FLAC (for a newbie)

Urban_Tribesman · Post edited by Urban_Tribesman at 2020-10-31 06:52:35

That’s 4,040 CD’s, or 44,444 tracks or a colossal 200,000 minutes (3,333 hours) of music.

£569, the solutions yours (+ P&P) !

Urban_Tribesman · Post edited by Urban_Tribesman at 2020-10-31 07:03:03

It also rips from Vinyl & CD’s (I assume you just connect the equipment to it) and the bigger ones can be controlled remotely from your mobile via an app. There seems to be a 150,000 track limit on the 2 TB version at the moment but they may go up in the future.

Another link

Brennan BB2

Urban_Tribesman · Post edited by Urban_Tribesman at 2020-10-31 07:13:04

And, like all good Hi-Fi, it’s British.

You can import you I Tunes collection & it plays internet radio ( so good for BBC 6 Music for example).

A Q & A page.

Brennan Q&A

Whickwithy

I just can't stand to pay monthly for anything that it is not absolutely necessary to do so. If you have a computer, buying a couple of terabytes of storage on an external SSD is less that $100. I have multiple backups. As you say, the music files get corrupted. So, I have one backup of sort of original copies, and a lot more backups.

In theory, that means I have a pristine copy that is not corrupted that can be copied out to replace corrupted copies. That only works in theory, as I'd have to get around to noting which songs are corrupted and re-copying them. I don't. In some ways, I'm starting to think of those quirks in my mp3's like I thought of the scratches and skips on Let It Bleed.

I still hate buying mp3s. I would much rather buy the CD but I'm at a point that is no longer an option. There are just too many single songs that I would like and little interest in the rest of the songs on the CD.

You were wise to keep all of the CDs. Being an unwilling packrat, I tend to get in these moods where I throw everything out. I regret doing that with the CDs.

It's even cheaper if you were to purchase external HDDs. I really don't trust their mechanical nature, though. The thing that really freaked me out with Apple computers is that a long time ago, I used to pull out memory sticks without "ejecting". Somehow, on Apple computers, it would break the memory stick completely. I could do nothing with it - no reformatting, nothing - so, I had to throw them away. That is one reason for the multiple backups. I think Apple fixed that problem, maybe because I howled about how stupid it was on the online community "help", but, anyways, I don't trust digital very much, almost as little as I trust anything online.

cookiee_munster

thanks for your help folks! :)

Whickwithy · Post edited by Whickwithy at 2020-11-05 22:08:17

There's one more point regarding sound. It could also be a problem with the equipment. Whether it's a home stereo, tv, computer, earbuds, or mobile phones. They can all have their drawbacks.

What made me think of this was my cash-on on my Harmon Kardon for the Yamaha I mentioned. The difference was like night and day. The Harmon Kardon had eroded over the decades and sounded like crap. I just didn't realize it until I got the Yamaha. I can't say I treated it gently.

I was listening to YouTube and noticing how, all of a sudden, all of the music started sounding really clear.

Whickwithy · Post edited by Whickwithy at 2020-11-16 08:54:08

I just bought a CD and dropped it onto my computer and found that the files are M4A format. As far as I can tell, it is a lossless format.

It's a bit baffling in that m4a is only a container. I'm pretty sure that, if you use an Apple and choose Apple Lossless, the m4a will be lossless, even if you transfer the file to some other device Sorry, but I'm really not interested in digging further. Like I said, my sound is just fine and I know a lot of the files are in mp3 format.

Ha! So much for not digging further. It's just amazing how many people are willing to go online and profess to know something ... and get it wrong. Looking further MP4 is the container. Still not sure if all M4As are lossless but I am fairly certain that M4As, if Apple Lossless recording is chosen, are lossless. On an Apple Mac, choose Music > Preferences > Files, then choose Import Settings.

Whickwithy · Post edited by Whickwithy at 2020-11-19 17:39:44

Kinishi nai de.

Whickwithy

I have still been hearing those crackly highs no matter what I do. Even with M4A files, CDs, or DVDs. I wonder if that journalist was right. The initial recording is just not perfect.

In my case, though, I found a fix that works, crazy as it seems. The Heresy speakers come with these speaker front covers that you can remove. I have always taken them off because they seem to muffle the sound a bit. What I realized was that they were acting as a filter. I just put them back on and the crackly highs are gone. Best filter I've ever used. I'm not sure all covers do the same thing. Certainly not on headphones. They certainly don't put a cloth over the speaker. I'm guessing that high end headphones would make the crackliness more emphasized. I'd rather use earbuds, as long as they are not the ones that plug up the ear.

Whickwithy

STILL studying audio. Just fascinating, really...

https://www.cambridgeaudio.com/usa/en/blog/our-guide-usb-audio-why-should-i-use-it

Whickwithy · Post edited by Whickwithy at 2020-11-28 12:40:52

Between this link and the previous one, Cookie, I think you'll really have an answer - at least as far as files, formats, DACs, and USB Audio. The key is that the weak link in this chain is usually the DAC, unless you buy and amp with a DAC and USB Audio. If you are listening to analog audio out of a computer, forget it. The file type shouldn't make any difference because the DAC in a computer is pretty much shite. I've tried every format and it made little or no diff. I can't wait to try a USB-equipped integrated amplifier though, honestly, I'm still not expecting to hear a difference. Unless I can find a really high resolution file for testing. You'll see, once again, that the original recording is the crucial piece that is seldom up to snuff for any really high bit count/rate.

If you are really determined, this link even gives you links to hires audio...

https://www.cambridgeaudio.com/usa/en/blog/what-is-high-resolution-audio

Whickwithy

Errr, should have mentioned. USB Class 2 Audio...

Whickwithy · Post edited by Whickwithy at 2020-12-02 08:36:08

Since the original discussion was about headphones, I thought I should add this. Don't expect a lot of research on this as I'm not fond of headphones. I just happened to run across this article...

https://www.soundguys.com/android-usb-audio-class-3-0-18494/

You can just bet that smartphones do not have a good DAC. Maybe Apple...

Whickwithy

I can't believe it took me forty years to realize that 3-way speakers are essential to good sound. 2-way speakers just suck.

Whickwithy

So, basically, after careful study, your sound is not going to be pristine (especially in the high end (maybe the recording engineer's ears are blown from listening to his music too loud?), even if you build a thoroughly clean link from file to speakers, unless the original recording was pristine. You'll be lucky to find such a recording by anyone, though you may have a bit better luck with classical or jazz than any other recordings.

I'm guessing that's why the high-end recordings sites don't even bother with most other music.

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories