@optimize, "But most of us thinks that more is better.
A analogy is when you parallel parking your car. The car is the whole recorded music and the space you want to park your car is the format.
If you have a big space it is easier to park but if the space is 10 m long your car (music) is still 4 m and there is 6 m of unused space. You don’t have a longer car because the space is longer.. :)"
A great analogy, and one's that easy to understand.
The OP is correct when he says,
"Plus, I really think the recording (studio-mastering) means more to sound quality than the actual output format/resolution. I've heard excellent recorded/mastered recordings sound killer on iTunes streaming and CD."
If you are looking for genuine sonic improvement over Redbook then remastering is where that dog is (sometimes) buried.
Masterings can and do vary considerably in end result, and this does nothing to clarify matters. For example if you were to buy Bob Dylan's Street Legal album you would be faced with a number of buying decisions before you could be sure you had the best sonic copy as this quote from Wiki makes clear.
"The original 1978 LP credits mastering to Stan Kalina at CBS Recording Studios NY; the album was produced by Don DeVito. In 1999,
Street-Legal received a special remixing and remastering job from DeVito. The newer version boasted richer sound, correcting numerous issues with the original production. The new mix was also used in a 2003 SACD reissue of
Street-Legal. However the original 1978 mix was reinstated for
The Complete Album Collection Vol. 1."
It all depends upon who did it, what with, and why?
For what it's worth I'd take the 1999/2003 issue over any of the others.
