The CD is dead, long live HD-AAC
Boffins behind the original MP3 and MPEG4 codecs have come up with a new audio format which could make CDs obsolete.
Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS say the new HD-AAC codec delivers better-than-CD-quality sound in file sizes that are small enough to be offered online - like on Apple's iTunes Store, for example.
The codec is based on MPEG-4 SLS - a scalable lossless format. HD-AAC enables you to enjoy high quality 24-bit / 96KHz files on a home media server, for example, and then use the base version (called the AAC-LC layer) of the same file to play back on an iPod or other AAC player. There's no need for you to rip different versions of your music at different codecs for different devices. Hurrah.
