[ExtraNice]

I recently got a new pair of ATH-AD900 which are great BTW. However when I play music from the computer, especially music with lots of stuff happening, something bad happens. For example, the bass sounds murky and muddled, and the vocals don't sound warm and there is a bit of hiss and fuzz after the words, as well as a bit of hiss in the background.

I know it isn't my cans because when I hook them up the hi-fi they sound wonderful, but then when I try to play 329kps MP3s on the computer that stuff happens. Is it because my inbuilt sound card is a piece of crap, should I get a better one?

 

[FallenAngel]

The obvious questions - what is your transport, DAC and amp?

 

[ear8dmg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ExtraNice /img/forum/go_quote.gif Is it because my inbuilt sound card is a piece of crap, should I get a better one?

Most likely, yes. You haven't given us any info on your equipment though.

 

[paaj]

inbuilt rings some alarms

I suppose it's onboard? A better soundcard gets you a big step forward, or you could go the external card/DAC route. If you have a budget it's wise to say so now, before all expensive options get thrown in and we rob you of all your money

If you have time, read around the computer and dedicated source parts and hop by the amplifier section.

 

[krmathis]

Lossy compression...

 

[paaj]

with 320kb mp3? I doubt that it makes such a difference at this point... but maybe it's crappy lossy compression.
ALAC/FLAC is of course a free upgrade... go rip your cd's again

 

[Trojan150]

Quote:

Originally Posted by paaj /img/forum/go_quote.gif with 320kb mp3? I doubt that it makes such a difference at this point... but maybe it's crappy lossy compression. ALAC/FLAC is of course a free upgrade... go rip your cd's again

Not if you buy digitally.

With onboard sound, 320 mp3s would surely not be the limiting factor?

 

[krmathis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by paaj /img/forum/go_quote.gif with 320kb mp3? I doubt that it makes such a difference at this point... but maybe it's crappy lossy compression. ALAC/FLAC is of course a free upgrade... go rip your cd's again

Not sure. But like the rest of you guys I am pretty much just guessing...
There are major audio quality difference between different MP3 encoders though, so know knows?

 

[ExtraNice]

You mean there's difference between MP3 encoders?
What about the Media Monkey encoder?

I don't have DAC or heady amp YET, I only have inbuilt sound; C-Wave Media Device. I tried looking inside my computer to find out more info, but all I found was lots of dust.

Trouble is I didn't rip this music, my friend gave me this album, and I don't have enough space on my computer to rip everything to FLAC. BTW what does lossy mean? And surely 320Kbps mp3's are decent?!

The music improved a little bit with Windows Media Player than it was with iTunes (don't know why, probably some settings), but still it just feels I can get more out of these phones.

I'm probably not going to buy DAC/amp for a while, but I'm looking at either the iBasso D3 or the UHA-3. I'll probably save up a little bit more and get the iBasso, as it's seems superior to the UHA. Just wondering, would DAC improve the sound over the inbuilt significantly?

 

[krmathis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ExtraNice /img/forum/go_quote.gif You mean there's difference between MP3 encoders?

Indeed! There are LAME, FastEnc, MP3Enc, Xing, BladeEnc, L3Enc, and probably more MP3 encoders. Then there are different versions of the said encoders, which also produce different result.

 

[ExtraNice]

Which one should I use? I've got about 10gb of music mainly in 128-198 kbps mp3s, and struggling with my HDD space, so loseless is out of the question.

I've got a 500gb external, but I don't like always plugging it into my computer, it's mainly for backup.

 

[paaj]

Don't re-encode them! It will only make things worse.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Krmathis There are major audio quality difference between different MP3 encoders though, so know knows?

that's why I put crappy before lossy

You could get another HDD, storage is cheap nowadays, and the only way to improve the soundquality of the files is to rerip them.
Next step in the audio chain is also upgradeable, with i.e. an external soundcard (less noise) and a decent headphone amp. For this it's usefull to know what kind of budget you have (if any).
Is the music you play on your hifi setup from CD? or also from the computer?

something like an E-Mu 0404USB ($200) should be a nice step up in both DAC and AMP section. (but it will most probably show more of the crappyness that is 128-192kbs mps3)

 

[ExtraNice]

The music I play on my hifi setup (which is really my dad's 20 year old Onkyo system) is from CD.

What exactly is the "crapiness" of mp3s? Is it lost mids, lacking bass or what? What do I lose with mp3s?

I'm willing to spend no more than $220 USD on DAC+Amp. I'll also have to wait until the Australian dollar is a bit stronger (whenever that will happen!).
Just wondering... how come the Emu 0404USB, which is chock full of stuff, costs around the same price as the iBasso D3 and UHA-3? I don't get it.

 

[krmathis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ExtraNice /img/forum/go_quote.gif Which one should I use? I've got about 10gb of music mainly in 128-198 kbps mp3s, and struggling with my HDD space, so loseless is out of the question.

LAME is highly regarded, and a safe choice when it comes to MP3 encoding. Example using the "V2" preset.

 

[paaj]

Ok so you have the CD's, it's not over yet

At 128-192 kbps, it loses detail/dynamics/distorts/hisses etc, generally all the things you don't like now

those levels are generally seen as not comparable to CD/FLAC/ALAC. Go higher and opinions start to differ, with 256 vbr you get a very good quality in low file sizes.

Lame is a popular choice for mp3, especially for it's v0 settings. The AAC (mostly pushed by Apple) codec is said to be more efficient than mp3 at the same bitrates, but I don't know how this compares to the Lame mp3 codecs.
I still suggest spending a little on an external (or additional) HD and ripping your music to FLAC/ALAC. That way you can do it once properly and never worry about it again as you go higher up the headphone/amp/dac ranges.

0404USB is relatively cheap, my guess is mostly because it's not portable and ugly. (not aimed at real hifi/consumer market)