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L'arvin
05-29-2012, 04:06 PM
Hi

Is it good to use FLAC files, or are songs at 320 kb/s also good enough, since FLAC files are 3 times the size of mp3 files.

L'arvin

Sigma
05-29-2012, 04:11 PM
FLAC is lossless compression, so when you convert a WAV to FLAC there is no quality loss. You can convert back and forth between FLAC and WAV as many times you like and no audio information is ever lost. MP3 is lossy, so every time you convert a file some of the audio information is stripped out, which degrades the file (although whether you can hear the effects of that depends on bit rate, your hearing, and the equipment you're using to listen).

As for whether you should use it or not, it's really up to you. It's hard to do unbiased listening tests, but you could take a WAV and convert it to both FLAC and MP3 and play it back on different sound systems and see if you can notice a difference - that is certainly not an unbiased test, but it may help you decide if it's worth switching to FLAC or not.

I don't think hard drive space is that great an argument for not using FLAC as hard drives are huge and relatively cheap now.

I use FLAC cos I'd rather know that I always have the best quality files I can get. My vinyl and CD collections are ripped to FLAC and I use it for archiving mixes and tracks I make as it shrinks the files down without affecting the quality.

drzinc
05-29-2012, 04:19 PM
All my cd's are ripped to flac and I use this as my main music source for my dj use. Be aware that only a few DJ software are able to use flac files.

KLH
05-29-2012, 05:33 PM
I'd switch over to FLAC if there were more support. Since there isn't, I use 320kbps MP3.

-KLH

Dj DRPX
05-29-2012, 06:36 PM
I use FLAC and I feel like there is a good amount of support for it. That's just my opinion though. 320kbps is more than adequate for my gear too.

Nick Bike
05-30-2012, 01:23 AM
320s or itunes 256s are adequate for all situations. just use common sense and good judgement to make sure they sound good on your own ears. my HD is 160gb so I have to conserve space a bit and most of my vinyl rips that I play out are 320s. it sounds fine.

if u can use uncompressed files though, all the power to you. the more uncompressed, the better.

Dave Daschofsky
06-04-2012, 08:54 AM
I use 320k or itunes 256k files since serato doesn't support FLAC. Works fine for me.

drzinc
06-04-2012, 09:18 AM
I use 320k or itunes 256k files since serato doesn't support FLAC. Works fine for me.

I take care of my ears and I can tell the difference between any compressed digital file and a non compressed one. To most on the dance floor in a crowded club the difference will not be heard but I always live by the creed use the best source you can.

Atomisk
06-04-2012, 07:25 PM
I personally use .aiff right now. I'm gradually switching over from .flac. If you care about audio quality, it's definitely worth the switch!

M!TCH
06-04-2012, 07:43 PM
I don't think hard drive space is that great an argument for not using FLAC as hard drives are huge and relatively cheap now.

:stupid:

The more you get into music the better your ear will get for crap quality tracks and then you'll realize it's always better to start with the best you can and cut down if you have to instead of just starting out at the bottom.

drzinc
06-04-2012, 07:46 PM
I personally use .aiff right now. I'm gradually switching over from .flac. If you care about audio quality, it's definitely worth the switch!

Loss less is loss less, the reason I use flac is because it's an open source file format unlike WMA loss less or Aiff I do not like a file system that has restrictions imposed by their owners flac works across multiple operating systems unlike aiff which is controled by Apple who has decided to become what they were against, big brother.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8

Examples....
Made it illegal to jailbreak your phone, ipod ipad.
Must use their software to put music on a player/phone/tablet that you own.
Make buggy software for other OS
Made it illegal to put their OS on a non Apple computer.
The list is longer but i do not have the time...

sephi
06-07-2012, 06:17 AM
I use WAV when I can get it, and "320s" when it's not available. FLAC is really cool, but it's not supported by the majority of pro gear. When it is, I'll probably switch to it instead of WAV.

Sublim&All
06-07-2012, 07:15 AM
Up to now, all tracks I bought digitally were 320kbps mp3s. Never been able to hear the difference with a .wav, not really understanding how people would be able to notice the removal of frequencies, that they cannot hear in the first place, anyway.

IMO, most (popular) tracks released these days are mastered like shit from the beginning anyway, so it's not like it will get much more pleasurable to listen to when in a larger format...

mostapha
06-07-2012, 08:07 PM
So, a little while ago, I got curious and made a 45-minute long ABX test (10 trials per song for 10 songs) of 320kbps mp3 vs. uncompressed wav. Very few people bothered, but here are the results.

DJF: no one took it.
Ableton Live DJ Forum: no one took it.
Gearslutz: no one took it, but people bitched for 200 posts about nothing.
DJ Tech Tools: 4 or 5 people took it, but I was the only one claiming to hear a difference going in…and I was the only one who statistically could hear a difference.

So…the results aren't the least bit conclusive……but most people won't hear a difference at normal listening volumes. In a club…the things that are lost are things people wouldn't listen for. I was actually disappointed, because I wanted there to be an obvious difference. Apparently knowing what to listen for sucks.

That being said, I buy AIFF when available and rip vinyl and CDs to flac. If I were worreid about disk space, I'd convert the aiff files to FLAC as well, but I'm too lazy and have enough disk space for the music I actually play.