Thread: MP3 versus CD -- is there a quality difference?

I think I might be imagining things, but I accidentally downloaded off iTunes the contents of an actual physical CD I already had. oops!

Anyway, I was listening to the CD I burned from iTunes (Memorex media) and then I stuck the ACTUAL pressed CD in the player, and the sound difference was amazing. The actual CD was so much clearer and fuller. At least, I thought so. But people keep telling me there really is no difference, so now I'm confused.

I thought it would more environmentally friendly to just download all my new music purchases. No packaging, no plastic wrap, and I don't have to burn CDs if I don't want to. But if there really IS a sound variance, I'm a little leery of it.

Is it just the media I used? I thought Memorex was supposed to be pretty good.

Is the quality variance something maybe that iTunes is doing? Is there a better way to burn a CD than through iTunes?

Thanks!

There is a difference, but most people either can't hear it or really don't care all that much. The simplified version is that most mp3 files found online are usually a lower quality than the CD version to keep the file size small. Which is why my husband likes to buy CDs of what he really loves and then rip them into high quality files.

Of course they tend to fill up my ipod much quicker than a regular mp3.

It depends entirely on the quality of the mp3s. You can create mp3s at different bit rates. Higher rates = better quality = larger files. Here is a quick reference: MP3' Tech - listening tests

If you record mp3s at high enough quality, then they are virtually indistinguishable to the human ear, but at lower rates mp3s lose quality/clarity quickly.

For performance purposes, it doesn't really matter. When you are broadcasting sound over speakers into a large space, the finer details get lost. The difference between high-quality MP3s and CDs is only detectable with headphones, and even then most people won't notice.

Unfortunately, some download sites (such as iTunes) aren't giving you the best quality for MP3s. (But that saves them $ since the higher quality files require more storage space and take longer to upload/download.) My husband and I operate Ambient.us, a download site for Ambient music, and he encodes the music at a higher quality than what is typically offered elsewhere.

However, if someone is downloading MP3 music files illegally, then the quality can be really, really bad.

Just as an FYI, Maqam advertises that its mp3s are high quality, so that might be a good place to look first for music.

Thanks gang! I was actually thinking of maqam when I thought about getting all my new music electronically. I'll check out the links -- thanks!

Maqam???

Originally Posted by badriya_al_ahmar

Just as an FYI, Maqam advertises that its mp3s are high quality, so that might be a good place to look first for music.

Originally Posted by aziyade

I think I might be imagining things, but I accidentally downloaded off iTunes the contents of an actual physical CD I already had. oops!

Anyway, I was listening to the CD I burned from iTunes (Memorex media) and then I stuck the ACTUAL pressed CD in the player, and the sound difference was amazing. The actual CD was so much clearer and fuller. At least, I thought so. But people keep telling me there really is no difference, so now I'm confused.

I thought it would more environmentally friendly to just download all my new music purchases. No packaging, no plastic wrap, and I don't have to burn CDs if I don't want to. But if there really IS a sound variance, I'm a little leery of it.

Is it just the media I used? I thought Memorex was supposed to be pretty good.

Is the quality variance something maybe that iTunes is doing? Is there a better way to burn a CD than through iTunes?

Thanks!

Yes CD is better. I remember editing a DVD and asked the dancer to give me a CD of the track, the song was Shik Shok Shak. She must have made it from a MP3 because some of the parts sounded like it was under water.

I tried using a clean cd version of Shik Shok Shak but it must have been a different CD because the timing was 100% in Sync to the track the dancer was using. So in the end I was forced to use the crappy version the dancer gave me.

If you want better soft copy rips from CD I think you should be able to change a setting in iTunes.

Originally Posted by BoiseShan

Maqam???

MAQAM MP3 - Arabic Music MP3, Arabic Music Download, MP3 Arabic Music

I haven't bought any yet, so I can't comment on quality.

I'm looking at iTunes trying to find a better way to rip, and I think I've found it -- under preferences/general/import settings. Thanks! Will have to experiment to see which setting gives the best balance of sound quality to file size.

Aren't we also limited to the number of times an itunes purchase can be burned or transferred, or have they changed that? I haven't used them in a while but thought that was uncool and I would avoid them unless I couldn't purchase elsewhere and had to have it...

I think I remember reading that, but the first thing I do when I buy mp3s is burn them onto CD. Then I can rip the CD back into itunes, with no limits on anything. This COULD be part of my sound quality issue though.

Originally Posted by aziyade

I think I remember reading that, but the first thing I do when I buy mp3s is burn them onto CD. Then I can rip the CD back into itunes, with no limits on anything. This COULD be part of my sound quality issue though.

I don't understand why you are doing that? You can just play the original MP3 in iTune.

So I can listen to them in the car, at the studio, and on home stereo. None of those CD players will play MP3 files, sadly.

Well, I had an eye-opener! Just loaded up the new version of iTunes and it seems they have indeed updated their policies substantially. Apparently now *many* files will be better quality AND have no limits on number of times burned (some songs with the old restrictions remain for the time being), and other good stuff. Plus new ways of managing music and different apps. I haven't actually used it yet but I'm very interested to work with it and see what happens.

As to your comment on ripping- I think I did see that you can rip into iTunes as a .wav file which might be better quality and since your equipment doesn't play mp3's hopefully those files would play. Test a disc and see what you think.

I haven't noticed a lack of quality on CDs burnt from iTunes, so much as a real lack of volume. I usually buy my music on CD (call me old-fashioned) and then load into iTunes so I can create gig/teaching playlists. But I've have so many problems at gigs with sound systems that can't belt out the volume I need. Similarly, most iPod speakers have abysmally small volume when compared to an equivalent portable CD player.

Because iTunes is so handy for creating playlists, I've resorted to buying an expensive kick-a$$ PA system and lugging it around to gigs on a trolley. It's a pain to wheel around (heavy and unwieldy), but, after using and discarding about 4 iPod speaker systems and forever having problems with in-house systems not playing my burnt CDs properly, it was the best option.

Someone who works in the speaker busines told me that when an mp3 is created, it removes part of the file to make it smaller. Hence why the quality isn't the same as a song straight from the cd.

I understand that some software can create a higher quality mp3 than others but it still won't be the same quality as the source.

Yes, when I was producing my cd I learned that actual 'hardopy' cds are better for performing with (because of the sound quality vs mp3 format), but I can't quote or link anything as it was a couple of years ago. That did stick in my head though.

Thanks!