Spotify introduces ‘Exclusive Mode’ for enhanced audio quality on Windows PCs.

Starting Tuesday, Spotify users can dive into “Exclusive Mode,” a fresh feature in the Windows app designed to enhance audio quality by granting the Spotify app complete control over your device’s audio processing. Spotify notes that your computer might modify audio before it reaches your DAC by resampling, mixing in other system sounds, and adjusting the volume. Enabling Exclusive Mode stops these alterations, allowing for what Spotify describes as “Bit Perfect playback.”

Currently, Exclusive Mode is exclusive to Spotify Premium users on Windows, but there are plans to roll it out to the Mac app in a future update. To activate it, head to the settings in the Windows Spotify app, select “Playback,” choose your audio device from the “Output” options, and toggle on “Exclusive Mode.” Just a heads up: while Exclusive Mode is active, audio from other apps, as well as Spotify’s automix and crossfade features, will be disabled.

Users on Spotify’s community forums have been advocating for bit-perfect playback through a mode like this, similar to features found in other streaming services such as Tidal and Amazon Music. Additionally, in September, Spotify introduced an option for lossless audio, providing subtle enhancements over its existing high-quality setting.