Wave or Mp3 [That is the question]

[barwonfan]

When I record a song on my PSR 970 it goes into Wave. If want to post it on the Forum I have to convert it to MP3. That is easily done using the free Switch Sound File Converter . When I put my earphones on and listen to the MP3 recording, it sounds exactly the same as the Wave recording. I'm wondering if there is a difference, and it is just that my ears are missing it.?

[Rev Tony Newnham]

Hi

The simple answer is that yes, there is a difference. MP3 uses a compressed format in which the algorithm "throws away" any sounds that it thinks the average human ear can't hear. Fair enough, The trouble is the process isn't perfect, sometimes the results can be heard (and are more obvious at lower bit-rates). Even more problematic, especially in serious audio production, recording in MP3, then decoding and further processing before again saving as MP3 can result in even more degradation of the sound, with things sounding "watery" and other random artefacts. As a result, MP3 is really only any good as a final distribution format. Trained ears and very careful listening can sometimes hear the difference between mp3 & WAV - listen closely for the details of the sound, and for reverb being truncated a little early in mp3 for example.

Given that computer memory is relatively cheap these days, it's best to save your original file as a WAV and only convert to mp3 if you need to.

I usually record WAV files at 96kHz/24 bit which is the standard for HD video (and is the highest that my now rather elderly audio interface will handle) and convert to mp3 from that if I need to (I also use higher bit-rate mp3's from preference) The only time I use lower resolution is if I'm recording on my digital multi-track recorder which only does 48kHZ or 44.1kHz 16 bit (44.1/16 is the CD standard). It's best to originate material at higher quality than the final product - it gives more scope for any post-production work without losing quality.

Hopefully this is clear enough. It's your choice, but personally I'd stick with WAV as the prime format.

Every Blessing

Tony

[barwonfan]

Thanks, Tony. I am going to listen for differences. I think that I often miss subtle-ies in things I listen to. We are so used to zero-ing in on is relevant to us that we miss the peripheral . All the best. from J.T.

[Hugh-AR]

JT,

It all depends what you want to use your recordings for. Neither you nor I are professional musicians, so are not likely to be in a recording studio situation where quality of the recording is paramount.

Look at it like this. In photography, when you take a digital picture you will get a picture of a certain quality, which is determined by the camera. My previous camera would take pictures that were 2592 x 1944 pixels; whereas the mobile I currently have will take pictures that are 4000 x 3000 pixels. I also have some photos that are 800 x 600 pixels.

When I look at these on my laptop I honestly cannot tell any difference between them. But if I were to put them into a projector and cast them onto a cinema screen then I certainly would notice the difference! The better the quality, the less 'graininess' there will be on the big screen.

With regards to AUDIO, there are two things to consider here. There is the quality you set for your recording in the first place. As Tony says, 44.1/16 is the CD standard, but when I record to Audacity on my laptop I have these choices:



What I am saying here is that it's not just a case of WAV or MP3. It's a case of what quality the music was recorded in the first place.

Then second, when converting it to an MP3 there are various qualities you could choose. As Tony says, when compressing the file to MP3 you 'lose' parts of the waveform .. but on the whole, your ear won't notice what is missing. These are the MP3 quality choices I have in Audacity:



I normally do my MP3 to Standard quality .. but if I did it to Insane it would take out far less of the waveform and I would defy anyone to tell the difference between that and a WAV file.

So if you are just listening to music that has been recorded and MP3'd at the industry standards, I doubt very much that you would be able to tell the difference between a WAV file and an MP3.

The final thing to consider is the SIZE of the files you are dealing with. WAV files are generally in the region of 30MB - 35MB. MP3 files are generally slightly more than a tenth of that, so 4MB to 5MB. This is why MP3s are the standard for using on the internet. WAV files are too big to send by email attachment; and when streamed they use up an awful lot of bandwidth. For the internet, the smaller the file the better .. so long as you don't lose any significant quality.

With our Forum we have a certain BANDWITH allocated and have to keep within that each month. So I would say, always use an MP3 when posting music up in the Forum for others to listen to.

Hugh