Right well that puts things into perspective and no, you probably don't have a choice when you buy from Amazon, I don't buy from them so I can't comment.
320K MP3 is certainly not lossless. On 2 Feb 2014, at 12:16 pm, Evan Reese <[email protected]> wrote: > Interesting. I buy some stuff from Amazon, and I'm not aware of any other > choice than 256-kbps MP3. So I have to use what I get when I buy from them. > Unless I am mistaken, 320-kbps mp3 is also lossless, not so? Most of my > conversions are from that. I was not aware of VBR, so I didn't think to try > it. However, the audio converter I've been using, Freemake, does not support > converting to that in any event. If Switch does, then I can try it out and > see what happens. > > As far as the more conversions, the more loss goes, I'm doing one conversion, > usually from 320-bit MP3, sometimes from WAV, and sometimes from 256-bit MP3 > when that's the best I can get. The files sound good to me, and no, I'm not > going to rerip all my CDs. I don't buy many these days anyhow. Most of what I > get is downloadable. The roughly 650 CDs I did rip, I used Winamp and ripped > them to the same bit rate M4A as the downloadable files I've been converting > lately, and they sound really good to me. Now if I were using some really > high end equipment and had no need to conserve storage space, then I wouldn't > convert anything, but I don't have any of that, and I do need to conserve > storage space. I'm not sure whether the Book Sense will play VBR files. I'll > have to look into that. If it does, then there's nothing that says I can't > start using that if it really does save more space than an equivalent > sounding M4A file. > > Thanks for the info on that. > > Evan > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dane Trethowan" <[email protected]> > To: "PC Audio Discussion List" <[email protected]> > Sent: Saturday, February 01, 2014 7:43 PM > Subject: Re: Looking for a New mp3 to m4a Converter > > > They sound similar, my real point here is that the more conversion > decoding/encoding that takes place then the more loss of quality results. > > Each to their own but the way you've done thing here is not the way I'd done > them. > > Firstly I wouldn't have bothered with such high bit rates when intially > converting to MP3, I would have used VBR - after setting the encoding options > properly - that would have given you a much smaller file size thus you > wouldn't have needed to convert anything at all, encoding would have been far > more efficient and loss of quality limited etc. > > The other way you could go - if you can still get hold of the source material > you encoded - is to encode directly to FLac and then convert to AAC/M4A, just > making these comments for future reference and I appreciate that no one wants > to rip a whole CD collection again but often its very worth while, I had > everything once in MP3 but now its all FLAC thus I can convert to any audio > format under the planet as often as required without any loss in quality etc. > > On 2 Feb 2014, at 10:41 am, Evan Reese <[email protected]> wrote: > >> >> Yup, this is true. I've converted thousands of 256- and 320-kbps mp3 files >> to variable bit 128-kbps m4a and they sound great. And they're considerably >> smaller, which was my original reason for converting them. >> Evan >> >> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steve Nutt" <[email protected]> >> To: "'PC Audio Discussion List'" <[email protected]> >> Sent: Saturday, February 01, 2014 6:31 PM >> Subject: RE: Looking for a New mp3 to m4a Converter >> >> >> Hi, >> >> I disagree. M4A sounds better than MP3 at the equivalent bit rate. So a >> 128KB M4A sounds more like a 192 MP3. MP3 is the worst kind of compression >> out there. >> >> All the best >> >> Steve >> >> -- >> Computer Room Services >> 77 Exeter Close >> Stevenage >> Hertfordshire >> SG1 4PW >> Tel: +44(0)1438-742286 >> Mob: +44(0)7956-334938 >> Fax: +44(0)1438-759589 >> Email: [email protected] >> Web: http://www.comproom.co.uk >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Pc-audio [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Dane >> Trethowan >> Sent: 01 February 2014 23:23 >> To: PC Audio Discussion List >> Subject: Re: Looking for a New mp3 to m4a Converter >> >> Dumb question I'm sure but why do you want to convert from MP3 to M4A or >> AAC? Mp3 should play just as well and you're certainly not gaining anything >> in audio quality doing this as you're converting from 1 lossee format to >> another thus losing quality in the conversion anyway. >> >> If it helps I use the Switch Audio File Converter. >> >> >> On 2 Feb 2014, at 10:15 am, Evan Reese <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Hello, >>> I've been using the Freemake Audio Converter since March of 2012 with good >> results. However lately, it's been having trouble opening multiple files, >> and the conversions it makes play in Winamp just fine, but they cause my >> Book Sense fits. I have to remove the battery to get it to speak correctly >> after trying to play one of these. I've converted several hundred CDs with >> it and those play in my Book Sense just fine, but the most recent dozen >> albums or so are having this trouble. >>> >>> Well, I tried an uninstall and reinstall, but that did not go well because >> apparently it didn't really uninstall, because when I tried a conversion >> after reinstalling it, it remembered the last album I did, and it also >> remembered where I told it to store the converted files, which is not where >> it stores them if you don't change it. And, needless to say, the files I >> converted after a reinstall aren't any better. >>> >>> So I think I'm gonna have to switch to another converter. I found some on >> Google that say they convert mp3 to m4a, but I don't know how accessible >> they are. So that's what I'm hoping someone here can help me with. >>> >>> I'd appreciate any advice. This Freemake Audio Converter is accessible, >> and a cinch to run, and I did thousands of files with it, but apparently >> I've got to get something else. >>> >>> Thanks much for any suggestions. >>> >>> Evan >>> >> >> >> ********** >> >> Dane Trethowan >> Skype: grtdane12 >> Phone US (213) 438-9741 >> Phone U.K. 01245 79 0598 >> Phone Australia (03) 9005 8589 >> Mobile: +61400494862 >> Fax +61397437954 >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > > > ********** > > Dane Trethowan > Skype: grtdane12 > Phone US (213) 438-9741 > Phone U.K. 01245 79 0598 > Phone Australia (03) 9005 8589 > Mobile: +61400494862 > Fax +61397437954 > > > > ********** Dane Trethowan Skype: grtdane12 Phone US (213) 438-9741 Phone U.K. 01245 79 0598 Phone Australia (03) 9005 8589 Mobile: +61400494862 Fax +61397437954
