Is 224kbps(VBR) MP3 good enough for iPhone/iPod? , [TOS #6 x2 - was "VBR question" (why not ask it?) in G/Aud] Options

[paperskyline]

Is 224kbps(VBR) MP3 good enough for iPhone/iPod?

[Ouroboros]

224 kbit/s is not VBR, it's CBR. VBR varies the frame size to provide the most appropriate "bit rate" for the music it is encoding, taking into account the complexity of the music. A single VBR setting can give you one file that averages 120 kbit/s, while the next file might average 250 kbit/s.

Even when you resolve that (i.e. do you want CBR or VBR), your question still makes no sense. What is important is whether or not you can tell the difference between the original file and the compressed version when listening, and that doesn't just depend on your ears, but on the environment you intend to listen to the music in. The iPod/iPhone is just a storage location for the data, and hardly relevant at all to the question - you could be using it while jogging, or on public transport, or connected to your car stereo, or in a docking station, or connected to your home system, each of which has different characteristics and different background noise.

A quick read of the board will reveal that this sort of question is asked and answered regularly.......