iPod touch Bit rate

[thewind21]

Is it worth ripping cds at a higher bit rate? After reading some tips in a magazine I started ripping cds onto my new mbp at 320kbps for better quality but around 2gb on my touch has been taken with only 15 albums.

Is the increase in quality really worth it?

Thanks

 

[razorianfly]

It depends entirely on personal preference.

Personally I currently rip my music into AAC at 256 kbps. The quality of the tracks are great. Ok, it takes up more space than, say, importing in Mp3,
but I can actually say I notice a difference between using the Mp3 and AAC codec. The sound is of much better quality when played through my iMac's
speakers, and also much crisper I find.

R-Fly

 

[Blue Velvet]

Is the quality worth it? Depends on how good your hearing is and what kind of headphones you have. Personally 228 is the lowest I can put up with, which is OK for being out and about but isn't too great on the stereo at home. In the last year or so, I've been ripping everything at 320AAC and in another year or so, depending on what ever the new iPods are like then, will start ripping in lossless.

It's a trade-off, a personal preference. Rip a couple of your favorite songs at three bitrates — 128, 192 and 256 for instance — listen to them in the usual setting for you and see what you think. Some people would rather have fewer albums to carry around in higher quality, others have more variety but in lower quality.

The only problem of lower bitrates is if or when you start getting into better quality equipment a year or more down the line, which usually means reripping everything all over again. Good speakers can be mercilessly revealing on anything under 320AAC.

 

[Galley]

From my testing, anything higher than 192Kbps VBR AAC is overkill.