I have been working for years with encoders configured at 192 kbps and 48 kHz, using MPEG Audio Layer III with the LAME 3.97 codec. I also tried AAC+ and several of its variants, but I was never fully satisfied with the results. The same happened with newer versions of LAME, since, in my experience, they do not offer the same sonic character I have achieved with version 3.97.