If someone were to try and download a song from (say) Youtube, Spotify or Soundcloud which site would provide the best audio version?
Sometimes the songs I seek aren’t available via the usual places (like soulseek, electronic fresh or dj soundstop ) and I have to opt for a less desirable choice.
I’m currently using Media Human’s incredibly versatile Youtube to MP3 ripper (it also rips songs off Soundcloud, Spotify, Vimeo, Bandcamp, Mixcloud etc) and is highly recommended.
https://www.mediahuman.com/youtube-to-mp3/31/
The sound quality of its rips are great (I usually only play these rips in the car or on my mac so I’m not sure I’d notice any degradation in sound quality).
This Afrobeat rip, for example, sounds fantastic when turned up and becomes a full on electronic song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEJ_m2HPXv8
Nonetheless, I still have a nagging feeling I might not always be taking from the best possible source.
So anyone know which service has the best audio encode in the first place?
thanks
Anything that isn’t mp3. I’m actually stunned people still use that codec. Willingly. AAC is just far superior. ALAC/FLAC for lossless can get quite large. Then there’s the gorilla in the room: do most of these songs even get resampled properly when a new format is released? Atmos is all the rage but a lot of songs from the past that are now available in the codec sound off because the separation of instruments and sound is so far away from the original.
Your current system probably sounds like music from 1998, muddled and drowning in bass.