New Zealand Heavy Metal Forum & Discussion

[Trendkill]

So has anyone experimented much with the FLAC audio format?

I've read a fair bit about it online
and there seems to be a lot of people that think its a waste of time
mainly stating that the human ear cant hear the difference, yada yada yada

I've tried like 7 different albums now, all of which ive listened to 50-100+ times
And they definitely sound different to me
(I'll explain the differences if you're interested)

Thoughts?

[Dead Kid]

What quality mp3 are you comparing them to? Do a blind test... put both the flac and mp3 files together on one playlist and shuffle or something.

I'm not an 'audiophile' and can't tell the difference even at lower bitrates, so flac is just a waste of space to me.

[Trendkill]

Oh I'd already figured out 320kps MP3s were the best sounding a while ago
So thats what I was comparing against

Maybe you can only hear the differences on loud+HQ systems?

I dunno if I need the blind test,
the bass, bass drops, and drums are all wayy clearer, just naming the most obvious changes
No flapping/popping on the sub on intense parts
Just sounds more real/like a band I reckon

[Dead Kid]

Makes sense if the difference is mainly in the bass/sub. Mp3s cut out frequencies that humans can't hear, so the sub would behave differently. You might see/feel the difference in the bass more than hear it.

[Trendkill]

Mp3s cut out frequencies that humans can't hear

Yeah thats mainly what i've read online
But I think theres more to it than that...

My theory is that the sound waves are more smooth/natural when they're lossless
And since the sounds just a bunch of overlapping/intertwined waves
The smooth waves = for better sound
Maybe not NEW frequencies, but how they were meant to be played

But like you say, it could be more on the bass side, coz thats definitely the most noticeable parts
Although i've also noticed the following:
- More defined instruments, actually sound more seperate/individual, rather than just a big sound source
- The subtle overlapping riffs and harmonies are more noticeable

[Burning Beard]

You've got me curious now, I might rip a few tracks @ 320 mp3 and FLAC and see if I can tell the difference.
I'll have to do a blind test though in order to eliminate any bias I may have, whether I'm aware of it or not.