MP3 Encoder & Decoder (aka MP3 Converter)

What is an encoder & a decoder?

Mp3 encoder is a software that converts uncompressed WAV (Windows) or AIFF (Mac) files into compressed files, using a CODEC such as MP3 or RealAudio that can be played on a computer or portable mp3 player.

A decoder is exactly the opposite of an encoder and it is used to convert (decode) audio files in MP3 or RealAudio format to WAV or AIFF format. The WAV files can then be transferred into a CD to create an audio CD containing your favorite songs.

Which encoder/decoder?

One cool feature that you may want to look for in these software is the ability to specify variable bit rate (VBR) or constant bit rate (CBR) encoding. During a VBR encoding, the bit rate changes to create the best sound-to-size ratio. This feature is useful if you want to save your mp3 files into your portable MP3 player or for voice recordings or music in which there are pauses or long stretches of very quiet music. On the other hand, CBR lets you specify the bit rate while recording, which gives you control over file size. The higher the bit rate, the better the audio quality and the larger the file. Files encoded faster than 128 kbps may have little or no detectable improvement in sound quality.

There is however a compatibility problem in some MP3 players, such as QuickTime where you cannot play VBR files. All MP3 players will play back CBR files, but they may produce some kind of distortions if not completely ignoring VBR files. This problem applies especially to QuickTime, and may be an issue with very old MP3 player hardware. VBR is newer than CBR; some mp3 players don't support VBR yet but players like Winamp, MusicMatch, FreeAmp, Xing will play VBR files without problem. Since CBR has been around longer and is supported by all encoders, the files you download off the net are most likely encoded using CBR and should be compatible with whichever player you use.

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