Rip from CD or 320 down to 192 ? Is it the same?

[vodkah]

I don't know if ripping from 320 kbps ( VBR / CBR ) down to 192 kbps VBR has the same quality as ripping directly from CD or FLAC source

IMHO, I think they are the same, like to do 1 subtraction ( 1000 - 808 = 320 - 128 = 192 ) and it's the result that is important

 

[kman89zero]

There would probably be no noticeable quality difference. Though it would be better to rip from a CD directly to 192kbs if you can because every time you convert a file it loses technical quality.

 

[ph0rk]

usually, if you want a different encoding bitrate, it is best to use the original source.

I'd just leave files at 320 unless there was some terribly compelling reason to make them smaller.

 

[Jackson99]

Personally I wouldn't ever covert from one lossy format/bitrate to another, but I'm kind of a perfectionist about these kinds of things. It would probably sound ok, but as previously stated, I think your best bet would be to either start over from the original CD or flac source (or leave them at 320).

 

[3x331m]

It depends on your systems and how good you can hear. Some claim that they don't hear any difference if the compression is >192K.

Personally, I don't do any compression, and suffer the limitation of the storage capacity.

 

[cconnaker]

i wouldn't go below what is acceptable for you regardless of what is said here.
personally i don't rip using any compression (AIFF) because I purchased full quality and don't want something less.

 

[Febs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vodkah /img/forum/go_quote.gif IMHO, I think they are the same, like to do 1 subtraction ( 1000 - 808 = 320 - 128 = 192 ) and it's the result that is important

No, this is not a good analogy. When you rip from CD to a 192kbps file, you are performing the lossy encoding process once. When you transcode from a 320kbps file to a 192kbps file, you are performing the lossy encoding process twice. Every time you encode a file, you lose data, so when you transcode, you are losing more data than you would from ripping the file directly to your target bitrate.

It is possible that the result will nevertheless sound the same to you either way, but the better practice is to encode to lossy once, not multiple times.

 

[serpico]

Always from your source, never from lossy to another lossy. I think those who cannot hear a difference are still using their original ipod headphones!

Being a head-fi member here, that will change fast and you will be happy with the 320 bit rate files!

 

[jsmithepa]

If the doctor tells you take 1 pill/day, will you take 2 pills/day so u can get better twice as fast? DON'T.

Perhaps if yer lucky some audio engineer will come by and tell you exactly why that's not good. For the rest of us however, since we don't have degree in audio engineering, safe thing to do is just to rip from source always. If u lost your source... whoops too late now and makes point moot.