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> Why would people bother with crappy MP3s when they could have no-loss storage instead? SMH. This one really boggles the mind indeed and I have a theory. But

> Why would people bother with crappy MP3s when they could have no-loss storage instead? SMH. This one really boggles the mind indeed and I have a theory. But first basically: to me it's the same as saying, if you could have the real DaVinci's Gioconda painting at your home, "Look, I've got this 300 dpi color print of the Gioconda and I don't care, because from 10 meters away you cannot tell the difference". This, in itself, when you can save tens of thousands of songs in FLAC (CD quality) on a 1 TB is just seriously WTF. But I think the reason people are still using mp3s when they could be using FLAC files is because there's an entire industry, operating at a loss, streaming non-CD quality. And they have to brainwash everybody into thinking lossy audio still makes sense in 2021. Storage, however, is only going to get cheaper and cheaper. The mental gymnastics going to be needed in the upcoming years to keep arguing for mp3s over FLAC is going to be plain mindboggling. I don't care if I can't consciously hear the difference. I still want the correct file/sound. I can put 60 000 songs at CD quality on a 1 TB stick / SSD. Soon we'll be able to put 600 000 songs at CD quality on memory sticks / SSDs. And you can bet you'll still have people nostalgic of Winamp and Napster explaining how mp3 makes perfect sense. FLAC are also a bitperfect archival format btw, mp3 ain't. I rip all my CDs (and I still collect CDs) to FLAC file. The only time I convert to mp3 is because my car's media system reads mp3 but not FLAC: and when I need to convert I'm happy that I don't have a lossy format to start with.

mixmastamyk 5y ago
My Pioneer car stereo plays flacs, if that helps any.
bigiain 5y ago
I don't actively seek out mp3 format files, but I have a bunch dating back to when I was ripping cds, vinyl, and cassettes to 100MB Zip disks in the late 90s - where I'll probably never have access to the original sourced to re rip them. Forgotten local bands, mix tapes, desk tapes fro live gigs, stuff like that. I'd replace my Jump Back Jack, or Hungarian Rap Sadists 128k mp3 files in a heartbeat - if I could get my hands on the vinyl to re rip them. These days I buy a lot of cds and vinyl from bands at merch desks or off bandcamp, but I can't remember the last time I ripped any of those, most of what I listen to is Apple Music streaming (a lot of which is lossless these days) or Spotify Premium. I have a few TB worth of media server space with a huge music collection on it, but I didn't even notice it was offline for a week or more recently, because it's way easier for me to stream off my phone, laptop, or AppleTV - and if I'm in the mood to listen to stuff that's not on streaming, I'm almost certainly in the mood to pull the vinyl out and give it a spin...
bananaportfolio 5y ago
I once received a 96kbps copy of a very old studio album that became one of my favorite albums ever. I listened to the 96kbps version countless times. It sounded dark and otherwise colored in a way that I felt added to the vibe of the album. I was travelling and didn't have the album on me, but I wanted to show it to a friend. I downloaded a 256 or 384kbps version, and much to my surprise, I didn't like the way it sounded at a higher bit rate at all! The added clarity made some instruments stand out a bit more than others, and I found it distracting and too lively. The delta in quality between 384kbps and FLAC (to my concern-worn ears) is narrow enough that I can't really tell a major difference.
- stan_rogers 5y ago
  That probably had less to do with the higher bit rate than it did a remaster. A huge amount of music that was great on the LP/cassette/8-track release, and even on the early CD (if it happened after the very early brick-wall-filtered era), was absolutely ruined by remastering post-2000.

mixmastamyk 5y ago

My Pioneer car stereo plays flacs, if that helps any.

bigiain 5y ago

I don't actively seek out mp3 format files, but I have a bunch dating back to when I was ripping cds, vinyl, and cassettes to 100MB Zip disks in the late 90s - where I'll probably never have access to the original sourced to re rip them. Forgotten local bands, mix tapes, desk tapes fro live gigs, stuff like that. I'd replace my Jump Back Jack, or Hungarian Rap Sadists 128k mp3 files in a heartbeat - if I could get my hands on the vinyl to re rip them. These days I buy a lot of cds and vinyl from bands at merch desks or off bandcamp, but I can't remember the last time I ripped any of those, most of what I listen to is Apple Music streaming (a lot of which is lossless these days) or Spotify Premium. I have a few TB worth of media server space with a huge music collection on it, but I didn't even notice it was offline for a week or more recently, because it's way easier for me to stream off my phone, laptop, or AppleTV - and if I'm in the mood to listen to stuff that's not on streaming, I'm almost certainly in the mood to pull the vinyl out and give it a spin...

bananaportfolio 5y ago

I once received a 96kbps copy of a very old studio album that became one of my favorite albums ever. I listened to the 96kbps version countless times. It sounded dark and otherwise colored in a way that I felt added to the vibe of the album. I was travelling and didn't have the album on me, but I wanted to show it to a friend. I downloaded a 256 or 384kbps version, and much to my surprise, I didn't like the way it sounded at a higher bit rate at all! The added clarity made some instruments stand out a bit more than others, and I found it distracting and too lively. The delta in quality between 384kbps and FLAC (to my concern-worn ears) is narrow enough that I can't really tell a major difference.

stan_rogers 5y ago
That probably had less to do with the higher bit rate than it did a remaster. A huge amount of music that was great on the LP/cassette/8-track release, and even on the early CD (if it happened after the very early brick-wall-filtered era), was absolutely ruined by remastering post-2000.