You may be confusing kHz sample rate with kbps bit rate. I do not think you can distinguish 48kHz vs 192kHz over bad earbuds; I have my doubts that most people

You may be confusing kHz sample rate with kbps bit rate. I do not think you can distinguish 48kHz vs 192kHz over bad earbuds; I have my doubts that most people can tell even on high-end equipment. An in-depth technical exploration of the issue here: http://people.xiph.org/~xiphmont/demo/neil-young.html http://people.xiph.org/~xiphmont/demo/neil-young.html