Comparison of 24-bit and 16-bit sound: audio test results
Archimago blogger spent a lot of energy to answer the question: what sound quality can a person determine by ear? As part of one of his latest audio tests, respondents are asked to blindly distinguish sounds with a dynamic range of 24 bits and 16 bits . Each of them downloaded several pairs of 24-bit files, one of which underwent conversion of 24-16-24 bits, that is, in practice it was a 16-bit file. They were asked to determine the difference.
140 volunteers took part in the test (138 men and 2 women: an honest demographic picture for audiophiles). The average age of respondents: 44 years.
According to the questionnaires, more than 20% of respondents were called musicians and sound engineers, so you can compare the results among "professionals" and amateurs, taking into account the statistical error.
')
The cost of audio equipment among survey participants most often lies in the range of $ 1,000 to $ 3,000.
The results of the survey on three pairs of files are quite curious. In two of the three compositions, correct and incorrect answers were distributed exactly in half.
And in the composition Bozza, 52.85% of users made a mistake by accepting a 16-bit file as a 24-bit file.
20 respondents correctly answered all the questions, and 21 people made a mistake in all variants, which also fits into the framework of statistical distribution.
Even more surprisingly, the musicians showed a result worse than average, even taking into account the statistical error! Especially strongly confused in the composition of Vivaldi.
But the result among users who have the cost of sound equipment exceeds $ 6000.
Headphones also do not help distinguish 16-bit from 24-bit music.
Summarizing. Of course, there are applications in which you need to work with 24-bit sound (the same mastering). But the fact is that by hearing a 16- and 24-bit sound is completely indistinguishable from each other. If someone declares that he is able to hear the difference, then this person is surely mistaken.
140 volunteers took part in the test (138 men and 2 women: an honest demographic picture for audiophiles). The average age of respondents: 44 years.
According to the questionnaires, more than 20% of respondents were called musicians and sound engineers, so you can compare the results among "professionals" and amateurs, taking into account the statistical error.
')
The cost of audio equipment among survey participants most often lies in the range of $ 1,000 to $ 3,000.
The results of the survey on three pairs of files are quite curious. In two of the three compositions, correct and incorrect answers were distributed exactly in half.
And in the composition Bozza, 52.85% of users made a mistake by accepting a 16-bit file as a 24-bit file.
20 respondents correctly answered all the questions, and 21 people made a mistake in all variants, which also fits into the framework of statistical distribution.
Even more surprisingly, the musicians showed a result worse than average, even taking into account the statistical error! Especially strongly confused in the composition of Vivaldi.
But the result among users who have the cost of sound equipment exceeds $ 6000.
Headphones also do not help distinguish 16-bit from 24-bit music.
Summarizing. Of course, there are applications in which you need to work with 24-bit sound (the same mastering). But the fact is that by hearing a 16- and 24-bit sound is completely indistinguishable from each other. If someone declares that he is able to hear the difference, then this person is surely mistaken.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/364219/
All Articles