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Spotify stream quality pushed to 320kbps

Spotify goes 'extreme.'

Premium users of the Spotify service have access to unlimited streaming on their mobile devices, but there has always been questions about the quality of the streams. The company has put those questions to rest this week, adding an 'extreme' option.



Until this week, there were only two options, "low" at 96kbps and "high" at 160kbps. While the high quality was probably okay for quick listening on the way to work, the quality certainly left audiophiles with expensive headphones hoping for more.

The new "extreme" mode bumps mobile streaming to 320kbps, the highest bit rate available in the MP3 container.

For now, extreme is available only for iOS, with the update headed to Windows Phone and Android soon.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 11 Feb 2012 13:05

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• 6 comments

• ivymike

  YOU CALL THAT EXTREME?!?
  
  If Spotify wants to increase it's userbase, they'd better start offering a lossless format option like FLAC.
  
  Even Apple's iTunes has a lossless option for some songs.....

  11.2.2012 15:02 #1

• CF01

  Originally posted by ivymike: YOU CALL THAT EXTREME?!?
  
  If Spotify wants to increase it's userbase, they'd better start offering a lossless format option like FLAC.
  
  Even Apple's iTunes has a lossless option for some songs..... Spotify>itunes everyday.
  

  11.2.2012 21:26 #2

• Interestx

  I never rip anything at any lower rate, 320kbps is the minimum I'd want to use for any audio.
  

  12.2.2012 16:40 #3

• KillerBug

  FLAC would be great...but it would probably be too much for low-bandwidth companies like Sprint and AT&T...and even with Verizon or T-Mobile you would hit limits that cause extra fees or slow-downs. If you can actually hear the difference between a 320kbps MP3 and FLAC, you must have ungodly ears. Honestly, I can tell the difference from 160K to 192K...but after that, I can't tell unless I have a good subwoofer and/or dedicated tweeters...and even then, 320K sounds and feels the same as FLAC.
  
  Of course, I still rip everything in FLAC just because I have OCD.
  

  
  

  13.2.2012 00:47 #4

• Ghostdog

  I thought Spotify premium streamed at 320kbps right from the start? Or was that excluding mobile devices?

  13.2.2012 06:30 #5

• hanoobal

  Indeed Spotify had an option for mobile devices to choose the streaming quality (low 96kbps vs high-160kbps) - but this is just all about it. That hasn't changed since (at least for Android).
  
  For the iPhone things are different now and there are three bandwidths to choose from, the last one being the questionable "Extreme" option which must be 320kbps.
  

  28.2.2012 10:52 #6