MP3 VS WAV

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So which is it MP3 VS WAV? I have a feeling the people using MP3’s to DJ want to know if they need to upgrade from MP3 to wavs and the people already using WAV’s most likely view MP3’s as dirty files - kind of like fast food that’s accessible everywhere. In this video find out what most DJs are using and what is the best option for you.

[void]

mp3 is generally cd quality. people on mdma dont notice

[RaquelFoster]

I just get the WAVs then convert them to AIFF so I can tag them. I used to use FLAC files, but then you're out of luck if they don't have NXS2s. Some clubs only have an XDJ-RX2, and that works fine for everybody except the nerd who showed up with FLAC files on her thumb drives.

There are a lot of ways MP3s can go bad once you start DJing with them. If you want to get something from YouTube you should learn how to use youtube-dl and make your own files from the 160 kbps Opus source stream and never trust some shady downloader site grabbing who-knows-which stream and recompressing it with whatever settings they felt like.

MP3's also have a high-frequency cutoff depending on their bitrate: 128 kbit = 16.5 KHz. 160 kbit = 17.2 KHz. 192 kbit = 18.7 KHz. 224 kbit = 19.4 KHz. 320 kbit = 20.1 KHz.
If you look at the spectrum you can see a line where the encoder killed the high frequencies and you can tell which bitrate it was encoded at.

Most adults can't hear much over 17 KHz, but what happens if you slow down the BPM by 5%? That changes 18 KHz to 17 KHz. The more pitch-shifting and EQ-ing you do the more you'll bring out problems with compressed audio. Eventually you'll start to notice your hi-hats are all wooshy and everything sounds terrible.

Encoders also do psychoacoustic modeling which throws away some information. You don't notice when you play the track normally, but ... when you EQ a track or run it through FX you might be amplifying part with lost information and you'll uncover compression artifacts.

[djsimonrossprice]

Lets have it right here most if not all punters haven't got a clue about music quality. Factor in Drugs, Booze, and obsession with mobile phones. Most have the attention span of a guppy fish..
50 YEARS of Djing taught me that...

[AzyrOR]

A man of many metaphors, absolute legend

[intruden]

I use Spek to check for the real bitrate, very useful and free, good video dude :)

[Rylhz]

This video just explained everything I've had to learn the hard way over multiple years of ripping music of YT. granted, lately, I've been ONLY using sources that upload in 1080p and a conveter that DL's in 320, but i have def noticed quite a few songs that have 100% been ripped from another video in low quality, and re-uploaded in higher quality and it sounds like absolute garbage even tho it was DL'd in 320 from a 1080 source, the originating source was only uploaded in 720 or something, this video could have saved me a crap load of time. big ups for taking the time to explain all this :)

[Thomsenox]

finally save my stress, looks like I have spend too much money on wav. Now I will do 320 mp3. Good work!!

[trevor_mounts_music]

I didn't notice a difference between 320 mp3s and WAVs until I played on a really high end Danley system...the WAVS definitely hit the speakers/harder better. not a huge difference, but It was definitely noticeable. On the usual club system I haven't really been able to tell much of a difference tbh.

[johan]

I always try to get the WAV file, I notice a huge difference in the quality if you compare WAV and 356 it’s no question about its a large quality drop to 356. It still works for sure but you definitely lose some of the richness and depth of the song using a mp3. I am planning on playing in some big clubs one day and my library is super important to me so if I have the chance to have the absolute best quality music I will. Your library is a life long project so the space it takes doesn’t really matter that much because you will never stop evolving you music. So having a high standard music library is something I value because as a dj you spend a crazy amount of time organizing your music.

[craigtimmons]

Zero pretention with this dude!

Old school raver ❤️ vibes !!!

[guyhetman]

100% agree mp3 320bit rate is fine unless producing music

[nathanhartley]

Huge sigh of relief after watching this. I digitised mu CDs all mp3 320. Over 300gb. There is no way i have the storage for them all in WAV. Just bought ddj 800 to mix them on. Thanks for taking the time to share.

[Savage__]

People need to start smacking that LIKE BUTTON

[djbrentsa]

Love your enthusiasm. Thank you for the video. I use 320kps MP3 files which allows me, as a mobile DJ, to embed lighting scripts into the MP3 tags to create unique lighting programs associated with selected files. Just before lockdown I did a gig for about 2, 500 people using 320 kps MP3 files and outputting via a digital mixer to 24 array speakers and 8 subs - it sounded awesome on this big system.

[evanmassimino]

The last time I used a dj pool I didn't really like the music they had to offer. I'd try searching a specific song and couldn't find it. If there were a larger selection to choose from, I'd give it another try. Otherwise, I'll stick to converting my tracks until I start playing on bigger sound systems. If you're playing a house party or anything with a small PA system, chances are nobody will notice. That way, I can build my sets the way I want with the tracks I want. So if you're a bedroom dj, or you play smaller partys, don't worry about it so much. Once you feel like you're getting closer to play at bigger events, switch over to dj pools or pay for single songs online.

[djquikdr]

Exactly right, 320 Kbps is the minimum regarding club DJ's. And keep in mind that WAV does not store metadata in the file itself (track info, beatgrid, CUE points). Thank you for the video.

[Shwahface]

Great video. As an ex vinyl dj that's just started up again using digital mediums I was interested in this. I remember all my producer mates, way back when, were on a properly snobby .wav tip. We were running a sound system at the time, and, to the sound technicians, the word mp3 was blasphemy. When I started up DJing again recently, I messaged an old mate who's now really successful at producing and djing for an opinion, since .wavs seemed hard so to get.. She plays sets through 50+k of pro audio set ups on the regular. When it comes to her own style, and what she produces, she said she plays .wavs. But when she's mixing other genres, as she often does, she plays mp3, and no one notices the differences. 10 Years ago she'd have been the first person to turn her nose up at mp3s, and now she reckons that the only ppl that really care are audiophiles that tweak amps, mixing boards, and crossovers. Thanks for your content, man, your enthusiasm is infectious, and I enjoy your uninhibited stream of consciousness rants haha. Big up!

[joshuaganon]

I’m a dj in my local psytrance scene where we bring festival grade speakers out bush. I’ve found that even 320kbps doesn’t cut it in terms of quality cause every single imperfection is amplified in these systems. Also there is a massive drop in volume and I’m having to increase the gain on the 320 track every time and bring it back down when I’ve loaded a wav back into the channel. Sure, the punters don’t know the difference but half the people that go to these events are audio engineers or djs themselves who all have an ear for it. Stick with aiff or wav as they’re both uncompressed or flac if you need to as it’s a lossless compression. If you have a big enough library where you’re worried about space, you’re at a point where spending $100 on a good external hard drive is more than worth it.

[SuperFluidFerroFluid]

Most importantly, . New dj's should be using programs like "Spek" spectrum software to analize their mp3's. Any files that show cuts under the 20khz/16khz mark should not be played nor are they worth paying for. From my own experience I have found out that even some of the mp3's i bought from Beatport back in the days were worse quality compressions then the same tracks downloaded through YT for comparisson at 320kbps. My personal opinion is that, there are websites out there that offer very well made mp3's even with all the metadata properly done so it all show nicely in Rekordbox, where you for the same price mind you also can buy the Waves presupposed you have the space for it. Furthermore, if you are playing on systems that can actually deliver the full range of the sound spectrum then people will truly "feel" the sets you are playing, the music become more alive and powerful.

[kdao]

I was taught to always use WAV file as its the best music quality...but listening to you and thinking about it logically, untrained ears prob wont be able to tell the difference. Also, i think getting WAVs in all genres and music categories could be harder than getting just mp3. So i'm leaning now towards the high quality mp3s.