What format should I download sounds in?

I

Indyreel

Well-known member
I was on sounddogs and all their files are MP3. I have recorded all my dialogue in my film in 48K/16 bit, as I was told that this is pro quality.

How does the MP3 downloads work in with all this? i.e. should I find a company that has wav files in 48k/16 bit, or is MP3 as good?

If MP3 is as good, should I save it as a wav 16 bit?

Thanks.
 
mp3 is not as good. It is very highly compressed. But it may be "good enough" for your needs. Only you can determine that.
 
You're looking at the free online previews. If you use a sound in your production you need to purchase it. When you do, you download the full resolution WAV by selecting that format at checkout.
 
Not so much "pro quality" but the format of sound for digital video.

You can't use the MP3 files you pulled off Sound Dogs legaly, you need to buy them and then the will link to a uncompressed file.
 
I would have said that normal pro recording for video is 24-bit (not 16-bit) at 48kHz sample rate.

If it's for other use - then 24/96 is more common.
 
John Willett said:
I would have said that normal pro recording for video is 24-bit (not 16-bit) at 48kHz sample rate.

If it's for other use - then 24/96 is more common.
Click to expand...

In truth whatever pros are recording at is "pro quality", and that ranges all over the map. In film and video 48/16 is pretty much the standard because that is what digital video is at. I think a lot of sound editors work at 48/24 (I do) because it sounds a bit better when you process the sounds and it's what I record at. I suspect that most production recordists also record at 48/24. FX mostly records at 48/24 but sometimes at higher rates, it really depends on the person and the subject. Music??? I suspect a lot is now done at 88.2 (better conversion to 44.1 which is the CD rate).

What your recording and how your recording it have a lot more to do with the "pro"ness of the recording than the format does.
 
Sorry Sounddogs,

I stated that your site had mp3 files for download. I discovered that that's just the samples, but at checkout I was able to choose a pro format. I am very impressed with thier selection. Impressed enough to have downloaded $230 worth of the exact sounds I wanted.

Thanks
 
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