15 replies to this topic

[jeff3000]

I am looking to get myself a new system and was thinking of getting
good quality equipment;

HU; eclipse 7200, alpine 9887 or probably pionneer dex-p99rs from europe
speakers; morel elates, focals or dynaudio
amps; jl audio hd750 and hd600/4
sub: 12 inch focal, idq, or dayton ho

not sure yet how i would run all this (3ways, 2ways, etc..)


But my question is, considering that 80% of the music I listen to comes
from compressed files (mp3 and others) of relatively good quality of at
least 196kbps,
do you think its a waste of money to get top of the line components?

I would play these files from a cd or through the usb connection of an ipod
to get advantage of the da convertor these HU have.


Any of you guys with really good systems manage to make mp3 or other compressed
files music sound good? or great???

[syd-monster]

In short no.
You can only get a system to sound as good as the source, from there on its a gradual degredation, in the best systems there is less of a degredation in the lesser systems the difference is less obvious and the degredation is greater.
Bad music from the origin will always be bad out the speakers, there's no magic box that reverses that.

*hope the thread doesn't turn into a source debate*

SO +1, if you only plan to play compressed music, dont bother too much, just get something that isn't fatiguing and is easy to use for you.
Having said that, think about the future, will your love of music, develop into wanting to reproduce it better later on??

[br85]

Given how much space is going up and up and up, it's pretty easy to get 100 cd's worth of lossless data onto something very cheap now. Don't assume you'll always settle for a crappy source.

[Woody]

I play more mp3's through my Dyn's than cd's.... Still sounds good.

Wood

[BMWTurbo]

Can I suggest you try and listen to a good system back to back MP3 and CD to see if you are happy with the way it sounds.

I've found I can't stand listening to 'some' (not all) MP3's on my system, whereas on other systems they don't seem to bother me. This could be expectation biased though.

[1320ft]

I tend to find that my downloaded mp3's have a notable lack of quality, where as ones I have ripped myself sound pretty damn good.

Most of the mp3's I have, I also have the original album or on a compilation etc.

My mp3 cd's live in my car, so if they get stolen, it's no big deal. And I might grab a couple of particular (original) cd's I want to listen to before I go out.

Depends whether I'm in a "just want to put music on" or "want to turn it up and listen hard" mood.

[fuddbutter]

i play more MP3's than anything else in my car.

soon as i start that motor the difference between a good ripped mp3 and a cd are pretty much negligible..

unless you own a rolls or lexus thats super quiet

[~thematt~]

Some people (again) are answering one question, whilst the OP asks another.

Question: Will upgrading my speakers be a waste since I wish to play MP3's?

Its not asking whether CD's sound better then MP3's on a good system.

Answer: No, it wont be a waste. Better gear is better gear. You might then decide to change your bitrate on your MP3's because you no longer like the lesser-quality stuff, or (like me) start buying more CD's. But in the end, better gear is better gear.

*Note* I have in no way alluded to more EXPENSIVE gear being better gear. There is little correlation here.

[ardenteagle]

Its funny, I can't stand listening to anything below 320 kbps on my car or home audio. Even then to me I can hear a substantial difference to the full 1411 quality. Its sounds like someone has thrown a blanket over the speakers with the mp3's. All the detail has gone. Thats just me I suppose

I'm the same as thematt. I'm getting a fair collection of cd's now. Once you have good equipment It'll be like night and day between mp3's and cd's

Edited by ardenteagle, 30 October 2009 - 03:55 PM.

[037981]

There Is no replacement for compact disc what gets to me is those stupid people who make the cd it seems to me like every reckoning year the cd gets louder this is called the cd loudness wart \ is a video on youtube what I am trying to say is they don't make them like they used toalso if you want high-quality CDs get the Japanese version when it comes to making CD sthe Japanese are the best



Also a the end of the day they all compressed in a way

I am also guilty but so easy to just download it
now I'm buying the cd



So even if I got cd and copy it and converted it to high quality it will still be the same may even be worse quality
it is all relevant

I left out so much more information on here so if anyone else is interested in some more tell me thank you

[Pulse-R]

If you get good components, and install them properly, the sound will be good. I mostly listen to AM radio whilst driving, and the quality is quite good. (until they put a song on, that is).

most MP3's sound terrible ona good system, but on a mediocre system, you can't tell the difference.

[DG Phil]

~thematt~, on Oct 30 2009, 10:58 AM, said:

Answer: No, it wont be a waste. Better gear is better gear. You might then decide to change your bitrate on your MP3's because you no longer like the lesser-quality stuff, or (like me) start buying more CD's. But in the end, better gear is better gear.

Exactly, better speakers sound better regardless of the source, it's not as if they "know" where the signal is coming from.

Higher resolution does tend to reveal more flaws, but overall the experience will be better for it.

[Winno]

Woody, on Oct 30 2009, 08:15 AM, said:

I play more mp3's through my Dyn's than cd's.... Still sounds good.

Wood

Yeah Woody, but your system sounds like crap anyway

[Ben]

Pulse-R, on Oct 30 2009, 11:26 PM, said:

If you get good components, and install them properly, the sound will be good. I mostly listen to AM radio whilst driving, and the quality is quite good. (until they put a song on, that is).

most MP3's sound terrible ona good system, but on a mediocre system, you can't tell the difference.

Dude... I thought you were cool.... now I find this out... oh man, this is too much... You were like my hero or sumfin.. umm ... AM radio? 5h1t man, there's no comin back from that... whoa... and you mentioned this in an SQ related thread? dude... I thought you were cool man... I... I, ... whoa... I thought you were cool, but now I'm just not so sure anymore...

Winno, on Nov 4 2009, 01:44 PM, said:

Yeah Woody, but your system sounds like crap anyway

Surely your joking yeah?

In regards to using SQ components for MP3's, I still think a good set of components will sound better than a lesser set, when playing the same medium of music. At least you'll know it's the crappy recording that is at fault, not your system (which can give you piece of mind).

x2 with the dramas of playing "downloaded" music as compared to "ripped" CDs... I dunno how ppl can get it so wrong, but when I rip a CD into an MP3 format, it tends to sound a lot better than stuff I've downloaded as an MP3. Ditto with downloading music from iTunes... Some of the stuff that iTunes want money for is woeful.

[br85]

At the end of the day, most people would benefit more (given the type and quality of music they listen to, and the obscene amounts of bass their sub must be capable of playing) from getting 4 sets of $150 coaxials and installing them well than getting a $900 pair of components. Imaging is shot (as if it isn't in a car anyway) but dynamics and ability to keep up with the sub more than makes up for it.