All Downloads Are Not Created Equal
When you pay for a download, don’t you expect it to sound as good as if you’d bought a CD?
Different download services sell downloads at different qualities. Lower kbps (kilobits per second) means the track will take up less space on your portable player. But the higher the kbps, the better it will sound. You may not notice it on your iPod, Zune or computer. But burn the download onto a CD or stream it through your home stereo and the difference becomes very clear.
Here’s a list of the major download stores and the download quality that they offer from best to worst.
Amazon 256 kbps- iTunes 256 kbps
- Napster 192 kbps
- Rhapsody 192 kbps
- Zune 192 kbps
- eMusic 153 kbps
- WalMart 128 kbps
Who offers the best prices on downloads? Find out here.
3 Comments
[...] Gaming News, Reviews, Previews, Cheats & Tips – ComputerAndVideoGames.com wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerpt When you pay for a download, don’t you expect it to sound as good as if you’d bought a CD? Different download services sell downloads at different qualities. Lower kbps (kilobits per second) means the track will take up less space on your portable player. But the higher the kbps, the better it will sound. You may not notice it on your iPod, Zune or computer. But burn the download onto a CD or stream it through your home stereo and the difference becomes very clear. Here’s a list of the major [...]
AFAIK, emusic claims to offer ~192kbps at Variable Bit Rates (VBR), where the compression algorithm adjusts its bandwidth dynamically through the file. I must say certain files average 160 to 175 kbps, but some others do hit the 250kbps. I think the 153kbps you associate with emusic is certainly innaccurate. Thank you! Season’s greetings for ODM.
AFAIK, emusic claims to offer ~192kbps at Variable Bit Rates (VBR), where the compression algorithm adjusts its bandwidth dynamically through the file. I must say certain files average 160 to 175 kbps, but some others do hit the 250kbps. I think the 153kbps you associate with emusic is certainly innaccurate. Thank you! Season’s greetings for ODM.