96KHz 576kbps AAC

I just noticed there are options to create AAC at 96 KHz and 576 kbps. So I made one from a 96K 32f wav and it definitely has ultrasonic content. It’s just twice as big as a normal AAC. I’ve read that for the same bitrate, a 44.1 KHz 576 kbps would retain more of the dynamic range, which the 96 KHz has to give up to be 96K. (Since a 576 kbps file always has to be about the same size (?)). Anybody know anything about this, and whether these higher rates are coming for MP3 and Ogg?

(I used “very good quality” instead of “highest quality”, because “highest quality” changed the sampling rate to 48K, like it warned it might. “Highest quality” also changed a 44.1 to 48k).

Can you hear a difference?

I don’t know, only listened to the 96KHz 576k, but it sounds good. The 96KHz is probably worth trying if you have a 96KHz master and you don’t want to downsample. You’ll get the same size as a 44.1 AAC for the same bitrate. (a 96 320k will be the same size as a 44.1 320k). And it seems to play ok in iTunes. Don’t know how compatible it is beyond iTunes. It’s the 576k that makes it almost twice as big as a 320k. That’s a big tradeoff.