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Topic: AAC Questions and doubts (Read 6479 times) previous topic - next topic
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AAC Questions and doubts

Hi! I am new to the forum, and I am thinking of using AAC for encoding my cd's, the problem is that I don't know much about AAC.
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What encoders are available and what is the best of the bunch?

I have found PsyTEL 2.15... Is this good? Is this the last version?

What is the best command-line option for this PsyTEL encoder? VBR? CBR? I need help...
--------------------
As for decoders, I am interested in a WinAmp plug-in...

I found FAAD, but I don't now if this is the last version... It is dated 25/02/2002...
Is this the last version?
Are there any other decoders available? What is the best of them all?


Thanks!

DirtRider

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #2 –
Quote
Originally posted by DirtRider
I am thinking of using AAC for encoding my cd's, the problem is that I don't know much about AAC.
Umm, you are already thinking of using AAC for encoding your CDs, although you don't much about it?
Well, anyway. Try Psytel different Psytel profiles like -normal, -extreme, -archive, -ultra.
Like harashin said, check out Rarewares.

I'm sure Roberto will continue..
Juha Laaksonheimo

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #3 –
Well, I've been using LAME for quite a while, and a few days ago when I listened to some AAC samples, I was amazed by the quality at 128k... But I'm rushing... I still have to try other encoders and collect opinions... after doing this, maybe I'll switch to ACC...

I am just looking for the best combination of AAC encoder+command-line options/decoder....

Thanx!

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #4 –
I suggest you to try OGG Vorbis for these kind of bitrates, I think you will be amazed even more. I'm following the AAC codecs developement too, but still Vorbis looks more promising...

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #5 –
Actually, I was wondering too: is the Psytel Encoder still being worked on?

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #6 –
Quote
Originally posted by Agent69
Actually, I was wondering too: is the Psytel Encoder still being worked on?


Yes.

AAC+ should be impemented soon.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #7 –
Quote
Originally posted by DirtRider
I am thinking of using AAC for encoding my cd's


Congratulations.

Quote
What encoders are available and what is the best of the bunch?


Psytel AACenc 2.15. This is the latest version.

Quote
What is the best command-line option for this PsyTEL encoder? VBR? CBR? I need help...


My favorite is -extreme. I never found a tune where it doesn't provides transparency. (I'm not refering to problem samples, of course, but I don't listen to that kind of music anyway)

Quote
As for decoders, I am interested in a WinAmp plug-in...


in_faad. It's a great AAC decoder, it decodes AAC nearly as fast as MP3 decoders (mpg123 and MAD)

Quote
I found FAAD, but I don't now if this is the last version... It is dated 25/02/2002...
Is this the last version?


Not really, but it's enough to play AACs well. The newer versions only add features. (I shall upload a newer version to RareWares soon...)

Quote
Are there any other decoders available? What is the best of them all?


Yes, there are, but they aren't as good as FAAD.
And it's really hard to find them.

Regards;

Roberto.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #8 –
What is AAC+ ?

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #9 –
Quote
Originally posted by c-prompt
What is AAC+ ?


AAC+SBR

Kinda like MP3pro, but in a standardized way. (MPEG4v3)

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #10 –
Hrm, does the SBR part come from Coding Technologies or is it PlusV?

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #11 –
Quote
Originally posted by Tom Servo
Hrm, does the SBR part come from Coding Technologies or is it PlusV?


CodingTechnologies SBR, tweaked by the giants (AT&T, FhG, Dolby, Sony)

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #12 –
You got any detail info about that? Like default bitrates AAC+ is supposed to encode at, how much kbit the SBR stream needs, where the AAC part cut-off is at?

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #13 –
SBR in AAC (AAC+) will be called 'MPEG-4 Audio V3'  and it will be standardized in 2003.

SBR could be switched on scaling factor band basis, and with many configurations.  I have WD version of the standard, and some initial work has already been started - but I am very busy with moving  now, so I can't work on that in next two or three months.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #14 –
Is there even demand for it? Because we got also mp3PRO and at least from what I see it's not really taking off...

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #15 –
Usually, the MPEG requirements group passes requests for proposals based on industrial demands - that was the case with all MPEG standards up to date.. so there is probably a demand for standardized spectral enhancement algorithms.

AAC + SBR is particulary interesting at 24 kbps MONO and 40/48 kbps STEREO range, for digital AM radio  and portable/wireless devices.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #16 –
Quote
Originally posted by Tom Servo
Is there even demand for it? Because we got also mp3PRO and at least from what I see it's not really taking off...


Absolutely. Despite raising popularity of high speed connections, most people are still connected to internet with 56kbs modems (Frank Klemm, for example  ).

Most used streaming format and bitrate used on internet is RealAudio and many radiostations and webshops use it with bitrate of 32kbs STEREO.

Also don't forget that many videostreams use very small bandwidth for audio as the video itself takes the most of bandwith on slow connections. And of course. less bits needed to put on audio, more them can be invested to better picture quality on videostreams.

Problem with MP3PRO is that company behind it doesn't have economical muscle behind it to push the format like Microsoft or Apple can do and MP3PRO is closed format so it doesn't have same kind of wide support like open standards like MP3 or AAC have.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #17 –
I don't think so. The developers of SBR technology is closely allied to Thompson Multimedia, the giant French Multimedia Group.

kww

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #18 –
Hmm....

I don't know much about backgrounds of  companies or technologies but MP3PRO has always felt to me as a small fish on a pond regards to MP3 technology.

Anyways, MP3PRO can't offer same kind of platform support as Microsoft or Apple can do on their own operating systems (and technologies) or many invidual companies can do with open standards like MPEG4 or OGG, no matter how much money they have behind them.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #19 –
IMO, the biggest mistake of MP3pro was not providing decoder specs. That's the most important detail that made MP3 what it is today. With MP3pro, you have no choice. You must use their ugly player, or the Winamp plugin. And that's not really what people lust after.

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #20 –
Hi folks,

You have to really understand something about the nature of the music compression industry..  For a newcomer like MP3pro, the biggest challenges facing the standard is having enough people encoding files in MP3Pro standard or popularizing the standard.  They do have the financial and industrial reputation being a partner of a Giant Multimedia Corp.. it is interesting to note that the DSP sector is quick to pick up on the standard.. Maybe they are targeting the hardware implemented player by riding on the popularity of the standard MP3.

Besides, there are also other standards that are equally popular such as the Sony ATRAC3, ATRAC4 which is widely used in the Minidisc product..  I am surprised to find some decoder and encoder implemented in third parties software product. A few years ago, I could hardly find any software on the internet. Sony kept it very closely guarded and they are very particular with the pc-platform.

You can read about MP3pro at this link:

http://www.mp3prozone.com/news.htm

It seems Thompson is announcing everything!!!



KWW

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #21 –
Quote
Originally posted by wkw
I don't think so. The developers of SBR technology is closely allied to Thompson Multimedia, the giant French Multimedia Group. 

kww


May be. But the MP3 part of the current MP3Pro encoder is
of comparable poor quality.

And the way MP3Pro works is MUCH TOO inflexible,
so it can only be used for medium and low quality encoding.
Hope MPEG-4 Audio V3 is more flexible.
--  Frank Klemm

AAC Questions and doubts

Reply #22 –
Coding Technologies (CT) is actually a company formed by former employes from FhG IIS and Swedish researches that have done intensive research on bandwidth enhancement.

CT is of course linked with Thomson, because Thomson is key FhG partner for MP3 licensing, and FhG is one of the share-holders of CT.

MPEG issued 'call for proposals' for advanced bandwidth reconstruction algorithms, about a year ago, and CT, Microsoft and some other companies submitted their solutions.  CT's solution implemented with FhG AAC was absolutely the best in the subjective listening test @24 kbps - better than plain AAC @32 kbps.  So,  CT's solution was chosen as baseline for WD (working draft) phase of standard development.

At the time of WD (working draft) engineers who tested AAC + SBR sayed that they were impressed with the audio quality. Unfortunately, I haven't got these samples, but I'll see what I can do.