dBpoweramp Music Converter { Help Index > Musepack Codec }
Musepack (or MPC as it is also known) is based on mp2, with methods from more advanced codecs, as such it is one of the best lossy encoders for higher bitrate (above 192kbps).
- Encoding: Yes [.mpc]
- Decoding: Yes [.mpc]
- ID Tag Reading: Yes
- ID Tag Writing: Yes
- Unicode Tagging: Yes
- Supports Album Art: Yes
- Gapless Encoding & Decoding: Yes
Codec Background
Musepack (also known as MPC) is a lossy codec, released as open source. Specifically optimized for transparent compression of stereo audio at bitrates of 160-180 kbit/s, previously it was known as MPEGplus, MPEG+ or MP+.
Andree Buschmann started development of MPC in 1997, taken over later by Frank Klemm. Currently maintained by the Musepack Development Team (MDT).
More details:
https://www.musepack.net
Terminology
Encoding: compress and write audio track,
Decoding: uncompress and read the track,
ID Tags: meta data such as artist & album are embedded inside the audio file,
Lossless: compression without audio quality loss,
Lossy: audio quality is sacrificed (how much depends on bitrate and codec used) to achieve smaller files,
Gapless: allows the decoder to decode audio stream without gaps (silence).
