Do normal people notice compressed audio (MP3 etc) sounds bad?

Nope, there certainly is no elitism in this thread. No way.

Just a bunch of well grounded individuals speculating about normal people.

 

Elitism is just a swear word. I think you mean snobbery. Look; the creators of music spent a lot of effort to create their music whether they wrote it all out or improvised it with skill. They produced it with depth and skill and effort. Of course no one has to care and they can throw away 90% of it or listen to a compressed distorted version and still recognize it and enjoy it. But it is a mark of respect to want to reproduce exceptional art accurately.

 

I really like live music, and I also like recordings, but for very different reasons. With live acoustic music we can hear how music can sound; with recorded music we cannot, but we can still like the music per se, as a substitute.

 

The problem is that none is doing that, it´s not possible by a long shot. So it really becomes a bit silly, the whole subject.

 

Given the undeniable and overwhelming popularity of lossy audio formats, I would suggest that the answer to the OP is one of these two:

• mp3s don't sound bad
• normal people don't notice

 

People who can just listen to music and enjoy it are sad, strange little men, and they have my pity....

 

Also; normal people don´t care.

 

It's probably a little of all the above.

 

How dare they, they might not even have the correct issue.

 

Some "listen" to music, others "feel" the music. If you belong in the category of people who "feel" the music you probably care about sound-quality.

That's what i think.

 

Maybe to some extent. But I have a nagging feeling #1 is they don´t care, they are just feeling the music.

 

Let's be real about inferior fidelity. It serves it's purpose. It can be used to make music more portable (i.e. Mp3's, cassettes), it can make music more nostalgic (i.e. AM/FM radio, 8-tracks), it can make music convenient (streaming).

I find myself in the first two situations more than the last. I also spend a lot of time in front of my dialed in system. But at some point, I need music somewhere where that system is not. So I grab my little 3rd generation iPod nano, with 320 mp3s. I also find myself listening to Roxy Music's s/t album or Born in the USA, and I want it to sound old, of a nostalgic fidelity. So I pop in the 8-Track. Or I turn my little tube Admiral radio on to the local jazz station. I can appreciate music on multiple levels. However, I will not tolerate ****ty mastered pop music. However many bits are there or not. I think music can have many different flavors, but what matters most is the content itself, not always the playback method.

 

Sorry I had a viceral reaction to stuff like this which honestly I see too much of around here.
This type of behavior alienates me and I asume others. As someone that listens to and has performed classical pieces for 25 years I see your point and don't take issue with it. But I am asking is this place for everyone that loves music or just a select few? There is an undercurrent of elitism running through this place. Up to you how you want to address it.

 

Music appreciation and audiophilia are two entirely separate concepts that don't necessarily intersect.

Some of us are listening to Stravinsky. Some of us are listening to a recording of an orchestra.

 

¨Audio situation¨ . As if they they cared !!!!!!!!!!!!! Or anyone else for that matter !!!

 

Yes, and not just "normal" people.

Some interesting results from an informal survey that was linked here a few years ago:

Archimago's Musings: High Bitrate MP3 Internet Blind Test: Part 2 - RESULTS »

Some of the abnormal(?) even seem to like the sound of MP3's better!

 

Most folks won't know bad until they're exsposed to good..hopefully
with a guide to let them know when it's good. Audio sensei

 

After 6 years here, the bad stuff annoys me to no end.

 

I think you're taking his comment to an extreme. It's not that some people necessarily want it to sound worse....the limitations of the format in question simply don't bother them.

Btw, I don't think you give your forum enough credit. It's more than just a place to find the best sounding music, it's a place to find great music.

 

Sirius XM sounds like "wallpaper" to me. Every song has the same "sterile" sound. There are weird "splashy" cymbals and sibilant vocals.

 

Yes...this forum helps me find "diamonds in the rough" with modern CDs. There are not that many but...quality over quantity, of course.

 

In my experience the answer is a definite "yes". But first you have to get them to sit still for a moment and listen. Then they say yes we can hear the difference and now that you mention it the compressed file does sound worse. And then they walk away and forget all about it.

 

To convince any of the great unwashed, I nearly have to force them to sit in my chair in my room whilst I cue up something.
If they say it all sounds the same to them, I then raise my baseball bat, at the same time as my eyebrows...ball is then in their court and they better damn well start hearing what Im talking about.

 

My brother is no audiophile by any strethch of the imagination.He does even notice how bad the radio has become.He`s not completely there yet,I have been having him hear comparisons of some of his favorites.i hope he will see it MY WAY!