Technics Tracks high-resolution download store to launch in early 2015

High resolution music has taken a big step forward this year, first thanks to Neil Young’s Pono and then with the launch of services like TIDAL and Deezer Elite (which are CD quality streaming services but don’t go beyond that). In addition there are other existing players in the space including French company Qobuz and the New York-based HDtracks.

Now, popular hardware manufacturer Technics - after unveiling a range of high-resolution hi-fi solutions at IFA a few months back - has announced plans for its own high resolution offering called Technics Tracks.

The service will feature thousands of tracks at 24-bit /192kHz resolution and will launch in January 2015 and will coincide with the arrival of the high-resolution hardware on the market.

Interestingly, Technics will not limit its store to music beyond the resolution of a normal CD, which is after all still hard to source, but instead will also feature a collection of 16bit/44.1kHz tracks.

No reports on pricing so far or on how the company will tie the service to the new hardware, ie how its customers are going to find out about this. It would make sense for Technics to include some kind of voucher in its own hardware from January - and especially on the hew high-definition hardware - in order to encourage its customer base, people who most likely already have a favourite music store or resource, to check it out.

The outlook for downloads is not rosy but as streaming services are unlikely to be able to offer music beyond CD quality anytime soon there is going to be a healthy audiophile market of people willing to pay for truly pristine sound quality.


(Andrea Leonelli)