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[burchmere21]

Just starting to go digital.  Not a hardcore audiophile but certainly appreciate good sound and know it doesn't come from an mp3.  I've started out trialing both dbPowerAmp and JRiver.  I've scanned the forums but am still a bit unclear on the WAV vs AIFF question.  I'd kind of prefer not to keep two copies of all my digitized CDs (as suggested here http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/309-computer-audiophile-cd-ripping-strategy-and-methodology/).  Thought WAV was the way to go but it seems as though folks say the tag/metadata support is not so good, and AIFF is better in that regard.  Can anyone comment or give an example of where WAV falls short of AIFF?  Any other arguments for WAV or AIFF?  Since they're both lossless, I'm not concerned about the sound quality differences if there even are any.  But the metadata question concerns me.  I'll mainly be using JRiver (or possibly Kodi) + USB DAC for music playing at home, and still want to use ipod for music on the go.

Thanks.

[AndrewFG]

I would say neither WAV nor AIFF. If you have any Apple devices then ALAC is the best. Otherwise FLAC.

[kstuart]

I would say neither WAV nor AIFF. If you have any Apple devices then ALAC is the best. Otherwise FLAC.

What he said.

[jmone]

I'd say rip to FLAC and let MC convert when syncing to Handheld, DLNA devices etc

[Matt]

Here's a vote for APE because it's near and dear to my heart

[jtwrace]

A vote here for AIFF. 

[JimH]

Here's a vote for APE because it's near and dear to my heart

+ 100

[jmone]

I wonder....

Matt Ashland

[Matt]

I wonder....

Matt Ashland

The likeness is uncanny!

[Hilton]

Here's a vote for APE because it's near and dear to my heart

Yes we can tell... by the default conversion type in MC.

FLAC is generally supported in most devices with the exception of iDevices, and ALAC is well supported too now and the only choice for native playback in iDevices or iTunes for lossless audio.
I use FLAC but have been considering switching to ALAC.

I should point out that JRemote on the iPhone plays both FLAC and ALAC just fine streaming from JR MC20, but the native iPhone player doesn't support FLAC.
Also, if your streaming to AIRPLAY devices your best bet is still ALAC.

Good comparison "hear"...
http://wiki.hydrogenaud.io/index.php?title=Lossless_comparison

[6233638]

AIFF is certainly a better option than WAV.
However I would recommend using losslessly compressed formats rather than uncompressed formats.
FLAC would be my recommendation, since it is the "standard" lossless compression scheme which most devices support. However ALAC would be better if you intend on using Apple mobile devices. (iPads/iPods/iPhones)
 
Any lossless or uncompressed format can be converted from one to the other with no loss of audio information, though some formats (e.g. WAV) lack a lot of metadata support. (such as embedded cover art)
All lossless or uncompressed formats sound the same, so your choice should really be based on device compatibility.

[astromo]

This one comes up regularly and the answers are generally the same from the same sources.

My suggestion is whichever compressed, lossless format you go for select playback from memory within MC. You can find assessments and opinions of how quickly different formats are converted during playback. As I understand it, that then becomes a non-issue if the track is already buffered into memory.

Search on Interact for more detail if you're interested.

[6233638]

That happens whether Memory Playback is enabled or not.

[JimH]

My suggestion is whichever compressed, lossless format you go for select playback from memory within MC. You can find assessments and opinions of how quickly different formats are converted during playback. As I understand it, that then becomes a non-issue if the track is already buffered into memory.

Conversion requires little time.  Just a few seconds per track.  Memory playback would have no affect.

But that is off topic.

[kstuart]

Conversion requires little time.  Just a few seconds per track.  Memory playback would have no affect.

But that is off topic.

Double-blind studies have demonstrated that real-time conversion can have an effect - BUT - JRiver MC20's memory playback removes any possible effect of conversion.

So, with MC20 memory playback, there is absolutely no downside to using FLAC or ALAC.

For those who doggedly insist of uncompressed formats, FLAC now has an uncompressed setting, and then you still have all the tagging possibilities.