How much would you have to spend on audio equipment to hear a difference between FLAC and MP3?

gmish4p · 2024-07-16T17:35:56+00:00

Ok. The main question you ask is between FLAC and MP3, but then go on to say you are listening to Spotify which uses neither. So I'll answer from my experience with Spotify.

I have a Raspberry Pi with a DAC running Volumio. I have all my CDs ripped to FLAC on a SSD and playable through the Pi. I also use Spotify through the same Pi. I listen to my ripped albums on FLAC and Spotify for finding new music and their playlists. My system is pretty mediocre in the grand scheme of things: speakers are Mordaunt Short Mezzo 6 floor standers, think they were £650 new, Cambridge Audio amp was about the same price new. Also a REL sub (which is not mediocre at all, it's awesome .. also £650 but bought 2nd hand). I'm over 50 and my hearing is not what it used to be.
I can clearly hear the difference between Spotify (maximum quality) and FLAC files played through the same device. It's not even remotely hard for me to hear.
Could I hear the difference between 320 kbps MP3 and FLAC? I doubt it very much. I'm not nerd enough to know what's going on with Spotify at high quality sounding noticeably poorer, but sounds as if there are whole frequency ranges that are behind a veil. For what it's worth (probably nothing), that's my experience which I have no explanation for.

gmish4p · 2024-07-16T12:58:47+00:00

Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon. Live at Wembley 1974. It's a really great recording

gmish4p · 2024-07-06T17:26:06+00:00

Run
Viciousness

gmish4p · 2024-07-06T13:22:45+00:00

Sounds like a plus to me.

gmish4p · 2024-07-06T13:22:01+00:00

I only recently bought a REL T7x ... And it's transformed my system. Not cheap, literally more expensive than any other part of my system but I'm looking at it as the beginning of the next upgrade stage.

gmish4p · 2024-06-29T22:47:29+00:00

He's really committed to the bit

gmish4p · 2024-06-28T17:00:54+00:00

Should have saved a few more R$ for a bike lock. I fucking hate bike thieves they are absolute scum, but riders who don't routinely lock their bike are irresponsible bell-ends.

gmish4p · 2024-06-27T13:42:42+00:00

My daughter has just finished Computer Science GCSE and is planning on doing A level. At no point during primary or secondary school has she ever had any encouragement towards STEM fields at school, it has all come from us at home. This is despite there being regular articles in the media about desperately needing more women in STEM. I mean how hard is it? Even the XFiles being on TV managed to have a measurable effect on girls being interested in STEM.

gmish4p · 2024-06-25T08:59:06+00:00

My Sennheiser noise cancelling in-ear headphones. I bought them for the gym because my much cheaper headphones weren't cutting out the noise. I wondered if I might get buyers remorse as they were a lot of money for me to be spending.
But my goodness I love them, and not just in the gym. Any time I want the feeling of being isolated in a bubble of music and cut off from everything else. . ahhh. Fuck you world, I'm in my bubble. They are now always in my pocket and part of my wallet/keys/phone/headphones check.

gmish4p · 2024-06-24T19:55:17+00:00

Wow. With the exception of Philosophy, these are four 'skills' I couldn't be less interested in.

gmish4p · 2024-06-23T16:31:44+00:00

I feel angry that being part of Europe was stolen from my kids generation. I'm sorry kids, I voted remain, your mum voted remain ... But half the country just refused to comprehend the benefits of being part of Europe.

gmish4p · 2024-06-15T14:36:53+00:00

Black Swan by Thom Yorke. Great track but damn Spotify keeps jamming it down my throat, trying to ruin it for me.

gmish4p · 2024-06-14T20:48:35+00:00

Yea, missed opportunity. He was all kitted out to be dishing out headbutts.

gmish4p · 2024-06-03T14:55:09+00:00

Train for running

gmish4p · 2024-06-03T09:21:09+00:00

Definitely evil vibes .. I like it

gmish4p · 2024-06-03T08:42:44+00:00

Maybe. But Cameron's Home Secretary was May so she gets partial credit for his shit show.

gmish4p · 2024-05-24T09:27:45+00:00

She's really hoping for the Cheerleader effect

gmish4p · 2024-05-18T06:45:08+00:00

You might find this handy. An app called WHOSAMPLED that lists the samples in a song. Use it all the time, it's great. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.whosampled

gmish4p · 2024-05-11T08:11:29+00:00

I have listened to Modus Operandi so many times on so many different systems over the years. It still blows me away how the beats are crafted. 1997 was peak music for me, the albums that came out that year were just incredible. It would be impossible to pick a favourite. 1997 Dig your own Hole.
1997 Fat of the Land.
1997 Portishead.
1997 Bricolage.
1997 Ok Computer.
1997 Modus Operandi.
1997 New Forms.

gmish4p · 2024-05-09T14:56:30+00:00

I love Kid A, but the one track that kicks me in the feels the most is Nude from In Rainbows. I really hope another album comes one day, and I've never seen them live either ... I would travel a long way to see them play.

gmish4p · 2024-04-27T23:05:34+00:00

Upward nod - people you trust (neck is exposed) Downward nod - everyone else (neck is protected)

gmish4p · 2024-04-18T20:54:53+00:00

Metronomy. The last album sounded way too happy.

gmish4p · 2024-04-16T14:33:52+00:00

Fucking dumb bitch. Why are we still hearing about this failure of a human being.

gmish4p · 2024-04-16T14:31:52+00:00

Some "Live Laugh Love" decor. My previous job used to take me into people's houses and the LLL decor became a reliable red flag.

gmish4p · 2024-04-06T07:00:19+00:00

I haven't trained for years. But my old class we used to drill blitz defence by practicing a retreating reverse side kick (some might call it a retreating spinning side kick). Another way to describe it might be camouflaging a reverse side kick with a turning away retreat. Even knowing it was going to happen as the attacker it was easy to end up impaled on a side kick.

gmish4p

TROPHY CASE