Compressed Music - I am a little confused on this matter

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

To be honest, i'm glad i cant tell from lossless to 320kbps to 256kbps, makes life so much easier not having to be worried about the slightest degradation or mp3 artefact out there. Failed like a noob on the bitrate part on the golden ears test.

There's nothing wrong with your hearing if you can't distinguish between 320 kbps and 256 kbps. High frequency content that is lost with compression has nothing to do with defining the details of music to our brains. It's purely harmonics.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

Need to bust out my ath m50s for this.

Oh he11 yea.. I'm ordering one very soon! I'm currently using a sennheiser HD 595 along with a Burson HA-160D DAC and it has done me well for many years. How do you like the m50 for on the go listening?

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

Oh he11 yea.. I'm ordering one very soon! I'm currently using a sennheiser HD 595 along with a Burson HA-160D DAC and it has done me well for many years. How do you like the m50 for on the go listening?

They arent the most fun sound headphones, very neutral in every aspect but when you need to do studio work or intensive listening like that golden ears test, they are the go to headphones. On the go, I actually prefer the v-modas or beyerdynamic custom one pros, much more soundstage and fun sound signature with those.

 

[fatboytyler]

I know there is quite a difference between Lossless and 320 bit rate, but is using lossless/CDs really practical? (In my case anyways) I listen to a wide variety on a whim and have over 30GBs of music. It isn't practical to have 40 CDs and have to change them every 3 songs. To 95% of people out there 320 Bit rate is quite good. I personally never go below 320 ever (unless its a demo situation where I am not worried about SQ).

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

I know there is quite a difference between Lossless and 320 bit rate

No, there isn't. The difference is inaudible.

 

[fatboytyler]

No, there isn't. The difference is inaudible.

I can certainly discern differences here and there. Most people can't, but some can. Is it a huge difference? No.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

I would have to agree, in most cases it's inaudible. Especially in this day in age everything is digitally made so it still sounds good even if you convert it. 320kps is good enough thats why it's the prefered file type mainly because of its sleek file size and still maintain its quality. It's just not practical carrying a suitcase full of cd's anymore. I think you would be able to hear a difference thru expensive hi fi equipment that no one could afford like the infamous Sennheiser Orpheus HE90 and some crazy expensive CD player that no one is willing to pay. here's the link to the pics of that beast. Sennheiser Orpheus HE90 - Most Expensive Headphones - Bornrich It's still questionable though and many people don't care about sound enough to blow that much money so who cares if you can't really hear a difference. I wouldn't be worried about it honestly.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

They arent the most fun sound headphones, very neutral in every aspect but when you need to do studio work or intensive listening like that golden ears test, they are the go to headphones. On the go, I actually prefer the v-modas or beyerdynamic custom one pros, much more soundstage and fun sound signature with those.

Yea that's what I hear. I'm looking for neutral nonbiased sounding headphones for some studio work so I think it should suit me well for this. I've heard great things about that beyerdynamic custom one pro as well. Hmm might have to consider them in the future.

 

[big scott]

theres allot of talk about iphone/ipod but what about android ( my tab 2 tablet ) is there a difference in sound ?

as at first was going to mount my tab 2 10.1 tablet in my truck. then i keep reading that everybody uses ipad's and was wandering why?

is it better then my tab 2 in sound q ??

 

[negolien]

Recommended dl format for thumb drives?

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

theres allot of talk about iphone/ipod but what about android ( my tab 2 tablet ) is there a difference in sound ?as at first was going to mount my tab 2 10.1 tablet in my truck. then i keep reading that everybody uses ipad's and was wandering why?

is it better then my tab 2 in sound q ??

What are you going to plug the tablet into? I think as long as you bypass the internal DAC, it wouldn't matter. They should sound the same. If its AUX, then that's a different story.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

Recommended dl format for thumb drives?

Considering thumb drives are pretty small compared to dedicated hard drives, 320kps mp3's are the best bet. You could fit lossless files but then you would not be able to fit that many songs.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

No, there isn't. The difference is inaudible.

that's one of the golden ears tests. choosing the lossless file vs mp3. i can tell a difference between the CD and the 320kbps mp3 - mostly when i'm listening to a song then wondering what's wrong with the system then realizing it's an mp3 and not the CD. i'll put the CD in and it's resolved.

is is obvious at low volumes? no.

is it obvious all of the time? no.

but complex musical passages area weakness to compressed music and a good system will reveal the difference.

 

[big scott]

What are you going to plug the tablet into? I think as long as you bypass the internal DAC, it wouldn't matter. They should sound the same. If its AUX, then that's a different story.

thats the only thing i can use, the 3.5 jack.

now i have a tab plug to usb still coming in the mail. not sure if its going to be better or not.

but it sounds good, i use the tab 99% of the time.

 

[blazian87 10+ year member]

thats the only thing i can use, the 3.5 jack.now i have a tab plug to usb still coming in the mail. not sure if its going to be better or not.

but it sounds good, i use the tab 99% of the time.

There's nothing wrong with using a 3.5 jack. It can still sound good. Why is it the only thing you can use? You don't have a usb connection in your headunit? Ipads, tablets, or whatever all have an internal DAC built in and it's not really the greatest. The device has to work extra hard to process the analog sound into a headunit. There could be extra unwanted noise transmitted from the device or auxiliary cable also. USB on the other hand will process through the headunit DAC digitally and unprocessed beforehand and can sound much cleaner. 3.5 jacks are typically meant for small unpowered ear buds, not amplified speakers. It can still work though no problem. What kind of cable did you buy for your tablet? If it sends data digitally, then you should be good. You might possibly have some control through your headunit too if it supports your device.