looking for a new system for MP3

[admin_exported]

hi im looking to getting a new sound system, what i dont know yet, at the moment im still using my pc or ipod through Creative Gigaworks 7.1 speakers but tbh the sound is pretty bad.

my main problem is nearly all my music now is in MP3 and im concerned that if i upgrade my sound system to something a lot better than what ive got then im going to notice the quality loss from using MP3.

is there something out there that will play MP3 and sounds great, possibly converting it back to lossless on the fly??

thanks

 

[the record spot]

MP3 and Lossless are different breeds, so once it's an MP3 file, it's not going to suddenly go back to being lossless on the fly. That said, MP3 is absolutely fine for most purposes. I use a range of filetypes from WAV, Apple Lossless and "down" to 192kbps. All are excellent, so I would say that if you are keen to have Lossless, then encode the source file to that level, or use FLAC (bit faffy for some though). Otherwise, try 320kbps, 192, or whatever. Whatever people tell you about MP3 they probably don't mention that it can be very, very good. Incidentally, the BBC broadcast many, if not all, the Proms from the RAH this year on 320kbps on Radio 3.

Chances are it's your equipment/PC soundcard (assuming that is what you're using) or the quality of the original recordings that are causing your files to sound bad. Either that, or you're losing an extremely low bitrate. From 192kbps upwards, you should have minimal to nil issues.

Were it my money, I'd invest in some decent active speakers if your space is limited and a DAC. Something like Roland's Cakewalk US-25EX might be worth a look. Tons of functionality and a good range of inputs will see you right. It also provides ADC as well as DAC options too. Fantastic build and you should pick one up for around £150-170 max. I'm thinking of getting one of these for myself, but others of course are out there. KRK's Rokit 5 speakers (circa £220) would get you started. Depends on your room size and budget of course. These provide and neat but very good quality solution.

http://www.juno.co.uk/products/cakewalk-ua-25ex-high-quality-24-bit-96-khz-usb-audio-midi-interface-for-mac-and-pc/400514-01/

 

[Anonymous]

thanks thats an excellent reply and now i feel a lot better about my MP3 collection, ive had a look and most are 320kbps none are under 192.

That US-25EX looks good is that whats known as a brakeout box? it looks like the type of thing i could use to record guitar to the pc, at the moment i just want to concentrate on a dedicated music player as i can record to the pc using my X-FI elite pro so some of the US-25EX will go unused.

a friend at work has mentioned a Fatman Carbon, have you any experience with this unit, is it a DAC and do you know if i would need an amp to go with it?

thanks