Sound files: download MP3 or buy the CD?

1. peachydingo
   Member

   

   OK all you audio wizards,

   A lot of sound effects and music come on either a CD or a an MP3 256K bitrate download.

    Is the MP3 sufficient for high end video production? Or should i buy the CD for the maximum quality?

    Thanks.

   Posted 4 years ago #

2. Ryan3078
   Member

   

    With the CD you'll get the full quality version - suitable for high end.  If it's just for online work, mp3 is fine.

   Posted 4 years ago #

3. kburgess
   Member

   

   Always, Always get the highest quality audio/video/images, etc. that you can reasonably afford and store. You never know when you may need it for something else. We produce a national television program and occasionally look for independently produced projects to air. Due to the compression that occurs in the satellite uplink, it is very important for our audio and video to be of the highest quality we can get. We do our best to never work with anything that has been compressed (beyond the normal compression that happens within the camera). Who knows; one of your productions may be seen somewhere and have an opportunity to be shown to an audience that you never imagined it would.

   Posted 4 years ago #

4. Balzypipes
   Member

   

    Given a choice between good quality and bad one would, of course, choose good. However, mp3 gets a bum rap, it isn't bad quality. I've been working in recording studios everyday for 38 years now and I never stop being amazed at the number of people who trash mp3. I've had people take the pepsi challenge with mp3, wav, and aiff, with good headphones and they pick the compressed version correctly about 50%. In other words, they are guessing. If it has long extended notes with an orchestra or a dominate ride cymbal (high freqs) its pretty noticeable. Outside of that, not so much. kburgess makes a good point, however, about multiple compressions. If things are being transferred multiple times, then you'll have problems.

   Posted 4 years ago #

5. yanvid
   Member

   

   OK all you audio wizards, A lot of sound effects and music come on either a CD or a an MP3 256K bitrate download. Is the MP3 sufficient for high end video production? Or should i buy the CD for the maximum quality? Thanks.

   You should try and get the best quality you can so WAV or AIFF file is best so it's uncompressed audio but the MP3 should do the trick just as well as they really are pretty good. The MP3 will actually work pretty well when kept in the high end format.

   One thing to remember when you are using an MP3 file at a high bitrate then later compress it you will introduce more unwanted atrifacts into the audio so it will start to sound worse the further compressed it gets. If you start with the WAV file you get a much better result at the end because it's working from an uncompressed original (lossless format).

   There are some really neat tricks you can do with quicktime pro (and probably other programs) that I've heard of that gives you superb sounding audio whilst keeping a really fast streaming video (for online usage). I think you need to compress the audio seperately (starting with a WAV or AIFF file) using the AAC format then interleave the video and audio file together at the end so they are basically compressed at different rates. I've heard the results of this and it is really stunning!

   Posted 4 years ago #

6. faqvideo
   Member

   

   Compression does the same to the music that the drying out does to the food.

   Place dried fruits in the water. They will restore original shape and mass, but never the same taste and texture.

   Shoot-It-Yourself Wedding Video

   Shoot-It-Yourself Wedding Video Guide, http://www.faqvideo.com/siy_book

   Posted 4 years ago #

7. peachydingo
   Member

   

   You guys are the best! Thanks.

   Posted 4 years ago #

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