Hi Res Download recommendations

[johnb]

The downside is that although 320kbps AAC rips sound OK in absolute terms, they sound dull compared to lossless which means some re-ripping....

If you are re-ripping on a Windows PC then the standard and most recommended software packages to use are: for ripping "EAC" (free) or "dbPowerAmp" (not free but easier and quicker) and for tagging "mp3tag" (free).

[mathias broucek]

If you are re-ripping on a Windows PC then the standard and most recommended software packages to use are: for ripping "EAC" (free) or "dbPowerAmp" (not free but easier and quicker) and for tagging "mp3tag" (free).

Thanks John. The dealer recommended dbPowerAmp and it's a good bit of software!

[slarty]

Hi Mathias, if you are ripping with DB Poweramp, I recommend setting the Flac converter to lossless (dropdown at the bottom of the screen).
The files will be big, but as long as space is not a problem then it is the best sound.
The difference in size from Flac compression level 8(50%) and Lossless is double the size.

[Bryn]

Hi Mathias, if you are ripping with DB Poweramp, I recommend setting the Flac converter to lossless (dropdown at the bottom of the screen).
The files will be big, but as long as space is not a problem then it is the best sound.
The difference in size from Flac compression level 8(50%) and Lossless is double the size.

Eh? Surely all settings result in a lossless file, though more processing is required to reconstruct from the smaller files. FLAC, after all, is the acronym for Free Lossless Audio CODEC.

[slarty]

The DB Poweramp has Flac compression settings from 1 to 8 and lossless.

[Beef Oven!]

What Hi*Fi? Reviews the 2 and gives a helpful comparison to the 1 unit.

http://www.whathifi.com/naim/uniti-2/review

[johnb]

The DB Poweramp has Flac compression settings from 1 to 8 and lossless.

slarty, as Bryn said, FLAC is lossless at all compression settings.

The setting that is usually recommended is "5", this being the best compromise between file size and the processing power required to encode/decode.

If FLAC is to be decoded on a very low power device then a setting lower than 5 might be warranted when encoding to FLAC (as the lower the setting the lower the required processing power) but usually "5" works fine.

[slarty]

thanks for that explanation