Downloading/recording from BBC Sounds

[Dave2002]

get_iplayer actually delivers the aac files in m4a format but the aac can be extracted wtih Yamb and edited with mp3directcut (both freeware). As you will be aware, 320kbps aac is considerably superior to mp3 at the sane data rate. Indeed, it is difficult to hear any difference from a FLAC derived for a CD recording.It is most certainly far superior to FM or DAB.

One problem may be the way the sounds are subsequently rendered. I use an iMac - which ought to be able to cope well with m4a - but the player which is used may reside in one of the browsers, and probably few people think too much about the program or app which is going to render the audio to physical sound waves. Also I noted after the programme that the Tippett recording I heard was a Teldec from 1996 -

• Label : Teldec
• ASIN : B000000SN4

Hopefully the BBC do "play" these CDs [or a stored digital copy] and don't mangle the sound up too much before sending them out on the networks, but I'm not sure of anything these days.

I don't think my hearing has deteriorated so much that I can't detect poor string sound.

[Old Grumpy]

As you will be aware, 320kbps aac is considerably superior to mp3 at the sane data rate.

It might be even better at an insane data rate!

[Bryn]

It might be even better at an insane data rate!

I failed to spot that one. I think I'll leave it, now.

[jonfan]

For a permanent record I download on Sounds at the highest quality and then play that back in real time into an audio program on my desk top and then burn on to a CD. Hey presto

[Bryn]

For a permanent record I download on Sounds at the highest quality and then play that back in real time into an audio program on my desk top and then burn on to a CD. Hey presto

I simply copy to a USB stick or other convenient storage medium, such as hard disk or SSD and play back via the USB input on a convenient device such as that found on most modern disc players, in-car players, etc. I gave up on burning such files to CD-R or DVD-R, long ago.

[jonfan]

Sounds easy Bryn put like that but I’ve stayed with the end machinery of my system for a long while and I’m very happy with it. Car listening doesn’t begin to qualify as a serious listening experience. I have a Sugden amp, Castle Howard speakers and an Arcam SACD player. I’m gradually selling off my LP collection and with the return I’m buying the latest Solti Ring incarnation; I’m not disappointed.

[Bryn]

Sounds easy Bryn put like that but I’ve stayed with the end machinery of my system for a long while and I’m very happy with it. Car listening doesn’t begin to qualify as a serious listening experience. I have a Sugden amp, Castle Howard speakers and an Arcam SACD player. I’m gradually selling off my LP collection and with the return I’m buying the latest Solti Ring incarnation; I’m not disappointed.

The car reference was simply to indicate how flexible the use of non-optical storage media can be. A CD-R can hold about 24 minutes of high-resolution recording at most, and that will not play in a standard CD player (I have a now somewhat ancient Alesis Masterlink hard disc/CD burner* which can record at up to 96/24 and burn to CD-R in CD24 format (AIFF). A nominally 512GB USB stick can literally hold days of high-resolution recordings, playable on many, if not most, modern disc players that have a USB input. For high-resolution 2-channel stereo playback I feed through an Oppo UDP-203 player to an Arcam amp. and for high-resolution surround, the feed currently goes from the Oppo to a Yamaha home cinema tuner-amp (though I plan to upgrade to a decent alternative with Dolby Atmos facilities before too long). The Oppo can also play Dolby Atmos Blu-rays and 5.1/5.0 surround files from a USB stick).

* https://www.alesis.com/products/view/masterlink-ml-9600