Connect AirPods Max with cable: Lossless audio for USB-C new edition
The inconspicuous new edition of the AirPods Max will soon be wired – for lossless audio playback with low latency.
(Image: Apple)
Apple is subsequently upgrading the AirPods Max USB-C: A firmware update will soon enable support for lossless audio, as the company announced on Monday. To listen to lossless audio, the over-ears can be connected to a music source via cable – using the USB-C charging cable supplied, for example. This option for wired operation was originally missing from the new USB-C edition of the AirPods Max.
The new firmware will be delivered after installation of the upcoming updates iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4 and macOS 15.4. The new versions of the operating systems are expected to be released at the beginning of April. Among other things, they will bring Apple Intelligence to Germany.
Lossless audio via USB-C cable
Apple promises lossless audio with 24 bit and 48 kHz with the new firmware version. This preserves the "integrity of the original recordings". The update also enables "ultra-low latency audio" on the AirPods Max with a cable connection. "Personalized 3D audio" will then also support lossless audio, the manufacturer emphasized. The AirPods Max are therefore the only headphones that can be used to produce and mix personalized 3D audio with head tracking in Logic Pro.
Apple Music has been offering music streaming in Apple Lossless Audio Codec (ALAC) for almost four years. AirPods have not yet benefited from this – except in combination with the Vision Pro and new models of the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4. The first generation of AirPods Max with Lightning port could be used to listen to music with a cable, but did not support lossless audio.
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No lossless update for AirPods Max Lightning
The firmware update that has now been announced is apparently intended purely for the new edition of the AirPods Max with USB-C port, which Apple introduced last September. To connect the new model to audio devices with a jack socket, Apple offers a USB-C to 3.5 mm audio cable at a price of 45 euros. There are cheaper alternatives from other manufacturers. AirPods Max cost just under 580 euros from the manufacturer.
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