Solve All Your Questions about SBC vs. aptX vs. LDAC vs. AAC

Do you wonder why wireless earphones transfer more terrible quality than wired ones? Have you noticed that eSports seldom wear regular wireless headphones? Do you know aptX vs. LDAC and how to convert between them? This article will tackle all your confusion and lead you to convert between Bluetooth audio codecs.

Part 1: aptX vs. LDAC vs. SBC vs. AAC - Understand Bluetooth Audio Codecs

Since obscure background information is complex to take in, this part will introduce four Bluetooth audio codecs with a vivid analogy.

Let's say audio on our phone or computer is our express parcel, and the Bluetooth codec is the express company. Different express companies deliver our parcels at various speeds and of various quality.

Some companies are efficient and deliver our package within three days, which corresponds to the high latency of codecs. Besides, terrible companies' logistics are violent, and they scuff the outer package of our parcel or even lose essential things, which corresponds to the loss of quality – some don't matter because we can't tell through our ears, but some do.

You may often see three parameters about the four Bluetooth codecs: bit rate, sampling rate, and bit depth. They are tantamount to express companies' scale. Generally, larger-scale companies are more organized and reliable but may mess up things with a low probability. Therefore, higher numbers of the three parameters indicate high quality theoretically.

Now, it's precisely the right opportunity to demonstrate the difference between the four Bluetooth audio codecs: SBC, AAC aptX, and LDAC.

SBC

SBC, short for sub-band codec, is the primary codec that all earphones support and, most of the time, only support. It has the highest latency and worst sound quality of the four, but it is still the most mediocre Bluetooth codec that fulfills our daily and casual commands. Besides, SBC also saves our battery life. Nowadays, the derivative version, SBC XQ, performs much better in terms of quality.

AAC

AAC is the Bluetooth codec Apple devices use, occasionally the same name as Apple's audio extension. Its sound quality is slightly better than SBC, but it still has high latency. By the way, Android can deal with AAC, but the quality will decline.

aptX

AptX was developed by Qualcomm. It provides higher audio quality and lower latency than SBC and AAC. AptX has several modes with different features, and aptX HD is one of them. For audiophiles, aptX HD vs. SBC, they definitely choose the former because it even has higher quality and lower latency than aptX, which qualifies it for gaming.

LDAC

LDAC was developed by Sony, and it's suitable for streaming, like listening to YouTube videos since its sound quality is gorgeous. LDAC and aptX are both common in premium devices, but LDAC is not ideal for gaming because of its high latency.

Part 2: How to Change Bluetooth Codecs on Android/iPhone

Once you have learned the logic of Bluetooth codecs and what codecs your earphones work with, you can change the codecs on your phone to match them.

Note: changing Bluetooth codecs on the phone doesn't impact the audio quality. If you want to enhance the audio quality itself, use a third-party audio enhancer.

Change Bluetooth Codec on Android

Step 1Open Settings > select System Management > choose Developer options

Step 2Open Developer options > skim and select Bluetooth Audio Codec > choose what you want.

Change Bluetooth Codec on iPhone

Unfortunately, iOS only supports SBC and AAC and can’t set Bluetooth manually. iPhones set the best codec automatically for users depending on various conditions, usually AAC as default and SBC during calls.

Part 3: Bonus: What Can Tipard Video Converter Ultimate Do to Increase Quality

Tipard Video Converter Ultimate is a professional codec converter for universal video and image formats. It converts encoders, bit rates, sample rates, and channels to and from all extensions, including DVD, 8K/4K/HD and 1080p, for free. We can employ it to convert the audio encoder to match the best Bluetooth audio quality.

Step 1Launch the program > click Add Files under the Converter tab.

Step 2Set the desired output format for your converted file > click the gear button.

Step 3Rename your new profile and customize it here > click Create New > click Convert All.

Tips for using Tipard Video Converter Ultimate:

1. Make sure your earphones or headphones support high quality, like aptX HD or LDAC, so that you can tell a distinct difference after converting the audio encoder with Tipard Video Converter Ultimate.

2. Surprisingly, it is not merely a converter but also a treasure box that can enhance and compress audio, join, rotate, reverse, and denoise videos. It is worth a try.

Conclusion

This article thoroughly introduced Bluetooth audio codecs: SBC vs. AAC vs. aptX vs. LDAC. SBC and AAC are generally sufficient for regular usage, while aptX and LDAC are high-quality and often seen on premium devices. Last but not least, don't forget to try Tipard Video Converter Ultimate and match the Bluetooth codecs.