geeze, and I'm not a total newb either.

but i'm also not a computer programmer.

why is it when i google "helix mp3 settings" i get nothing worthwhile?

i know it's a dead codec but still....

I want to experiment with heliz mp3 codec. I am using audiograbber and foobar.

I tried using the below line:

-X2 -U2 -V120 - %d

and is there something better? with the above unfortunately it does not save the id3 tags so what si the switch for that??

also - for the latest lame 398...I use in audiograbber:

%s %d --preset standard


I'm not a total audiophile but would like to find the balance (holy grail) of transparency and compression...

THANKS

If you search this board for relevant terms there are a few threads regarding Helix, including some with suggested foobar settings.

It looks to me as though the setting you are using is fine, if -V120 quality is to your liking. There is no reason why foobar should not tag the files: perhaps you need to post a screenshot of your Commandline Encoder Settings dialogue. I certainly get tags with a similar setting (- %d -X2 -U2 -V60). Are you setting the extension to "mp3"?

With regard to your LAME command line, you should really be using the -V settings with later version. Check the LAME wiki article.

As for your search for the holy grail: get in line! You really need to be testing a sample of your music with various settings in an attempt to determine what the grail is to you. foobar has an ABX tool to help you.

It's possible that you may find some things of interest in the thread for the latest ~128kbps MP3 listening test, or a link therein.

This should work in foobar2000. My setup is very similar and it works fine. Tags are fine, as well.

EDIT: Spelling

More general information:

Likely there's a lot of stuff on h**p://docs.real.com/.../, but no "open" access. Nevertheless you can download single files (mostly pdf), if you know the full path! (Google may help this time...)
Another (not limited) source is https://datatype.helixcommunity.org. There's a document "MPEG Layer III Encoder Interface" (mp3enc.doc), however i know that paper: No answer to your specific questions.