What is the best audio format for me?
After all, it’s not always clear which format is best for music. Some services, like Amazon, sell digital music in MP3 format. Although Apple offers song downloads from its iTunes Store in AAC format.
So the question arises what formats can your device play. If it is relatively new, it can play lossless formats like FLAC, as well as older lossy formats like MP3 and AAC.
And to add even more confusion, there is the listening factor. How important is sound quality to you?
To help you decide, here are some things you can do.
Check the format compatibility of your portable device
Before deciding on an audio format, the first thing to do is check its compatibility. This can usually be found on the manufacturer’s website or in the specifications section of the user manual (if there is one, of course).
If you are not going to use high quality audiophile equipment in the future, then lossy audio may be sufficient if you are only going to use your laptop. For greater compatibility, the MP3 file format is the safest bet. This is an old algorithm, but it works well. In fact, it is still the most compatible audio format for everyone.
However, if you are ripping tracks from a music CD, for example, it would be wise to keep a lossless copy on your computer / external hard drive and lose it for your laptop as well. This will keep your music safe in the future, even if new formats and hardware show up later.
Consider the bit rate
Bitrate is an important factor to know, especially if you are looking for the best quality music playback. However, the actual bit rate setting depends on the audio format you are using.
For example, the MP3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer III) format has a bit rate range of 32 to 320 kbps. There are also two encoding methods you can choose from: CBR and VBR. In this case, instead of encoding using the default CBR (constant bit rate) encoding, it is much better to use VBR (variable bit rate) encoding. This is because VBR will provide you with the best file size ratio.
The encoding you use is also an important factor.
