Poll: DAB+ is the future? Digital terrestrial radio broadcasting
Re-balancing
There is the aspect of whether, for the average equipment people own, they would spot a difference between UK Dab (even De dab+), FM or internet streaming;
If the German Dab+ 96Kb/s has a take-up, then that kinda shows it is fit for purpose, likewise with youtube just offering 128Kb/s music
Amazon are selling lots of echos/alexas, apples homepod, how capable are these at distinguishing sources, even for cars inbuilt flexible dsps/equalizers are a thing of the past.
There is the aspect of whether, for the average equipment people own, they would spot a difference between UK Dab (even De dab+), FM or internet streaming;
If the German Dab+ 96Kb/s has a take-up, then that kinda shows it is fit for purpose, likewise with youtube just offering 128Kb/s music
Amazon are selling lots of echos/alexas, apples homepod, how capable are these at distinguishing sources, even for cars inbuilt flexible dsps/equalizers are a thing of the past.
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According to this article/review, Youtube upped its game on its subscription music service a couple of years ago. They realised that 128kbps AAC as a max resolution just wasn't good enough, so although it's the default setting, it is possible to change the preferences so that it's either 256kbps permanently, or an "up to 256kbps" setting if signal level for streaming is a bit weak. YouTube Music review | What Hi-Fi?
AFAIK, YT Premium uses standard AAC. For the same bit rate it should sound better than an MP3 file. 256kbps AAC and 320kbps MP3 are probably on a rough par (obviously sample rates comes in to it too), and for lossy formats they're close enough to CD quality not really to have to worry about it. These bitrates aren't comparable though with the AAC+ (HE AAC) used in DAB+
To get something as good or better than FM requires DAB+ (HE AAC) to run at roughly 96 kbps. There's a data cost too for all the additional stuff such as the text and extra services, but if Deutsche DAB+ is routinely running at 96kbps then it would sound pretty good. The reality is rather mixed though.
Some of the PSB stations go way in excess of 96kbps. Bavarian Klassik runs at 144kbps. Several others are up in the 120-130 range. At the other end of the scale there are stations such as RBB inforadio @ 64kbps and SWR Current @ 72kbps and Deutchlandfunk Radio Documents and Debates @ 48kbps. These lower-bitrate channels might be talk-only stations, I don't know.
Get in to the German commercial stations and there's a noticeable lowering of the bar. Lots of stations run at 72 kbps, there are several at 64 kbps and then Radio Horeb at 48 kbps.
Compare and contrast with the DAB+ story in the UK. The best we get from DAB+ is 40kbps. That barely challenges bad FM reception in quality. There are far too many stations bumping along on 24-32 kbps stereo which is just awful.
The question then about "would people spot the difference?" between the various streams for the same station rests partly with the bit rates used for IP and how well the FM signal is received. If the FM reception is half reasonable, and it's a channel carrying music, then my gut feeling is they'd be able to tell unless dealing with some sort of coaster-sized smart speaker. Whether the listener cares is another question entirely.
Thankyou ... I didn't know YTM has 256, I'll look out for a good trial
... quobuz is another one I'm waiting to try; for the car, given that I don't have unlimited 4g data, an option to download would be essential.
This whole thread was based upon the view of someone who’s experience doesn’t extend beyond a midi-system? Well, that’s us told then!
Does he have other threads such as “here’s why Ferrari 488s need different suspension settings” and “my Rolix from Bangkok is just as good as your Rolex”.
Does he have other threads such as “here’s why Ferrari 488s need different suspension settings” and “my Rolix from Bangkok is just as good as your Rolex”.
Soldato
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I have a yt music sub on Android in settings it's just "high quality" as the max streaming option.
However the app does offer an equaliser
A new national station for “Baby Boomers” — the 50, 60 and 70-something population — will launch this month on DAB in cities across the UK including London, Birmingham and Glasgow.
“Baby Boomers” Targeted By New UK Station - RedTech Tribe
“Baby Boomers” Targeted By New UK Station - RedTech Tribe
"Further controlled testing by 3GPP during their revision 6 specification process indicates that AAC-HE and AAC-HE v2 provide "Good" audio quality for music at low bit rates (e.g., 24 kbit/s)."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Efficiency_Advanced_Audio_Coding
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Efficiency_Advanced_Audio_Coding
Caporegime
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So worse quality than downloading an MP3 in 1997 which would fit onto one floppy disk.
What progress we have made in the past 24 years.
What progress we have made in the past 24 years.
Were you really you trying to prove your argument by playing comparison sound clips from a video uploaded to YouTube? Isn't that like trying to demonstrate the quality of a Hi-Fi system to a customer over the phone?
LMAO"Good" and "fine" are very subjective terms. What's good or fine to one person may be garbage to another. There's also the question of context. Your quote about 3GPP references a test in the context of music at low bit rates. I'm sure that AAC-HE at 24kbps would sound better than say 48kbps MP3. Both are low bitrate, but one CODEC is vastly more efficient, so comparatively it should sound better; but that's hardly a revelation.
Here's the point though that completely defeats your "32Kb/s is perfectly fine with HE-AAC v2 and v3" argument.
If your point was valid, then why does German national broadcasting bother with transmitting DAB+ in AAC-HE at anything up to 144kbps? Why waste the bandwidth if 32kbps is good enough?
Soldato
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Were you really you trying to prove your argument by playing comparison sound clips from a video uploaded to YouTube? Isn't that like trying to demonstrate the quality of a Hi-Fi system to a customer over the phone?
Hmm I wonder if he sampled HDR the same way.... Remember "it's a gimmick"
Good. The results are clear:
"IPSOS survey results reveal that DAB+ is now the leading digital radio platform in French-Speaking Belgium
The migration of radio audiences to digital is well underway with DAB+ in the lead.
The latest figures from the Ipsos / maRadio.be survey carried out at the end of 2020 are clear: awareness and consumption of DAB+ is soaring.
8 out of 10 French-speaking listeners now know what DAB+ is, and 1 in 5 chooses DAB+ to listen to the radio. Digital platforms now represent a third of the listening volume in the region, DAB+ is the leading digital platform for the first time, while listening on FM is down by 18%.
The results of the 3rd wave of the Ipsos / maRadio.be study on the evolution of radio listening and its broadcasting platforms in French-speaking Belgium were presented this Thursday 11 February 2021 at the Digital Radio Day, a live virtual event organised by maRadio.be.
The results reveal a significant breakthrough in the digital consumption of radio, and in particular of DAB+ which is rapidly establishing itself among listeners as the successor to FM.
DAB+ is a technology that is now well-known to the majority of listeners, thanks to the advertising campaigns organised by maRadio.be and the efforts of private and public radio stations to inform their listeners – a significant accomplishment given that DAB+ was launched by public broadcaster RTBF and private networks only 15 months ago (4 November 2019).
The IPSOS study shows that by the end of 2020, 71% of Belgian listeners had already heard of DAB+, up from 25% on a previous study. The percentage of the French-speaking population that has switched to listening to the radio via digital technology is now 51%. For the first time, more than half of French speakers have listened to the radio on at least one of the three digital platforms (DAB+, internet and television), a clear increase driven by the internet and especially by DAB+.
The percentage of the Belgian French-speaking population that uses DAB+ increased from 4% in 2018 to 20% in 2020. One in 5 French speakers now chooses DAB+ to listen to the radio. Looking at listening volume on each distribution platform (by combining the number of listeners on each platform and their listening time on it), we see that the share of FM is declining (80% two years ago, falling to 66% today) in favour of listening on digital platforms, which has increased from 17% in 2018 to 34% in 2020.
It is DAB+ that best compensates for the decline in listening on FM, with audience share increasing from 2% to 14%. So for the first time, DAB+ has become the most listened to digital platform for listening, with internet listening at 13% listening volume share (also increasing, but much slower than DAB+) and television digital 7% (relatively stable).
The share of the radio audience achieved on digital platforms will therefore exceed 50% by the end of 2021. The digital migration is therefore well underway, mainly with the benefit of DAB+.
Regarding the sale of receivers and car radios - DAB+ has become essential, with DAB+ compatible domestic receivers sales strong – increasing by 40% compared to 2019. Meanwhile, sales of FM receivers are down 19%. On average, 40% of domestic receivers sold in 2020 are DAB+ compared to 27% in 2019 (source: Gfk).
In cars, DAB+ is now fitted as standard: the total of DAB+ radios available in new vehicles amounts to 93% compared to 89% in 2019 (source: Jato Dynamics). This figure will quickly reach 100%."
DAB+ now the leading digital platform for radio in French speaking Belgium | WorldDAB blogs | WorldDAB
Just excellent
