Questions, bug reports, or feature requests — we're here. Achos is crafted by a single developer who takes sound seriously.
For bug reports, feature requests, or anything that needs a detailed conversation. We aim to respond within 48 hours.
achosplayer@gmail.com →For reproducible bugs, submit an issue with steps to reproduce, your macOS version, and the Achos version number.
Open an issue →Join discussions on r/audiophile and r/MacOS where the Achos community exchanges tips and recommendations.
r/audiophile →BitPerfect means Achos sends audio data to your DAC exactly as it exists in the file — no resampling, no volume normalization, no DSP processing of any kind. The bits that leave your Mac are identical to the bits in your music file.
Achos achieves this through Exclusive Mode (Hog Mode), which takes exclusive control of your audio hardware and bypasses macOS CoreAudio's mixing engine entirely. This prevents any other application from sharing the audio device during playback.
AI Filemaster analyses the spectral fingerprint of your audio file and uses Google Gemini AI to return a forensic verdict:
This feature requires a Google Gemini API key, which you enter once in Achos Preferences. Your key is stored securely in macOS Keychain. The spectral fingerprint (not your audio file) is sent to Google's API for analysis.
Achos supports DSD playback via DoP (DSD over PCM), which is compatible with most modern DACs that support DSD. To enable DSD playback:
Achos supports DSD64 and DSD128. Native DSD (without DoP) depends on whether your DAC driver supports it on macOS. Confirm with your DAC manufacturer if you are unsure.
When you play a track, Achos queries the Discogs database using the file's metadata (artist, album, title) to identify the most likely exact pressing you own. It cross-references matrix numbers, catalog numbers, and country data from Discogs to surface pressing-specific information including collectors' notes and market value.
This feature requires connecting your Discogs account via OAuth in Achos Preferences → Integrations. Achos never stores your Discogs password — authentication is handled securely through the OAuth flow.
"Format fraud" refers to files that are labeled as high-resolution audio (e.g. 24-bit/96kHz FLAC) but whose actual audio content reveals they were converted from a lower-quality source — typically an MP3 or CD-quality file.
This is a common issue with some online music stores that sell "hi-res" files which are actually upsampled from CD masters or lossy sources. Achos detects this by analysing the spectral content: a genuine hi-res recording has meaningful audio content above 20 kHz; an upsampled file typically shows an abrupt cutoff in the spectral view.
The AI Filemaster feature provides a more nuanced verdict, distinguishing between upsampling, lossy conversion, and authentic high-resolution content.
GRaiL (Guided Research for Audiophile Insight and Listening) generates an AI-powered narrative about the recording you are playing. This includes:
GRaiL uses Google Gemini to generate original text — it is not a lookup. Results quality depends on how well-documented the recording is. It works best with classic jazz, rock, and classical recordings that have rich documented histories.
No. Achos v1.0 is compiled exclusively for Apple Silicon (M1 and later). Intel Mac support is not planned for the current version. The decision to target Apple Silicon only allowed us to optimise the DSP and spectral analysis pipeline for the ARM architecture and the Unified Memory model.
Please include the following when reporting a bug:
Send bug reports to support@achos.app or open a GitHub issue. Crash logs from Console.app are very helpful if you can attach them.