[OT] MP3 Bitrate

[hanguolaohu]

I was curious what bitrate do you import your CD's into iTunes? I'm currently using 192kbps VBR MP3 encoded by iTunes, and am considering going higher but am not sure if there's any audible difference. I've tried LAME before but like the convenience of iTune's interface, and I believe iTunes 8 has more MP3 encoding options than before. I'm about to encode a bunch of CD's so that's why I'm asking.

Thanks,
Alexander

 

[Noiz2]

I don't use VBR files because they don't seem to be very standardized and I have gotten problem playing them on other players. That said if your all Apple you might consider AAC files instead. They supposedly sound better at a given file size, but I don't know if any third party players will play them.

192 is pretty good, I generally go higher with jazz and classical because the recordings are not as compressed (level wise) as pop/ rock etc. and therefore it's harder to compress (data wise).

 

[hanguolaohu]

So after talking with my friends, doing research, and doing my own tests, I've decided to import most of my CD's with 256kbps with VBR at highest quality. While listening to various classical CD's, I can tell some difference in "fullness" between 192 and 256. 256 and 320 sounds practically the same to my ears. I also figure that if 256kbps is good enough for Amazon and iTunes Plus' millions of customers, it should be a good enough standard for me. I think iTunes MP3 encoding has come a really long way since earlier versions, and I'm happy that I don't have to deal with LAME import programs or other formats such as AAC or Ogg Vorbis that might eventually be incompatible with whatever future music player I may choose to use. Thank you for the info!