All of the OTR CDs on our website are in MP3 format.  MP3 format is a universal audio encoding format used to allow both higher compression and greater capacity on CDs.  MP3 format will play on all CD computer drives and it will also play on most newer CD players [portable style, "boomboxes", stereo systems].

MP3 format should not be confused with MP3 players [such as iPods] which function a bit differently.  MP3 players do not use CDs at all, instead they store files digitally which are downloaded via computer.

The majority of our shows are recorded at 32 kbps at a frequency of 22.1 kHz.

Most of the old time shows are in surprisingly nice condition for their age.  However, there are a few older broadcasts, for example those of the early 1930s, that may have some background noise in parts.  This is usually due to scratches on the original master. Sometimes this background sound can be digitally restored using expensive professional equipment but this adds significantly to the cost of producing the shows.

Typically most desktop computers ship with either internal speakers or generic low grade speakers.  The sound quality of these economy speakers is much less than that of home or even car audio systems.

Short of buying better speakers [although this is certainly a consideration], one of the better alternatives for computer playback is to use a program such as Windows Media Player [WMP] for playback.  With WMP, the listener should be sure to turn on the Graphic Equalizer [by selecting View/Enhancements/Graphic Equalizer from the menu].  By amplifying the higher frequency bands and attenuating the lower frequency bands, the voice tracks of the audio will become noticeably clearer.  The better the speakers, the more noticeable this improvement will be.  Correspondingly, those that have bass and treble settings on the speakers themselves can boost the treble and reduce the bass.