EAC / LAME variable bit rate (VBR) settings

With the EAC settings I am using, the MP3 files aren't being saved at a constant 256 kbps after all, but rather with a variable bit rate (which is supposed to be better than a constant bit rate).

My EAC LAME parameters include "V 2 --vbr-new" which (supposedly?) averages around 190 kbps.
"V 5" averages around 130 kbps.
"V 9" averages around 65 kbps.

From what I can tell, files encoded as "V 5" are about 2/3 the size of "V 2" files.
Files encoded as "V 9" are about 1/3 the size of "V 2" files.

I compared a V9-encoded file to a V2-encoded file (using Foobar2000's ABX comparator), and *finally* noticed a tiny difference in sound quality. Some high notes were missing in the V9 version. I didn't notice it on my stereo system speakers; the difference only became apparent to me when I switched over to my laptop's built-in speakers (which filter out many of the low notes).

Foobar2000 also lets you re-encode MP3 files from a higher quality/bit-rate to a lower quality/bit-rate.
I think I will continue ripping my CD's at the higher quality, and then maybe make extra copies re-encoded to smaller sizes for use on my MP3 player. The re-encoding part goes much faster than the ripping.

pigeons

In case you've been considering the rewarding joy of having a pigeon companion, this photo shows the minimum standard of accommodation that they will expect you to provide.

GeoCities archives

GeoCities went away in late 2009, but someone who should be commended went thru the effort of backing up what they could of the site. They made it available at ReoCities.com. If you have an old GeoCities link that doesn't work anymore, you can change the "g" to "r" in the URL, and see if the page is found.

Update:
www.geocities.ws is another such archive. To use this one, change the ".com" in the original GeoCities URL to ".ws".

Update 2:
oocities is another such archive. To use this one, try changing "geocities" to "oocities" in the original GeoCities URL.

Apparently some torrents also exist, of some parts of GeoCities. See this page for more info.


(Yay, I can now update the broken links on my website!)