Questions and answers

A music server and player for your own collection. It runs on a Windows PC, organises the music in your folder or on your NAS, and plays it on your streamers and on your Android phone or tablet, with the original files sent unchanged.

No. Encore only reads your files. It never edits tags, moves, renames or deletes anything. Album details and artwork it finds online are kept in its own database.

It's free during the beta. After that it will be a one-off purchase, with no subscription. The phone and tablet apps are free.

Encore is built around one idea: your own files, played bit-perfect on the streamers you already own, with no subscription. It works with standard DLNA/UPnP streamers rather than needing special certification, and your library and listening stay on your own devices.

Streamers that support DLNA/UPnP playback, which is most network streamers: for example WiiM, HiFi Rose, Bluesound and Sonos. WiiM streamers get extra features, because Encore uses their own play queue.

ALAC and AAC (.m4a), FLAC, WAV, AIFF and MP3. Ogg Vorbis, WavPack and APE files appear in your library too, and play on streamers that support those formats. Hi-res files play at their full resolution on streamers that support it.

DSD files (.dsf, and uncompressed .dff) are fully supported. Streamers that play DSD get the original file. Those that don't, and phones and tablets, get it converted on the fly to high-resolution PCM (24-bit/88.2 kHz, or 16-bit/44.1 kHz for Sonos) with carefully designed filters that also remove DSD's ultrasonic noise.

On streamers, yes: Encore sends the original file and the streamer decodes it. Volume and any processing happen in the streamer, and Encore's signal-path view shows exactly what's happening. On the phone, Encore's sound controls (EQ, tone, headphone profiles) only change the sound when you turn them on.

Yes, on streamers that support queuing the next track, which is most of them. Live albums and continuous mixes flow without a break.

Not yet. The app is available for Android phones and tablets. An iOS version is planned.

Yes. Turn on remote access in Encore's settings and your paired phones and tablets can play your library over the internet, encrypted. It needs a port opened on your router; Encore can do that for you on most routers.

Yes. Download albums and playlists to your phone or tablet, at full quality, and play them with no connection at all.

As many of your own as you like. Each one is paired with your Encore at home.

The server runs on Windows 10 and 11 for now. Your music can live on a NAS: Encore reads it over the network.

Yes, while you want to listen: Encore is the server your streamers and phones play from. It can run quietly in the system tray and start with Windows.

Not to play your music at home. The internet is only used for optional extras: album and artist information, artwork, internet radio, headphone profiles and listening away from home.

Yes. Encore has no adverts and no tracking. Your library, playlists and listening history stay on your own devices. See the privacy policy.