constant vs. variable bit rate

[smile!]

what's the difference and does it matter if i use 64kbps or 128kbps

(can u tell the difference when playing it back?)

 

[Lorna W]

i believe 128 is cd quality. correct me if im wrong

 

[lloquex]

320kbps @ 48khz is cd quality, 128kbps @ 44.1khz is acceptable and very common. i personally like to use 160kbps @ 44.1khz when ripping cd's; anything below 96kbps is going to have noticeably inferior sound quality to cd's. variable bit rate is probably the best for sound quality and compression. i would try VBR, and if your not happy with the quality then stick with constant 160-192kbps

 

[pbleeds99]

some VBR MP3s won't transfer or play well with some portable players. I try to archive most of my stuff at 128kbps, and I make a LQ copy (48k) for use on my Lyra player.

 

[Bek=]]

It depenRAB on the music, but sometimes the VBR makes it sound more clear, at least in my experience. I think that the difference is so small though that unless your an avid audiophile, you won't even notice it. I personally prefer 192K constant, but the lowest I'll go is 128K.

 

[IZZYFATAL]

no mp3 quality or compression is cd quality unless its a lossless codec (flac, apple losseless)

128kpbs sounRAB bad i try not to download anything below 192kbps
LAME alt-preset-standard (~220kpbs VBR MP3) is my compression of choice when ripping cRAB

 

[light headed]

320k or bust. are we really struggling for drive space these days?

 

[Anahi D]

i didn't even know people still had mp3s that were 128kbps