CD's Vs IPOD for home stereo

[jamie2112]

The difference I can hear is in the dynamics of the sound. With a CD the frequencies from 1k to 8k sound flat. Almost every time I have tested this theory I can hear a warbling a bit and a slight rise in those freq in that frequency range. I do not know why this is but I do very critical listening for a living and have tested this out in a few different studios with the same outcome. I am sure the low end is affected as well but I myself couldn't tell if the was a change. Although the difference is slight it is definatly there....

 

[Shock]

In reality, it's not if you can tell the difference between 320 kbps Mp3's and CD's. The arguement is it worth the extra hassle. I.E at what point does the added cost of a CD changer + the extra connections and power usage outweigh the difference in quality.

Personally there's no arguement I could hear that would make me prefer a bulky CD changer over MP3's played through a receiver, dock or no dock.

320 bitrate MP3's sound very good, coupled with my main use of playing music through a receiver is to entertain at parties.

Personally I'd look at what kind of listening you're going to be doing with the music, and decide what kind of technology would be best for you.

 

[jinjuku]

Ahhhh.... now I get it. If I rip with a lossless codec, then the result, which produces output bit for bit equal to the original CD, will be not quite as good as the original, and that's why CD's are necessary for critical listening.

I would be willing to bet that lossless ripped music will be indistinguishable from the CD.

 

[MidnightSensi]

The difference I can hear is in the dynamics of the sound. With a CD the frequencies from 1k to 8k sound flat. Almost every time I have tested this theory I can hear a warbling a bit and a slight rise in those freq in that frequency range. I do not know why this is but I do very critical listening for a living and have tested this out in a few different studios with the same outcome. I am sure the low end is affected as well but I myself couldn't tell if the was a change. Although the difference is slight it is definatly there....

Well I sure can't. For me it's...

192 to 320mp3 -> Can tell the difference, especially in bass extension and treble chrispness.

320 to CD or lossless -> Can't tell the difference if a friend swaps them randomly.

CD or lossless to vinyl -> Generally can tell an improvement depending on the recording, most of my vinyl recordings are significantly better than the CD counterpart, often because the vinyl has more dynamics because if its pressed too loud/live the needles won't sit. Bass, especially my genre of music, generally is better on vinyl.

SACD still sounds the best to me for acoustic music, for electronic music I don't notice an improvement over vinyl.

DVD-A to SACD - Can tell they are different, but can't tell you which is which.