Guest Anonymous Posted February 18, 2003 Report Share Posted February 18, 2003 I'm confused. Which is better, MP3 128 kbps and MDLP4? Could anyone tell me how's the sound degradation in ATRAC, LP2, LP4? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugo Posted February 18, 2003 Report Share Posted February 18, 2003 ATRAC (SP) is virtually indistinguishable from CD quality. LP2 is comparable to mp3 somewhere between 128 and 192 kbps constant bit rate. Most people think LP4 sounds much worse than LP2 for music. Note that comparison between ATRAC(3) and mp3 is highly subjective. The mp3 encoder and encoding option can make a huge difference here even with the same bit rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystyler Posted February 18, 2003 Report Share Posted February 18, 2003 LP4 is useful if you are cruisin' the streets and need stacks of tunes, where quality doesn't count. Digital LP4 CD dubbs are great for that purpose, and can be very listenable. But, if you actually want to "listen" to your music and appreciate it, SP rips everything by a big margin. However, LP2 is a great compromise. Twice as many songs, but a lot of people cannot tell SP and LP2 apart. But to answer your LP4 V 128kbps question, I don't really think there is a good answer. I cannot stand 128kbps MP3s, or LP4. But I have heard 128kbps MP3s that rip 320kbps files. It all depends on your encoder. SP really has no MP3 comparison (it's that good, 320kbps+++) and most consider LP2 at least 192kbps. Type-S ATRAC can enhance the playback of LP encoded files (both LP2 and LP4) on newer Sony models (or anything that uses Sony's latest ATRAC chips), so LP4 should sound even better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 22, 2003 Report Share Posted February 22, 2003 Is type S that much better than type R? I was about to buy a 707 (mostly for live recording) for $165. Is it worth the wait and additional $100 to get one of the new microphone capable Sonys with type S? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mystyler Posted February 22, 2003 Report Share Posted February 22, 2003 Type-R and Type-S really aren't the same thing, so you cannot compare them. Type-R affects the encoding in SP mode. Type-S uses Type-R for SP encoding, but it also improves the decoding of LP tracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 22, 2003 Report Share Posted February 22, 2003 So, I'll be more specific. Is the type S for LP playback appreciably better and worth the extra $100 and the wait? Maybe someone that has made the move to type S can elaborate....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 12, 2003 Report Share Posted April 12, 2003 I have done a few comparisons using my JB980 MD deck and NS900 SACD player in a side by side test to actually try to hear the difference between the various formats. No matter what kind of music and how hard I have been trying, I couldn't hear any difference between the original CD recording and SP. None. Zip. Zilch. They sound completely identical. LP2 with Type S is incredibly close to SP and you will really have to know what to listen to, to be able to spot the sound degradation. The difference is not as much a degradation in the sound, but a slightly less sparkling *presence*. It's like the difference between a top end audiophile CD-player and a more normal domestic CD-player. For most music, there is really no need to use SP as LP2 will do just as fine for most people. It also depends greatly on the music and the original recording. In a few cases the LP2 sounded even better than the original CD, due to the psychoacoustic enhancement involved. Weird but true! LP4 is a whole different ballgame. It sounds "swirly" and fuzzy. A hihat sound doesn't go "tick!" but "oick" if you understand what I mean. LP4 yields a horrible musical quality but for recording speeches and lectures it is still pretty decent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffS Posted April 12, 2003 Report Share Posted April 12, 2003 Just to throw in my 2 cents, here are my opinions about lp2 v lp4 v mp3 Most mp3's that I've made sound pretty good, even at 128 (using the right encoder, as mentioned previously). However, I don't usually listen to many mp3s anywhere but through my computer with headphones (average quality). SP (ok, I will mention it), sounds FANTASTIC!!! I was a longtime user of an R50, and those discs, sounded, and still sound exactly like the CD (even with good headphones.) LP2, sounds almost as good, and definitely worth it, when the amount of storage you gain is involved. I've also found some things that don't sound good in lp4 have marked improvement in lp2 (synthpop, electronica, etc) Things of course brings me to LP4 I use LP4 for almost everything! (looks around at shocked faces in the crowd). Even with really good headphones, I think it sounds great. However, take into account my normal listening environment. I use it mostly for listening in my car while driving, while riding a commuter train, or sitting my an averagely noisy office. Consequently, the sound is execelent, as I'm not looking for absolute audiophone acoustics in a sound dampend room. Hey if I was playing it through a multi-thousand dollar stereo system, I'd probably say it was junk. Most things sound fine in lp4 (your ears may vary), but as mentioned earlier, lp2 will greatly improve what doesn't sound good. Give them each a try, and target where you're going to be listening. If you're looking to archive your entire music collection from CD, go SP. If you're archiving from mp3s that are good quality, probably lp2. If you just want to listen to a portable, in a portable environment, give lp4 a shot. Hey everybody, sorry for rambling on so much, but thats just me. -Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJ Posted April 15, 2003 Report Share Posted April 15, 2003 I only have one LP4 disc, and that's only so I could fit 5 Henry Rollins spoken word discs on it for travel. Spoken word sounds fine. Music sounds fragile, even in my car, so I wouldn't recommend it. Otherwise, I use LP2 for almost everything else. The quality is pretty decent. BUT. If I get used to listening to an LP2 recording, then switch off and go back to the original CD, even without a side by side comparison I notice the difference. It's like someone pulled the cotton out of my ears. So: SP - great sound; use it for archives or quiet listening on nice headphones. LP2 - very very good sound--fine for headphones and bombing around LP4 - speech only, as music tends to sound weak and brittle. Of course, for someone used to MP3s, LP4 will sound fantastic. (sorry, I couldn't resist the jab) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.