SoundCloud Refutes Decreasing Audio Quality, Cites Standard Testing

"Furthermore, we store all content from creators at its originally uploaded quality level so we can continually adapt to advances in encoding and playback."

On Wednesday, New Jersey producer Direct gained attention with some tweets that pointed out what looked to be a move from 128 kbps MP3 to 64 kbps Opus. Though the numbers might suggest the audio quality would decrease by half, it is not so simple. Opus (the successor to .ogg) is a higher quality format than MP3 and at 64 kbps should actually sound better than a 128 kbps MP3. 

Because Direct perceived a loss in audio quality, he theorized that SoundCloud might be using an older version of the Opus codec, which "could be addressed in the future." He then shared add-ons for Chrome and Firefox on Thursday (Jan. 4) that would allow SoundCloud users to switch back to MP3. He also pointed out that the service still runs MP3s via Safari or in Chrome's incognito windows. 

Since SoundCloud was close to sinking last year before a $169.5 million investment round helped steady the ship, the online community soon began speculating over what a change in audio format might mean for the company and the reasoning behind such a move. 

SoundCloud would not disclose any specific codecs or versions its using at any given time on any given device, calling that is proprietary information, but restated that reports of any altered approach to audio quality are "inaccurate" and that the company is actively investing its money and resources on streaming.