How well can you hear audio quality?

https://www.npr.org/sections/thereco...-audio-quality

This has been up for a while but I only just tried it.

The page allows you to test yourself/your headphones or speakers to see if you can distinguish between 128kbps mp3, 320kbps or uncompressed WAV.

This is kind of important given some services charge more for higher quality and the big size of the uncompressed files. The bootleg community get very excited about such things.

I took the test expecting to choose a mixture of 320 and uncompressed because I wouldn't be able to tell. Instead I was completely consistent all 6 times choosing 128kbps as the best one!!!! :biggrin:

I picked WAV correctly for the last two samples. Wasn't listening real loud. PC to ancient Mackie 1202VLZ mixer to Yamaha HS7 monitors.

I can tell a low-quality MP3 when cymbals break up, a harsh sound and not a shimmer.

Picked 128kbps three times and 320 once. That was Coldplay, and I didn't make it through the whole sample.

I was all over the place. Picked WAV once, 128k twice and 320 three times

In a few years, the thread title (posted in Non) will be "How well can you hear?" :biggrin:

How well can you still hear?:biggrin:

If you really want to hear a difference, though the site does not have this as a choice, record something at 24-bit, 96khz. Then encoded it as a 128 mp3, and listen to playback comparing the two. It is obvious.

I believe the generally accepted threshold for mp3 artifact audibility under normal listening conditions with quality listening equipment is under 192 kbps.

It's much lower with Opus, which is an amazing codec.

The side effect of the power of Opus is it helps bands like Kiss lip sync more convincingly.