Youtube Experiment Reminds Us Why Lossless Formats Rule

Even using the proper settings, uploading a video to Youtube can make a mess of your source material, mercilessly compressing it in the name of bandwidth. So, what would happen if you uploaded, ripped and then re-uploaded the same video 1,000 times? Predictably, you end up with a moving array of unrecognizable blobs with a soundtrack resembling the voice of an injured Decepticon. The project took about a year to complete and was inspired by another project by composer, Alvin Lucier.

While there is certainly a weird-factor that makes this thing amusing to watch (especially on a Friday afternoon) it also helps illustrate one of our most core values: Lossy digital formats are killing your media. Sure, a 128 kbps MP3 isn't reduced to a scary robotic mess, but, compared to a good FLAC rip, it might as well be. Take the jump for more examples from the video's journey to 1,000 uploads. Then, maybe it's time to see if Vimeo would do a better job. 

 1 upload


240 uploads


 750 uploads


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