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FLAC question for the audiophiles from a noob

Ledbetterman10Ledbetterman10 Posts: 16,731
edited June 2010 in The Porch
I have PJ's entire studio discography in FLAC format on my computer and was wondering: If I burned these flacs to a CD using Winamp....would they sound better than the officially released CDs?
2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden

Pearl Jam bootlegs:
http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
Post edited by Unknown User on

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    Brisk.Brisk. Posts: 11,486
    No.
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    Ledbetterman10Ledbetterman10 Posts: 16,731
    Brisk. wrote:
    No.

    I didn't think so
    2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden

    Pearl Jam bootlegs:
    http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
  • Options
    Brisk.Brisk. Posts: 11,486
    Ledbetterman10 wrote:
    Brisk. wrote:
    No.

    I didn't think so

    Where you think the FLACs came from...someone just ripped the CD in FLAC.
  • Options
    SuperStickmanSuperStickman Posts: 80
    Just posted this on another thread:

    "My understanding is that even if you can't hear a difference, FLAC files supposedly don't deteriorate over time, where as MP3s and the burned (rather than pressed) CDs that PJ has used over the last few tours will start to degrade and sound bad as they get older.

    I'm not sure how the hell that happens, (especially on the CDs) but that's what I heard.

    I just learned this and still can't decide in which format to buy the 2010 shows I went to. (Mostly because FLAC does seem to be cumbersome to work with...)"

    Hope it either helps, or that someone can correct me. :)
    "The goal of a coach is to take a guy who has beaten down by his parents, by religion, by society, to take that guy and build him back up to find his spirit to go out and fight" Joe Lewis
  • Options
    Ledbetterman10Ledbetterman10 Posts: 16,731
    Brisk. wrote:
    Ledbetterman10 wrote:
    Brisk. wrote:
    No.

    I didn't think so

    Where you think the FLACs came from...someone just ripped the CD in FLAC.

    I somewhat assumed that but I thought there was a possibility that these FLACs might have been made from a digital download (like iTunes or something) and that that might have a better sound than the official CDs.
    2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden

    Pearl Jam bootlegs:
    http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
  • Options
    Brisk.Brisk. Posts: 11,486
    Well digital downloads arn't better quality anyway as they have been ripped and compressed in some shape and from when taking it off the CD :D
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    klusterfukklusterfuk Posts: 1,411
    flac is the way to go. put it in whatever format you want and keep the flac files for back-up.
    The future's paved with better days

    Alpine Valley Resort is etched in my brain!!!


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    Ledbetterman10Ledbetterman10 Posts: 16,731
    Brisk. wrote:
    Well digital downloads arn't better quality anyway as they have been ripped and compressed in some shape and from when taking it off the CD :D

    Ok...so nothing beats the CD.
    Ledbetteman10 wrote:
    Ok...so nothing beats the CD.

    Insert "vinyl sounds better" comment from somebody here.
    2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden

    Pearl Jam bootlegs:
    http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
  • Options
    cutzcutz Posts: 11,449
    Ledbetterman10 wrote:
    I have PJ's entire studio discography in FLAC format on my computer and was wondering: If I burned these flacs to a CD using Winamp....would they sound better than the officially released CDs?


    Better? Like Brisk said: NO! But, i don't think they sound worse though. Its probably 6 of 1, and half-dozen of another. Basically: they'll sound the same. Well, at least to my OLD ears> :lol:
  • Options
    Ledbetterman10Ledbetterman10 Posts: 16,731
    cutz wrote:
    Ledbetterman10 wrote:
    I have PJ's entire studio discography in FLAC format on my computer and was wondering: If I burned these flacs to a CD using Winamp....would they sound better than the officially released CDs?


    Better? Like Brisk said: NO! But, i don't think they sound worse though. Its probably 6 of 1, and half-dozen of another. Basically: they'll sound the same. Well, at least to my OLD ears> :lol:

    I think I'm just so turned off by PJ's new music that I'm looking for a new way to hear the old stuff. That's why I remember 2009 much more for the Ten Redux than for Blandspacer.
    2000: Camden 1, 2003: Philly, State College, Camden 1, MSG 2, Hershey, 2004: Reading, 2005: Philly, 2006: Camden 1, 2, East Rutherford 1, 2007: Lollapalooza, 2008: Camden 1, Washington D.C., MSG 1, 2, 2009: Philly 1, 2, 3, 4, 2010: Bristol, MSG 2, 2011: PJ20 1, 2, 2012: Made In America, 2013: Brooklyn 2, Philly 2, 2014: Denver, 2015: Global Citizen Festival, 2016: Philly 2, Fenway 1, 2018: Fenway 1, 2, 2021: Sea. Hear. Now. 2022: Camden

    Pearl Jam bootlegs:
    http://wegotshit.blogspot.com
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    PJ-CubsPJ-Cubs Posts: 3,293
    If the pressed CDs do deteriorate over time, is there a way to save them to my computer as FLAC files?
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    LikeAnOceanLikeAnOcean Posts: 7,718
    PJ-Cubs wrote:
    If the pressed CDs do deteriorate over time, is there a way to save them to my computer as FLAC files?
    A pressed CD will takes years to deteriorate, maybe 50 to a hundred years if kept in a cool dry place, so I wouldn't worry about it. I have CDs from 1990 that still work. I don't have any working computers from 1990 so I wouldn't recommend saving them to a computer as a long-term storage solution, given the average hard drive life is a few years.
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    PearlJamPatriotPearlJamPatriot Posts: 2,426
    Just a quick note too. FLAC & SHN are called lossless files. There aren't compressed like MP3's (lossy). When you compress something, you lose data/info. In the case of an audio fil, that equals quality.

    And for those who have a lot of Pearl jam shows in FLAC & SHN formats, like I do, I use Winamp to play the files. But you need to download a plugin to play the SHN files in Winamp. When you download the plugin, you have to put the .dll file in the plugin folder of your Winamp directory. Usually located in C:/Program Files/Winamp (for Windows PC users).
    Pearl Jam Shows: 1998 - 9/11 New York, NY (MSG night 2); 9/13 Hartford, CT || 2000 - 8/24 Wantagh, NY (Jones Beach 2); 8/27 Saratoga Springs; 8/29 Mansfield, MA (night 1); 8/30 Mansfield, MA (night 2) || 2003 - 4/29 Albany, NY; 5/3 State College, PA; 7/2 Mansfield (night 1); 7/6 Camden, NJ (night 2); 7/8 New York, NY (MSG night 1) || 2004 - 9/28 Boston, MA (night 1); 9/29 Boston, MA (night 2) || 2005 - 10/3 Philadelphia, PA || 2006 - 5/12 Albany, NY; 5/13 Hartford, CT; 5/24 Boston, MA (night 1); 5/25 Boston, MA (night 2); 5/27 Camden, NJ (night 1); 5/28 Camden, NJ (night 2)|| 2008 - 6/19 Camden, NJ (night 1); 6/24 New York, NY (MSG night 1); 6/25 New York, NY (MSG night 2); 6/27 Hartford, CT; 6/28 Mansfield, MA (night 1); 6/30 Mansfield, MA (night 2); 7/1 New York, NY (Beacon Theater)|| 2009 - 9/21 Seattle, WA (night 1); 9/22 Seattle, WA (night 2); 10/27 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 1); 10/28 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 2); 10/30 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 3); 10/31 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 4)|| 2010 - 5/15 Hartford, CT; 5/17 Boston, MA; 5/20 New York, NY (MSG night 1); 5/21 New York, NY (MSG night 2)|| 2011 - 9/3 East Troy, WI (PJ20); 9/4 East Troy, WI (PJ20) || 2012 - 9/2 Philadelphia, PA, 9/30 Missoula, MT || 2013 - 7/19 Chicago, IL (Wrigley Field), 10/12 Buffalo, NY, 10/15 Worcester, MA (night 1), 10/16 Worcester, MA (night 2), 10/18 Brooklyn, NY (night 1), 10/19 Brooklyn, NY (night 2), 10/25 Hartford, CT || 2014 - 10/22 Denver, CO || 2015 -  9/26 New York, NY (Global Citizen Festival) || 2016 - 5/1 New York, NY (night 1), 5/2 New York, NY (night 2), 8/5 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 1), 8/7 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 2) || 2018 - 9/2 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 1) || 2020 - 3/30 New York, NY
    Eddie Vedder solo: 2008 - Boston night 1 & 2 || 2009 - Albany, NY night 1 & 2 || 2011 - Hartford, CT, Boston, MA

  • Options
    cutzcutz Posts: 11,449
    PearlJamPatriot wrote:
    Just a quick note too. FLAC & SHN are called lossless files. There aren't compressed like MP3's (lossy). When you compress something, you lose data/info. In the case of an audio fil, that equals quality.

    And for those who have a lot of Pearl jam shows in FLAC & SHN formats, like I do, I use Winamp to play the files. But you need to download a plugin to play the SHN files in Winamp. When you download the plugin, you have to put the .dll file in the plugin folder of your Winamp directory. Usually located in C:/Program Files/Winamp (for Windows PC users).


    With SHN files, i use Traders Little helper to convert to FLAC, then i can play/burn the files using Winamp. I'm LOW TECH, but is that the same thing as the plugin? If so, never mind> :lol:
  • Options
    PearlJamPatriotPearlJamPatriot Posts: 2,426
    cutz wrote:
    PearlJamPatriot wrote:
    Just a quick note too. FLAC & SHN are called lossless files. There aren't compressed like MP3's (lossy). When you compress something, you lose data/info. In the case of an audio fil, that equals quality.

    And for those who have a lot of Pearl jam shows in FLAC & SHN formats, like I do, I use Winamp to play the files. But you need to download a plugin to play the SHN files in Winamp. When you download the plugin, you have to put the .dll file in the plugin folder of your Winamp directory. Usually located in C:/Program Files/Winamp (for Windows PC users).


    With SHN files, i use Traders Little helper to convert to FLAC, then i can play/burn the files using Winamp. I'm LOW TECH, but is that the same thing as the plugin? If so, never mind> :lol:
    Ha. hey, whatever works!!!!
    Pearl Jam Shows: 1998 - 9/11 New York, NY (MSG night 2); 9/13 Hartford, CT || 2000 - 8/24 Wantagh, NY (Jones Beach 2); 8/27 Saratoga Springs; 8/29 Mansfield, MA (night 1); 8/30 Mansfield, MA (night 2) || 2003 - 4/29 Albany, NY; 5/3 State College, PA; 7/2 Mansfield (night 1); 7/6 Camden, NJ (night 2); 7/8 New York, NY (MSG night 1) || 2004 - 9/28 Boston, MA (night 1); 9/29 Boston, MA (night 2) || 2005 - 10/3 Philadelphia, PA || 2006 - 5/12 Albany, NY; 5/13 Hartford, CT; 5/24 Boston, MA (night 1); 5/25 Boston, MA (night 2); 5/27 Camden, NJ (night 1); 5/28 Camden, NJ (night 2)|| 2008 - 6/19 Camden, NJ (night 1); 6/24 New York, NY (MSG night 1); 6/25 New York, NY (MSG night 2); 6/27 Hartford, CT; 6/28 Mansfield, MA (night 1); 6/30 Mansfield, MA (night 2); 7/1 New York, NY (Beacon Theater)|| 2009 - 9/21 Seattle, WA (night 1); 9/22 Seattle, WA (night 2); 10/27 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 1); 10/28 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 2); 10/30 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 3); 10/31 Philadelphia, PA (Spectrum night 4)|| 2010 - 5/15 Hartford, CT; 5/17 Boston, MA; 5/20 New York, NY (MSG night 1); 5/21 New York, NY (MSG night 2)|| 2011 - 9/3 East Troy, WI (PJ20); 9/4 East Troy, WI (PJ20) || 2012 - 9/2 Philadelphia, PA, 9/30 Missoula, MT || 2013 - 7/19 Chicago, IL (Wrigley Field), 10/12 Buffalo, NY, 10/15 Worcester, MA (night 1), 10/16 Worcester, MA (night 2), 10/18 Brooklyn, NY (night 1), 10/19 Brooklyn, NY (night 2), 10/25 Hartford, CT || 2014 - 10/22 Denver, CO || 2015 -  9/26 New York, NY (Global Citizen Festival) || 2016 - 5/1 New York, NY (night 1), 5/2 New York, NY (night 2), 8/5 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 1), 8/7 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 2) || 2018 - 9/2 Boston, MA (Fenway Park night 1) || 2020 - 3/30 New York, NY
    Eddie Vedder solo: 2008 - Boston night 1 & 2 || 2009 - Albany, NY night 1 & 2 || 2011 - Hartford, CT, Boston, MA

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    bigbiggzybigbiggzy Posts: 713
    Hey Kids...any thoughts on the software used to convert the flacs? I use a tool called FLAC Frontend.

    Also.....And this is probably close to the OP, but.....once I convert the file to an mp3 and play it on itunes/ipod....is there really any noticable difference? Is there a different type of software I should use to help keep more info in the new mp3 that was converted? I'm ready to buy the shows I went to and am still on the fence about 10 Club's "CDs" and just dl'ding the Flacs (as I normally do).

    Any help is appreciated...

    Thanks
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