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AudioFileFormats
Audio File Formats and Settings for Mediascapes
We generally recommend the use of compressed audio formats (mp3, ogg) over the uncompressed WAV format. The difference in file size (around 11x smaller) in very large when compared to the minor drop in quality.
The only case when we recommend WAV is when your mediascape requires many (over 5) audios to be played at the same time. The average mobile device is only capable of decoding around 5 mp3/ogg files at once before running out of CPU, whereas around 10-15 WAV files are possible.
MP3 Compression Settings
These are our recommended settings for mp3 audio in mediascapes. Remember that your user will be listening to your audio out in the real world which is full of background noise, so you can get away with a lower quality than would be acceptable for home listening.
- Constant Bitrate
- 22050hz sample rate
- All audio in mediascapes is played back at 22050hz, so increasing this or beyond will make no difference at all except for making your mediascape larger!
- For music and background audio:
- Stereo is preferable if the source material is stereo.
- 96kps rate
- For speech
- Mono is preferable unless the speech is mixed with background music
- 64kps bitrate
WAV Settings
As stated above, we do not generally recommend WAV audio for use in mediascapes. If you do use it however, use the following settings
- 22050hz sample rate
- 16bit
- Stereo or Mono depending on your source material
OGG Settings
Note that Windows Media Player does not have support for OGG playback built in by default. To add it, go
here
and download 'Ogg Codecs for windows'
We recommend the following settings for OGG encoding:
- 22050hz sample rate
- Stereo or Mono depending on your source material
- 0.2 quality or close. Music may require a higher setting for a good level of clarity.
ogg 
wav 