By
Amazon Music Unlimited
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Mere days after launching a free, ad-supported version of its music streaming service, a new report suggests that Amazon has its sights set on a premium version of Amazon Music, which would offer better than CD quality streaming audio, for more discerning listeners. Music Business Worldwide cites “high-placed music industry sources,” who claim the new, high-quality tier will launch before the end of 2019 and likely cost in the vicinity of $15 per month.

“It’s a better bit rate, better than CD quality,” one source told the website. “Amazon is working on it as we speak: They’re currently scoping out how much catalog they can get from everyone and how they’ll ingest it.” The move, if true, is a bold step for Amazon which has lagged behind both Spotify and Apple Music in the U.S. By offering both a free tier and a premium tier, the company could rapidly add customers through the ad-supported model, while simultaneously offering them an appealing upgrade path, should their needs (and budget) evolve.

Recommended Videos

A higher than CD-quality level of service would be largely wasted on anyone who listens to music on a device like Amazon’s Echo family of smart speakers, but the home audio market is changing rapidly, and having an available hi-fi tier would make Amazon’s music subscription service an easy choice for those with high-end gear. Denon’s line of HEOS wireless audio products have been hi-res audio compatible for several years, and the same is true of Sony, Bluesound, Yamaha, Riva, and most recently, Bowers and Wilkins Formation Suite of wireless home speakers. In fact, just about the only home hi-fi company that hasn’t stepped up to support lossless 24-bit/96-192 kHz audio is Sonos.

Related

Alongside the home audio move to support hi-res, the smartphone and wireless headphone market is also moving in the same direction. Increasingly, smartphones are shipping with 24-bit or better digital-to-analog converters (DACs), and when they’re paired over Bluetooth using AptX HD to a good set of wireless headphones, it creates a system that is more than capable of letting music fans hear the difference a hi-res, lossless track can deliver.

If this new tier launched tomorrow, Amazon would have very little competition. Currently, only Tidal, Deezer, and the little-known Qobuz offer hi-res streaming audio, but they’re not exactly cheap. Quobuz charges $25 per month to access its collection of lossless hi-res FLAC tracks, and Tidal’s hi-fi subscription level, which gives you access to its MQA-based Masters collection, runs $20 per month. Deezer’s hi-fi offering costs the same. Amazon, with its massive brand recognition and presumably heavyweight negotiation leverage with music labels, could easily trounce these other services by coming in at less than $20 per month — which it reportedly plans to do.

The only remaining question, if Amazon does launch this new service, is how will Spotify, Apple, and Google respond? None of these big three companies have taken the plunge into hi-res subscription tiers, but they may have to if Amazon jumps in.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Simon Cohen
Simon Cohen
Contributing Editor, A/V
Simon Cohen covers a variety of consumer technologies, but has a special interest in audio and video products, like spatial…
How much is Apple Music, and how can you get it for free?
Apple Music with lossless audio music track playing on OnePlus 11 along with the OnePlus Buds Pro 2 in black color on top of a green cloth surface.

If you're in the market for a music streaming service, you can't really go wrong with Apple Music. With a catalog of more than 100 million songs, all in high-quality lossless audio at no additional cost, Apple's been a contender in this space for nearly as long as music streaming has been a thing.

Here's how much each Apple Music plan costs:

Read more
What is Apple Music? Music, pricing, and features explained
iPhone with Apple Music logo on the screen. A pair of Earpods lay next to it.

As ubiquitous as Apple Music might be in the world of streaming music services, sometimes it's nice to just have all the information you need about it laid right out for you, especially if you're trying to decide between it and its main rival, Spotify. And while Apple Music may no longer be the more popular of the two, it still boasts an estimated 88 million users worldwide as of June 2022.

Home to more than 100 million songs, curated playlists, social listening tools, Apple exclusives, and quality features such as Dolby Atmos Music, Spatial Audio, and hi-res lossless audio (something Spotify has yet to achieve), Apple Music shows no signs of giving up the fight. If you're thinking of grabbing yourself a subscription, we've broken down the fundamentals of the service to let you know what you can expect.
The basics
Like Spotify, Apple Music offers millions of streaming songs on demand. It also blends your personal music catalog with on-demand streaming and live radio, all in one place. At the moment, Apple offers a one-month free trial (or more if you buy eligible audio devices), and after the trial period, the service will cost you $11 per month for the Individual plan or $17 per month for a Family plan that accommodates up to six members. Students will pay just $6 per month.

Read more
What is a network music streamer and why do you need one?
The Yamaha WCX-50 network music streamer.

CDs and vinyl records are two physical audio formats that some folks swear by, especially when it comes to sound quality. But even the most tenacious audiophiles have come around to the excellent sound quality now available on digital streaming services, so much so that digital audio has become the primary way we consume our music. But with the range of hi-fi setups people have at home, new and old, one of the best ways to bring your digital audio and online streaming services to them is by adding a dedicated network music streamer.

A network music streamer is an internet-connected hardware component that streams your favorite digital music using an internet connection. A good network music streamer is easy to use, compatible with several file formats and music streaming services, and will ensure your digital music sounds good to appease both casual listeners and esteemed decibel sages.

Read more