Ok, I have an Archos 20GB Mp3 player, so size isnt really an issue. What i want is the absolute best quality mp3 file i could get, so i used Lame, with --preset insane. In winamp, I played the original WAV and MP3 one after another, and I could still tell the difference, so I thought, Mp3 cant do that sort of quality.

Then, I thought, what if it is winamp making it this quality? So, i played both files again in Sonique2, and guess what? I can't tell the difference anymore! How stupid am i?

Winamp2 & Sonique2 shouldn't sound differently.... I guess that you have the BAD equalizer of winamp enabled or some DSP filters installed. Disabling them will make the mp3 sound the same as with Sonique2.

try abx'ing the files against each other (foobar abx component is the easiest way to do so imho). most likely your imaginating things.

regards; ilikedirt

ok, i just ABX'd em, and they sound exactly the same. I have no DSP filters enabled in winamp and eqauliser is off. What is doing it then?

This might be a psychological effect, as the Sonique decoder uses internal DSP.

Could you use the diskwriter output in Winamp to create a wave that is decoded by Winamp.. If you can ABX that, but not the Sonique decoded (or just regularly decoded) wave - then you can rule out psychological effects and narrow the problem down to a bad setting in Winamp..

A quicker option is to just download the latest version of Winamp 2.x and make a fresh install of it - that way you shouldn't have any bad settings or DSP's on that copy

ok, i just used the diskwriter to ouput, and then ABX'd it with the original WAV. And u can DEFINATELY tell the difference now. It isn't a pshycological effect.

its ok, iv sorted it. The equaliser is affecting it. It affects the MP3, but not the wav. sorry everyone!

So now if you cant tell the difference between your MP3's and wav's, you should try if you can hear any difference between Lame -aps and wav.