Guitar Gear Forum

More specifically, is it necessary to record at sample rates higher than 44.1kHz for your recordings to sound professional once they're mixed and converted to MP3, WAV, etc.? I have heard all sorts of different answers on the internet about this, so I was just curious about the opinions on this topic from fellow GABers. Thanks!

For future compability I would certainly go higher than that. Can always down sample, but up sample... not as easy. But sure: for audio CD or less resolution and for a demo or a non-pro project then no need to go higher than 44.1

Try it and see if you can hear a difference. Some people say they can. I haven't tried, but I doubt I could.

exafro wrote:Try it and see if you can hear a difference. Some people say they can. I haven't tried, but I doubt I could.

I have tried recording both at 44.1 and 96 kHz. I really haven't heard a noticeable difference yet, but if I can achieve quality recordings at 44.1 kHz, I would much rather continue that route. The less resources and hard drive space consumed, the better. Besides, it's not like I am trying to get my material released on vinyl anyway.

Good 44.1 is absolutely fine for recording. Some cheaper converters actually sound better at higher sample rates, but that has more to do with the analogue side - shallower filters up to the Nyquist frequency result in clearer and more open sounding high end - and jitter.

So, basically, use whatever you want, use your ears to see if one sample rate sound better than another on your machine. I would say though that having to downsample from higher rates to 44.1 for your finished product can actually have more of an impact on your sound than if you'd stuck at 44.1 all the way through - just depends how you do it.

Usually you pick a sample rate for practical rather than sound reasons - limited space/processing power, the expected format of the end product, limitations in gear (eg axe fx which is only 48kHz).

Cirrus wrote:Good 44.1 is absolutely fine for recording. Some cheaper converters actually sound better at higher sample rates, but that has more to do with the analogue side - shallower filters up to the Nyquist frequency result in clearer and more open sounding high end - and jitter.

So, basically, use whatever you want, use your ears to see if one sample rate sound better than another on your machine. I would say though that having to downsample from higher rates to 44.1 for your finished product can actually have more of an impact on your sound than if you'd stuck at 44.1 all the way through - just depends how you do it.

Usually you pick a sample rate for practical rather than sound reasons - limited space/processing power, the expected format of the end product, limitations in gear (eg axe fx which is only 48kHz).

Alright, now this whole sample rate business is starting to make a little more sense. Thanks for the informative answer.

Last night, I actually took my first recording that I did with a full band mix (guitar, bass, programmed drums) that was recorded at 44.1 kHz, and tried several mixdowns with different audio formats (mp3, wav, flacc, etc.) To me, the recording file format that you use to export your projects into song files makes the biggest difference to me in terms of quality. I know that may be kind of a Captain Obvious answer, but at least I now know that 44.1 kHz is more than suitable for my needs.

With DI guitar and ampsims, it might be a good idea to try both.

AdrianPOA wrote:More specifically, is it necessary to record at sample rates higher than 44.1kHz for your recordings to sound professional once they're mixed and converted to MP3, WAV, etc.? I have heard all sorts of different answers on the internet about this, so I was just curious about the opinions on this topic from fellow GABers. Thanks!

44.1 khz/24 bit is fine; actually I prefer it and use it on purpose. All converters will filter your sound one way or another (highs, mids, lows), from cheap to expensive ones. The promise of ever higher sample rates is not all it's racked up to be; they keep engineering them higher at the expense of the low end. Some folks prefer higher for classical & jazz, other lower for rock etc... However if your studio monitors are a weak link in your studio, you might be in a place to judge what your converters are doing to your sound.

Odds are your final product is going to be an mp3 anyways, so extra resolution is something of a moot point.

JimmyPaeg wrote:Odds are your final product is going to be an mp3 anyways, so extra resolution is something of a moot point.

44.1 is fine, but I'm not sure this is absolutely true. It's just about finding a sensible balance. Do a mix with 96K wav files, then do the same mix with the tracks as 256kb Mp3s. Convert both mixes to 256kb MP3s. I promise you one is going to sound better than the other.