One-bit depth audio

1. Which bit depth is better 16 or 24?
2. Is 24 or 32-bit depth better?
3. What bit depth should I use for audio?
4. Does bit depth affect audio?

Which bit depth is better 16 or 24?

The bit depth determines how much information can be stored. A sampling with 24-bit depth can store more nuances and hence, more precise than a sampling with 16-bit depth. To be more explicit, let's see what is the maximum number of values each bit depth can store.

Is 24 or 32-bit depth better?

24-bit audio recordings can capture a dynamic range of up to 144.5 dB. Meanwhile, 32-bit float audio can capture the absolutely ludicrous range of up to 1,528 dB. That's not only massively beyond the scope of 24-bit audio, but it's beyond the scale of what even counts as a sound on Earth.

What bit depth should I use for audio?

So, you should use a bit depth of 24 bits or above, and 16 bits for those final renders. Generally, it is impossible to notice the difference between 24 and 32-bit audio, but 32 bit will prevent waveforms from losing any data when they clip, so it is worth it for high fidelity productions.

Does bit depth affect audio?

The higher the bit depth, the more data will be captured to more accurately re-create the sound. If the bit depth is too low, information will be lost, and the reproduced sample will be degraded. For perspective, each sample recorded at 16-bit resolution can contain any one of 65,536 unique values (216).