Understand what bit depth is, how it works, and how this feature will affect the quality of music during auditions;
Currently, many of those who are looking for quality audio or quality music keep mentioning “Hi-Res”, FLAC 24-bit, and MQA (Master Quality Audio) files. This is a growing trend in high-end smartphones that are trying to offer higher audio quality both in their DAC and in support of advanced Bluetooth audio codecs like LDAC, developed by Sony. Additionally, there are music streaming services that promise lossless audio quality, like Tidal.
The promise made by audio equipment manufacturers, developers of audio streaming and music streaming formats, is simple: superior audio quality due to the increased amount of data, also known as bit depth or English bit depth . There are 24 bits of 1 and 0 versus 16 bits on the CD. Of course, these high-resolution files are more expensive due to their quality, but the more bits, the better the result will be when listening to music, right?
Low resolution audio is usually displayed using a jagged wave graph (with ladders). Source: soundguys
Low resolution audio is usually displayed using a jagged wave graph (with ladders). Source: soundguys
Well, the answer to the previous question is: not necessarily. The argument for a value in increasing bit depth is not based on something scientific, but on the distortion of what is actually happening and the exploitation of consumer ignorance about the media they are consuming. That is, it is a fact that stores selling 24-bit tracks reap far more benefits than a real improvement in promised sound quality.
Bit depth and sound quality.
The greatest example of companies selling 24-bit audio is the demonstration of a jagged sine wave, like stairs. When we look at a file that has a resolution of 16 bits, we see an irregular line, but when we look at the same song in 24 bits, it seems to be a practically smooth line, with better definition. It is a basic visual illustration, but depending on the person’s knowledge of the subject, he can be easily fooled.
Why use 24-bit or more audio files?
The utility of using a high-level bit depth applies to studios, because with each filter and conversion that is applied, the background noise increases. This increase in noise occurs due to the insertion of a new wave, as explained above. In other words, when using a higher bit depth level, the sound engineer prevents the original audio from generating noise by manipulating it for mixing and mastering.
However, remember that this will be more useful for audio production and not for the listener, as explained above.
conclusion
What will make the difference will be the balance between the sounds made in the mastering and not the bit depth itself, since the 16 bits of the CD are already more than enough for music listeners.
