[Elluzion]

I would rip all of your CD's to .FLAC using a good program *this way you have a lossless backup of all of your files*

then you can take the .FLAC's and convert them to 192 , 256, 320, or whatever you want!!!

 

[theitchybeard]

Ripping to FLAC first is definately a good idea. So when players memories get so good that we are all walking about with terabytes of memory in our pockets one day, mp3 will not be necessary any more and lossless formats will be the norm. Then it will be nice to not have to re rip everything again.

 

[marcusgi]

theitchybeard,

Thanks so much for your reply. I guess I didn't understand that you have to change the Quality from preset fast standard to preset CBR to rip all at 320kpbs. Do you know why it is a good idea to uncheck On the Fly MP3 Encoding? What does it do if I leave it checked?

Other people have suggested diffent ripping programs if your CD's are in bad shape, but I really take good care of mine. I think CDex is easy and seems to a good job. You?

 

[robjrock]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elluzion /img/forum/go_quote.gif I would rip all of your CD's to .FLAC using a good program *this way you have a lossless backup of all of your files* then you can take the .FLAC's and convert them to 192 , 256, 320, or whatever you want!!!

Couldn't agree more with the above statement. A cheap external hard drive + lossless rips of your music is a great idea. Because when you hook up your mp3 player, you can use a program like Mediamonkey to encode on the fly. EG FLACs are automatically converted to whichever format you choose. Its slow, but if in the future you decide you need higher quality on your Mp3 Player (say, if you picked up some kick ass new 'phones) or lower the quality (say, if you were running out of space) you always convert from a perfect source, so you never have any additional loss in quality.

Also, lossless is future proof. Most non-apple mp3 players support FLAC, and as we start hitting 32 - 64 GB flash players, FLAC is a real option.

Personally, as for choosing the audio quality for your device, do some tests with varying bitrates. Decide at which point you can't tell the difference, and then go one better, for the sake of it. I can stop telling more or less at Q7 oggs, so I use Q8, just to be safe. I doubt an extra MB here or there with affect me too much...

 

[SDDL-UP]

I'm a newcomer to the scene and in fact just ordered my Cowon D2 today. I spent a few weeks browsing anything I could get my hands on and decided to burn my collection to FLAC because it is a lossless format and should, ultimately, be able to provide CD quality sound.

I tried different levels of MP3 compression on my wife's Sansa Clip and I could tell the difference. For me I would never rip anything in a lossless format, because the memory will not be an issue in a few years. I also plan on a media PC in the near future as well.