[vorbis] OGG Versus MP3

[noprivacy at earthlink.net]

> I think it was the same guy who asked a few weeks ago. I don't think
> anyone answered - which is a shame because I'd like to know too. Also, I

It would be nice to have a bit more info.

> The main problem with MP3 is that a lot of people use crappy encoders or
> encoders missing VBR and joint stereo.

Actually, according to tests on HydrogenAudio, most mp3 encoders really
aren't all that bad.  Even Xing, which people have complained about for
years, turns out to not be all that bad, in spite of missing VBR.

About the only one that is/was used that was known to be terrible was Blade.
The rest of the problems tended to be bugs etc. in specific versions.

> encoders missing VBR and joint stereo. The difference between recent
> Lame VBR and Ogg Vorbis can be quite small.

By the time you get into the upper bit rates, they all start sounding near
transparent.  (By upper, I mean LAME's APS setting and comparable settings
for others.  Lame's APS averages around 190-200kbps with max of 256 and APE
averages around 224-256kbps with max of 320.)

This is partially due to LAME, Fhg, etc. being tuned for the higher bps more
carefully than what AAC and Vorbis have been.

But at the more limited rates (128k etc.), MP3 can't compete with Vorbis,
AAC, MPC, etc.

Sure, you can always find 'problem' samples that an encoder will have
trouble with, but all encoders will have problems with various samples.

<p>> Here's a comparison of Vorbis and Lame. It has a few more facts than a
> lot of sites I've seen:
>
> www.digit-life.com/articles/oggvslame/

Pretty pictures.... But considering audio quality is entirely subjective,
and is dependant upon how people hear, I'm not so sure that they are
relevant.

Sure, frequency range etc. can be important, but it's only one part of what
we hear and how we hear.

<p>--- >8 ----
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