Sony NW- A608 User Manual

NW-A605 / A607 / A608.GB.2-661-269-11(1)

 

 

What are Format and Bit Rate?

What is format?

The format of a track refers to the method used by CONNECT Player to store 
the track’s audio information when tracks are imported to CONNECT Player 
from the Internet or audio CDs.
Common formats include MP3 and ATRAC, etc.

MP3: MP3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer3) is a common audio compression 
technology developed by the MPEG working group of the ISO (International 
Organization for Standardization).
MP3 can compress audio files to about 1/10 the size of standard CD audio 
tracks. 

ATRAC: ATRAC (Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding) is a general term 
used to refer to ATRAC3 and ATRAC3plus formats. ATRAC is an audio 
compression technology that satisfies the demand for both high sound quality 
and high compression rates. ATRAC3 can compress audio files to about 1/10 
the size of standard CD audio tracks. ATRAC3plus, a more advanced version 
of ATRAC3, can compress audio files to about 1/20 the size of standard CD 
audio tracks.

What is bit rate?

Bit rate refers to the amount of data used to store each second of audio. 
Generally, higher bit rates provide better sound quality, but require more 
storage space for the same length of audio.

What is the relationship between bit rate, sound quality, and storage size?

Generally, higher bit rates provide better sound quality, but require more 
storage space for the same length of audio, so you can store fewer tracks on 
the player.
Lower bit rates enable you to store more tracks, but at a lower sound quality.
For details on supported audio formats and bite rate, see  page 89.

•  If you import a track from a CD to CONNECT Player at a low bit rate, you cannot 

improve the track’s sound quality by selecting a high bit rate when transferring the track 
from CONNECT Player to the player.