Switching from streaming apps

Streaming apps are built so you can search, tap, and hear something. Loudness is often leveled. Lyrics often arrive on their own.

ECHO is not that kind of app. It plays music you already have on this computer or on your own NAS. The official product does not search NetEase, QQ Music, or Spotify, and it does not download tracks for you.

This page covers the few surprises that show up during the move. To hear a song as soon as possible, use Quick Start.

What you actually have

What you have	Can ECHO use it	Next step
MP3 / FLAC / M4A folders on this PC	Yes	Import audio sources
Purchased albums or CD rips	Yes	Put them in one music folder, then import
Music on your NAS, Jellyfin, or Emby	Yes	Remote sources
Songs you only ever streamed on a phone	Not until you have files	Get files you have the right to use
Platform search or member-only downloads	Not an official feature	Do not treat ECHO as a downloader

No files means no library. That is not a bug. The search box only searches your imported library, not the whole internet.

What will feel different

In a streaming app	In ECHO
Search covers the whole catalog	Search only looks at imported tracks
Daily mixes and editorial playlists	No platform recommendations. You make playlists
Most tracks sit at a similar loudness	Some tracks jump out. See Why some songs are much louder
Covers and lyrics are usually filled in	Tags and covers follow the file. Fix them when they are wrong
Sound starts after one tap	Pick the right output first. See Audio output

ECHO is not “missing features.” It does not run a streaming catalog or your platform account.

The safest move order

Do not try to recreate ten years of streaming history on day one.

1. Create a music-only folder such as D:\Music.
2. Put about 10 tracks you know will play. Folder layout is in How to keep music folders tidy.
3. Import that small folder with Quick Start. Confirm search and sound.
4. Copy in albums you actually listen to, one large folder at a time.
5. After playback works, fix a few messy albums in Library.
6. Add a NAS later with Remote sources.

Cloud-placeholder files that are not downloaded yet may show up in the library and then fail to play. Finish the download first, then import.

Why titles, covers, and lyrics look messy

Streaming apps use their own metadata. ECHO prefers what is written in the file.

What you see	Usual cause
Titles like 01 Track or mojibake	Tags were never written well
One album split into several	Album or album-artist spellings do not match
No cover	No embedded art and no cover.jpg in the folder
Missing or drifting lyrics	The lyric file does not match this recording. See Lyrics

Fix one album you care about. Do not overwrite the whole library on the first night.

Why it sounds different from the phone app

Usually the chain is different, not the file:

1. Phone apps often normalize loudness and add processing. ECHO stays closer to the file.
2. Bluetooth headphones, laptop speakers, and USB headsets use different outputs.
3. Windows may still have spatial sound or loudness equalization on.
4. An equalizer in ECHO means the sound is no longer the raw file.

Use system output and a familiar track first. Do not enable exclusive mode, ASIO, upsampling, and a full EQ stack on day one. For formats, see Audio formats in plain language; for loudness jumps between tracks, see Why some songs are much louder.

Skip these at first

Skip this	Why
Using ECHO as a NetEase replacement search box	There is no official platform search
Random “download any song” plugins	Legal and account risk is yours, and they are not official sources
Importing the whole drive on day one	You will scan a lot of non-music files
Converting everything to DSD for “more HiFi”	You mostly get larger files and more failure modes

After the move

1. Open ECHO.
2. Search or open an album.
3. Use the queue for tonight.
4. Save repeat listens as playlists.
5. Check Inbox when you copy in new files.

Daily flow is in Daily listening. For a day-by-day plan, see First week.