MP3 bitrate

[Adam Sharpe]

Does anyone know what bitrate the B2 converts MP3 files into?

[lesliebr...@gmail.com]

Hi Adam, the B2 web site says 128k

Questions and Answers

 

What's the MP3 Bitrate?

128k

[Adam Sharpe]

Ah, thanks! Forgot about the website!...

[Paul Cashman]

I really, REALLY wish the mp3 bitrate was at least 192k.  The difference between 128k and 192k is quite noticeable, and the "general" default Out There seems to be 192k.  

While 192k is not quite CD-quality, it's been good enough for me to use a couple of iPods as music sources for my FM radio show...and no-one has been the wiser.  

With 128K, you can clearly tell the music is compressed...."wishy-washy" cymbal sounds and a noticeable dullness to the sound quality.

Another item for my wish-list, I suppose.

[Adam Sharpe]

So, if I copy over an MP3 of a higher bitrate from my PC, will the B2 convert it?

[lesliebr...@gmail.com]

Good question Adam. I have transferred music ripped at a higher rates on my PC both via the B2 upload method, and later using NAS, and they all play. I've just checked some tracks on the B2 using NAS and the track properties still has them as the higher bit rate. So I don't think there's been any coversion taken place. Possibly the ripping rate of the B2 is 128k, but it is able to play higher bit mp3s. 

Leslie.

[Brennan Support]

Hello Adam

B2 will play the higher bitrate files OK - it won't compress them again.

Requests for higher bitrate (as an option has been noted)

Martin

[lesliebr...@gmail.com]

Martin, thanks for the confirmation on the bit rate question. Nice to know.

Leslie.

[Adam Sharpe]

Martin, if it possible to add a higher bitrate to the compression menu, could I also ask that it be possible to re-compress existing, rather than having to re-ripped them? Adam

[Brennan Support]

Hi Adam

Sorry no that's not going to work because B2 deletes the original WAV file when it compresses - either to FLAC or to MP3.

One thing that is on my wish list is to compress to FLAC and MP3 (so you have a lower quality duplicate) - that way there is a compact MP3 version for exporting to in car players etc

Martin

[Marv K]

“One thing that is on my wish list is to compress to FLAC and MP3 (so you have a lower quality duplicate) - that way there is a compact MP3 version for exporting to in car players etc”

Martin,

With all due respect, I hope you leave us the option to compress to FLAC “OR” MP3, for those of us that have the ability to create our own MP3 car versions. ;-)

I do think that being able to have the B2 to save to a higher bit rate is a great idea.

Marv

[Will Roberts]

In part because the B2 is slow converting CDs to MP3 files, I have been using my PC with NCH's "Express Rip" software. (NCH is an Australian company which makes a wide range of modestly priced audio and media software.)

I have found that setting the bit rate to 256 bps GREATLY improves the sound of the ripped MP3s, both on the Brennan B2 and when copied to a thumb-drive for use in the car.

The "Express Rip" program does look-ups of the CD track data much like the B2 and offers a choice of using either the FreeDB or MusicBrainz online databases. It also allows customizing the file naming so that the MP3 can be set up as {track no} {track name} - {artist} and saved into a folder with the CD disc name, following the Brennan's convention.

My practice is to save the MP3s to a folder on my computer and then transfer the folder into the Brennan B2 over the network. By running the disc SCAN function on the B2, the folder is added to the B2's database.

This may sound cumbersome, but it's really easy to sit at my desk and rip a pile of CDs and then copy everything to the B2.

[Marcus]

Ripping to 128k really does the wonderful B2 a dis-service.

I am by no means an audiophile but that rate undermines all the other great elements of the B2's sound output/design.

It kinda forces you to use FLAC and that is inconvenient for a Mac user that likes to swap files around on different players.

The absence of an ability to rip to ALAC or Mp3 320k is a rare downside on what is a great piece of kit!

[Will Roberts]

I believe that the original appeal of the mp3 format was its compact size which made it very useful for constructing large libraries of music for early iPods, music-enabled cellphones, and other portable devices.

With the large capacity of current disk drives, sd cards, memory sticks, etc., compact size becomes less important. It has become perfectly reasonable to use compression rates like 256 bps and higher even though they create larger file sizes.

A few years ago I read this article about how the popularity of the mp3 format had defied the conventional wisdom that the market wanted higher and higher audiophile quality. While the serious high-fidelity market segment remains, for the majority of casual listeners, the mp3 is "good enough." That observation came as a shock to an industry which had built its sole strategy on hyper-realistic concert hall sound -- and not on simplicity and convenience.

See the 2009 Wired magazine article "The Good Enough Revolution: When Cheap and Simple Is Just Fine."

Please do not get me wrong. I appreciate the high-fidelity listening experience and have invested in the best equipment I can afford in its pursuit. It's just that for some purposes, a high bit-rate mp3 has its virtues.

[PMB]

Hi Marcus,

I have tried downloading and playing 'ALAC' files - with an '.m4a' suffix and found they play OK - although the B2's display shows them as 'AAC' when played.

Paul

Brennan Support.

[PMB]

Hi Will,

I haven't read the Wired article yet but remember hearing about a test that found the vast majority of those who took part preferred the sound of MP3, describing it as 'more listenable'......

Paul

Brennan Support.

[Will Roberts]

Hi Paul!

Possibly the sound of mp3 audio reproduction has become comfortable and familiar to many people. This might be similar to audiophiles who prefer the "warmth" of vinyl to the cleanness of CDs. (Personally, I prefer the CDs' lack of random surface noise -- but that's my own opinion.)

I also find the quality of lossless FLAC files to be discernibly better than even high bit rate mp3s, but only when listening in an environment where there is little background noise or unusual ambient acoustics. When listening in an automobile or on an airplane, FLAC does not seem to significantly improve the listening experience, even with noise-cancelling headphones.

This may be like the little kid who grew up eating canned spaghetti. When, in an Italian restaurant for the first time and encountering traditionally prepared pasta, he complained to his parents that the stuff on his plate was not spaghetti. This is what drives parents -- and audio engineers -- nuts.  :)

Regards,

Will