Thanks for posting this. I cannot tell the difference with ABX - even for the 108 version - so I guess either my ears are shot (quite likely) or my ears are not able to hear such subtleties (also quire likely).. In any case, it is amazing how good the mp3 quality is. I think the only way to hear the deficits in this would be to really listen to the quality (qualities?) of the recording rather than the music - a bit like concentrating on the hiss on cassette tape, or the clicks/surface noise on vinyl.. If the music is good enough, I cease to worry about such things.

To my mind, a slight loss of quality (invisible to my ears) is a small price to pay in exchange for the much smaller file size...