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In the default lossless mode WavPack acts just like a WinZip compressor for audio
files. However, unlike MP3 or WMA encoding which can affect the sound quality, not
a single bit of the original information is lost, so there's no chance of
degradation. This makes lossless mode ideal for archiving audio material or any
other situation where quality is paramount. The compression ratio depends on the
source material, but generally is between 30% and 70%.
The hybrid mode provides all the advantages of lossless compression with an
additional bonus. Instead of creating a single file, this mode creates both a
relatively small, high-quality lossy file that can be used all by itself, and
a "correction" file that (when combined with the lossy file) provides full
lossless restoration. For some users this means never having to choose between
lossless and lossy compression!
WavPack employs only well known, public domain techniques (i.e., linear prediction
with LMS adaptation, Elias and Golomb codes) in its implementation. Methods and
algorithms that have ever been patented (e.g., arithmetic coding, LZW compression)
are specifically avoided. This ensures that WavPack encoders and decoders will
remain open and royalty-free.
WavPack 4.31 features include:
- Compatible
with virtually all PCM audio formats including 8, 16, 24, and 32-bit
ints; 32-bit floats; mono, stereo, and multichannel; sampling rates
from 6 to 192 kHz (and non-standard rates)
- Multiplatform support including Windows, Linux, and OS X
- Instantly seekable and streaming capable (and gapless)
- ReplayGain (including WavPack file scanner and compatible plugins)
- Uses ID3v1 and APEv2 tags for metadata (including ReplayGain)
- Error-tolerant block format conducive to hardware decoding
- Optional "asymmetrical" mode for improved compression
- MD5 audio checksums for verification and identification
- Unique hybrid mode (provides high quality lossy + "correction" file
- Hybrid mode now operates as low as 2.25 bits/sample (or 196 kbps for CD audio)
- Free and open source with easy to use library interface and unrestrictive license (BSD)
- Intuitive command line interface (with wildcards and destination directory)
- Small, efficient executable (no large programs or dlls to install)
- Fully backward compatible to WavPack 1.0
- Self-extracting archives (Windows only)
- Complete piping support
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