question i ask of you all, i have heard and read that the higher the kbps the better the sound is. The reason i ask is i have transferred a song from a CD to my external hard drive and it was 125 kbps and when taken the same song from spotify its at 225 kbps and to me they sound the same. Is there a difference and do they sound better?
The simple reality is - No, you're not likely to detect any significant difference. If you could, MP3 would not be the distribution standard we have today. If something sounds "better" than it was probably encoded from better quality source material.
That being said, the nature of any given track has to be accounted for in the chosen bit rate because of the way the algorithm works. (Some software will analyze a track prior to selecting an optimum bit rate.) If file size and storage are a priority one pays greater attention to bit rates for certain types of recordings to avoid discernible loss at smaller file sizes. Using a higher bit rate eliminates this extra step at the expense of file size and storage capacity. Extremely high bit rates can tax software and devices. Lower bit rates require less processing power and enable many more and cheaper playback options.
Spotify bit rates probably balance fast retail exchange and quality of a user's experience against piracy concerns. The bit rate is quickly and easily distributed, suitable for personal use, but makes poor source material for certain unauthorized uses.
Professional touring consoles with USB and DAW capabilities typically play only .WAV files, not MP3. They have ample processing capability and are often feeding venue sound systems or studio reference monitors. Today's DJ systems are almost entirely MP3 based. It's just not useful when talking about bit rates or loss-less files to be comparing $30,000 consoles to $900-$2,000 DJ controllers.
If something doesn't sound right on your system - consider the source material and encoder first. Then, try a higher bit rate using a reliable high quality source.