What it does
LAME encodes audio to MP3 through a command-line interface. It provides constant, average, and variable bitrate modes, piped input and output, metadata settings, and decoding options.
Pass an input and output filename to the CLI, or use a dash for either stream in a pipeline. Choose CBR for a fixed bitrate, ABR for an average target, or VBR for quality-based output; VBR accepts decimal quality values with lower values meaning higher quality. Raw PCM needs its missing format information supplied explicitly. Scripts in the source distribution support processing many files. LAME's LGPL encoder produces lossy MP3, so the manual recommends lossless storage for an audio master rather than archiving only the delivery copy.
Strengths
- Exposes distinct bitrate modes and standard-input/output workflows.
Watch out for
- MP3 output is lossy and cannot serve as an unchanged audio master.
Best for
- Scripted MP3 delivery copies from retained audio sources
Sources
- LAME - the command line, in plain text. (Oct 26, 2026)
- LAME MP3 Encoder (Oct 26, 2026)