I was looking for information about an album issued in Japan (it has extra tracks and I wanted to see what it was)
While Googling around and using Google Translator, I found a lot of people looking for “Raws.”
Now what is that? Because I’m looking for an album I’m assuming this has something to do with music? Maybe it’s short for something?
I always thought it referred to the native language of whatever it was you were looking for. For a similar example, if someone was looking for a Japanese manga (basically a comic book), and they came across a file that said is was “raw”, it would mean it was untranslated and in Japanese.
For an audio file, maybe it means the liner notes haven’t been translated? I don’t think I’ve ever seen an audio file like an mp3 described as “raw”. I know in PhotoShop, “raw” is a file type you can save as, but I’ve never saved anything like that.
this website http://www.gnuware.com/icecast/chap_04.html distinguishes raw from encoded files, so raws would probably by AIFF in that case. AIFF is what’s on a CD.
Maybe they’re rooking up information on copyright raws. 
I suspect it means a live recording.
Raw = Nama
生放送 = Live broadcast
I think I’ve only ever head the word “live” (ライブ録音) used in this context.
Funny, but oh so un-PC.
http://bcnranking.jp/news/0804/080414_10429p1.html
http://homepage3.nifty.com/K-rec/namaroku/index.html
I don’t know if it has to do with music it was just I was looking for music when it came up. But I also noticed anime is also coming up a lot too. I found several for anime raws. I don’t know if it’s correct or Google/Translator isn’t doing it right.
It means uncompressed, or the original format. It’s effectively the highest possible quality available. A lot of times it even preserves the individual track information from before mixdown.
Same with video and pictures, it’s the high quality original format, before people compressed them into MP4 or whatnot which results in a loss of quality.
Edit - Wikipedia has a short article on raw audio:
In anime and Japanese drama fandom, a ‘raw’ is an undubbed, un-subbed version of whatever TV show/movie/song you are looking for, as it aired or was shown or released in Japan. It does not refer to the file type when used in this context.
There are fansub groups who take ‘raws’ and encode them with fansubs (English-language subtitles) - they do the translation work and share them with other fans.
The fansub ethic is that you don’t work with anything that’s been licensed for distribution in the US or whatever country you are in. This is rarely a problem with dramas, but can be a problem with anime.
I won’t get into the ethics of downloading Japanese raws, fansubbing, and distribution. This post is purely to put the term ‘raw’ in context with Japanese-language media and how the fandom uses it.
It can also refer more specifically to the presence or absence of file formatting – for instance, it’s possible to save a digital picture according to the JPG standard, but also in GIF or TIFF format. Some formats may be proprietary, and the format standard will have guidelines for what forms and degree of image formatting, compression, encryption are required/supported.
You could also refer to a “RAW” image file, which would basically be the initial unformatted assemblage of zeros and ones transmitted by the charged-couple-device array back to the processor.
Sage Rat’s link uses the term “raw” (i.e. nama, 生) in the context of the “raw record” boom of the 70’s to mean sounds captured live (using the examples of running water or a train locomotive). It doesn’t refer to the recording format, as the review goes on to say that the device records in uncompressed (PCM), MP3 and WMA.
GythaOgg’s point is also likely relevant, as the word nama is used in many contexts. It can mean “raw,” but it can also mean un-filtered (e.g. sake) or fresh (e.g. nama biiru, draft beer, often shortened to just nama). It would not surprise me to learn that the Japanese refer to un-dubbed and un-subtitled version of media that way.
American anime/Japanese media fandom differentiates media as follows:
Raw: untranslated in any way; presented as originally aired or released in Japan.
Dub: Japanese dialogue has been dubbed over by amateurs or professionals with an English translation that may or may not be very accurate.
Sub: The Japanese dialogue has been left intact, but English-language subtitles have been added.
You need to have access to a ‘raw’ to make a dub or a sub, either by fan hobbyists or by companies doing licensed releases.
I’m not sure if the Japanese use the term or not. It works well in English, too, to describe something still in the original state. I wouldn’t be surprised to find that the original use of the term ‘raw’ to refer to untranslated Japanese media originated with American anime fandom. There’s been a lot of back-and-forth over the years.