Audio can be stored in different formats on digital devices. The process of converting audio to such a format is known as encoding. Some formats store audio perfectly (lossless) but at the expense of recordings being large. Other formats produce smaller recordings, but when the audio is reproduced for playback it is not exactly the same as before (lossy).

The popular MP3 format is lossy (it's not CD-quality), but most people find it good enough. For audiophiles, iRecordMusic offers AIFF, Apple Lossless and FLAC for high-quality reproduction of Internet audio.

	Tip
	WikiPedia, an online encyclopaedia, has more on Audio Compression and audio formats, properly known as Audio Codecs.

	Note
	Why does iRecordMusic support two different MP3 encoders, iTunes and LAME - shouldn't the resulting MP3 file be the same regardless of which you choose? No. The MP3 specifications serve only as a guideline for programmers to implement. Results may vary.