Quote Originally Posted by Harry Kuhman
Quote Originally Posted by sakiZ
In Nero, it will convert mp3s back to standard audio tracks when copying back to a CD.
Does abcde or grip do that?
An important consideration in burning audio CD's, particularly from mp3 but also to a lesser extent for WAV files, is that the resulting tracks are no where near the quality of the original audio tracks (they are actually less than the quality of the mp3). You do get a standard audio CD again, you do not get back the original quality. It's always best to avoid this conversion when burning if you can.
Any process that uses "compression" will get you this... As Harry states... OOG for audio, and JPEG for images... I used to edit "production" images...

A trick was to take a "starting" image, I will use pictures for this example, save it as a JPG, then edit that saved image, re-save it as a JPG, and repeat this process, lets say, five times. Now, compare the "original" to the last saved "image" - even with 99% retention, you will still notice that some "clarity" is missing. This holds true with sound files as well. A "purist" will be able to "notice" sound missing, but, most, will not notice that "drastic" a change.

If you are going to "master" something, the best is to save it with NO compression, either the format, or the process, and use only non-compressed images, or sound files, when doing a "copy" to another. The other option is "direct copy", in which the source is directly transfered to the target, with absolutly no compression or conversions being made on the process. ( and even then, some "detail" is being lost )