You really don't know what is going on, do you? How can something that uses 16 bit samples have a BETTER than 16 bit sound? You know, I am amazed you can convince yourself of all this hogwash... (Mind you, if I had spent THAT much money on something that poorly styled, I MIGHT be grasping desperately for excuses, too!)

Let's take, for instance, listening to the radio. Does it sound so bad that, when you hear a song that you like and know, you say to yourself 'I have no idea who or what that is'? No, you have NO trouble recognizing it for what it is. Let's take it one further. You listen to a CD of someone playing the piano, do you go "I have no idea what instrument he is playing"? No, you recognize it for exactly what it is.

But a Wersi...? No, that's a whole different kettle of fish, isn't it?

I am sorry, but alongside my work as a session musician, I also do mastering work for local studios and artists. I am probably a LOT more aware than you exactly what the difference between a 24bit 96kHz audio file and its' derivative 192kbps MP3 is. And one thing I can tell you is, nothing that sounded like crap at 192 (or even 128) kbps MP3 DIDN'T sound like crap at 24/96, too Just for the record, I use equipment up to and including Manley Massive Passive's and Manley Slam!'s and hardware L2's along with Apogee converters, then a plethora of software solutions including UAD Mastering software and Waves.

You record the flowers growing at 24/96, it doesn't sound like the toilet flushing at 128 MP3! And vice versa...

Here's the rub. Almost everything you listen to on the radio and on the TV has undergone some data compression. Yet much of it sounds great... But of everything that you listen to, somehow, ONLY a Wersi is incapable of being appreciated in anything short of 24/96?

Tosh, plain and simple. No offense, but I'm fairly sure, at your age, that you would have as much trouble as most people our age (I'm in my mid 50's) telling the difference between a CD rip and a good 256kbps MP3 in a true double blind listening test. Even so called 'golden ear' listeners have been fooled. And that basically lays it to rest. If the difference is SO small it CAN fool golden ear listeners from time to time, how subtle it must be... Nowhere near the gross difference you claim it HAS to be to excuse those awful styles. 24/96 rubbish is STILL rubbish! Only perhaps MORE so, as you can hear every excruciating detail

I've got GB's of recordings of my G70 (and earlier). Some at MP3, and some at 44/16. And you know what? It is EASY to tell it is exactly the same machine. Why does Wersi alone deteriorate into a pile of poo when IT gets encoded..?

Magic, I tell you... sheer magic!