A local FLAC file is obviously preferable but lesser known songs, especially in languages other than English, are usually impossible to find in any format, let alone lossless. And I’m definitely not paying for anything digital.

Also, when browsing randomly, having the possibility to have any song you can think of immediately available is a massive convenience, worth much more than a lossless format. And in the case of old recordings, or even not so old but from humble studios, the lossless version has a lower quality than a bad quality mp3 of a modern properly recorded track.

And finally, to answer your question, yes: Spotify sounds spectacular on my set-up. The difference between good and cheap gear is massively bigger than that between FLAC and 192 kbps mp3. Lots of files in my local library are downloaded from Spotify and I can’t tell any difference between those and the lossless ones.

Audeeze LCD-X and I think Beyerdynamic dt 1990 pro, not really sure about that one.

The DAC/amp/HP chain will sound as good as the weakest link. So yes, duh.

Being an audiophile has nothing to do with an addiction to throw away money on headphones, it’s about having one decent set of headphones, speaker, DAC, amp, etc, to enjoy good quality audio. Collection headphones IS a stupid choice.

The phone has zero effect on the audio quality since it only sends the digital source to the DAC, which is what generates the analog signal.

No, your DAC probably is.

I loved their punch and slam but the loose grip made them too uncomfortable for me. That and the fact that everything above the bass was like covered by a dark fog.

I don’t exclude buying them again for the times I’m in the mood for something like that but the Arya stealth are on a whole new level on every other aspect besides punch.