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= Which File Format (Codec) to Choose = Digital media is stored in files. There are various encoding methods or file formats, each associated with a different Codec (which stands for Compressor-Decompressor, i.e. the program which creates or reads the file). There are different codecs because different codecs are optimised for different uses, such as highest qality or highest compression. For a very good guide to which format to choose check out this [[BeginnersGuideToFileFormats|Guide to File Formats]]. If audio quality is your primary concern (and if you are reading this, it probably is!) then check out this [[HowtoBestAudioQuality|How-To for Best Audio Quality]]. Codecs noted as '''Lossy''' mean that some information is removed when the music is encoded to reduce file size. '''Lossless''' means that no information is lost when encoding. ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flac FLAC] (Free Lossless Audio Codec) == FLAC is a free open-source lossless audio codec: + Lossless + Freeware and OpenSource + Supported natively by SlimServer / SqueezeBox + Supports Vorbis-style tags + No DRM protection - Most hardware and some software players don't support FLAC - Must be transcoded (automatically) to play on SlimServer with older (SB1/SLIMP3) hardware [http://flac.sourceforge.net/download.html Download the FLAC codec] here. ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MP3 MP3] == [http://lame.sourceforge.net/index.php Lame] is a well developed and tested free MP3 codec that is highly recommended if MP3 is the desired file format. Here is more [http://wiki.hydrogenaudio.org/index.php?title=LAME information on setting up lame]. Lame is: + Freeware and OpenSource + Heavily tested + Compatible with almost all players + Supports Id3-style tags + No DRM protection + Transparent to most people at higher bit rates. - Lossy ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Audio_Coding AAC] (Advanced Audio Coding) == AAC is a lossy codec that is sounds good at low bitrites (small file sizes) and is supported by Apple on its iPods and in its iTunes application: + Freeware + Supported by iPod and several other hardware players + Supports proprietary + Supports tagging - Lossy - May contain DRM protection - Must be transcoded (automatically) to play on SlimServer Both Apple's [http://www.apple.com/itunes/ iTunes] and [http://www.nero.com/nerodigital/eng/Nero_Digital_Audio.html Nero AAC] support encoding to AAC format. ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALAC ALAC] (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) == Apple's lossless MPEG4 audio encoder is called ALAC and it outputs files with the extension .m4a. + Lossless + Freeware + Supported by iPod and some other physical players + Supports tagging - May contain DRM protection - Must be transcoded (automatically) to play on SlimServer Apple's [http://www.apple.com/itunes/ iTunes] supports encoding to ALAC. ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Media_Audio WMA] (Windows Media Audio) == + Both Lossy and Lossless (WMA Pro) support (as of version 9) + Freeware + Supported by many non-iPod hardware digital audio players + Supports tagging (though the tags are non-standard) - May contain DRM protection Microsoft's [http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/ Windows Media Player] contains all necessary codecs but these can also be [http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/forpros/codecs/audio.aspx downloaded seperately]. ---- == [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wav WAV] (Waveform) == + Lossless + Supported by virtually all players and editors + Played natively by SlimServer - No tagging support (Wav64 does support tagging) - Uncompressed (thus large file sizes) - Must be transcoded (automatically) to play on SlimServer with older (SB1/SLIMP3) hardware ---- == Other File Formats == There are at least a dozen other audio file formats for specific purposes. For more information of other common types check out [http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index.php?showforum=62 Hydrogen Audio's Codec Forum]. ---- /Contributors: [[Street Samurai|Street_Samurai]]/ {{Media formats}} [[Category:Media formats]]

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