The MP3 format is short for MPEG Layer3. It is one of the digital audio streaming formats developed by Fraunhofer IIS and THOMSON and later approved as part of the MPEG1 and MPEG2 compressed video and audio standards. This scheme is the most complex scheme of the MPEG Layer 1/2/3 family. It requires the most computer time for encoding compared to the other two and provides more high quality coding. Mainly used for real-time audio transmission over network channels and for CD Audio encoding.

MP3 format- streaming format. This means that data transmission occurs as a stream of independent individual data blocks - frames. To do this, the original signal during encoding is divided into segments of equal duration, called frames and encoded separately. During decoding, the signal is formed from a sequence of decoded frames.

High degree compactness MP3 format Compared to PCM 16Bit Stereo 44.1kHz (CD Audio) and similar formats, while maintaining the same sound quality, it is achieved using additional quantization according to a set scheme that minimizes quality loss.

The latter, in turn, is achieved by taking into account the peculiarities of human hearing, including the effect of masking a weak signal of one frequency band by a stronger signal of the neighboring band, when it occurs, or by a strong signal of the previous frame, causing a temporary decrease in ear sensitivity to the signal of the current frame. It also takes into account the inability of most people to distinguish between signals that are below a certain level in power, different for different frequency bands.

Such techniques are called adaptive coding and allow you to save on the least significant details of sound from the point of view of human perception. The degree of compression, and, accordingly, the amount of additional quantization, are determined not by the format, but by the user himself at the time of setting the encoding parameters. The bitrate for encoding a signal similar to CD Audio (44.1kHz 16Bit Stereo) ranges from the highest, 320kbs (320 kilobits per second, also written kbs, kbps or kb/s), to 96kbs and below.

The term bitrate generally means the total value of the stream, the amount of information transmitted per unit of time, and therefore is not related to the internal subtleties of the structure of the stream, its meaning does not depend on whether the stream contains mono or stereo, or five-channel audio with text in different languages, or anything else.

In the tests, specially invited experienced experts specializing in the subjective assessment of sound quality could not distinguish between the sound of the original track on the CD and encoded in MP3 format with a compression ratio of 6:1, that is, with a bitrate of 256kbs. True, the tests were carried out on a small amount of material, and in fact, not everything is so good, it often happens that you really need to use 320kbs. For myself, I considered this a sufficient reason for a complete transition to encoding with a bitrate of 320kbs.

Lower bitrates, despite their popularity, do not make it possible to provide the proper encoding quality, which undeservedly provided MP3 with a bad reputation as an amateur format. In fact, although 256kbs and even 320kbs also do not make it possible to carry out completely transparent encoding, the differences from CD Audio, according to which the test MP3 is encoded, are comparable to the differences between CD Audio itself and the original analog signal, from which it was derived by digitization. That is, of course, there are losses, but they are insignificant from the point of view of someone who thinks the quality of CD Audio is sufficient. In fact, their detection is usually a non-trivial task on Hi-Fi equipment.

Present and future MP3.

MP3 format today has two huge advantages over other available formats of its kind. One of them is that none of the existing similar formats can yet be said to fully guarantee the stable preservation of sound quality at sufficiently high bitrates, except for MP3 format that has withstood the test of time. Perhaps the only competitor I know of in this regard is the latest versions of the ATRAC format used in minidiscs.

For MP3 format also written a lot of convenient software. This fact reflects the second, no less important advantage - for the coming years, and possibly for the whole decade, MP3 format has become a de facto standard, so much has been invested in it by the parties using it, including digital radio stations.

MP3 format remained unknown for quite some time, but a few years ago its popularity began to explode, deposits of illegal files began to appear just as quickly in MP3 format. Now the production of hardware MP3 players has been launched, and pocket ones, and for cars. In this way, MP3 format became the first mass-accepted audio storage format since CD-Audio.

Although MP3 format appeared a long time ago, the newer formats that claim to take its place, which have appeared by now, all turned out to be amateur. They may or may not be good compared to the MP3 format at low bitrates, depending on the track and the particular person's hearing, but in place MP3 format 256kbs... 320kbs are not able to claim.

Possibly a monopoly MP3 format in the field of computers at low bitrates, however, will be somewhat broken by the new format from Microsoft - WMA. But it's too early to talk about it. On the other hand, the entry of Microsoft into this market with such a strong development means that the AAC and VQF branches that turned out to be unsuccessful are quickly eliminated. However, there is still hope that AAC will be further developed.

Description of the encoding process

Preparing for coding. Frame structure Before encoding, the source signal is divided into sections called frames, each of which is encoded separately and placed in the final file independently of the others. The playback sequence is determined by the frame order. Each frame can be encoded with different parameters. Information about them is contained in the frame header.

Start of encoding Encoding begins with the fact that the original signal is divided into several filters, representing separate frequency ranges, the sum of which is equivalent to the original signal.

How the psychoacoustic model works For each range, the magnitude of the masking effect created by the signal from neighboring ranges and the signal from the previous frame is determined. If it exceeds the signal power of the range of interest or the signal power in it is below the audibility threshold determined empirically, then for this frame given range signal is not encoded.

For the remaining data for each range, it determines how many bits per sample we can sacrifice so that the loss from additional quantization is below the magnitude of the masking effect. This takes into account that the loss of one bit leads to the introduction of quantization noise of the order of 6 dB.

Completion of encoding After the completion of the psychoacoustic model, the final stream is formed, which is additionally encoded according to Huffman, and this completes the encoding.

Note In practice, the scheme is somewhat more complicated. For example, it is necessary to comply with the bitrate requirements. Depending on the encoder, when the bitrate is increased, this leads to various kinds of relaxations when selecting the retained part of the original signal, and when it is lowered, vice versa, to tougher criteria.

Ways to encode a stereo signal

As part of MP3 format stereo encoding is allowed by four various methods:

dual channel- Each channel receives exactly half of the stream and is encoded separately as a mono signal. Recommended mainly in cases where different channels contain a fundamentally different signal - say, text in different languages.
Exhibited in some encoders on demand.

Stereo- Each channel is encoded separately, but the encoder may decide to give one channel more space than the other. This can be useful in the case when, after discarding a part of the signal that lies below the hearing threshold or is completely masked, it turned out that the code does not completely fill the volume allocated for this channel, and the encoder can use this place to encode another channel. The documentation for mp3enc notes that this, for example, avoids encoding "silence" in one channel when there is a signal in another.
This mode is set by default in most ISO-based encoders, and is also used by FhG IIS products at bit rates above 192kbs. Let's apply also on lower bitrates of the order 128kbs... 160kbs.

Joint Stereo (MS Stereo)- The stereo signal is decomposed into the average between the channels and the difference. In this case, the second one is encoded with a lower bitrate. This allows you to slightly increase the quality of coding in the usual situation, when the channels are in phase. But it also leads to its sharp deterioration if signals are encoded that do not coincide in phase. In particular, phase shift is almost always present in recordings digitized from audiocassettes, but it also occurs on CDs, especially if the CD itself was recorded at one time from audiotape. On the other hand, the (first?) attempt has already been made to write a program for automatic phase shift correction. Perhaps it will help a little to those who like to encode digitizations from audio cassettes with a bitrate of about 128kbs.
The mode is set by default by the FhG IIS production, as well as by the Lame encoder, for bit rates from 112kbs to 192kbs.

Joint Stereo (MS/IS Stereo)- Introduces another stereo simplification method that improves the quality of encoding at particularly low bitrates. It consists in the fact that for some frequency ranges, not even a difference signal is left, but only the ratio of the signal powers in different channels. It is clear that an even smaller bitrate is used to encode this information.
Unlike all the previous ones, this method results in a loss of phase information, but the space saving benefits in favor of the average signal are higher if we are talking about very low bitrates.
This mode is used by default by FhG IIS products for high frequencies at bitrates from 96kbs and below (this mode is practically not used by other quality encoders).
But, as already mentioned, when using this mode, phase information is lost, and any anti-phase signal is also lost.

Simple Mistakes by MP3 Users

One of the biggest misconceptions about the MP3 format comes up all the time in the "128kbs vs 256kbs - what bitrate to encode" debate. The arguments of the supporters of the first option are exhausted by a reminder that such MP3s are half the size. The statement that it is better to keep CD Audio instead of MP3 256kbs is untenable - quality MP3 format 256kbs... 320kbs is practically the same as the original, and the volume occupied is 4.5-6 times less. The misconception is that even 128kbs gives a fairly high quality. In fact, for people who consciously choose 128kbs, maintaining close to original quality is simply not too important, since their equipment usually does not better players- "soap dishes;". At the same time, many CD owners encode them in MP3 format, even simply because they need to change CDs much less often - more than fifty hours of MP3 music with a bitrate of 320kbs will fit on my 8Gb hard drive. As they say, in this case, the motives of 128kbs users are incomprehensible to us.

In order not to be able to distinguish MP3 format 128kbs from the original, you either need to be deaf or get worse equipment. And what's on most computer systems from the moment of purchase, there is a terribly noisy sound card from ESS, which is well known to everyone. Only for some time now it seems to me that the matter is also in the constant poisoning with low-quality sound, and, as a result, a temporary (but constantly renewed) loss of sensitivity. Too often we listen to what we shouldn't listen to, and it's not just the characteristics of computer technology - MP3 format 128kbs with normal hearing won't appeal to ESS either. Of course, in comparison with the rattling of the speakers of a street kiosk to the accompaniment of a tram, the sound MP3 format 128kbs may sound pretty good, but it's not normal.

What to do with all this? Yes, just take care of your ears from unnecessary torture, it is useful. As for the card, a simple low-noise card and relatively decent headphones don't cost that much. Therefore, the review does not take into account the noise of the computer and the card - these difficulties are quite surmountable.

Another slight misconception is that the noise level of the decoded signal is strongly related to the quality level. MP3 format. But this delusion flutters very quickly - notice that the quality MP3 format depends on other reasons, easier than a lung. As a rule, the noise level is very low at any bitrates, this is rather a characteristic of the player.

In addition, most textbooks explicitly state the human inability to hear frequencies above 16kHz. But firstly, this is simply not true, a lot depends on the signal strength and the age of the listener. Secondly, man is a being not devoid of originality. Even when he does not consciously hear such sounds with his ear, he still feels them. And it affects perception. Therefore, cutting frequencies above 16kHz can be considered justified at low bitrates, when it allows you to encode lower ranges much better, but cannot be ignored when it comes to high bitrates, bringing the signal quality closer to the CD Audio level. Yes, by the way, in children, the frequency threshold of hearing is much higher than 16kHz.

MP3 storage methods

Standard MP3 format does not define any exact standard mathematical encoding algorithm, its development is entirely left to the conscience of encoder developers. Instead, he defines general scheme encoding process, as well as the format of the encoded frame. Frame sequences themselves can be streamed (the process of transferring such a stream is called streaming) or stored in files.

File MP3 format, like a stream, consists of sequentially located frames, between which arbitrary information can be contained. The main requirement is that there must be no match with the frame start signature.

Often a standard WAV meta-audio format header is added to a sequence of frames, resulting in what is called a WAV-MP3. Even more often, an ID3v2 information block is added to the MP3 file, containing information about the artist, genre, song title, and other such information about the track. It is added to the end of the file. So far, no one has come up with anything in the middle. Although, generally speaking, it may be of some interest to insert a special tag for VBR with information about what part of the track we are actually in.

Nature of coding loss

At low bitrates, small, relatively quiet details are always cut off, the presence or absence of which often seriously changes the emotional coloring of the composition, gives or deprives it of such effects as a feeling of "crystal" sound clarity (to the extent that it is present in CD Audio). In addition, in accordance with the psychoacoustic model, higher (above 16 kHz) frequencies at low bit rates are encoded with very low priority.

Next, there are different features encoders. So, FhG IIS encoders at 128 kbs have "smeared" high frequencies, a "lisping" effect is observed, while ISO-based encoders have "ringing" instead. Most likely, this is due to the different attitude to frequencies above 16kHz for these encoders. In the Lame encoder, by the way, they are cut off by default, which increases the quality of encoding by 128kbs.

At higher bitrates, while consistently following the psychoacoustic model developed by FhG IIS, only errors introduced when writing the encoder can cause problems. However, due to FhG IIS not being too concerned about the quality of its encoders at high bitrates, it turned out more than once that a new version sounds sometimes even a little worse than the old one. I believe the reason lies in the insufficient or incorrect weakening of the limitations of the psychoacoustic model with increasing bitrate. Again, the first serious customer, and the problem will disappear.

PotPlayer is a free player with many features. Its distinctive feature is a very high quality playback and support for almost all modern audio and video file formats. This program can solve most of the tasks that the user needs. So, for example, PotPlayer is able to work with all subtitles and other tracks that can be linked to a file. You can, for example, synchronize external subtitles with a file if their creator has not done this before. In addition, the program allows you to take screenshots, which is very useful if you want to cut any frame from...

VLC Media Player is an all-in-one powerful media player for all occasions. You don't have to look for and install any codecs and plug-ins, as the program installs them automatically and therefore can play almost all known file formats: MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX, XviD, H.264, mp3, ogg, flac (lossless), regular DVDs, VCDs, etc. The program can also be used as a server for broadcasting a stream via IPv4 or IPv6 protocols, while media files, disks, URLs or a capture device can be selected as a source. In addition, VLC Media Player can record or play streaming ...

MediaInfo - a program with which you can find out all technical information from media files. Easily recognizes the title, author, director, date, etc. For video files, you can find out codecs, aspect ratios, FPS, bitrate, etc. Supports many popular formats and codecs for both audio and video files. MediaInfo also learns the details of the subtitles, while indicating what language they are in. In addition to analysis, it is also possible to export the received data to different formats, both in plain text and in HTML. Ability to work in a graphical interface or command line. For simplicity, there is a Drag&Drop function. Program...

This player is one of the most convenient players capable of playing a huge number of different video and audio file formats without installing other programs. The player is built on the basis of Media Player Classic and is a more suitable version of the program for home use. This player differs from other similar programs due to its functionality. Among them, full support for all DVD discs. The player also has the ability to select the language to use, it offers 14 options, it can work with two monitors and supports subtitle playback, which not all programs of this type can handle.

We would like to introduce you to the player running on the Windows operating system. This is Foobar2000. Moreover, it works only in English versions, since its developer announced from the very beginning that he was not going to make a multilingual version and adjust his player to other operating systems. But this is probably the only negative that you can find in this audio player. Its main advantage lies in the fact that, with its huge capabilities, which we will discuss later, it takes up quite a bit of space and has insignificant system requirements. Moreover, you are unlikely to get such high-quality sound ...

MusicBee is a multifunctional free player for listening to music files, which has an extended set of various options. The software allows the user to perform various work actions with playlists. The application is equipped with a tag editor, converter and CD ripper. The music player supports various podcasts and audiobooks. It also has the ability to automatic downloads information data from the network. With it, you can download different covers of certain music albums, lyrics of specific songs, information about singers.

AudioShell is a small extension created for editing tags. Capable of renaming files thanks to integration into context menu Windows Explorer. Allows you to change the metadata and name of a number of media files in an instant. AudioShell offers support for audio types: M4A, OGG, MP3, APE, WMA, FLAC, as well as a range of video data (eg MP4, WMV, ASF, 3GP). This extension can be useful for those users who spend countless hours organizing ID3 information for audio tracks. The program adds an editor and allows you to view tags in the "Properties" of media files. Provides detailed information about tags, m...

Ocenaudio is a handy cross-platform application that allows you to edit audio tracks. The program allows you to quickly and efficiently analyze any music files. It has many features that will help you convert any audio track. The program can work with OGG, CAF, MP4, MP3, WAV, RAW formats. An important factor in working with an audio editor is ease of use and an accessible interface. When loading the required file, the user will see a spectrogram, which will provide more information about the file. After loading and the appearance of the spectrogram, you can start editing the file.

IrfanView is a free graphic file viewer, hallmarks which is small size and functionality. IrfanView supports a large number of formats, has a clear interface and the necessary set of functions. So, with its help, you can not only view images, but also rotate them at any angle, do a little color correction, remove red-eye from photos, etc. Also, using IrfanView, you can take screenshots (both of the entire screen and of individual areas), rip out icons and icons from various files, rename files according to a predefined template, and...

AIMP is a program that allows you to play a lot of music formats. It has multilingual support and a fairly stylish interface. Without any difficulties, you can do: converting music from one format to another, editing tags of music files and group renaming or sorting these files, as well as recording sound using a microphone or any other audio device. And all this thanks to the built-in utilities. Thanks to the BASS audio engine, on which AIMP is based, it will not be difficult for you to connect plug-ins from this library to AIMP. It has built-in utilities for working with sounds...

Winamp is one of the most popular players with a clear interface and large quantity supported formats. First of all, this player is notable for the fact that its functionality can be significantly expanded by installing additional plug-ins or modules on it. Moreover, such plug-ins can add both new functions and expand the list of supported formats for the player, which in some cases is very useful. In addition, the Winamp player has a convenient library where you can add all your files, which in the future will allow you not to search for them on your hard drive, but to launch them directly from the ...

WavePad Audio Editor is a useful audio editor with many useful features. The utility allows you to record, edit audio tracks, voice and other audio recordings. When processing audio files, you can cut, copy or paste parts of a music track or voice recording. Allows you to add effects (echo, noise reduction, noise amplification). WavePad Audio Editor is suitable for professional sound engineers. Using the utility, you can easily record your own track. Supports sampling rates from 6 to 96 kHz, also stereo and mono. In addition to the main features, the application is able to store records, move them to the selected ...

XMPlay is a small audio player with a wide range of features and capabilities. Its main advantage can be considered a small size and the ability to work with any media. Those. the program, in fact, can be either installed on a computer or used as a portable version and run from a USB flash drive or any other media. XMPlay supports a huge number of formats, but even if the required format is not supported by the player, it is quite possible to tie it to it using special plugins that can be found on the developer's website. In addition, the player easily supports plugins from Winamp.

If you are serious about sound processing, then you cannot do without a professional audio editor like SoundForge. Here is a free analogue of SoundForge and at the same time the smallest audio editor in the world. Wavosaur supports almost all basic audio processing features, including cut, copy and paste. It can record sound from a microphone, batch convert files from one format to another. In addition, Wavosaur has many useful functions for processing files: adding silence, resampling, normalizing the volume, adding attenuation, etc. It is also worth noting the support of the VST-pla...

Splash Lite is one of the latest and powerful video player. Splash Lite allows you to view almost all video formats, which allows you not to install any other players to watch videos. Distinctive features are not only support for all formats, but also the ability to view TV channels high definition. The program supports several technologies, including support for multi-core processors, which can significantly offload the CPU and transfer most of the video processing to the video card. This, as a rule, allows you to significantly increase the productivity of ...

Icecream Media Converter is a fairly handy and extremely powerful media file converter. This useful tool allows you to instantly download video and audio files from popular video storages. Allows you to quickly convert to common formats: mp3, avi, mkv, wmv, vob, rmvb flv, mp4, cda, aac, aiff, swf, 3gp, flac. The program allows you to convert several files at once, put them in a queue. Informs the user about the progress of the process through the progress line. Indicates the estimated time for the completion of the conversion of files, both individually and in total. Has a history of all converted media files for...

FSS Audio Converter is a very handy utility that allows you to instantly convert any audio tracks to various formats (MP3, WAV, MP4, M4A, FLAC, WMA, AAC, OGG, MP2, AMR) and extract them from videos. convenient window with a well-placed structure. Files can be quickly dragged directly from the desktop or use the file manager. The converter supports batch loading and file processing, which will greatly reduce the file conversion time. The program allows you to choose the output format, the final directory. The user can select any given profile, edit the sound settings.

Winyl is an audio player for the Windows operating system. Allows you to organize all your favorite audio recordings, you can also classify and rate each audio recording. The program can add tags and view the lyrics of each song. All your favorite audio recordings can be added to playlists, where you can find them at any time. In this case, you can select and edit the playback queue. Winyl not only plays audio recordings stored on the computer, but also plays radio stations. The advantage of the program is in its simple and pleasant design, and in the fact that it does not need a lot of system resources, so the produc...

MediaHuman Audio Converter is a useful program that converts music to various formats. The utility works with a huge range of sound type formats. The converter has a minimalistic interface that will be understandable to any user. MediaHuman Audio Converter uses latest versions codecs. Thanks to the work of fresh codecs, the sound quality of music files will always be on top. The application supports a convenient Drag-and-drop mode, which allows you to quickly drag and drop the desired audio file and start the conversion process. The program supports creating playlists and adding them to libraries. Allows you to convert...

SPlayer is a fairly popular media player that has a very simple yet amazingly beautiful interface. The program can automatically download subtitles for a movie on the fly (it independently goes to the Internet to search for subtitles for this movie) and can read popular video formats and much more. During video playback, you can easily change audio and video settings, add files to the playlist, move the control panel, enable various effects, etc. The program also allows you to play partially downloaded and corrupted video files. If you have been looking for a simple media player for your projector, then you are...

ComboPlayer is a program with wide functionality that is used to play movies, music, radio and even Internet TV. The main function of ComboPlayer is to watch TV channels on your computer. Free package includes two dozen channels, including Russia-1, First, Match TV, TNT and other federal channels. The program also provides access to the TV schedule for most of the available channels. ComboPlayer has about 130 paid channels in HD quality. The program also works with torrent videos. If the torrent file of the movie you are interested in is available on the Internet, you can watch it through the program online.

Mp3tag is a program for editing music file tags. Despite its name, the list of supported file formats whose tags can be edited is quite large. These are, first of all, mp3, ape, flac and other popular formats. Allows you to edit any tags, including artist name, album, track title, etc. Mp3tag can connect to various online services and take tags from there. It is possible to import them from any text file, or vice versa. In addition, the program allows you to edit tags in batch mode, which is quite convenient if you need to bring the discography of some...

ContaCam is a handy application with a simple and intuitive interface for video surveillance through a webcam. With this utility, you can monitor through several video cameras at the same time. The ContaCam program also has a built-in motion detector and sound recording. In its settings, support for various models of webcams is registered. In addition, the utility has its own built-in web server, which makes it possible to monitor from any corner of the globe. The interface of ContaCam is so simple that it will not be difficult to understand it. Video is recorded instantly, can be immediately sent to e-mail either uploaded to...

MKVToolnix is ​​one of the best software suites for working with the MKV format. Recall that this format was developed by several programmers and differs from other video formats in that it has an open source and allows you to add an almost unlimited number of tracks with audio data, tracks with subtitles, etc. In addition, this format even allows you to create entire menus, such as those that can be seen on DVD. The MKVToolnix program is also open source, which allows you to modify it according to your wishes and capabilities. The standard tool of this program allows you to edit ...

Qmmp is an audio player with a user-friendly interface and additional features, which is also notable for its high speed. The program has the same interface as the well-known winamp player, which is especially liked by many users, since this interface is more familiar to them. However, unlike the mentioned player, Qmmp is much faster, but retains most of the features of the prototype. For example, the Qmmp program supports most Winamp plugins, which gives the user a wide range of options. In addition, it works with several types of covers and one that allows the user to change...

Album Player - designed to compile music collections, both on a hard disk and on CD and DVD. It also plays audio files in all popular and common formats. It differs in sound quality, since the program does not process music during playback, unlike other players that process tracks with various decoders and plug-ins. Therefore, we can say that with this program you can listen to music in its original form, exactly as the authors of the composition intended. When developing playlists, Album Player uses information from .cue files. The program is very easy to use and...

Mp3DirectCut is a program designed for processing mp3 files, which is distinguished by the fact that it is very easy to use. However, it has quite good features. It is possible to perform standard operations with audio, i.e. cutting, copying and deleting fragments, you can also change the quality of the file itself with just one button. Besides, this program will allow you to easily and quickly normalize the sound of files (control its volume), cut silence at the beginning and end of the composition, and even cut the file into several parts if there is a file along with it...

Hanso Tagger is a handy application for organizing collections of music files. The application allows you to fill in fields in which there is no information or it needs to be changed. The utility supports editing fields: title, genre, artist, year and album. Can work with files of popular audio formats (*.mp3, *.wav, *.wma, *.aac and others). Hanso Tagger supports importing tags from databases into a spreadsheet file (*.csv). If desired, the user can download ID3 tags via Amazon or FreeDB. In addition to tags, it allows you to edit comments on files. Hanso Tagger supports simultaneous work with files of different f...

SMPlayer is a great alternative to the standard player from Microsoft. It contains only the most necessary functions for playing video and audio, and also introduced interesting opportunity subtitle management. SMPlayer comes with several popular codecs. This makes it possible to immediately start watching your favorite movie. The player has rich options for managing subtitles. For example, you can change the font, color, cast shadows, etc. In addition, it allows you to use not only the subtitles in the container, but also connect external ones. Moreover, if they are not synchronized with ...

KMPlayer is a versatile player that plays many formats with ease. It can read titles, record video files, sound files, pictures from any playing fragment. It has a large number of settings, which allows you to make the use of the program convenient for each user, taking into account his needs and needs. The player also includes almost all the main codecs that allow you to play various audio and video formats, which expands the capabilities of the program. In addition, it is possible to work with various filters, which makes it possible to control the parameters of the audio being played...

ViewFD is a file manager with many different features. This program is distributed free of charge and is an excellent alternative to paid clients. The main features of this program include not only the presence of a built-in player and image viewer, but also the ability to view text files any formats, as well as edit database tables. In addition, the program can manage the startup of various services. Process management is also supported, although it is better to use other software for these purposes. In addition, this one supports tabbed browsing.

CherryPlayer is a high-quality media center that works with many sites such as YouTube, VKontakte, Amazon, 4shared and others. It combines the YouTube player, as well as the YouTube rocker, which allows you to watch videos online, or download videos for free and quickly. Huge library of audio recordings, as the program works with social network VK, where there are millions of audio files that you can listen to, download or add to a playlist using CherryPlayer. It is also possible to buy original materials from Amazon. The program supports all formats of audio and video files, so you do not need to install any addi...

Pazera Video Converters Suite is a convenient package for converting multimedia files with a simple interface and tons of features. A distinctive feature of the package is that it allows you to convert files for mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablet computers. The utilities included in the Pazera Video Converters Suite package allow you to set all the necessary conversion settings, including image size, resolution, codec used, and other parameters. Also, if necessary, you can cut the audio track from the video. The resulting sound file can be easily converted to the desired...

Hanso Converter is a multifunctional converter designed for instant audio file conversion. The application provides a fairly high speed of converting to the most common audio formats (MP4, M4A, Ogg, MP3, AAC, Bonk, FLAC, Vorbis). This speed is provided thanks to its own algorithm. A large number of program features does not affect the complexity of the interface. To understand the numerous functions of the converter is subject to any user. The user can edit program files for each format. In the application, you can set the final file name, set the necessary tags.

GOM Audio Player is a program for listening to any audio files. This player was created by the same company as Gom Media Player, which means that it inherited from the latter both speed and feature set. The program allows you to listen to streaming audio, for example, your favorite radio station, has flexible functionality and a clear interface. Like GOM Media Player, GOM Audio Player has built-in codecs, which allows the player to be independent of installed converters and codecs on your computer. In addition, the program itself consumes very few resources, so it will work even on very weak computers...

Kantaris Media Player is a free player with a user-friendly interface and a wide range of options for playing various files. This player has almost the same interface as Windows Media Player is from Microsoft, so you don't have to learn it and you can start using the program right away. The main feature of the player is that it can play files without installing codecs into the system, which saves you from performing unnecessary operations. This player supports all popular formats, including audio CD. In addition, the program has all the standard features.

GOM Player is a universal multimedia player for Windows. Distinctive feature of this player is the ability to play most media files without the need for third-party codecs, thanks to the built-in support for most popular codecs. In addition, there is a unique ability to play damaged or underloaded files. The player supports almost all modern audio and video formats, including video from mobile devices and digital cameras, as well as playback of Internet content directly from the network. If the codec is not found, then GOM Player will offer to use a third-party one installed in the system, or ...

Audacity - small free editor to work with audio data. This program in its capabilities is almost no different from paid analogues. With Audacity, you can easily digitize recordings from cassettes or other sources, record data from a microphone or any other sound source, and perform operations on already recorded data and tracks. The program allows you to mix an unlimited number of tracks, perform standard operations with audio (cutting, copying), as well as apply the necessary filters to the finished material. For example, you can remove noise, background, and more from a recording...

MPlayer is one of the main players for video and audio content. This program is written for many operating systems and is cross-platform. In addition to being cross-platform, this program has another important advantage - open source code. This player, in fact, has no interface as such. All control is carried out using a special remote control, or using the keyboard. Usually, only the video stream is displayed on the screen. By the way, this player is sometimes supplemented GUI. KMPlayer is, in fact, one of those solutions.

clementine- music player, which allows you to play most audio formats and has a number of additional features. Among these features, first of all, it should be noted the function of playing various radio stations, a list of which can be downloaded from the Internet. The Clementine app has a built-in equalizer, allowing you to customize the sound to your liking. Also, the Clementine program allows you to search for the desired file in your music library. In addition, it supports visualization, which allows you to customize the appearance of the program. Another feature of the player is the support for dynamic playlists.

VSDC Video Editor is designed to edit video and audio files. It has two modes, one for beginners, the other for professional use. This is not a linear editor, unlike other analog programs. The advantage of the program is that it supports many formats, which will allow you to import videos of any format, combine them into a clip and export them in one, without losing quality. It can also apply many effects to audio and video. The interface is as intuitive as possible, which will allow the user to work without any overlays. Just in case, the program has a very good and detailed manual that explains...

Lucky Video Converter - regular free converter video files with a nice and simple interface. The program supports a huge number of popular formats such as: AVI, FLV, MP4, MPEG, MOV, WMV, MP3, WAV and is available in Russian. In addition, the program contains ready-made presets for portable devices such as iPod, iPhone, iPad, PSP, Zune and also for mobile phones. With Lucky Video Converter, you can cut music from videos and download videos from YouTube and other popular sites completely free of charge. With such functionality and simplicity, only WinFF can be compared.

IWisoft Video Converter is a handy program for converting multimedia content from one format to another. This program will be especially useful if you have not only a computer or laptop, but also one of the portable devices, such as a smartphone. As a rule, such devices have a much smaller list of supported formats than laptops or computers. In addition, conversion may be needed in cases where you need to reduce the size of video or audio files. For these purposes, the iWisoft Free Video Converter program is excellent. This application allows you to batch convert audio and...

ToolWiz Player and Converter is a hybrid program that combines the functions of a simple media player and an audio-video converter. Supports many popular codecs for playback and is equipped with all the basic functions of audio and video players. Converts both music and video files to many formats. Distinguished by its conversion speed, as it is quite fast, and its easy-to-use interface. ToolWiz Player and Converter will allow users to view videos on operating systems Windows and convert it for later viewing on popular devices like PSP...

FileOptimizer is a handy file compression application created by one of the independent programming teams. This application features improved compression algorithms and high speed. The program allows you to compress files of almost all types, including archives, text formats, image formats, etc. Also, this program can work with scripts, as well as through command line which will be especially useful for advanced users. For novice users, everything is very simple. The program integrates into the context menu, which allows you to very quickly compress files located on any drive and in any folder.

Plex is an application with a rather pleasant appearance, which helps users organize all the multimedia information stored on the computer. Organizes not only local media files, but also provides access to files on its own server. The program not only systematizes, but also enriches the media library by adding reviews, brief plot descriptions, posters, album covers. Newly added content is usually presented in the center, which ensures fast access to new media files. The application perfectly determines which films and series the user is watching. She can easily pick up a video on which ...

We very often have to perform various actions with audio, video, etc. files. And often, in order to perform a certain operation, such as converting, converting and editing, you need to search the Internet, download and install certain programs. Almost always it takes a lot of time and effort, "eats" a huge amount of traffic. And it is in such cases that comes to the rescue. free studio, a collection of programs that do all of this. The advantages of this package are that all 39 programs included in it are absolutely free, and will also help you get the desired result...

Xion Audio Player- free audio player with a user-friendly interface, characterized by an abundance of functions and settings. This player is capable of playing most of the popular formats such as mp3, flac, etc. In addition, this player supports work with Internet radio stations, including a request for an audio track to be played from this station. You can save direct addresses of stations in your playlist or in the player's library, which will allow you to quickly find the desired station without entering the address. Xion Audio Player can be controlled not only from the main window, but also from the system tray, or using hot...

Hanso Player is an eye-pleasing audio player that has a simple interface with a clear structure. It offers support for MP1, MP3, OGG, M3U, MP2, PLS, WAV format. Supports multimedia file drag and drop, use file browser. The main audio controls include the ability to press pause, stop, adjust the volume level, as well as the presence of a button to play the next or previous song. The user can navigate to the desired location in the audio track. He can create, save a playlist, open the desired URL, or turn on the equalizer. You can set the position of the player on top of other windows...

Software with free access capabilities, which is designed to play various files presented in karaoke format. It supports a large number of such formats. These include mp3, wav, ogg, kfn, etc. The interface of this software has a standard structure of conventional audio players. It is equipped with all the necessary functionality: a window that controls the playback process, a special playlist with a list of music files, and a window in which you can make sound settings. An important feature of the player is...

Zoom Player is a great media player that can replace Windows Media Player. The program will allow the user to enjoy their favorite movie or music as much as possible, as it supports all popular and common audio and video formats. She has a lot additional features, for example, has the Zoom function, which will allow not only to enlarge the image, but also to improve the quality of the picture. Can display trailers of other movies before or after the video. It differs in that it supports remote control devices, with which you can control the player and the ability to stop and continue the movie next time from the same place where you...

XviD4PSP is a handy program for converting videos, its main feature is a large number of presets. The XviD4PSP program allows you to easily and quickly get the file of the format you need. A large number of presets allows you to choose the parameters in such a way that the picture on a portable device looks great. The program supports not only the Sony PSP portable set-top box, but also others portable devices such as smartphones. In addition, the program has an advanced mode for experienced users. In the dialogs of the program, you can easily set the settings you need, for example, necessary for coding...

Wondershare Player is a very user-friendly video player with high speed and some features. This player supports almost all video formats, which eliminates the need for a simple user to constantly install some players to play video. Also, this player is distinguished by its speed. Compared to other popular players, it plays videos much faster. Another advantage of the Wondershare Player program is that it consumes very few system resources, which allows you to watch even HD quality movies without freezing and th...

Quite an interesting and pleasant audio player. Plays all common audio file formats. Although it is simple in appearance, it has a sufficient amount different settings and functions. CometPlayer developers have created the most simple design, in which there are no unnecessary elements. When playing music, lyrics will be displayed, if any. Using this player, it is possible to thoroughly customize your playlists, and while listening, use the alignment of the audio track. There is a good equalizer with several templates for different directions music. With this player, you can...

Metal Player is a player with an easy and user-friendly interface. Does not require a large amount of computer resources and is supported by any Windows version. Provides the user with both standard multimedia and some new features, making it the best solution when choosing a player. The program plays most media file formats, has a built-in equalizer, playlist, the ability to search and sort songs, hot keys, and a significant number of other functions that make working with it convenient. In addition, the built-in library allows you to assemble your own database of online radio channels for ...

VSO Media Player is a multifunctional media player that has a practical and user-friendly design. The player is equipped with features that allow it to play all common formats of certain music as well as video files. It supports work with various media and video cards. The function bar allows the user to download a batch of files in order to play them in turn. In the process of working with the application, the user can adjust the volume indicators. The main advantage of the program is the absence of the need for additional installations...

JetAudio Basic is one of the most popular players with a user-friendly interface and many features. A distinctive feature of this program is that when encoding video or sound, it uses unique technologies that help to fully convey the quality of video or sound. Also, the program already contains several "improvers" and sound effects, which can be useful to fans of surround sound when watching movies. jetAudio Basic has a built-in equalizer that allows you to customize playback to suit your preferences. Also, this player has a clear and simple interface...

ArtistShot Tagger is a program that provides the ability to organize a large music collection. It allows you to quickly edit basic user tags (such as album, artist, music style, and so on), working with audio formats such as: mp3, flac, vma, ogg, ape, mp4, mp4a, mp4b. ArtistShot Tagger will help you rename files and folders, export data to various formats and grab audio CDs, as well as find and save music files of interest. It is worth noting that the converter and tag editor work in batch mode. In addition, this utility helps in searching for texts...

MediaCoder is a powerful video converter. For example, the program can convert video to another format, or compress it to the quality and size you need. File compression can be useful when you need to play a finished video or movie on weak computer. In addition, of course, there is also the function of converting from one format to another. Also, the program has a scheduler that allows you to turn off the computer after the conversion is completed or set batch processing files. But that's not all. The MediaCoder program allows you to pull out an audio track from almost any movie or reel ...

TorrentPlayer is a handy program for watching movies and listening to audio. Instead of downloading files to your computer, the program automatically starts playing them. It is also a plus that you do not need to search for movies or audio on the Internet and risk downloading a virus, just enter the desired media file in the program search and it will find it in its reliable and extensive library. Playback of the file starts immediately from the moment the user clicks on "Play". At the same time, it plays any file formats, which means that you do not need to spend time installing additional codecs. During viewing...

Nata Player is a program for playing audio files. Supports all popular audio formats. The main advantage of the program is that it is very functional. It not only plays audio files, but also supports playlists, file editing, and can cut and mix files. It also allows you to copy data from a CD to a computer and convert audio files to other formats. Another good thing is that despite all the functionality, it is optimized for minimal consumption of system resources. The program has very user-friendly interface, supports tabs, library search. It has many skins and visualizations, for more...

MediaMonkey is a media center with over 100,000 audio files and movies. Allows you to search by genre and includes genres such as audiobooks, podcasts, movies, home videos, TV shows and more. Also, the program synchronizes not only files from the Internet, but also from a PC, which will allow you to combine files from a PC and the Internet in one media center. Automatically adds missing information by audio or video file, such as title, artist, album, etc. The program also supports the ability to convert audio and video files to any format, as well as burn data to disk. Supports many plugins, skin...

ProgDVB- free program to listen to Internet radio, watch TV channels, both from the Internet and using satellite dish. The program supports most satellite TV standards and works with almost all types of satellite equipment. ProgDVB allows you not only to watch a channel or listen to the radio, but also to record them so as not to miss a single movie or program that is important to you. Also, there is support for HD TV, various TV standards, subtitles, etc. The program supports teletext, which allows you to access some additional information that ...

XBMC Media Center is a modern cross-platform media center with a high-quality graphical interface that is easy to understand and simple menu. It can be called a worthy competitor to Microsoft's Windows Media Center. The XBMC Media Center interface can also be displayed in Russian and has its own dynamically changing design. Also, the program can work both in normal windowed mode and in full-screen mode, and in addition to this, it effectively uses its own screensavers stored in its memory. With the help of this media center, a home PC is easily transformed into a full-fledged HTPC, capable of not only playing, but also storing...

Zoner Photo Studio is a very useful editor for various images. Allows you to copy photos from any camera and immediately edit. Has a set basic functions. Helps eliminate the "red-eye effect". Allows you to create vivid panoramic views and colorful calendars. The program helps to create your own photo gallery. Performs a quick search for the desired processed photo. Allows you to print pictures, send to social networks, by e-mail. It has four tabs that allow you to manage the program. Imports images, allows you to manage the archive of images on your computer. Freemake Video Converter is a universal application that has in its arsenal tools with which you can quickly and easily convert video materials to the most popular formats, edit them and burn them to any optical media, and absolutely free of charge! The application is not limited to this set of functions - with Freemake Video Converter you can prepare video materials for viewing on different mobile devices, extract soundtracks from your favorite movies and create unique slideshows! This application can be used not only to convert video taken with a digital camera (mpg, mov, avi...

Media Go is a small application designed specifically for users of Sony devices. This program allows you to view all the pictures, videos, music that is on the user's mobile or tablet device. Audio files, images and videos can be deleted, played, grouped. In addition to viewing information from devices with Media Go, you can quickly and easily buy your favorite music or movie. The store works for Sony users. The program includes a tool for easy image viewing, music player, as well as a video management utility. Media Go automatically generates...

ATunes is a player written in java and has many features. So, for example, using the aTunes player, you can not only just play audio files, but also create your own library with the sorting you need. Such sorting can be performed not only by folders, but also based on the information contained in the tags of the desired files. The program can be synchronized with various services and even search wikipedia and other popular sites for artist information, allowing you to add additional artist data to your library. aTunes makes it easy to create...

RealPlayer is one of the popular players with a large number of supported formats. A distinctive feature of RealPlayer can be considered a large set of functions included in it. The program can act as a browser to navigate through various pages and search for audio or video, as well as, in fact, as a player. At the same time, the program is able to play not only data stored on your hard drive, but also streaming audio or video data. With the help of the program, you can easily find and play the radio station you need. In addition, in standard package The program includes the ability to ... Miro is a kind of multimedia center that combines a rocking chair, an Internet TV viewer, and a player. Miro program supports most popular video formats, which allows you to use it as a player. However, the main features of the program do not end there. The Miro program integrates with popular services, such as youtube, which allows you to view the video you need directly from the program. Moreover, if you set the automatic video download setting and subscribe to the channel you need, the program will automatically download a new video from this channel...

The triumphant march of the MPEG-1 Layer 3 audio recording format (colloquially referred to as MP3) is explained by the fact that a simple and effective way to compress audio files was proposed, allowing you to store up to 12 hours of acceptable quality music on a standard CD-ROM disc.

To put it simply, the MPEG-1 Layer 3 algorithm is based on the so-called "psychoacoustic" compression method, when frequencies and volume levels that are not perceived by the ear are excluded from the sounds of the spectrum. The spectrum "cleaned" in this way is divided into separate blocks (frames) of the same duration and compressed in accordance with the specified requirements. During playback, the signal is formed from a sequence of decoded frames.

The degree of compression depends on the parameters of the audio stream, which must be obtained as an output after decoding the file.

The main parameter that determines the sound quality and compression ratio is the so-called (what is) bitrate is the bandwidth, measured in bits per second.

The higher this indicator, the better quality sound and less compression ratio. Since almost all MP3 files are recorded in stereo at 44 kHz and 16 bits, the determining factors for pure sound are: the recording source, the codec used, and the selected bit rate.

The word codec is formed by a combination of the words encoder + decoder. This is a software module that allows you to encode or decode audio or video files in accordance with your own algorithm.

An average stream value of 256 Kbps provides a compression ratio of approximately 6:1, for other values ​​the compression ratio varies proportionally. Thus, at a stream of 256 Kbps, you can burn music from six ordinary Audio CDs to a CD, and at a stream of 128 Kbps, from twelve ordinary music discs.

There are endless disputes among amateurs and professionals about the bitrate value that provides good sound quality, corresponding to the quality of Audio CD playback.

Some consider sufficient the level is 128 Kbps, others are satisfied only by the maximum value of the stream - 320 Kbps. In all likelihood, both are right - the only difference is what is recorded and under what conditions it is reproduced.

The bit rate at which the digitized audio was encoded is usually indicated on the CD cover. For example, a complete collection of Beatles music can be purchased on three 128Kbps discs or six 256Kbps discs.

It is clear that in the second case, the purchase price will be twice as expensive, but the quality is better.

If music sounds in a domestic car, a stream of 192 Kbps will provide sufficient sound quality, you still won’t hear the best because of extraneous noise. To listen on a computer or standalone player ( MRZ-player) a stream of 256 Kbps is acceptable.

But if the signal without changes arrives at external device and output to high quality speakers, the maximum possible stream is desirable - 320 Kbps. Based on these considerations, a 256 Kbps stream can be considered universal: with good recording quality, it will provide adequate playback in most cases.

To broadcast music over the Internet, a stream value of 128 Kbps is usually used. At the same time, the sound quality “as it were” leaves much to be desired.

It makes no sense to record popular music with a bitrate higher than 192-256 Kbps: the songs do not live long, and the original recordings are often not of high quality. In the end, you can dance to the sound of "tape" quality.

Quite another thing is the classics and rare author's works. And by classical we mean not only Bach or Mozart. Today, The Beatles, Led, Zeppelin, Vysotsky, Tsoi, and many other authors (performers) can be considered classics.

If, when buying a CD, you did not pay attention to the bitrate value indicated on the package, then you can see the value in the player line during file playback.

Today it is difficult to find a person who is unfamiliar with the three-letter abbreviation - MP3. But when you start asking what it is and how it is deciphered, then some people shrug their hands in bewilderment, while others say: “What are you? This is the music of this MP3!”. In addition, many mobile phones support MP3. We know about this, and then, and more? :) It is clear that few people understand what kind of format it is. In this article, I will just explain what all this is, this MP3.

MP3 is the most popular format for storing and transmitting information in digital form, using signal compression. MP3, or MPEG Audio Layer-3, was developed by Fraunhofer IIS and Thomson. Compared to WAV files that are copies of Audio CD tracks (PCM, 16 bit, Stereo, 44.1 kHz), MP3 songs take up much less disk space. On an ordinary CD-R/RW-blank, you can save over 11 hours of music of quite decent quality.

Many written for MP3 great programs(encoders, players, etc.), production of hardware (stationary, pocket and car) players has been launched, every modern phone supports MP3 tunes (and even has a built-in player for them). convenient playback). Compared to many other audio compression formats, MP3 provides the best sound quality and today is perhaps the second most popular after Audio CD.

MP3 format description

The MP3 Audio Compression Format (short for MPEG Layer3) is one of the earliest popular audio compression methods. Developed by the German company Fraunhofer IIS and later, with the support of THOMSON, introduced as part of the MPEG1 and MPEG2 video formats. Provides high quality sound with relatively small file sizes.

MP3 Technical Information

A high degree of compression in MP3 is achieved due to a rather complex encoding algorithm. Both mathematical methods of compression and features of human hearing (psychoacoustic model) are used: the effect of masking a weak sound of one frequency is more loud sound of the same or adjacent frequency, decreased sensitivity of the ear to a quiet sound immediately after a loud one, immunity to sounds below a certain volume level.

The audio stream during encoding is divided into equal sections (frames). Each of the frames is encoded separately with its own parameters and contains a header in which these parameters are specified. Compression can be performed with different quality and, accordingly, the size of the final file.

The degree of compression is characterized by bitrate (bitrate) - the amount of information transmitted per unit of time. MP3 files are usually encoded with a bitrate from 64 to 320 kilobits per second (kbps or kb/s), as well as with a variable bitrate (VBR) - when each frame uses its own optimal bitrate for a given section.

The original signal is divided by filters into several frequency ranges, for each range the magnitude of the masking effect from neighboring ranges and the previous frame is determined, insignificant signals are ignored. For the remaining data for each band, it determines how many bits can be sacrificed to keep the loss below the masking effect. This completes the work of the psychoacoustic model, and the final stream is additionally compressed according to the Huffman algorithm (similar to the RAR archiver).

At a bitrate of 320 kbps, only final compression is applied, without psychoacoustic modeling. Keep in mind that different codecs can encode the audio signal differently, the differences are especially pronounced on high frequencies and low bitrates. In the MP3 format, a stereo signal is encoded, and several conversion options are possible:

• Dual Channel - each channel receives half of the stream and is encoded separately - it is possible to record two completely different signals.
• Stereo - each channel is encoded separately, but the encoder program can use the free space of one channel to place the information of another. The stereo mode is set by default in most encoders.
• Joint Stereo (MS Stereo) - a stereo signal is decomposed into a common signal for both channels and a difference signal. It has an option - MS / IS Stereo with a simplified difference signal.

Strengths of the MP3 format:

• High compression ratio with acceptable sound quality.
• The compression ratio and quality can be adjusted by the user.
• The frame structure is convenient for transmission over the network, allowing you to jump to any place in the file.
• Wide distribution of hardware and software.

MP3 application features

Despite the fact that encoding in MP3 is carried out with the loss of some of the original information, at bit rates of 256 and 320 kbps it is almost impossible to distinguish the compressed signal from the original by ear, especially when listening to common audio equipment. In this case, the file size in the worst case will be 4 times smaller than in the CD audio format.

For use in compact players and other devices with low acoustic quality, you can use a bit rate of at least 192 kbps. Bit rates below 192 kbps are recommended for compressing a signal with a limited frequency range or low requirements for reliability (for example, a conversation or a TV show).

What is the idea of ​​audio compression in MP3 based on?

Surely, turning to a friend, fenced off from the outside world by a "musophone", you noticed how he begins to answer your questions unnaturally loudly, since his own voice, heard by him under the roar of a rock concert, sounds unusually quiet for him - a feature of human perception. And the point here is not so much in the acuteness of hearing, but in the ability of our brain to “digest” sound information: not to respond to impulses whose power is below a certain level; after a strong roar, do not hear a whisper, etc.

This is used when creating MP3 encoders, each of which can implement its own so-called psychoacoustic model, which varies depending on the goals and objectives, where relatively weak signals can be neglected.

How do such methods work?

original sound signal is divided into separate blocks, called frames, each of which is applied a special encoding algorithm, and the compression parameters for different frames can differ significantly from each other. In the block encoding process, the original signal is divided into several component frequency bands. For each of them, the value of the so-called masking effect of a weak signal is calculated by a more powerful one from the neighboring range or from the previous frame. Then, depending on the results, secondary sounds are removed that will not be heard by the “average” person due to the presence in this moment louder signal. In addition, the inability of most people to distinguish high-frequency signals (above 16 kHz) is taken into account.

Audio information compressed according to this scheme can be streamed, for example, via the Internet, or stored in MP3 files.

Bitrate and its meaning

One of the most important characteristics of an MP3 file is bitrate - the speed of the processed data stream, or the total amount of information transmitted per unit of time. This value does not depend on whether this stream contains mono or stereo audio.

The Fraunhofer IIS bitrate of 128 Kbps has been recognized as optimal for use on the Internet, and some encoder manufacturers have spread the opinion that this speed is quite enough to encode music with quality close to Audio CD. However, it is not. On good equipment, irreparable loss of audio information becomes noticeable.

The higher the bitrate, the more disk space will be required to save the final MP3 file, but also, as a rule, the higher the quality of the encoded signal. In general, each bitrate value has its own scope.

Even professional experts with a fine musical ear are sometimes unable to distinguish between the sound of an Audio CD track and its image encoded into an MP3 file with a low compression ratio, for example 4:1 (320 Kbps), on good equipment. For an ordinary music lover, this difference becomes almost imperceptible at a stream speed of 192-256 Kbps.

If you are only dealing with computer acoustic systems or inexpensive household radio equipment, then 160-192 Kbps is enough for encoding and subsequent listening to compositions. For compression of rapidly aging pop music, as well as for "uploading" a music archive on the network, 128 Kbps is quite suitable. Bitrate values ​​below 128 Kbps do not allow to achieve the proper sound quality. Speeds of 64-96 Kbps are most often used for compressing audio lessons. foreign language, lectures, interviews and audio broadcasts.

For a long time, encoders supported only a constant bitrate (CBR - Constant BitRate), i.e., the user set a certain data rate, and the program provided the highest possible encoding quality. But it is obvious that the density of the flow of significant information from frame to frame is different. (Why, for example, encode pauses?) So the encoder developers decided to use their own bitrate for compressing each frame, i.e. they set the task of minimizing the data rate while maintaining the same quality level. This is how the idea of ​​variable bitrate VBR (Variable BitRate) was born.

I think now it has become a little more clear to you what kind of music your phone “prefers”. I wish you more pleasant melodies! See you in the next articles on mobime!

Often, when I ask beginners what discs are, they answer me - CD, DVD and MP3. This is a big misconception. Discs are only CDs and DVDs. The difference between them is that a DVD contains four to five times more information than a CD. That is, if one film is placed on a CD, and even then it is not in very good quality, then four films and even more can be recorded on a DVD disc. Music, photos, documents, and other files and folders can be burned to either CD or DVD. However, keep in mind that not all computers can watch DVD discs.

What is mp3

mp3 is a music format. I mean, it's music. It's just that it's "cut down", that's why there are dozens of times more songs on discs on which mp3 music is recorded than on ordinary ones. If about 20 tracks are placed on a disc with ordinary music, then 60 or more are placed on discs with music in this format.

mp3 (mp3) is compressed music, but that doesn't mean it's bad music. Those who came up with this musical format say that the size of the composition is smaller due to the "cutting" of those frequencies that are not audible to the human ear. That is, between normal and mp3 music, it seems, there is no difference. Although people with a good ear for music feel this difference.

The phrase mp3 disc means a CD with music in mp3 format. An experienced user immediately concludes that there are a lot of songs on this disc, most likely several albums, but this music is of a “cut down” quality.