Flac Vs MP3

[douglasw]

I just bought a better sound system & also a Audiophile sound card to improve my sound quality...Iv been reading that a flac file has a much bigger Bitrate so the sound quality is much better...So iv been loading some flac files but iv found that Three quarters of the files iv been loading really dont sound as good as my MP3's at 320 bitrate...Cant understand is it maybe these people who are posting these song dont have a clew on what there doing...Mind you some music are much better then MP3.. To get the best quality is it better to load solid albums pose to albums that have been sectioned off to individual songs. Right now i just dont see the big deal with a flac file...

 

[americanaudiophile]

The difference you will hear between MP3 and FLAC files will depend on a lot of things. First the quality of the original recording. A lot of music is recorded with a great deal of compression and doesn't really have much dynamic range. Secondly the quality of the sound system, soundcard, and the digital to analog converter (which is on the soundcard if you don't have it connected to an outboard one).
FLAC files are not all the same. A FLAC file made from an MP3 will sound like the MP3. FLAC files are available in greater than CD quality. These vary from 16 bit to 24 bit and from 88khz to 192khz (CD is 16 bit 44.1 khz.
As a test rip a CD (do not use iTunes) to mp3 and to FLAC. Then compare the sound between the two. The better the original the more difference you will hear. Complicated acoustic sound will usually be better than simple electronic based sound.

 

[douglasw]

The difference you will hear between MP3 and FLAC files will depend on a lot of things. First the quality of the original recording. A lot of music is recorded with a great deal of compression and doesn't really have much dynamic range. Secondly the quality of the sound system, soundcard, and the digital to analog converter (which is on the soundcard if you don't have it connected to an outboard one).
FLAC files are not all the same. A FLAC file made from an MP3 will sound like the MP3. FLAC files are available in greater than CD quality. These vary from 16 bit to 24 bit and from 88khz to 192khz (CD is 16 bit 44.1 khz.
As a test rip a CD (do not use iTunes) to mp3 and to FLAC. Then compare the sound between the two. The better the original the more difference you will hear. Complicated acoustic sound will usually be better than simple electronic based sound.

I understand what your saying..when it comes to equipment i dont have the best but i just upgraded my soundcard from an old Creative X-Fi fatality1 pro card to the HT Omega Claro Plus+ 24bit 196 Khz and i have the affordable Logitect Z-5500 that has a bad rap because of the idiots on youtube who like to abuse them..But not like them i set them up the best i can to get the best out of them like installing the speakers on stands and placing a vibration damper under my sub to controle vibration & the location of the sub also..And im lucky enough to find some flac music with bitrates in the 2700 but im sure i know my problem.. Piratebay isnt a good sourse for HD music so i might have to go back to buying a few HD Cd's a month till i get a good collection

 

[dj_crossbones]

I understand what your saying..when it comes to equipment i dont have the best but i just upgraded my soundcard from an old Creative X-Fi fatality1 pro card to the HT Omega Claro Plus+ 24bit 196 Khz and i have the affordable Logitect Z-5500 that has a bad rap because of the idiots on youtube who like to abuse them..But not like them i set them up the best i can to get the best out of them like installing the speakers on stands and placing a vibration damper under my sub to controle vibration & the location of the sub also..And im lucky enough to find some flac music with bitrates in the 2700 but im sure i know my problem.. Piratebay isnt a good sourse for HD music so i might have to go back to buying a few HD Cd's a month till i get a good collection

Try HDtracks.com for some flac files, they don't have the greatest collection just yet but the quality of these flacs are awesome, pay close attention, some are 16 bit and some are 24 bit with a variation of 48 to 192Khz sampling rate (the higher the better), awesome choice on the soundcard, I have the same one and I can tell you coupled with my adcom 6000 and my cerwin vega 15's it sounds amazing.

 

[douglasw]

Try HDtracks.com for some flac files, they don't have the greatest collection just yet but the quality of these flacs are awesome, pay close attention, some are 16 bit and some are 24 bit with a variation of 48 to 192Khz sampling rate (the higher the better), awesome choice on the soundcard, I have the same one and I can tell you coupled with my adcom 6000 and my cerwin vega 15's it sounds amazing.

...I had a real treat myself i was using Piratebay looking for HD music with no luck but lucky enough i have another way to find music using NZB Matrixs and i was real lucky to find Pink Floyd Dark Side Of The Moon & Meddle as i open the file i notice the bitrate was 8645 someone must have ripped from a Blu ray music video into individual songs and the song Money was just out of this world 24bit at 196 khz...For the people who think the Logitech Z-5500 is a piece of garbage just hasnt experienced this kind of HD music...Been Real lucky also enough to find music in the 3000 bitrate range.

 

[radiostar]

I have found some nice flacs on piratebay, I have modified Terratec Aureon Firewire sound card and tube amp with fule range speakers.

 

[ssddx]

just a reminder that pirated music is illegal and not a valid topic for discussion on this forum.

agree, not all flac files are equal. 256kbps mp3 files sound perfectly fine to me though. its all a matter of personal opinion. i'm playing them on a $1500 sound system.

agree, logitech does make some decent speakers for the price. most people who badmouth them were not realistic in their expectations or have the opinion that anything made by a pc speaker manufacturer is garbage.

 

[douglasw]

Best answer selected by douglasw.