320 kbps CBR in AAC format. That is what I want or am searching for in a record pool. I’m not having too much luck though. Do I need to lower my standards (maybe settle for 320 CBR in mp3 or even 320 VBR in mp3)? Sometime it even seems bit rates as high as 320 are hard to come by let alone the CBR. Seems most pools are VBR in and mp3 format.
I read the article on DJTT called “Digital Record Pool Round-up” and am considering settling on djcity.com and/or mp3poolonline.com if I must. But again, these don’t have content in the format that I really want. I know probably the majority of you would like to tell me you cannot tell the difference between mp3 and aac or even the difference between 256 and 320 kbps. And that is fine as each person is entitled to their opinion. Just wondering if anyone knows of any pools out there (besides itunes), based in the USA (paying in dollars, not pounds) that carry high quality AAC bit rate geared toward DJs?
I don’t play at any venues that have a Funktion One PA system, but if I ever did I’d want to be confident in my music quality. Any ideas what pools or formats big name DJs use that don’t produce? Also, the 2 sites that I mentioned above claim to have music with marked “starting” cue points for Serato. Does that screw things up at all for those of us that play on Traktor? And nothing against Beatport, but last time I looked there wasn’t a hip/hop catrgory. Thanks for your suggestions and answers.
320 in mp3 is perfectly fine. When your blasting music over a sound system in a club, people aren’t really paying attention as to whether or not they can hear the most minute changes in snare hits. They just want to party. Unless you have the most expensive amplifiers and speakers in a pristinely acoustic room, then the difference between the file formats will be marginal or imagined.
AAC is an interesting format I dont truly understand myself. I can listen to a radio stream at 190kbps mp3 or AAC at a smaller bitrate but yet have the same quality. it’s one of those formats I stay away from since I dont understand it much at all.
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Sometime it even seems bit rates as high as 320 are hard to come by let alone the CBR.[/quote]
Wat? At least 80% of the portals in that list offer 320kbps CBR MP3.
An 320kbps MP3 has to throw away less information from the original audio than a VBR MP3, regardless of the VBR preset used. The reason is that a 320kbps MP3 (which is always CBR) uses the same resolution (namely 320kbps) for each frame, whereas a VBR MP3 uses 320kbps resolution only for some frames and lower resolutions (e.g., 256, 224, 192, 160 … kbps) for the remaining frames.
Ofc, all I’m saying is that 320kbps (CBR) MP3 has to discard less information than any VBR MP3. I’m not claiming that, subjectively, a VBR MP3 sounds worse.
itskindahot, I did not know about this list as I do not have the traktor bible, but thanks for sharing. I’m eager to start exploring those pools. Also learned that there is no such thing as VBR in mp3 format, thanks.
What about the pools that have pre-marked cue points for Serato…that doesn’t do anything bad or hinder importing those tracks to the Traktor software, right?
Doesn’t do anything at all to the sound quality. All of the markers are stored in the ID3 tag. If anything it may slow the track upload into the deck by a few milliseconds… nothing too big.
[quote] smittten Why not buy in .wav and encode as you see fit?
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Thats an idea I hadn’t really thought of, though I’m not familiar yet with any pools that sell in .wav (I’ll do my research). But I am a bit scared to see some of the prices for .wav format, but I guess if I want quality I gotta pay up.
Any one else do this: download songs in .wav and then transfer/play in 320 or other lower bit rate either in mp3 or aac format? Just was curious as to problems or success rate that you may have had?
