MP3 "clicks" = deletion rampage
Mar 16, 2006 at 8:40 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 17

creyc

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I absolutely cannot STAND hearing that familiar electronic "click" all too common of poorly ripped MP3s. Subsequently my immediate reaction to hearing this is to delete the file off my hard drive regardless of my favoring of it in iTunes! Gone, dead, removed! This has to be the absolute worst way to ruin the mood when relaxed listening to a nice long classical piece.

I know this trait of MP3's is bad for the mood, and a death sentence to the MP3 file itself, but can it also do damage to my headphones? It seems theres no volume regulation on these blips and clicks at all and they can come out full volume, not to mention god knows what frequencies these are at or if theres a hidden DC bias when they occur. Anyone know more about this or what causes it?
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 8:46 AM Post #2 of 17
dude i was just listening to a rip of the "birdland" live album, charlie parker etc. anyways a 40 min mp3, right when i was getting into it, it starts "blip"ing, sooooo annoying , takes you right out of that scene and puts you back sitting in front of your comp, in digital world.
rolleyes.gif
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 4:40 PM Post #7 of 17
The ripping software is only one half of it. The other large component that will enhance the chance of getting better rips is the CD-ROM device itself. Buying a high quality CD-ROM drive can make a big difference, especially if you are ripping CDs that are scratched or damaged.
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 4:43 PM Post #8 of 17
Wow, I've had this with a few mp3s, but I had no idea that the problem was actually common. That's terrible!
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 4:52 PM Post #9 of 17
i've never heard em with rips in 256 vbr aac.
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 4:53 PM Post #10 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by Jahn
i've never heard em with rips in 256 vbr aac.


I've only heard them in things other people have ripped, other people must be less competent.
wink.gif
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 5:12 PM Post #11 of 17
Lossy compressions sucks no matter what the bit rate it used and if something was not "lost from the original",like all emotionally relevant content it would not be called lossy.

Is what it is.An attempt to get the size down so it can be transferred fast across the internet and once downloaded crammed into tiny little storage devices and for what it is meant for fine but don't for an instant try to make it some high fidelity medium on equal footing with uncompressed music sources because it AINT
tongue.gif
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 5:13 PM Post #12 of 17
The "clicks" you are hearing are most likely clipping. They will not damage your headphones or equipment.

Check your mp3s with mp3gain using the analysis mode. Many clipping mp3s were ripped perfectly fine, but the use of mp3gain, or other gain increasing techniques pushed the mp3s into clipping. mp3gain can easily fix most clipping mp3 files just by dropping the gain on them.

The version of iTunes that I use has a tendency volume normalize ripped tracks to the point where they will clip, but a quick run through mp3gain fixes those issues.
 
Mar 16, 2006 at 5:43 PM Post #13 of 17
That click is likely not an artifact of MP3 compression, but an error associated with a bad rip. As someone mentioned earlier in this thread, EAC can eliminate most or all of those problems.

Quote:

The version of iTunes that I use has a tendency volume normalize ripped tracks to the point where they will clip, but a quick run through mp3gain fixes those issues.


That's sort of a contradiction in terms. A volume normalized file should have its highest peak at 0dB and should not clip, unless you are applying additional gain somewhere else in the chain (via EQ, for example).
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:45 AM Post #14 of 17
Has anyone else noticed a problem with iTunes "fuzzing" the highs on tracks? I have this problem with it both at home, and at work, headphones or Z-5500's. If I listen to the same track again through winamp, the problem is gone. I'm guessing it is a form of clipping, but it happens regardless of volume, and sounds exactly like the speakers or headphones are being over-driven. I haven't been able to find any info about it on the web, but it's basically made me stop using iTunes.

Chris
 
Mar 17, 2006 at 9:54 AM Post #15 of 17
Ok, first what is EAC? I could probably find it with a search, but I am sure I can get some detail from you guys. Second, I have noticed a consistent popping around mid-high to highs, with certain mp3 tracks. Any hear this, is it common with mp3s? Pretty much everything is 192kps.
 

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