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Topic: High Quality radio streams (Read 17698 times) previous topic - next topic
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High Quality radio streams

Since bandwidth is relatively cheap these days, and download speeds high: Are there any high quality (320 kbps, or some high quality VBR, or if it's available lossless) radio streams of popular radio stations available?

Preferably BBC radio 2 or 3, or a dutch station like Radio 2 (if there are dutch people around here...)

High Quality radio streams

Reply #1 –
160kbps barely available, sometimes its possible to find 192kbps, but it will be unofficial relays.

Example of 160k MP3 stream: Magic 105.4 (UK) (Soft Rock)

High Quality radio streams

Reply #2 –
Quote from: ZinCh on
160kbps barely available, sometimes its possible to find 192kbps, but it will be unofficial relays.

Example of 160k MP3 stream: Magic 105.4 (UK) (Soft Rock)


Thanks for your reply!

Maybe it's better to start looking at a radio tuner for my Mac... I've got a radio/TV cable next to my iMac, does anyone know about a compatible tuner? I could also look at a dedicated "HiFi" tuner, but I don't think it's worth the premium price...

High Quality radio streams

Reply #4 –
BBC were briefly experimenting with VBR Vorbis live radio streams years ago.

Would be great to see this back again.

High Quality radio streams

Reply #5 –
In UK they mostly use Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB), and switching to DAB+

related website: http://www.digitalradiotech.co.uk/

High Quality radio streams

Reply #7 –
Upstream bandwidth is by far more expensive than downstream bandwidth. That's probably why we don't see many streams with higher bitrates than 128kbps.

And really, 128 sounds just fine to me.

High Quality radio streams

Reply #8 –
All the BBC streams on iPlayer are 128kbps AAC, except Radio 3 which is 192kbps AAC.

This is good enough I think.

Cheers,
David.

High Quality radio streams

Reply #9 –
Try http://www.tuner2.com

They have heaps of AAC streams which even at 64Kbps can sound really good...
Every night with my star friends / We eat caviar and drink champagne
Sniffing in the VIP area / We talk about Frank Sinatra
Do you know Frank Sinatra? / He's dead

High Quality radio streams

Reply #10 –
Would you hear a difference? (I mean the original poster)

I mean, not even "real" FM radio as good as lossless or even 320, am I right?
I'm the one in the picture, sitting on a giant cabbage in Mexico, circa 1978.
Reseñas de Rock en Español: www.estadogeneral.com

High Quality radio streams

Reply #11 –
For the record, german "Deutschlandfunk" and "Deutschlandradio" have vorbis streams available.

Concerning your lossless streams: Even though your bandwidth might have increased in the last years, you have to consider that also there could be more people listening to internet radio nowadays, so offering high bitrate or even lossless streams would mean highly increased bandwith usage for the stations with virtually no  discernible benefit.
It's only audiophile if it's inconvenient.

High Quality radio streams

Reply #12 –
None of this is the Beeb or Dutch, but...

Winamp's shoutcast stream listing service has an option to search by "broadband" quality (>128kbps). Numerous 320kpbs channels are listed.
This direct link should take you straight to them. There are a few broadband stations in the "Nederlandstalig" section.

The (icecast.org) dir.xiph.org listing site has a couple hundred stations streaming ogg vorbis, which works very well indeed with modest bitrates. To my undying consternation, both kpfa and kcsm killed their ogg vorbis streams. "Con Sabor" just isn't as good at 24k mp3 as it was in 56k vorbis.

I agree with neophyte that Radioparadise is great, although they tend to be too mellow in the AM (Pacific) for my taste. First heard Imogen Heap solo and the Iron&Wine/Calexico EP on RP, which is a pretty good recommendation.

High Quality radio streams

Reply #14 –
Quote from: iQwerty on
Quote from: ZinCh on
160kbps barely available, sometimes its possible to find 192kbps, but it will be unofficial relays.

Example of 160k MP3 stream: Magic 105.4 (UK) (Soft Rock)


Thanks for your reply!

Maybe it's better to start looking at a radio tuner for my Mac... I've got a radio/TV cable next to my iMac, does anyone know about a compatible tuner? I could also look at a dedicated "HiFi" tuner, but I don't think it's worth the premium price...


Straight from Wikipedia on Hybrid Digital Radio, take it or leave it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HD_radio

"The FM hybrid digital/analog mode offers four options which can carry approximately 100, 112, 125, or 150 kbit/s of lossy data ... HD Radio also provides several pure digital modes with up to 300 kbit/s bitrate, and enabling extra features like surround sound. ... "fallback" condition where it reverts to a more-robust 25 kbit/s signal.
FM stations have the option to subdivide their datastream into sub-channels (e.g., 88.1 HD1, HD2, HD3) of varying audio quality. ... these channels could be sub-divided into CD-quality (100 kbit/s), FM-quality (25-50 kbit/s), AM-quality (12 kbit/s), or Talk-quality (5 kbit/s) channels. Alternatively, they could broadcast one single channel at 300 kbit/s."