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Here we go yet again. Sigh.

Mac is completely correct. Good high quality PA's like my EV ELX112P, or a JBL 515XT system or the Bose L1 or whatever do sound "pretty good" but they all pale in comparison to studio quality monitors set up in a quiet room with good acoustic treatment.

Joden, again you're missing the point here. You CANNOT tell the difference between a regular wav file or a 128 bit MP3 going through a PA while you're sitting 25 feet away in a noisy bar. That's pure BS if you're going to say you can. You can't even tell the difference if you're on stage right next to the PA speaker or floor monitor unless it's an afternoon sound check with nobody there and even then I doubt it.

At one wedding reception I did this summer, after we had done the obligatory old fart set we had a teen girl come up with her iPad and ask if she could play a few tunes. After I asked of any of the tunes had bad hip hop type lyrics in them and she said no I said ok, plugged it into the PA (a JBL Eon system) and it sounded just fine. All MP3's and we even pulled up a few tunes on Youtube and you know how those are compressed. Still sounded fine to me because we had about 75 people talking, dancing and laughing, lots of ambient noise. All I did was play along with a few parts, drink a beer and watch the volume since some MP3's can be mixed hotter than others.

A 128 bit MP3 is perfectly ok in those type situations. Maybe at a quiet jazz lounge you may, may hear some little difference in high freq's like drum cymbals but nothing else.

Bob


Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Originally Posted By: jazzmammal
Here we go yet again. Sigh.

Mac is completely correct. Good high quality PA's like my EV ELX112P, or a JBL 515XT system or the Bose L1 or whatever do sound "pretty good" but they all pale in comparison to studio quality monitors set up in a quiet room with good acoustic treatment.

Joden, again you're missing the point here. You CANNOT tell the difference between a regular wav file or a 128 bit MP3 going through a PA while you're sitting 25 feet away in a noisy bar. That's pure BS if you're going to say you can. You can't even tell the difference if you're on stage right next to the PA speaker or floor monitor unless it's an afternoon sound check with nobody there and even then I doubt it.

At one wedding reception I did this summer, after we had done the obligatory old fart set we had a teen girl come up with her iPad and ask if she could play a few tunes. After I asked of any of the tunes had bad hip hop type lyrics in them and she said no I said ok, plugged it into the PA (a JBL Eon system) and it sounded just fine. All MP3's and we even pulled up a few tunes on Youtube and you know how those are compressed. Still sounded fine to me because we had about 75 people talking, dancing and laughing, lots of ambient noise. All I did was play along with a few parts, drink a beer and watch the volume since some MP3's can be mixed hotter than others.

A 128 bit MP3 is perfectly ok in those type situations. Maybe at a quiet jazz lounge you may, may hear some little difference in high freq's like drum cymbals but nothing else.

Bob

Leave off with the sighs! Such a drama queen.

m8 who died and made you expert in all things? I CAN tell the difference between an mp3 @ 128 and one at 256+ and/or VBR (high) even if you cannot. And I never said it was NOT okay to use a 128kbps mp3..please read posts correctly.

I said that no playing device will have issues with whether it is an MP3 or wav, and that the only issue is storage space. You point out where I said it was not okay to use a 128kbps mp3 file? I don't as a personal preference, just as the difference between mp3, wma and aac is personal preference only.

PS: And whether the audience can tell the difference or not is immaterial to me, I want the best possible source and quality (with space constraints taken into account) when playing live. If one adopted the attitude that the audience didn't care, well then why not simply play mp3s like a dj and sing along, [*****], no-one will care according to your philosophy.

Well I believe they do care, and they DO notice. Just because they do not comment has nothing to do with it. And if the audience is ignoring you and just chatting among themselves, and treating you like a jukebox, then you really need to look at what you are doing, closely.

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This is what the OP started off with:

Originally Posted By: rokq22
I plan on doing a couple street performances near Christmas time and making use of some of the karaoke/instrumental songs I have purchased and also some songs I have done with BIAB...


Also this:

Quote:

...through my Roland Street Cube...



crazy


--Mac

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Some people will argue no matter what is said. Regardless of the facts, and circumstances. I guess it is fun to argue, or some kind of game or sport. Curious ......

Street music through a cube,it would not matter what format you use, it would be lacking in fidelity. I have a cube it is a great little amp, but clear enough to tell wav from MP3? Not likely.

Year after year I read about folks swearing they can here the difference, no matter of the environment, even when scientific facts prove otherwise. Wav vs MP3, 44,100 vs 48,000 is another.

Best path is to let them believe what they want. It really does not matter.


HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2025, Realband, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 9 32c , Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app.
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Agreed... street performance with a cube... use whatever works.

I do agree with Joden that the file size doesn't matter. Every computer has buffers in RAM that it uses to store the file data. As recording enthusiasts, we use synths that have sample files that are many hundreds of megabytes... that gets loaded into memory so that notes played in real time can be replicated with the proper sample without much latency. No hard drive is fast enough to do this yet. So mp3 or wave, it doesn't matter.

The quality of the MP3 128kbs is much much less than the quality of a wave @ 16/44.1. In a noisy environment or on the street with a small, likely battery powered PA.... it really will not be that noticeable.

My reference to my comments comes from experience. In working with a PA system to lead P&W music at a prison ministry, with a halfway decent portable PA, I wanted to travel as light as possible so I brought my acoustic/electric guitar and my MP3 player with the backing tracks. The playback was noticeably degraded. I checked the cords, (all new cords) and the input levels and the player's output levels to try to sort it out. The following month, I had burned a CD and used a CD player and the music was crystal. I plugged the MP3 player into the very same cord... just swapped from the CD player to the mp3 player during our setup time....and yup.... the issue was the mp3. Now, with my ear buds, the mp3 sounds kicking.....

I also understand that it could have been an impedance mismatch contributing to the sound quality issue.

Can a person hear the difference between the various levels of quality for MP3's vs waves.... ? The average person on the street... probably not. To a musician with good ears...... oh yes.

However, as the quality moves up from the 128kbs the ability to discern fades rapidly. Sort of like musicians who say they can hear the difference between 44.1, 48, and 96khz sampling rates...

did I open that can of worms a bit further?

Last edited by Guitarhacker; 10/30/13 04:49 AM.

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Hi Guitarhacker,
Could you tell me more about your set-up for P & W for prison ministry. I am currently using a similar set-up for P & W. I would also like to know more about the prison ministry. Probably not something to tie up this forum. Maybe you could email me at martycansler@bellsouth.net.
Thank you,
Marty C

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Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe

This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.

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Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!

Special offers until December 31st, 2025!

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Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.

Video: XPro Styles PAK 10 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!

XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.

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Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!

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Rejoice, one and all, for Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box® is here! We’re serving up 200 brand spankin’ new styles to delight your musical taste buds! The first three courses are the classics you’ve come to know and love, including offerings from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, but, not to be outdone, this year’s fourth course is bro country! A wide ranging genre, you can find everything from hip-hop, uptempo outlaw country, hard hitting rock, funk, and even electronica, all with that familiar bro country flair. The dinner bell has been rung, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 21 today!

In this PAK you’ll discover: Energetic folk rock, raucous train beats, fast country boogies, acid jazz grooves, laid-back funky jams, a bevy of breezy jazz waltzes, calm electro funk, indie synth pop, industrial synth metal, and more bro country than could possibly fit in the back of a pickup truck!

Special offers until December 31st, 2025!

All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 21 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 21 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!

Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 21.

Video: Xtra Styles PAK 21 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!

Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 21 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.

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