The Lysoniq app provides a practical, cost-effective workaround for streaming bit-perfect high-resolution audio from Apple Music to a home hi-fi system. By installing the app on an iPad connected to a DAC via USB, users can bypass the limitations of AirPlay 2, which typically re-encodes audio as 256 kbps AAC. Lysoniq synchronizes with the user's Apple Music library and allows the iPad to pull streams directly from Apple's servers at their native sample rates, ensuring no resampling or lossy compression occurs. The app also enables remote control functionality, allowing users to manage playback, browse the music catalog, and control the queue from an iPhone or Apple TV. This setup effectively separates the playback engine from the user interface, providing a more robust and flexible alternative to expensive dedicated streaming hardware. The app is available for a one-time fee of $12, offering a significantly more affordable solution for high-resolution audio playback compared to dedicated streaming devices that can cost upwards of $700.
Lysoniq allows for bit-perfect high-resolution audio streaming from Apple Music by bypassing the lossy re-encoding of AirPlay 2. The app enables the iPad to act as a transport solution, pulling audio streams directly from Apple's servers at their native sample rates.
Users can remotely control playback, browse their music library, and manage queues using an iPhone or Apple TV as a remote. The setup provides a cost-effective alternative to expensive dedicated streaming hardware, costing only $12 plus the price of an iPad.
The app automatically detects and synchronizes with the user's Apple Music library upon startup. The playback engine is separated from the user interface, ensuring that the audio stream remains pristine from the server to the DAC.
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Worth noting
- The video contains a paid advertisement for the Marantz Model M1 streaming amplifier.
- The creator notes that the Lysoniq app requires an occasional restart to refresh the 'recently played' section.