I mostly listen to music on a Windows pc with a FIIO Q7, HD560 in Foobar2k, which I consider to be literally baby level gear compare with the setups and gear some users have here. Anyway, I have been checking on rebuilding my music library and I notice that FLACs with 24b-48kHz really sound different from the previous tracks I had, but above that i.e., 24b-96kHz, 24b-192kHz or even DSF tracks does not sound different at all.
Sorry if this is a stupid question, I literally just change from some Marshall Monitors and listening music in windows VLC to this beginner level gear. So, I assume my lack of knowledge and lack of higher level gear is the culprit to me not finding any difference with quality levels above 48kHz. I hope the community can help me with some insights for me to understand a little more, and tweak something’s while I get use to this hobby.
PD. I am not planning on buying more gear at the moment, maybe in the future I will get into more advance level stuff.
Nothing audible though. Once you exceed the limits of hearing, it’s all just numbers used for marketing. Bigger must be better, right?
No one actually has a playback system and listening environment that supports 144dB dynamic range. They are limited by maximum output and ambient noise floor. Nor are there any recordings requiring such a range (even ones released in hi-res formats).
Likewise, there is no musical content beyond 20KHz, and most people’s hearing drops off well before that.
In the early days of CDs, a company named Telarc released high dynamic range recordings to exploit the full capabilities of CDs. They would knock you out of your seat on crescendos, but could barely be heard during quiet passages. They made for impressive demos, but were otherwise not satisfying to listen to. It was too much of a good thing.
Today, many recordings have limited dynamic range which seem lifeless. They seem optimized for listening on equipment with limited volume in noisy environments (in the car over road noise, outside in public wearing earbuds, or played on a small wireless speaker.)
As an audiophile, this is most unfortunate. I would like to hear music with a dynamic range appropriate a typical quiet livingroom and a good stereo with large speakers that can play loud without distortion when required, as in the early days of hi-fi. CDs are more than capable of supporting that. Hi-res formats are overkill.