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Topic: What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ?? (Read 4729 times) previous topic - next topic
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What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ??

Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5
I found it on EZ CD Audio Converter 9.3.2.
Is it a new encoder ? Or is it the FDK AAC ?

Re: What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ??

Reply #1
FDK is an open-source AAC encoder made by Fraunhofer for Android Systems:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraunhofer_FDK_AAC
It encodes and decode AAC (LC-AAC, HE-AAC, HE-AAC v2) and FDK2 also decode xHE-AAC (but no encoding support).

FHG IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library is a different encoder than FDK (but I'm sure both have a lot in common in their DNA). The new version included in Poikosoft EZ CDA Converter include a new xHE-AAC (MPEG-D) encoder.

The AAC encoder is not new. Winamp (the old music player) had an AAC encoder and it was FhG IIS. The one you see in EZ CDA is the updated version.

Which one sound better? For some reasons people trust FhG more than FDK. I made a blind comparison last year at 128 kbps and more than 100 samples. FDK and FHG were near identical. However on hard and sharp samples FDK appeard a bit less robust.
https://hydrogenaud.io/index.php?topic=120062.0

Re: What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ??

Reply #2
FDK is an open-source AAC encoder made by Fraunhofer for Android Systems:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraunhofer_FDK_AAC
It encodes and decode AAC (LC-AAC, HE-AAC, HE-AAC v2) and FDK2 also decode xHE-AAC (but no encoding support).

FHG IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library is a different encoder than FDK (but I'm sure both have a lot in common in their DNA). The new version included in Poikosoft EZ CDA Converter include a new xHE-AAC (MPEG-D) encoder.

The AAC encoder is not new. Winamp (the old music player) had an AAC encoder and it was FhG IIS. The one you see in EZ CDA is the updated version.

Which one sound better? For some reasons people trust FhG more than FDK. I made a blind comparison last year at 128 kbps and more than 100 samples. FDK and FHG were near identical. However on hard and sharp samples FDK appeard a bit less robust.
https://hydrogenaud.io/index.php?topic=120062.0

Thanks for clearing me.

I've tested Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 vs Qaac 2.71. Both on CBR 64kbps.
Software Used:
- EZ CD Audio Converter 9.3.2 (64Bit)
     Comes with Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5

- dbPoweramp 17.3 (64Bit)
   Encoder used: Qaac 2.71, CoreAudioToolbox 7.10.9.0, AAC-LC Encoder, CBR 64

   
It looks like Fraunhofer IIS performing better than Qaac.
Fraunhofer IIS producing less artifacts than Qaac in low setting.
I've attached the samples I used. Please check it.

Re: What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ??

Reply #3
I've tested Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 vs Qaac 2.71.
It's just better to refer to it by the standard name: FhG (Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft) or Fraunhofer IIS. xHE-AAC is just one of the codecs or modes it can do, but the library contains xHE-AAC in the name now. It is just a newer version of the same closed source library used on desktop Windows players for years. FDK-AAC is different.
Both on CBR 64kbps.
For that bitrate Opus, HE-AAC, and xHE-AAC have superseded AAC-LC long back, and CBR is not the ideal mode always.
Also, EZ CD Audio converter already supports Apple AAC (i.e., what qaac uses) if iTunes is installed, so you didn't need to switch to dbPoweramp for this.
It looks like Fraunhofer IIS performing better than Qaac.
Fraunhofer IIS producing less artifacts than Qaac in low setting.
I've attached the samples I used. Please check it.
It's not really a fair test given that you didn't choose 32kHz for Apple while the Fraunhofer encoder forced 32kHz at that bitrate. I don't remember OTOH if Fraunhofer and Apple AAC "CBR" definitions were different, but it's definitely worth trying out with different modes of each encoder (2 FhG + 4 Apple modes) if you're gonna compare at a specific bitrate. 
At that bitrate both encoders sound like low anchors, with artifacts. Much harder to say which one is better without some critical listening and subjective opinion.

In the end, there's better codecs at this bitrate and there's really no point in doing such a test.
I've attached the samples I used. Please check it.
With the samples you used I found it hard to do a critical listening test, let alone ABX. Not my type of music, I guess.

 

Re: What is Fraunhofer IIS xHE-AAC Encoder Library 3.5.5 ??

Reply #4
That quite cheeky, It pretty much a upgraded version of Winamp AAC. Going to be testing the 192kbps VBR mode to see if any changes to the Winamp version & how It fares to QAAC.
Got locked out on a password i didn't remember. :/