ATRAC 64kbps v ATRAC Lossless

[marty aylands]

I recently got my very first MP3 player, an NWS706F, and I'm very pleased with it.

I've been transferring some of my CD's using ATRAC 64kbps, and I'm very surprised at how good they sound - from what I've read in various news-groups, such a low sampling rate should sound terrible, but it doesn't.

But I'm wondering if I really *should* be using ATRAC Lossless instead. I've done a couple of tracks using both and have switched from one to the other, and can't decide whether I can hear much of a difference - but the switching takes a few seconds, so it's hard to compare. And I might find I can tell the difference if I upgrade my headphones.

I'd like to put really long works on the player - symphonies lasting the best part of an hour - so 4GB won't last long if I use Lossless all the time. I know I could probably keep everything on my computer and put it on the player as needed, but I prefer the convenience of having it all on there permanently.

So I'd like your opinions - is it better to use ATRAC Lossless than ATRAC 64kbps? Or would MP3 be a good compromise, and if so, what sampling rate would people here recommend?

Thanks in advance.

[juli_]

I've been transferring some of my CD's using ATRAC 64kbps, and I'm very surprised at how good they sound - from what I've read in various news-groups, such a low sampling rate should sound terrible, but it doesn't.

But I'm wondering if I really *should* be using ATRAC Lossless instead.

So I'd like your opinions - is it better to use ATRAC Lossless than ATRAC 64kbps? Or would MP3 be a good compromise, and if so, what sampling rate would people here recommend?

If you can't hear much of a difference, then there seems little point in filling up your player with lossless files - not to mention the battery hit it would take. There have been a few discussions about bitrates here before, and the general opinion is to use whatever suits your own ears. You're the one who'll be listening after all

I consider myself quite fussy about bitrate and A/B'd both lossless and 352kbps Atrac files - the absolute truth is I could hear absolutely no difference whatsoever. After a lot of testing, I'm now happy with 256kbps for all instrumental and 192kbps for vocals. I tried 132kbps as well, and while it sounded fine on its own - I could hear the difference compared with 256. There's no 'should' or 'shouldn't' use bitrate - but I think you'll find lossless is a waste of space (and battery) if you're just listening on a portable player.

The best way to test (as often said before), is to try a few different bitrates, (pick some songs you're very familiar with) and then test them for yourself. It's really the only way to know what your ears will accept! Having said that.

If you do a search, you'll probably be able to find the other discussions about it, but seriously, just pick what sounds good to you.

Edited October 25, 2007 by juli