One thing to keep in mind especially if you know there will be some editing required.
The higher the bit rate you choose to encode at the more bits are available to successfully complete the desired editing results.Once the file is edited to your satisfaction it can then be re-sampled to the size you desire.
Economy of scale: time vs. audio quality
Increased computation time on the encoding side is a small price to pay for the quality and compression that even MP3 affords. Thus, MP3 encoding is starting to be applied at even the professional audio level. For example, 4 minutes of audio from a standard audio CD requires about 40 MB of disk or server space. The equivalent MP3 or MP2 file encoded at a 128 kbps constant bit rate takes up about 4 MB of space, a tenth of the space (a 10:1 compression ratio).
Some audiophiles describe the quality of MP3 audio at 128 kbps as not being even remotely close to CD. Most people, however, hear 128 kbps constant bit rate MP3 audio as comparable to a Dolby B or Dolby C cassette recording of a state-of-the art CD; there is a reduction in the dynamic range and some loss of highs and imaging, but content will remain a far cry from unlistenable. Different codecs can provide varying levels of audio quality, and more importantly, such encoding parameters as the encoding model or algorithm, where to cutoff low frequencies, and the choice of stereo modes can affect the sound quality any MP3 encoder will produce. Decoders can vary in quality in similar ways.
Trade offs: bit rate vs. bandwidth
An important consideration in encoding audio is the relationship between audio quality and bit rate (or bandwidth) and how much space the data requires on disk or in memory. If you encode at lower bit rates, audio quality can suffer, but lower bit rates are better suited to slower speed network and transmission lines. Similarly, files encoded at lower bit rates also take up less size in memory or to data storage. If you are willing to double your bandwidth from 128 kbps to 256 kbps, then constant bit rate MP2 or MP3 audio is fairly close and perhaps indistinguishable from CD quality. The 4 minute selection example mentioned earlier now requires about 8 MB of disk space when encoded in 256 kbps constant bit rate MP2 audio, or you get a 5:1 compression ratio.
Further, doubling the bandwidth from 128 kbps to 256 kbps to increase the audio quality halves the compression ratio from 10:1 to 5:1 and doubles the storage to contain the entire file all at once on disk or in memory
Wavpad is not an encoder/decoder {ripping program} it is strictly an editor for the purpose of noise reduction, repairing clipping problems, adding sound effects such as reverberation among others, volume normalization between multiple files {so the volumes sound the same and not some louder than others.} Comes in real handy when making a collection with multiple sources of music to be placed in one folder eg. my favorite music ect. It is fairly user friendly A good tag editor in my opinion is a must. Tags are responsible for the file name display on your mp3 playing device. eg. no tag, no song title display on your ipod ect. A frame editor can reduce the dead space between songs. I have seen mp3`s with as many as seven blank frames at the beginning of the song and five on the end. With a collection in the neighborhood of 30,000 .mp3`s dead space can and does add up fast.
Sorry for going on and on about this subject .... just trying to help anyone that is interested out., i`ll shut up now!
Hey Guest!
Hey - did you know if you click on the title of a thread it will take you to the first unread post since you last visited that thread?
but were afraid to ask: 
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smilie in place of the real @
Pretty Please - add it to our Events forum(s) and add to the calendar! >> 
