bigshot said:

  I don't think there is any improvement with MP3 320 VBR. As soon as you get to 320 it maxes out. I hear it does make a difference in AAC though, because AAC can go above 320 with VBR.

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But I thought you said 256 kbps AAC is audibly transparent, so there would be no reason to encode it at higher bit rates, etc.?

chris j said:

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Beating a dead horse (as shown in illustration) is ineffective. 

Only head shots work. Brain stem has to severed. These horses are the Walking Dead, and they will just keep on coming. In herds. This is known. It is science. 

Audiophilia is the wild west of marketing, with bandwagons full of thralls pulled by zombie horses. 

Being a vampire, I dislike zombies. Their table manners are appalling.   

rajikaru said:

  Beating a dead horse (as shown in illustration) is ineffective. 

Only head shots work. Brain stem has to severed. These horses are the Walking Dead, and they will just keep on coming. In herds. This is known. It is science. 

Audiophilia is the wild west of marketing, with bandwagons full of thralls pulled by zombie horses. 

Being a vampire, I dislike zombies. Their table manners are appalling.   

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Hilarious! I'm thinking of Resident Evil now.
 
By the way, did you know the legends of vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc. originate from diseases such as rabies?  

music alchemist said:

  But I thought you said 256 kbps AAC is audibly transparent, so there would be no reason to encode it at higher bit rates, etc.?

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There really isn't, but some people want to pack a little extra excelsior in their files.

music alchemist said:

   
Hilarious! I'm thinking of Resident Evil now.
 
By the way, did you know the legends of vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc. originate from diseases such as rabies?

 

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That is what we want the world to think.

music alchemist said:

   
Hilarious! I'm thinking of Resident Evil now.
 
By the way, did you know the legends of vampires, zombies, werewolves, etc. originate from diseases such as rabies?

 

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I thought Vlad the Impaler was the origin of the vampire myth. I guess that's just the origin of Dracula in particular. 

reginalb said:

  I thought Vlad the Impaler was the origin of the vampire myth. I guess that's just the origin of Dracula in particular. 

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Yeah, that came later. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire#Origins_of_vampire_beliefs
 
(Talk about thread derailment!)

bigshot said:

Never underestimate the desire to cheat the test.

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I would like to learn more about the encode settings/incantation. And then get my hands on the source file and maybe one of his encoded files, and regenerate.

Yes I'm skeptical but I'm not like others - he took the time to post a log it deserves a look. As you know I think from other tests, I did this 10+ years ago. Not as exact as computer ABX, but it was blind. I had trouble between 160 and 192 with a good quality encoder. So really hard to believe 320 can yield this many passes. Unless he has honed into one particular flaw and knows where to look.

But go to all this trouble to manufacture so many logs .... hmmmm.

I'd like him to try 24 v 16 - that is a much bigger question. You really don't have to listen to lossy any more if you don't want to it's kind of moot. Maybe some that bought a lot of iTunes and have upgraded to 256 but are concerned about rebuying I don't know but for most - moot. But 24 v 16 is a hot question.

He hasn't really responded to my VBR CBR question (even if moot). If he goes dark on us then I would be more skeptical.

greenears said:

I'd like him to try 24 v 16 - that is a much bigger question. You really don't have to listen to lossy any more if you don't want to it's kind of moot. Maybe some that bought a lot of iTunes and have upgraded to 256 but are concerned about rebuying I don't know but for most - moot. But 24 v 16 is a hot question.

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It's not a question at all, really. All 24-bit does is add more dynamic range, but 16-bit has more than enough to handle all recordings in existence. There is no audible difference between them during playback. Resolutions of 24-bit and higher only serve a purpose when producing and editing music in the studio, due to demands of computer processing.

music alchemist said:

   
It's not a question at all, really. All 24-bit does is add more dynamic range, but 16-bit has more than enough to handle all recordings in existence. There is no audible difference between them during playback. Resolutions of 24-bit and higher only serve a purpose when producing and editing music in the studio, due to demands of computer processing.

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It is a question because the marketing effort is gathering steam to sell 24 bit recordings.  It just is.
 
The scientific merits are argued in 100 pages of the 24 v 16 thread.  I don't care to re-engage on that debate here. But I am interested in his ears and hardware, and yes really we should move it to the other thread.

greenears said:

  It is a question because the marketing effort is gathering steam to sell 24 bit recordings.  It just is.
 
The scientific merits are argued in 100 pages of the 24 v 16 thread.  I don't care to re-engage on that debate here. But I am interested in his ears and hardware, and yes really we should move it to the other thread.

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"Marketing effort" does not give it any legitimacy whatsoever.
 
Speaking of threads, I have one just for this topic: http://www.head-fi.org/t/738552/testing-the-claim-i-can-hear-differences-between-lossless-formats

If you want to know the trend of where home audio is going, look at people who aren't audiophiles. They are going for mobile devices and streaming in a big way. For movies, it's all home theater and Netflix.
 
HD audio is niche. SACD was niche once. Now it is dead. Streaming is mainstream. Efficient, transparent lossy is the future of everything. I know you don't like it, but it's true.

The test of the machine is the satisfaction it gives you. There isn't any other test. If the machine produces tranquility it's right. If it disturbs you it's wrong until either the machine or your mind is changed. —Robert Pirsig, Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance

That is my philosophy.

se

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Absolutely!!
 
Thanks for reminding me of that!
 
[]s
Walfredo

rajikaru said:

Beating a dead horse (as shown in illustration) is ineffective. 


Only head shots work. Brain stem has to severed. These horses are the Walking Dead, and they will just keep on coming. In herds. This is known. It is science. 


Audiophilia is the wild west of marketing, with bandwagons full of thralls pulled by zombie horses. 


Being a vampire, I dislike zombies. Their table manners are appalling.   

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Thank you for your advice.
It appears that I am beating on the wrong end of the horse.
This explains why the horse appears to be dead..........but still lives.

I agree, zombies have the worst table manners and make the worst dinner guests.
The Zombie Apocalypse is near.