If you've downloaded a Van Halen, Hole, Sarah McLachlan or even a Beatles song online, and it sounds just a bit off to you, you're not alone--you might have run into a "codec killer."

[Via CNet]

The MethodShop Spin: Though this article is probably true. Codec's for our audio pleasures have increased music listening in my opinion. Though we may never hear true audio, as its fully intended by the artists, to the majority of us, will never realize this. Not only do you need a trained ear to miss the full audio intentions of the music prior to codec'ing the audio, but even a CD doesn’t reproduce what you can experience when attending a live concert! The codec has brought us an easier and more quickly adaptive way to store, and purchase our music collections. In our increasingly busy lives, I see the codec as a convenience that most listeners of MP3's, AAC, and others will never know the difference from there previous book of CD's they once listened to.