Can You Hear the Difference Between MP3 and WAV?

[maco]

When listening to drama CDs, can you hear a difference in sound quality between different audio formats, such as MP3 and WAV?

If you can, what differences do you notice? Does one sound clearer, richer, or more detailed than the other?

Maybe it's because I don't use particularly high-quality earphones, but honestly, I can't really hear any difference between MP3 and WAV, even when I compare them.

How about you? Can you hear the difference? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences!

 

[deluluscious]

personally, i can't really hear any difference between mp3 and wav, even after comparing them. since wav files usually take up more space, i prefer saving mp3 files instead.

for me, what makes a bigger difference is the headphones or earphones i use. i've tried a few different brands, and each one sounds different. some give me clearer sound, while others don't.

 

[jinodi]

Maybe because I'm just using regular earphones, but I can't tell the difference in sound quality between WAV and MP3 files at all! So I tend to prefer MP3 files because of the file size

 

[Daisy Magnus229]

...I don't hear any difference lol but I definitely prefer MP3 because they're much smaller in size. More space for new drama cds!

 

[nerim-w]

Maybe its also because im a brokie with cheap earphones, but theres no difference for me at all, which is why I really prefer mp3. Especially since they take up less space and dont take too long to download.

Some files with wav are like 3.0+ gB and thats just way too big for my measly 128 gB phone i will always go for mp3 when I can!

 

[selinee]

Honestly....no, lol. I wouldn't say my earphones are bad either. I get enough quality to hear the voices and SFX clearly, the different directions and spatial differences when something moves, no buzzing noises etc. That's good enough imo.

I don't think drama CDs are supposed to be that demanding or complex when it comes to audio. More complex use cases I've seen are for other tracks that have many more sound layers - like rock, orchestral, pop music, DJ/EDM stuff or even movies where audio mix includes many instruments and voices on top of each other, compare that to drama CDs... it doesn't feel like they have much going on (unless it's a 3-4P scenario then you've got multiple people trying to talk at once)

Technically speaking, it'd be fairest to compare a 320kbps MP3 vs WAV (assuming the encoder is good as well). 320k is already extremely high quality for the human ears, it's factual information. Tbfh I'll only believe people can actually tell the difference if they do it blind and they don't know beforehand they're being given two audio formats. Anything else sounds like a placebo/psychology trap.

 

[maco]

personally, i can't really hear any difference between mp3 and wav, even after comparing them. since wav files usually take up more space, i prefer saving mp3 files instead.

for me, what makes a bigger difference is the headphones or earphones i use. i've tried a few different brands, and each one sounds different. some give me clearer sound, while others don't.

Thank you for sharing your experience! I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who has trouble telling the difference between MP3 and WAV.

That's interesting about headphones and earphones! I hadn't really thought about how much they can affect the sound. Maybe trying different earphones would make a bigger difference than changing the audio format!

Thanks, this was really helpful!

 

[maco]

Maybe because I'm just using regular earphones, but I can't tell the difference in sound quality between WAV and MP3 files at all! So I tend to prefer MP3 files because of the file size

I feel the same way! I also tend to prefer MP3 because of the smaller file size. It's nice to know I'm not the only one who can't hear the difference!

 

[Moonstone22]

To me, I think the sound is better in MP3, not WAV and as others pointed out that mp3 files are smaller in size

 

[Qiangwei]

Personally I haven't heard a difference. At least not enough to justify me saving it over mp3 and taking up so much space on my ssd

 

[laminate]

Haha same here! I tried doing a side-by-side comparison before and my ears literally couldn't spot a single difference!

 

[under_themoon99]

I think there's no difference in quality or even the sound... except Wav really takes too much space so I usually convert wav files to mp3 to save on storage (≧∇≦)/

 

[maco]

...I don't hear any difference lol but I definitely prefer MP3 because they're much smaller in size. More space for new drama cds!

Haha, exactly! More space for drama CDs is always a good thing! I have so many CDs I want to keep, so saving space is definitely important!

 

[maco]

Maybe its also because im a brokie with cheap earphones, but theres no difference for me at all, which is why I really prefer mp3. Especially since they take up less space and dont take too long to download.

Some files with wav are like 3.0+ gB and thats just way too big for my measly 128 gB phone i will always go for mp3 when I can!

I totally understand! Some WAV files are HUGE! I have so many drama CDs I want to keep, so saving storage space is really important to me too. I'd rather have more space for new drama CDs than use it all up on a single file!

 

[maco]

Honestly....no, lol. I wouldn't say my earphones are bad either. I get enough quality to hear the voices and SFX clearly, the different directions and spatial differences when something moves, no buzzing noises etc. That's good enough imo.

I don't think drama CDs are supposed to be that demanding or complex when it comes to audio. More complex use cases I've seen are for other tracks that have many more sound layers - like rock, orchestral, pop music, DJ/EDM stuff or even movies where audio mix includes many instruments and voices on top of each other, compare that to drama CDs... it doesn't feel like they have much going on (unless it's a 3-4P scenario then you've got multiple people trying to talk at once)

Technically speaking, it'd be fairest to compare a 320kbps MP3 vs WAV (assuming the encoder is good as well). 320k is already extremely high quality for the human ears, it's factual information. Tbfh I'll only believe people can actually tell the difference if they do it blind and they don't know beforehand they're being given two audio formats. Anything else sounds like a placebo/psychology trap.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a detailed explanation! I really appreciate it!

I hadn't thought about the differences in audio complexity between drama CDs, music, and movies before, so that was really interesting to learn about! And you're right, I never really considered blind testing either. It makes sense that knowing which format you're listening to could influence how you perceive the sound.

I usually listen to drama CDs while crocheting, so I'm not always paying attention to every little detail in the audio. Maybe that's another reason why I don't notice much of a difference!

Your explanation gave me a lot to think about, and I learned quite a bit from it. Thank you again for sharing your knowledge and perspective with me!

 

[maco]

To me, I think the sound is better in MP3, not WAV and as others pointed out that mp3 files are smaller in size

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! It's reassuring to know that so many people feel the same way I do. I'm glad I asked!

 

[maco]

Personally I haven't heard a difference. At least not enough to justify me saving it over mp3 and taking up so much space on my ssdView attachment 124045

It seems like it's difficult for most people to hear the difference... I'm also giving up on saving my drama CDs in WAV and planning to switch to MP3. The storage space they take up just keeps growing, doesn't it?

 

[LivEnblem]

I used to prefer MP3 files because I couldn't really tell the difference between MP3 and WAV, but I recently installed an advanced audio driver that allowed me to hear more detail such as the sound of breaths when listening to WAV files. So, unless audio equipment has been upgraded, I don't think there's any real need to insist on using the WAV format.

 

[Ant_076]

To be honest, I can't tell the difference between audio formats—whether it's MP3, WAV, or even FLAC. A long time ago, I had an MP3 player and headphones that supported Hi-Fi, but I couldn't detect any difference in sound quality between the various audio formats. So, for me, I prefer MP3 because, when it comes to the balance between file size and sound quality, MP3 offers the best value for the price.

 

[Arielle]

I've always wondered about this, too. Maybe it's because I don't use high-end earphones, but I honestly can't tell the difference at all
If a WAV version is available, I usually make a point of listening to that first. But the files are so large, so after I've finished listening, I convert them to MP3.

 

[maco]

Haha same here! I tried doing a side-by-side comparison before and my ears literally couldn't spot a single difference!

Right?! I always thought I couldn't tell the difference even when comparing them side by side, so it's a relief to know that others feel the same way haha

 

[maco]

I think there's no difference in quality or even the sound... except Wav really takes too much space so I usually convert wav files to mp3 to save on storage (≧∇≦)/

I'm doing the same thing! I've been converting WAV files to MP3 (320 kbps), but lately I've started wondering if MP3 (192 kbps) might be good enough too...!! Now I have another thing to worry about haha