Playing back .wav

peppee · 28th May 2004, 11:55

I heard that when winamp playes mp3's that they actually uncompress the file so when your hearing it your actually hearing a .wav format.
Is this true.

Gonzotek · 28th May 2004, 14:06

All media players must convert all formats into a waveform in order to pass data to the soundcard. It doesn't create a .wav file, it just creates a stream of data that the soundcard recognizes as audio.

The only exception is that some soundcards support decoding an mp3 file within their own circuitry, but Winamp doesn't (natively) support that.

theknub · 28th May 2004, 16:35

ahh... natively. there a plug to do it? i personally don't own a card that can do it, but if it is a high quality card it could save on processing power (not that it takes much) and thus let my computer run a bit faster since it will be hardare controlled vs software.

ujay · 28th May 2004, 18:13

Hardware Mp3 acceleration is generally not much use for everyday situations and is restricted to software specifically written to use it, there doesn't seem to be a standard way of doing it either.
I do have Mp3 acceleration on my card but the latest drivers dropped support for it as it was creating more problems than it solved.

UJ

theknub · 28th May 2004, 19:01

ahh... that blows. i hadn't heard of standard sound cards supporting it, but it does make sense that companies are dropping it now because of problems

ujay · 28th May 2004, 19:16

Turtle Beach 'Santa Cruz'

UJ

28th May 2004, 11:55	#1
peppee Junior Member Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 1	Playing back .wav I heard that when winamp playes mp3's that they actually uncompress the file so when your hearing it your actually hearing a .wav format. Is this true.

28th May 2004, 14:06	#2
Gonzotek Gunslinger Join Date: May 2000 Location: Terminus Posts: 4,693	All media players must convert all formats into a waveform in order to pass data to the soundcard. It doesn't create a .wav file, it just creates a stream of data that the soundcard recognizes as audio. The only exception is that some soundcards support decoding an mp3 file within their own circuitry, but Winamp doesn't (natively) support that. I was away for a while. But I'm feeling much better now.

28th May 2004, 16:35	#3
theknub Major Dude Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: The Peoples Republic of Berkeley Posts: 530	ahh... natively. there a plug to do it? i personally don't own a card that can do it, but if it is a high quality card it could save on processing power (not that it takes much) and thus let my computer run a bit faster since it will be hardare controlled vs software. When you take a hand and chop the fingers off... what do u get? That would be the knub.

28th May 2004, 19:01	#5
theknub Major Dude Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: The Peoples Republic of Berkeley Posts: 530	ahh... that blows. i hadn't heard of standard sound cards supporting it, but it does make sense that companies are dropping it now because of problems When you take a hand and chop the fingers off... what do u get? That would be the knub.

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28th May 2004, 18:13	#4
ujay Forum King Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: London Posts: 6,072	Hardware Mp3 acceleration is generally not much use for everyday situations and is restricted to software specifically written to use it, there doesn't seem to be a standard way of doing it either. I do have Mp3 acceleration on my card but the latest drivers dropped support for it as it was creating more problems than it solved. UJ

28th May 2004, 19:16	#6
ujay Forum King Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: London Posts: 6,072	Turtle Beach 'Santa Cruz' UJ