On Monday, February 15, 2016 at 10:07:31 AM UTC-5, John Williamson wrote:
On 15/02/2016 14:48, JackA wrote:
"Now mastering began to evolve into the digital state as we know it today. In the first half of 1995, MP3s began to spread on the Internet and their small file size set about revolution in the music industry that continues to this day. This meant that the mastering engineer had to become well versed in how to get the most from this format, something that took many mastering engineers years to get the hang of".
What that says is, you're wrong!
No, what that says is that mp3 is a lossy format that requires care when
mastering to live within its limitations, just as vinyl and analogue
tape do.
I feel they mean a digital format.
If I want a CD to sound exactly the same as vinyl or analogue tape, all
I need is a decent playback machine and a good ADC. The result will
sound exactly the same as the original. If I use minimal processing for
removal of hiss, clicks, tape flutter and turntable rumble from a good
quality master, it can sound better, but it will never sound as accurate
as a purely digital recording.
If I want an mp3 to sound as good as a vinyl disc, then I need to get
very clever with the mp3 encoder parameters and other mastering
processes to get the best sound possible. 128kbps mp3 was originally
meant to be about the same apparent quality as cassette tape on spoken
word recordings. As time has gone on and storage has got cheaper, very
good results are possible using 320kbps files. Better results at the
same bit rate can be got using other types of perceptual encoding, but
then you get compatibility problems with consumer playback equipment,
which almost all has mp3 decoding hard coded, and some of which can't
even handle a .wav file.
Knowing HOW slow it took to make a 128kbps MP3, I say that was the primary cause of this 128k bitrate.
You say Vocals, this person can't hear much difference!...
http://forums.winamp.com/archive/ind.../t-229919.html
I opted 160k, because it's tough to notice much difference, even 320k!
I don't believe your ears or my ears can detect minor amounts of distortion..
Jack
--
Tciao for Now!
John.