============= Audio Formats ============= Apple Lossless (ALAC / M4A) =========================== My primary audio format of choice is `Apple Lossless `_. I went with ALAC for a few reasons: - I prefer a lossless format for my music so I can convert it as needed and always have "the original." MP3 format is lossy, and while I'm not an audiophile, if I have a lossless version I can always convert it to a lossy compression. You can't go the other way. - My primary music playing portable device is an iPod. - I manage my music in :doc:`iTunes <../software/manage/itunes>`. - Most media servers like :doc:`Asset UPnP <../software/serve/asset>` can transcode ALAC to other formats. The other big format in lossless is `FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) `_, and while it's reasonably popular from a format perspective, pretty much nothing plays it. Apple Lossless uses `an MP4 `_ *container* just like AAC format. MPEG Layer III (MP3) ==================== These are `the MP3s `_ you know and love. This is a great format for its compatibility and lack of DRM. I primarily get these at `Amazon Digital Music `_. Given the choice between an MP3 album and the CD, all things being equal, I'll take the CD and rip it to ALAC before buying the MP3 album. Again, I can always convert down, but can't convert back up. Advanced Audio Coding (AAC / M4A) ================================= When I first started ripping my CDs into digital files, I went with a 256Kbps `AAC/MP4 format `_. AAC has a better sound for the compression than MP3 and I figured this would be a good compromise between size and fidelity. Then I got my :doc:`HP Home Server <../hardware/deprecated/hpex475>` with a ton of space and realized *I should have gone with lossless*. AAC uses `an MP4 `_ *container* just like ALAC format.