What is a bit-rate?
KBps stands for Kilobytes-per-second and relates to the quality of the sound. The higher the bit rate, the better the quality, but also the larger the file size and therefore you cannot store so many songs on your MP3 or Media Player. When you are ripping a CD to MP3 files on your PC or Player, most software gives you a choice of what bit-rate to use, anything from 96Kbps to 256Kbps or higher. You need to know that only on the most professional audio equipment can you detect a difference at the higher rates (256Kbps). AM Radio is about 32Kbps, FM radio is 96Kbps, CD quality is 128Kbps, Hi-Fi quality is 320Kbps and only when you get into video do you need higher bit rates than that. If you use little headphones, or you are over 30, you will not hear the extra quality above 192Kbps, so our advise is when ripping CDs, or when downloading from the internet, there is no advantage in bit rates above 128KBps or 192Kbps. The advantage in having a lower bit rate is you can store FAR MORE SONGS!
