What audio format should I use?

[Th3KaNgSt3R]

I listen to a lot of music on my 16gb iPhone 4 and I want to save some space.
Most of my music is 320 kbps MP3's which some 256 kbps and 192 kbps. I currently have 1150 songs that take up 7.6gb of space.

So how can I shrink the size of my music without a loss in sound quality? Which format do I use to save space and keep sound quality?

[lazard]

Mp3 vbr -v0

[Mrbobb]

^+1. Variable Bit Rate encoding is more efficient than Constant Bit Rate. BUT u HAVE to re-encode from original CD or Wave. U DO NOT re-encode from existing mp3s.

[gnasher729]

Originally Posted by Th3KaNgSt3R

I listen to a lot of music on my 16gb iPhone 4 and I want to save some space.
Most of my music is 320 kbps MP3's which some 256 kbps and 192 kbps. I currently have 1150 songs that take up 7.6gb of space.

So how can I shrink the size of my music without a loss in sound quality? Which format do I use to save space and keep sound quality?

In iTunes, when your iPhone is plugged in, click on the iPhone, click on "Summary", then under "Options" select "convert higher bitrate to 256 kbps AAC"; you can change the 256 to 192 or 128. All the music on your iPhone will be replaced with music at that bitrate; the originals on your computer will be unchanged.

Personally, I cannot hear a difference between 192 kbps AAC and higher bitrates with good headphones. Depending on how you use the iPhone, 128 kbps might do. Since the originals are not touched, you can change your mind at any time.

Downloading the music takes a long time, because everything needs to be converted.

[Th3KaNgSt3R]

Originally Posted by Mrbobb

^+1. Variable Bit Rate encoding is more efficient than Constant Bit Rate. BUT u HAVE to re-encode from original CD or Wave. U DO NOT re-encode from existing mp3s.

So if I only have the MP3's I won't be able to encode it to VBR?

Originally Posted by gnasher729

In iTunes, when your iPhone is plugged in, click on the iPhone, click on "Summary", then under "Options" select "convert higher bitrate to 256 kbps AAC"; you can change the 256 to 192 or 128. All the music on your iPhone will be replaced with music at that bitrate; the originals on your computer will be unchanged.

Personally, I cannot hear a difference between 192 kbps AAC and higher bitrates with good headphones. Depending on how you use the iPhone, 128 kbps might do. Since the originals are not touched, you can change your mind at any time.

Downloading the music takes a long time, because everything needs to be converted.

Does AAC save space compared to MP3's?

[Mrbobb]

Originally Posted by Th3KaNgSt3R

So if I only have the MP3's I won't be able to encode it to VBR?

If will work, but quality will suffer. Highly not recommended. But try it, and if you can't hear the difference, hey.

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Originally Posted by Th3KaNgSt3R

Does AAC save space compared to MP3's?

*Some* only worthwhile to consider if you are doing it from scratch. But then once ur on AAC you are LOCKED IN to the Apple's ecosystem and will make your life *difficult* if you ever to decide to move out of iPhone.

[Th3KaNgSt3R]

Alright then, considering that I have no CD's for my music, is there a way to take my music library of mostly 320 kbps MP3's and make them smaller without a huge decrease in sound quality?

I'm thinking of taking my all my music and consolidating them by converting them to 256 kbps or even 192 kbps MP3's, will there be a drastic change in sound quality?

Originally Posted by Mrbobb

*Some* only worthwhile to consider if you are doing it from scratch. But then once ur on AAC you are LOCKED IN to the Apple's ecosystem and will make your life *difficult* if you ever to decide to move out of iPhone.

So if I am not planning on moving out of iPhone, would 192 kbps or 256 kbps AAC files be the best option to save space and maintain sound quality?

[scaredpoet]

Originally Posted by Mrbobb

*Some* only worthwhile to consider if you are doing it from scratch. But then once ur on AAC you are LOCKED IN to the Apple's ecosystem and will make your life *difficult* if you ever to decide to move out of iPhone.

Absolutely not true at all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Audio_Coding

"AAC is also the default or standard audio format for YouTube, iPhone, iPod, iPad, Nintendo DSi, iTunes, DivX Plus Web Player and PlayStation 3. It is supported on PlayStation Vita, Wii (with the Photo Channel 1.1 update installed), Sony Walkman MP3 series and later, Sony Ericsson; Nokia, Android, BlackBerry, and webOS-based mobile phones, with the use of a converter. AAC has also seen some adoption on in-dash car audio especially on high-end units such as the Pioneer AVIC series."

It used to be that Apple DRM'ed AAC files purchased from the iTunes Store, but never did they do this for songs ripped from users' CDs. And all audio content purchased on iTunes now is DRM free.

The OP can convert all his stuff to AAC and be perfectly fine if he moves to a different platform, unless he maybe decides he wants a Palm Pre or something similarly obscure.

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Originally Posted by Th3KaNgSt3R

Alright then, considering that I have no CD's for my music, is there a way to take my music library of mostly 320 kbps MP3's and make them smaller without a huge decrease in sound quality?

You can downconvert your 320kbps to 256 or lower just fine. The decrease in sound quality should be equal to converting from the CD source, so don't worry about it.

Just be aware that if you delete the 320kbps files, there won't be any way to go back UP in quality from the down-converted files, should you decide you're not happy with the lower bitrate.

So if I am not planning on moving out of iPhone, would 192 kbps or 256 kbps AAC files be the best option to save space and maintain sound quality?

Yes. It's fine even if you leave Apple forever later.