What is the difference between a .wav and an .mp3 file?

WAV files are uncompressed and have a full spectrum frequency response, whereas MP3 files are extremely compressed. MP3 compression techniques are used to reduce data size for storage, handling, and transmitting content.

WAV files are of better sound quality, and your brain has to work less hard to fill in the gaps of all of the missing material that we may not “hear” but feel, and our brain makes up for the difference…. so I always recommend the highest sound quality whenever possible… but be aware that sometimes these larger files take longer to download, and take up more storage space on your devices. If you purchase a WAV file here, please be patient with the extra time it takes to download, depending on the speed of your internet.

Gaearth Dreaming, for example, has both a CD and an additional audio DVD of the music (including a 5.1 surround sound mix) for the best quality sound (next to Super Audio — see Color of Sound CD). Audio DVDs can hold more information than CDs, so they can be encoded with the same quality used during the recording process, rather than being compressed to fit on a standard CD.
Super Audio CDs (see Color of Sound super audio CD/SACD) has a sample rate of 64 times that of standard CDs– the highest quality digital recording speed on the market today. Super Audio Discs are also playable on standard CD players.

Please see our CD page if you would like to purchase a physical album. WAV download options are below.