The most popular audio file formats that you need to know
After the tremendous spread of digital music in the world, the knowledge of audio file formats became general information that everyone should know, not just those interested in sound and music. Most users already know many of these formats and use them in their daily lives but without any distinction between them.
Perhaps the greatest example of this is the MP3 format, whose fame can’t be denied, but at the same time, what distinguishes this format is still unknown to many users. So if you’re looking for a place to know the differences between audio file formats and the unique features of each one of them, you’ve come to the right place.
Audio file formats
Before talking about the types of audio formats we first need to know how to store audio in digital files. after recording the sound through the recording tools there are two options to store this data; either storing sound without any compression process, directly to audio files or storing after the compression process, depending on one of the encodings and compatibility versions of existing hardware.
Non-compressed audio file formats
These audio files are not compressed and the sound remains the same quality as recorded without any change. Although these formats are more accurate, they are much larger than CD audio formats. The most popular WAV-PCM-AIFF formats are often used by producers and musicians for their high accuracy.
Lossless audio formats
These audio files are compressed enough to reduce their size without affecting their quality. These files are still large in size compared to other audio file formats but are smaller than previously mentioned ones. The most popular of these formats are FLAC-ALAC and they are seldom used by music producers.
Very compressed audio formats
the most common among ordinary music listeners and even some music lovers. These files are much smaller than the ones mentioned above. In any case, the sound in these files after the intense compression becomes of less quality and more static, which makes this type of files inappropriate for music production, but makes it ideal for broadcasting services and portable music players. The most popular audio file formats of this type are MP3 – ACC – OGG but there are many others.
The difference between the most popular sound file formats
WAV and AIFF are both uncompressed, and both of them offer the same sound quality most of the time. The only difference is that AIFF is made by Apple. You’ll find files in this format more often in Apple devices and services, while WAV is more compatible and not limited to a specific type of devices.
FLAC: The letters in FLAC are the abbreviation for “Free Lossless Audio Codec”. The sound quality in this type of file is similar to those found in WAV or AIFF files with taking up less storage space on the disk. this format is free and it’s also an open source format.
ALAC: This is short for “Apple Lossless Audio Codec”. this small format of lossless compressed audio files is similar to FLAC, but the difference between them is that ALAC is made by Apple and that the FLAC is more effective than ALAC. the compressed files in this format are slightly larger than the FLAC files, but ALAC files are fully supported by Apple devices, unlike FLAC format. So if you listen to music through an Apple software you need to use this type of files.
MP3 format: This version is probably the most popular among mainstream music listeners and users of portable audio players and smartphones. These files are much smaller when compared to the previous ones. Although compression may reduce the sound quality of these files, the bit rate of the file is what determines its quality. so, there are some files with high bit rates that almost offer the same quality of lossless files.
What makes this format the most famous among compressed versions is not that it’s the best, but rather the popularity and massive support of thousands of broadcast services, download sites, portable music players, music programs, and others. There is a big chance that this format will remain in control of compressed audio formats for a long time, so it’s better to get used to it.
AAC format: it’s a very compressed audio format. This format beats MP3 in terms of performance but it’s less widespread and supported by users. However, Apple is working on making this format more widespread and it became more popular in recent years and began to compete with MP3. there are a few mobile devices that do not support ACC yet.
Of course, there are a lot of other audio file formats and each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. But those listed above are the most prevalent and famous among users currently. In conclusion, you can use any of the compressed or uncompressed audio file formats if you are interested in music production or you are simply a music enthusiast. If you are a regular listener, you can only use MP3 and ACC depending if you have an Apple device or not.
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