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Since it is so expensive is it really worth the cost to purchase the Mac version of Audiophile USB drive to be used with my iMac intel currently running macOS Sierra 10.12.5 ?

Comments/advice please.

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I like the Audiophile version. After listening to it for a couple of years now, I wouldn't go back to the compressed file version for producing my songs. There's a difference. It's not major but there is slightly more sound clarity. It's particularly noticeable in the higher frequencies.

With the Audiophile edition, it's possible to install the compressed version on one's hard drive (if desired). That's what I did.

Installing the compressed version gives me the equivalent of the EverythingPak or UltrplusPak on my hard drive. I then use the USB drive with the uncompressed files as my Realtrack and Realdrum source when I want the original 16 bit, 4.1 kHz WAV files.

Below is a link to an article that Matt Finley put together with his thoughts on the Audiophile edition.

http://www.pgmusic.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=378939#Post378939

If you go to Audio Link in my signature and listen to the top half a dozen songs, what you'll hear were created with the Audiophile version of the software. I have run the final audio through Ozone, though, so what you are hearing is not the raw BIAB sound. Also, because Soundcloud compresses files when they are uploaded, you are hearing a compressed version of what I created rather than the WAV version.

Regards,
Noel


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And it becomes a lot more significant difference once you venture into manipulating the audio. Even the built-in "Tone" adjustment will definitely give you a very noticeable difference (in favour of the uncompressed, of course), if not but because, by definition, the compressed files have already been 'manipulated'.
And taking an upgrade deal (as opposed to buying like it's a 1st time purchase) is actually not all that pricy...but of course 'pricy' is very much a relative term.


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Thank you Noel and Icelander for the very informative and valuable information that is obviously based on your using the Audiophile version.

That has helped me in my decision. Now to scrape up the $600+++ ( USA funds ) being a first time purchase.





Last edited by w; 05/24/17 02:21 PM. Reason: typo's
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Check with sales, but it looks like if you are upgrading from any 2016 Mac version it's $479 US.


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Standard vs Audiophile:

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BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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Yes, that's great a graphic that shows frequencies truncated at 16,000 Hz on the compressed files.

There's more to it also. When I last properly tested my hearing in a physics lab back in the 1990s, 16,000 Hz was beyond my ability to hear. These days, that threshhold has dropped to around 13,000 Hz. The reason that I mention this is because even though very high frequencies are beyond my ability to appreciate, I can still hear the difference between BIAB's compressed version and the original WAV files for most of the instruments. (Distortion guitar is one that I cannot hear any great difference with.) As mentioned before, it's not huge but it's there.

Regards,
Noel


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