Sample Rate?

Hi all,

I just got a new pair of headphones and am a bit confused about sample rates since as soon as I think I have a grasp of it I read another website that refutes what I just read.

Audio wise I game, watch films and listen to music (mostly flac format). I just read a page that said flac format is 24 bit 96khz. Is this correct and what I should set my sample rate to in Windows audio control panel when listening to them? I have a Soundblaster Z and there's no way to change the sample rate through that that I can see so use Windows to do this.

I also read that having a higher sample rate than what the source is can cause sounds to become distorted. If this is true should I be changing my sample rate lower when I watch a film or play a game after listening to music? Which is the best for both would you say? Also what if I listened to an mp3 at 320 after flac should I be changing my sample rate here too or should I just set it at 24bit 96000 and leave it there?

Hope this is understandable and that someone can turn the light on for me, thanks for reading :)

you only have to worry about these things if:

- Your speakers cost >3000$
OR
- You can hear the difference between a 320Kbit mp3 and flac in less than 3 seconds.

Both of the above applies to me, and believe me, you don't want these problems.

if neiter applies to you: leave everything at 24bit 48Khz and go happily about your day.

Is that the kind of aquatic sound that mp3's have you mean?

Thanks for reply.

.flac can have many different sample rates, not just 96k. Most of mine are ripped from CD, so are 44.1kHz. For games & movies and (some) music, you should leave Windows' quality settings at 48K 24-bit, OR if you play lots of music like me, you can go with 44.1K 24-bit. (native to CD and most mp3)

If you actually WANT to intentionally pursue collecting and listening to High Res audio (96k or 192k files played on GREAT equipment) you can certainly do that, it's a hobby for many people, but there are entire internet forums dedicated to people discussing the merits of everything from sample rates to cable quality to magic audio beads. It's mostly beyond the scope of "Sound Blaster"

Skullomania said:

Hi all,

I am a bit confused about sample rates....
Hope this is understandable and that someone can turn the light on for me, thanks for reading :)

As it has been said already with different kinds of explanations, you really dont need to worry about it.

If your soundcard runs with 192 or 96khz it wont cause any problems for your regular media consumption even if most of your files have a lower resolution.
If you are recording audio files then you will be able to lower the sample rate in the recording app if errors occur.

Most people cant hear the difference between 96khz and 48khz and those who can would only be able to do that with some rather prices speakers or headphones.


192 is more marketing than anything else