I have been using digital music for some time now on a windows based pc. Thus far I have stuck with FLAC for use on my stero and need be converted to mp3 for use on my ipod. 256-320kpbs should should be fine for use on your ipod, if not you can also use rockbox depending on your ipod model for FLAC support. As for stero I use FLAC, for the most part above 1000kbps and some vinyl rips at nearly 4000kbps. I keep the two formats in different folders, use itunes for mp3 and VUPlayer for FLAC. I have had pretty good luck finding FLAC for download, it is not as widely used as mp3's but getting better. I would suggest testing all the options before committing to anything as it is your opinion that matters the most.
