Higher Quality Music
How to get better sounding music – from ripping CDs to downloading Studio Master music
Studio Master music
A 24-bit Studio Master download is the highest quality music file on the market. They have a bit depth of 24-bit, and at a sample rate of up to 192 kHz — which gives you over six times the music data you get on a CD.
Available in a choice of digital music formats, Studio Master music has the same quality as the original recording, which means it has a far higher resolution than formats such as CD or MP3.
Downloading Studio Master music
How to get the highest quality of recordings
You can download Studio Master music from linnrecords.com in a variety of formats (including FLAC and ALAC). Linn offer music from our own label and from a number of partner labels, including Universal, Decca and Deutsche Grammophon.
Studio Master music downloads are much larger in size than typical music downloads and we recommend you use Linn’s Download Manager to simplify the process. See Beginner’s Guide to Linn Downloads for more info.
High resolution music
You can download high resolution music from a variety of websites and online services. Some bands and labels also make songs or albums available to download in high resolution directly from the artist’s website.
Playing Studio Master music
How to play Studio Master music downloads
All Linn systems can play Studio Master music. This includes systems featuring Linn DS or Linn DSM players, which are designed for Studio Master.
Apple Lossless
iTunes users can convert music in FLAC format to Apple Lossless (ALAC) using XLD. This allows any Studio Master music to be played back in iTunes or on any iOS device (iPad, iPhone, iPod). All Linn systems support Apple Lossless so there is no problem in storing all your music in this format.
Discs and formats
Make sense of digital music formats and get the best from your CDs:
Music formats
A simple guide to music formats and how to play them
Your Linn system supports all popular digital music formats. It is easier to have all your music in one place (i.e. stored under one folder) but there is no need to convert files unless you happen to have music in an incompatible format.
It is always best to download or rip to the highest possible quality format, which means FLAC or Apple Lossless (ALAC) is best. WAV also provides high quality but offers no compression – meaning larger file sizes – and does not have the same level of metadata support e.g. song titles and artwork.
What is...
lossless?
Music formats are described as lossless if they do not lose any musical data during ripping or compression
Apple Lossless
iTunes supports playback of 24-bit Apple Lossless (ALAC) files but iOS devices (iPad, iPhone, iPod) can currently only play 16-bit Apple Lossless (ALAC) files.
What formats does my Linn system support?
Your Linn system supports most digital music formats, including FLAC, Apple Lossless (ALAC), WAV, MP3, WMA (except lossless), AIFF, AAC and OGG. If you have music in another format, you should be able to convert it to a compatible format or transcode it using software such as Asset UPnP or XLD.
Ripping music CDs
How to rip CDs for playing back on your system
CDs ripped or imported to a hard drive and played through a Linn DS or DSM player sound better than if played on a CD player. Find out why streaming sounds better
Important
Always ensure you have legal permission of the copyright owner before copying content from a disc
How to rip
Use iTunes to import CDs to your iTunes library.
Import Settings
Adjust your iTunes settings to ensure the highest quality:
- Choose Edit | Preferences and select Import Settings
- Change Import Using to Apple Lossless
- Tick User error correction and OK
Other ripping apps
You can rip from media player software such as iTunes, Windows Media Player and Media Monkey, but dedicated ripping software or a device called a "ripping NAS" may be better for ripping large collections and ensuring the highest possible quality. We also have a list of recommended ripping software for you to download.
Tip
Rip first, ask later
To ensure the best quality, rip a CD as soon as you buy it. As a disc gets used – and gets damaged or scratched – it becomes more difficult to extract all the musical data
