Converting Low MP3 to High AAC

Does anyone know if there would be sound quality loss if I took a 128kbps MP3 Sound File and used iTunes "Convert Selection to..." to convert it to a 320kbps AAC.
I get a bit confused becuase I am recompressing an already compressed file but it is suppose to be a better method of compression. Does it uncompress first like a JPG? CAN it be uncompressed first and then recompressed?
Any enlightenment would be appreciated.
Thanks!
-ROD

I am by no means an expert on audio conversion, but as I understand it the sound quality of an audio file will be reduced when converting it from one lossy format to another, especially when trying to go from a smaller size/ lower bitrate to a larger size/ higher bitrate.
(paraphrased from Andrew Davidson's Transcoding MP3 Files - Notes & Hints)
When transcoding, the MP3 must be decompressed (if only temporarily) to a decoded format (e.g. raw PCM) before re-encoding. Because of quality concerns, transcoding is not recommended…Transcoding upwards offers no quality benefit whatsoever, and results in a bigger file, so most of the time it is completely pointless. There is no point to transcoding upward (e.g. from 128Kbps to 256Kbps) except in the extremely unusual situation of a hardware player not supporting certain bitrates.
For much more info about your question, google "convert MP3 to AAC quality loss -download" and "convert audio file smaller to larger quality loss -download" (the -download filters out most of the "download our great conversion software" hits).
G4 iMac Mac OS X (10.3.9)

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Hello All,
I'm new at using iTunes, used to listen to my music in flac format with a Sandisk Sansa Clip+ (with a Rockbox rom).
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==oY!==
TIA,
~~~=Dave

Is 128 in ACC actually inferior ?
Not if you play back using a 'standard' audio system. On high end systems you may notice lack of 'depth' compared to playback of an original (store bought) CD. AAC 128 kbps is good quality for general purpose.
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Apple Lossless is a compressed file format, still has all audio information (it's lossless as the name implies), but results in smaller file sizes (about 5 MB per minute).
MP3 and AAC are lossy compressed file formats, resulting in small file sizes (about 1 MB per minute at 128 kbps). Both compressing methods 'throw away' certain, less important parts of the audio.
AAC is considered to have a better algorithm (calculation method).
As a result AAC at 128 kbps is as good as 160 kbps mp3.
If you're happy with the audio quality of AAC 128 kbps (same format as songs sold in the iTunes Store) there's no need to redo them.
Converting these songs to 160 (or 192) kbps mp3 will not improve sound quality, but worsen it.
Omitted parts of the audio cannot be recovered (only calculated).
As AAC and mp3 use different calculation methods, some of the audio information will be omitted again and worsen the quality.
If you are unhappy with the audio quality, import a few tracks in losless formats (AIFF, WAV or Apple Lossless) or AAC and/or mp3 at higher bit rates.
Listen to them on your system and determine which quality sounds good for your ears.
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Converting Low MP3 to High AAC

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