Join the betaDownload a sound effects pack and you'll often get the same sounds twice: once as WAV, once as MP3. Which should you keep?
The short answer
Keep WAV for editing. Use MP3 only for previews or when space is truly tight.
What's the difference?
- WAV is uncompressed. It stores the audio exactly as recorded. Files are large, but nothing is lost.
- MP3 is compressed with a lossy codec. It throws away detail that's hard to hear, so files are much smaller.
For one listen, a good MP3 sounds close to the WAV. The difference shows up when you edit: pitching a sound down, stretching it, layering several sounds or adding heavy processing can reveal compression artefacts, especially in high frequencies and sharp transients like impacts.
Sample rate and bit depth
- 48 kHz is the standard for video. Use it when you can; it matches your timeline.
- 96 kHz or higher gives more room to pitch sounds down without losing detail. Useful for sound design, not required for most edits.
- 24-bit gives more headroom than 16-bit, which helps when you raise the level of a quiet recording.
Your editor will convert other sample rates automatically, but starting at the project rate avoids surprises.
Other formats you'll meet
- AIFF: Apple's uncompressed format, equivalent to WAV.
- FLAC: lossless compression. Smaller than WAV with no quality loss, though not every editor imports it directly.
- OGG, OPUS, M4A (AAC): lossy, like MP3. Fine for previews.
- CAF: Apple's container format, common in macOS tools.
Duplicates: what to delete
If you have both versions of a sound, keep the WAV (or AIFF/FLAC) and delete the MP3. Before deleting, listen to both: sometimes packs contain different edits under similar names.
How SFX L'Builder helps
SFX L'Builder plays WAV, MP3, AIFF, OGG, OPUS, FLAC, M4A and CAF. Its duplicate review finds sounds you have twice, even in different formats, so you can compare them and keep the best version. When you send a sound to DaVinci Resolve or CapCut, it prepares a WAV of exactly the part you trimmed.