Klarinet Archive - Posting 000278.txt from 2001/12

From: "Benjamin Maas" <benmaas@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Clarinetist Composer sound samples available
Date: Wed, 12 Dec 2001 13:34:05 -0500

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Stan Geidel [mailto:sgeidel@-----.net]
>
>
> David, the quality of a CD to MP3 conversion should be lossless - there
> should be no loss of quality from one format to the next since
> you are going
> from digital to digital. That is, of course, unless you
> significantly reduce
> the bit rate when you rip the CD over to MP3. If you keep the
> bit rate the
> same, you will experience the same quality.
>
> Stan Geidel

NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! MP3 at *any* bit-rate is anything BUT lossless. If you
burn an audio CD off of MP3s that you have made, by definition, it will
*NOT* sound as good as the original. The only lossless compression
algorithm out there is MLP (Merridian Lossless Packaging) which is the data
compression scheme that is used for DVD-Audio. Do not confuse this with any
of the multi-channel compression schemes that are used for DVD-Video. These
include Dolby Digital and DTS. DTS is a higher quality than D.D., but they
are both quite lossy.

In the internet music front, new algorithms are being developed all the
time. MP2-AAC (MPEG2, Advanced Audio Coding) is a very large improvement
over MP3 (Which actually means MPEG 1, Layer 3), however AAC has not really
caught on in the consumer sector. I can assure you, though, it sounds
better at half of the bit-rate. There are also a number of MP3 codecs these
days to develop your files. My personal favorite is the Frauhoffer
(spelling?) codec.

Unfortunately, for internet distribution of music, we don't have much of a
choice as to the formats available to us. MP3 is far and away the best
sounding format for internet distribution, but if you really want a good
sound, buy the CD. That is why the sound samples on my website are MP3. If
you will notice, however, the lowest bit-rate is 128kB and the good stuff is
320. That is so that I would have the least damage possible to the music
that I am showcasing. If I could get away with 24 bit .wav files, I would.

Sorry... I just had to clear up a major misconception that has plagued the
recording industry... While we strive for fidelity, consumers don't realize
how they are destroying what we work so hard for.

--Ben

Benjamin Maas
Fifth Circle Audio
Los Angeles, CA
benmaas@-----.com
http://www.fifthcircle.com

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