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Poll

What lossy formats do you use on a *regular* basis?

AAC or HE-AAC v1,v2 (.m4a, .aac…)
[ 57 ] (24.5%)
LossyWAV + lossless (.lossy.flac, .lossy.wv, .lossy.tak…)
[ 9 ] (3.9%)
MP3 (.mp3)
[ 85 ] (36.5%)
Musepack (.mpc)
[ 11 ] (4.7%)
Ogg Vorbis (.ogg)
[ 23 ] (9.9%)
Opus (.opus)
[ 46 ] (19.7%)
AC3 Dolby Digital (AC-3, E-AC-3)
[ 1 ] (0.4%)
Other lossy format
[ 1 ] (0.4%)

Total Members Voted: 233

Voting closed: 2017-12-05 05:23:37

Topic: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)  (Read 44177 times) previous topic - next topic
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2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

What lossy  formats do you use on a *regular* basis?  :)

This is how 2016 ends




Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #1
I put in my vote for MP3, since that is the format I encode to, for local storage.

The majority of my listening is through spotify, so I could also have chosen Ogg Vorbis, but the specific format doesn't really matter when you're streaming.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #2
I voted AAC but i don't use it anymore since i got a new 256gb microsd & use flac now.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #3
I voted AAC but I feel like there is a drumroll happening for Opus. Once a couple things get sorted out with the format I'm ready to make the jump. I have already noticed that it's more efficient than AAC at multichannel audio (did some fast ABX tests only for myself) and the threshold of transparency is at lower bit rates than AAC. I was a bit shocked because I expected AAC to be just slightly above Opus in the tests. I guess we need to consider multichannel ABX tests for formats that support it. Some tests that I've done after that incident showed me that results don't or may not importantly mirror the same results we have from Stereo tests. Also after that, something told me to do an efficiency test to lossless formats with similar results (size reduction and speeds don't reflect the same results as Stereo content tests).

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #4
Voted MP3 as that's what I encode to still, but I use AAC and MP3 in equal measure and stupid poll won't let me vote for multiple.
Creature of habit.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #5
Since Hydrogenaud.io has a new engine a poll admits only one choice (and no multiple questions.)

All claims to administrators of forum.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #6
Only accepting one option makes this poll nearly pointless, in my opinion. Why don't you try Google Forms, Surveymonkey, Typeform or similar?

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #7
In 2017
storage equipment is very cheap and high capacity
why not use 320k、V0 MP3 or high bits AAC replace others ?
I think format compatibility is important than quality...

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #8
I think format compatibility is important than quality...
I agree, though I don't see quality being an issue.  Of those fearful about quality, very few are aligned with reality; especially among those preaching high bitrates and/or non-mainstream formats.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #9
why not use 320k、V0 MP3 or high bits AAC replace others ?
Because that's not how people see or take lossy codecs. For example I like to archive in lossless but when I use lossy I like to go the lowest as possible to be transparent or almost. I think MP3 V3 or AAC ~96/128 or Opus ~96/128 are more than enough .

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #10
I transcode everything to AAC...  I use a higher bitrate as I have a 160 GB iPod that can store weeks worth of music at that bitrate.  iTunes plus preset at 256 kb/s.  I tried an ABX to see if I could tell the difference from the original vs. the AAC file, and I had to guess almost every time.  Bliss.
JXL

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #11
I switched to wavpack lossy (+ correction for lossless archive). I agree compatibility is an important factor, but wavpack is playable on all the devices I use for playback (PC, phone, car(via  phone)), so the convenience of only having to maintain one music library is what is more important to me, especially now that I have less time to spend in front of my PC tinkering.

The size of the lossy part is rather large, but oh well. I don't need to have my whole library on my phone anyway.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #12
Stlll on Musepack because AFAIK it's still the fastest decoding lossy codec on Rockbox. If it ain't broken, etc.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #13
I voted Opus. I cherish freedom and quality, and Opus checks both boxes. Compatibility isn't a good argument. Freedom respecting formats will never gain wide adoption if those of us who care don't base our purchasing decisions with that in mind.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #14
I use a variety of formats at Extreme and Insane bitrates where their relative quality is indistinguishable, encoded at different time periods, lately mostly Musepack SV7 and Ogg Vorbis, which have wide application support with full metadata. On PC all formats have almost equal usability. I use WavPack Lossy for source material of reduced quality, cassette tape, mini disc, transcodes from lossy codecs with editing, where lossless file sizes would seem excessive. I can recognize those files by the file extension since I do not use WV lossless at all.

The only format of the above I do not use is AAC, because I do not like the metadata system in the Apple container, which changes from one player version to another, sometimes exposing unreadable technical fields. Actually, I also do not use lossyWav either.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #15
Opus ~128 kbps for me.
Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #16
I used OGG exclusively for my dedicated music players before switching to MP3 since the music app I'm using on my mobile device currently doesn't support Album Artist tags for Vorbis. Could have re-encoded to AAC instead but at the time it was a bit of a 'screw it' decision (which is weird in hindsight given I spent quite a bit of time A/B'ing AAC vs FLAC a few years ago to find the lowest transparent bitrate to me). Not sure it makes much difference at 320kbps CBR though, apart from storage space.

So my vote would be split between OGG/MP3, since I still have an great number of previously transcoded OGG tracks as well.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #17
I know the reaons why we don't have multiple choices but I still would have liked another option, in my case for WavPack Hybrid. For daily use it's Opus.
marlene-d.blogspot.com

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #18
This hasn't changed for me in about eight years now, FLAC for archival/storage and AAC for playback.
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

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #19
I know the reaons why we don't have multiple choices but I still would have liked another option, in my case for WavPack Hybrid. For daily use it's Opus.
Could you please elaborate on why you went with WavPack Hybrid, but still use Opus as daily lossless instead of the lossy WavPack part? Why not go with WavPack lossless + Opus, then?

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #20
FLAC on my desktop, transcoded to Opus for my phone.  My players will support just about any format and they're all pretty much transparent at the bitrate I tend to use; I chose Opus just because I like FOSS.

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #21
FLAC on desktop for archivization purposes only. I almost always listen to music on my phone. 128kbps Opus for CD rips (and sometimes for some decent 320kbps MP3s) and 96kbps Opus for 128kbps MP3 transcodes (my library was full of MP3, but I'm transcoding them to Opus to shrink them further).
sox -e float -b 32 -V4 -D gain -3 rate -v 48000 norm -1
opusenc --bitrate 128

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #22
Could you please elaborate on why you went with WavPack Hybrid, but still use Opus as daily lossless instead of the lossy WavPack part? Why not go with WavPack lossless + Opus, then?

Certainly. WavPack Hybrid is used for archiving, Opus for my Smartphone.
marlene-d.blogspot.com

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #23
Could you please elaborate on why you went with WavPack Hybrid, but still use Opus as daily lossless instead of the lossy WavPack part? Why not go with WavPack lossless + Opus, then?

Certainly. WavPack Hybrid is used for archiving, Opus for my Smartphone.
The part I don't understand is why you are using hybrid (lossy + correction file). If you are never using the lossy part of your archive, you might as well archive in wavpack lossless, and save several Mb per track at same compression settings...

Re: 2017 Format Poll (lossy codecs)

Reply #24
Since Hydrogenaud.io has a new engine a poll admits only one choice (and no multiple questions.)

Change the question, then. Comparing the results with previous years is anyway broken and useless, so there is no point in keeping a question that even pretends they will be comparable.

Following KozmoNaut, I choose MP3 because that is the format I encode to. And it is also the lossy format I listen to most when it comes to files as opposed to streams. I too think streams are a different thing, and since now I can only answer one codec, I go for the one I use for files without thinking of how much I listen to Spotify.

I regularly listen to files:
- those MP3s
- other lossy files in whatever codec they may have arrived (MP3 is more than 99 percent; then AAC and WMA and AC3 should be mentioned for a "regular basis" question)
I regularly listen to streams:
- Spotify (Vorbis)
- checking out bands and releases at Bandcamp and Soundcloud (MP3)
- inevitably, streaming video in whatever their formats are at the moment ... YouTube change every now and then, and I have no idea what format my newspaper sends to my Android browser