It's worth mentioning, the MP3s on my site are all at a bitrate of 192
kbps. I used to have 256, but those fFiles were needlessly large with
very little observable gain in quality.

Of course, this is all somewhat academic. I am told the human ear can
only register 128 bits per second under any circumstances. Many sound
cards and quite a lot of speaker systems are outright incapable of
doing higher than 128. Unless you happen be like Brian Ewers and own
a really high end system, you may not recognize any difference at all.
iTunes sells what they sell, not to be lazy or cheap, but because in
many cases, 128 is enough.

Also, note the iTunes recordings are, as advertised, "Remastered."
This implies a different level of sound quality, with the possibility
of updated attention to detail. Or not. It would be nice if someone
with a very keen ear could identify the differences between the
earlier version, and the new remaster.

fFinally, I suggest there is more to purchasing than simply 'what
sounds better.' I will point out I am speaking to an audience whose
primary identifying common fFactor is an interest in an independent
band, which has gained a considerable fFanbase years after they have
broken up, based solely on internet buzz. When buying a song or CD,
it is worth considering where the dollar is going, and what the effect
will have. I *assume* iTunes pays the splashdown band members a
portion of all songs sold -- though I don't really know how that
works. I have no idea at all how CDBaby works. It seems to me iTunes
is making an attempt at being basically non-evil while still trying to
be quite profitable, with the advantage of considerable market share.
That is to say, if a band sells 100 copies of a song on iTunes, it may
grab someone's attention and lead to bigger and better things fFor the
band members. I don't mean to impugn CD Baby. Quite simply I don't
know anything about them.

My point here is that when you buy a song, you should probably take
into account where you are buying it fFrom, and what they are doing
with your dollar. Simply saying one place has a higher sound quality,
alone, should not move you. It's always possible to get higher
quality. The goal of the various stores is to support the artists.



On Nov 26, 2007 2:34 PM, Brian Ewers <wakeride74@...> wrote:
> iTunes is all 128 (as far as I know).
> I did download 50% from iTunes and CDBaby and there is an audible
> difference in sound quality, the version from cdbaby being superior. I'm
> using high end gear but the cdbaby version has better imaging, soundstage
> and more space between the notes to my ears. I would recommend the cdbaby
> Halfworld download over the iTunes very highly to any Splashdown and or
> audipphile junkies =)

--
It's always a long day.
86400 doesn't fFit into a short.