Using Spotify offline with Android phone in car

[Patrick_LL]

Plan

Premium

Country

Canada

Device

Samsung Galaxy S22

Operating System

Android 12?

My Question or Issue

Hello,

I recently downloaded my playlists to play offline in my car to avoid using Data. I noticed however, that the quality of the songs are worse when playing via my phone, as opposed to playing straight from the Spotify app.

I selected the highest quality for downloading and everything seemed to download just fine. I messed around with the equalizer, but it still sounds like the Spotify streaming quality is somehow better.

I'm using the vehicles infotainment system to switch between mediums. So I first try the Spotify app and listen for a few seconds, then select my phone and play from there. The quality difference is noticeable and was hoping someone had some insight on what could be done, if anything.

Thanks.

[Eni]

Hey there @Patrick_LL, 

Thanks for reaching out about this here in the Community. 

Could you let us know if when you listen to your downloaded content directly on your phone or on a different external device (such as a speaker) the audio quality is bad too or if this only happens in your car? 

We'll be on the lookout.

[Patrick_LL]

Hi Eni,

Unfortunately,  the phone that I have does not support headphones - at least not natively -  so I wouldn't be able to check that any time soon.

The only other time I use Spotify is whilst using the desktop version which also streams the music. (Unless I can down load to my computer and listen to that version to compare)

I noticed that there are older threads on this forum discussing the same problems, and there weren't any solutions offered -  I was just hoping that there would be new user options added, or potential solutions since then.

Thanks,

Patrick

[Eni]

Hey @Patrick_LL, 

Thanks for your reply.

No worries, what we meant is that you try playing the downloaded content directly on the phone's speakers or connecting it to another device like an external speaker, if possible. 

On another note, you can also download your content in your desktop app following these steps. We'd like to know how it sounds there.

Lastly, could you let us know what type of connection you're using to connect the phone to the car - is it Bluetooth, Android Auto, cable?

We'll be waiting for your reply.

[Patrick_LL]

Hello again,

I could certainly play it from the phone, however, the speakers themselves are not good enough to spot the difference between different bit rates/qualities for songs.

When playing the downloaded version in the car, I use a cable to connect - I've tried Bluetooth as well, but have not dabbled in Android Auto. It almost sounds as if the bit rate is lower for the downloaded version of the song, or the streamed version goes through some equalizer.

In the grand scheme of things, I guess I'm not too bothered with the sound quality; I would have to delve deeper into this at a later time, in addition to downloading the desktop app. (I typically use the web version)

Thanks nonetheless.