The best DACs for Apple Music Lossless in 2023

The “Apple effect” can be as helpful as it is infuriating. A good technology can exist for years, and many won’t care until it gets the Cupertino seal of approval. To that end, a lot of people are starting to care about “high resolution” digital audio as the company launched its upgraded music service to the masses.

But as many were quick to point out, some of Apple’s own products don’t necessarily support the higher sample rate and bit-depths on offer. No worries, there’s a dongle for that. (And there are options for Android and the desktop, too.) 

As hinted, it’s not just Apple in on the hi-resolution game: Qobuz, Tidal and Deezer have been doing it for a while, and Spotify is planning on introducing its own version soon. The products in this guide will play nice with any of these services, aside from Tidal’s MQA, which is a little more specific (and we have options for that as well).

Why do I need new hardware to listen to music?

The short answer is, you don’t. You can play “hi-res” audio files on most phones and PCs, you just might …read more