However...
Since I just sent that message saying I still dont trust VBR mode,
VBR with -b 128 (minimum 128kbs) should be pretty safe.
Steve's message (below) is pretty good advice, and this and other
posts suggest using VBR in this way does give very good
results. But I dont know if listening tests have confirmed
that the results are better than 192CBR?
more comments:
> lame -b 128 -V1 -q -mj -F -p -k
-q takes an argument! and dont use it anyway :-)
You probably meant -h, but this is not needed for VBR.
Dont use -p unless you really want a CRC checksum.
Most players ignore this, and it does result in a tiny loss
of quality (16 bits used for the checksum instead of data)
Using jstereo at high bitrates is another point of debate. singnal
processing tests seem to show it gives a lower signal to noise ratio.
But lame defaults to regular stereo at 160kbs and above, mostly to
simulate Fraunhofer's behavoir.
>
> I am in the process of the same. I read some interesting web pages where
> guys did all this experimentation...some of it quite scientific...and some
> of it very subjective. This is what I came down to in my own decision (as
> of now):
>
> 1 - 128bit CBR is *NOT* good enough. You'll get about 1MB/min with that
> mode, but I can
> definitely hear a distinct difference between the MP3 and the WAV. It
> does not
> sound as "present". That means the midrange content is somehow
> getting rolled off
> a little in terms of sparkle. Now granted, that could also have been
> because of
> a 15k lowpass filter in effect, but notwithstanding, it was enough
> motivation for me
> to decide that 128bit CBR is not good enough.
>
> 2 - 192bit CBR sounds much better, but I still noticed the lack of
> presence. Again,
> possibily because of 15 lowpass filter. At the time, I was using the
> Radium
> encoder which does that. File size is more like 1.5MB/min at this bit
> rate.
> Some people say that they can't hear the difference between 128 and
> 192. Other
> people say that they can. Some people say it depends on the content.
> I say,
> stick with at least 192 for CBR. Be on the safe side.
>
> 3 - I found lame. I read about VBR and I didn't even look back to CBR.
> When you
> look at the histograms, 99% of the content is 192bit. But sections
> where the
> algorithm thinks it needs to, it does 256bits or even higher. And
> some of it is
> at 160, and even a little at 128bit. It sounds great. Plays back
> fine in Winamp
> and I'm still waiting for my Aphex to arrive to try it there.
>
> 4 - With lame, I use the -k option to get rid of the lowpass filter.
> Maybe the filesize
> is bigger, but I don't care, I want the presence.
>
> 5 - This is the command line I'm currently using:
>
> lame -b 128 -V1 -q -mj -F -p -k
>
> with that command line my file sizes are about 1.5MB/min, give or
> take. They
> seem to sound pretty good. In my opinion, as good as an MP3 can
> sound without
> consuming too much space. Note, I'm still not entirely sure I need
> all those
> command line switches. For example, me thinks the -q flag is not
> needed in
> VBR mode. But I'm not entirely sure, so I use it anyway.
>
> 6 - On my 200 Mhz Pentium Linux machine, it takes about an hour to encode
> a full
> CD at these settings. But I use a Perl script I found on the web
> called
> "ripit" that utilizes "cdparanoia" to rip the wav and then lame in the
> background
> to encode the MP3. It rips all the wavs in about 10 minutes or so,
> then it takes
> longer to do the MP3's. I will usually just open 5 windows in
> linux....take an
> hour to get the CD's ripped to wav's with 5 sessions of lame going in
> parallel.
> then they go all day or night....takes about 6 hours or so...and all 5
> CD's are
> encoded at that point.
>
> 7 - I also found out that if you like to DJ, a lot of the DJ software that
> works with
> MP3's gets confused by VBR files. The DJ software is not able to
> detect the timing
> of the music or whatever. So when they try to mix or whatever it is
> that DJ's do
> then it skips and stutters and causes all kinds of grief. So DJ's I
> know stick
> strictly to 192 CBR. I don't DJ, so I'm trying VBR for a while and
> hopefully the
> players will all join the bandwagon and figure out how to correctly
> read them back
> without all those problems in the long run.
>
> good luck.
>
> -steve
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