The decoder either reproduces exactly the same bytes as the original or it's seriously broken. You can run "flac --verify file.wav" to test this, or compare the decoded bytes yourself if you don't trust the tool. I doubt such bugs are a common issue.
I suppose decoding speed could matter in some situations, but they said "for serious listening", not "if your system is so slow that it fails to decode the file in real time".
>I suppose decoding speed could matter in some situations, but they said "for serious listening", not "if your system is so slow that it fails to decode the file in real time".
Even decoding speed is doubtful, a 486-100 MHz can decode 44.1/16 FLAC in real time with CPU to spare.
I suppose decoding speed could matter in some situations, but they said "for serious listening", not "if your system is so slow that it fails to decode the file in real time".