Comment by stego-tech
20 hours ago
No wireless lossless audio means these are a hard pass for me. I really expected Apple of all folks to figure that out since they engineer their entire stack, hardware to software, but they’re still just pushing the same bluetooth audio that my Airpods Pro 2’s consume (which are half the price and incredibly excellent). Sony’s LDAC is niche, but sounds objectively better to my ears than the AAC used on Apple’s kit when I opt to use my Walkman+XM4s.
As for wired listening? My XM4s sound okay wired in, and at home I’ve got critical-listening kit already. Adding a USB-C cable to the Max is not appealing given that 3.5mm already exists, USB-C cables are heavier than analog audio wires, and more corps block USB ports in general or mess with them in ways that corrupts the audio stack.
Give me wireless CD-quality audio and I’ll be a happy dinosaur. Until then, I have zero reason to upgrade what I currently have.
So you're one of the few people who actually can consistently tell MP3 and lossless apart?
https://abx.digitalfeed.net/
Yeah, at least for certain kinds of music. Don't get me wrong, I'm not soapboxing out here against folks who enjoy lossy music (my flatmates enjoy our local library transcoded to MP3s), nor am I going to praise-be the "high-res" audio movement. I just happened to have someone sit me down for a critical listening session on quality kit with a CD I had ripped before and my iPod with the MP3, and it was night and day to my ears.
Am I some golden-eared savant? Heck nah. I still listen to electronic mixes in shitty YouTube audio, because a lot of it isn't mastered in CD quality anyhow; I also enjoy leaning back with a good CD rip of classic rock or orchestral jams on my HD800s or my B&W 684s. I like the different experiences these setups offer, but my preference is always for lossless just as a matter of preservation regardless of whether I can hear it or not.
Let folks enjoy what they like, how they like it.
But have you tried the ABX test I linked to with a proper set up, e.g. your HD800?
If you compare a CD on a proper system with an MP3 on an iPod, you're really comparing Apples to oranges. Also depending on with which encoded the MP3 was created. The iTunes encoder for example was infamous for rather bad quality.
The H2 enables lossless audio over wireless. So this reads like a temporary limitation that software might solve down the road. But knowing Apple's track record for enabling features in partially dormant hardware ... I wouldn't buy these expecting that.
Given Apple's very recent track record on promising things and then watching them vanish into the ether - not to mention a lifetime being burned buying into future promises that never materialize ("MCE is the future of the entertainment experience!" (RIP in Win7), "CableCARD will free you from the tyranny of locked down hardware!" (RIP from the get-go), "Unfolded Circle 3 will finally support serial from the dock!") - means I don't buy on what it could do tomorrow, but what's on offer out of the box from day one.
Tired of accumulating scar tissue and burn marks in the name of shareholder value.
Could you point to where Apple claims that H2 enables lossless audio over wireless for the AirPods Max 2? I don’t see that claim on the spec sheet. What I see is this note:
“Ultra-low latency audio and Lossless Audio listening requires a wired USB‑C connection and compatible content from supported apps and services.”
So it doesn’t appear that lossless wireless is supported at all, even with Vision Pro.
> The H2 enables lossless audio over wireless
But that's only with the Vision Pro, no?
I.e. very short and more or less consistent distance between transmitter and receiver.
but sounds objectively better to my ears
Subjectively. Objectively, there's no audible difference between lossy and lossless (at usual bitrates).
While you nailed me on the subjectively vs objectively (early morning flub on my part), I'm going to respectfully push back on the "no audible difference between lossy and lossless" with a huge asterisk: it depends on the content, it depends on the mastering techniques, and it depends on the equipment, but there is a discernible difference in a lot of media between lossy and lossless audio, and that difference is easier to pick out by folks who take care of their hearing and listen on quality kit.
Which excludes 90% of the populace by default, and thus I never bought into the whole audiophile hype anyway. Let folks enjoy what they like, on the equipment they like. I ain't here to judge, just share.