Digital music: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds?
Don't go MP3, go FLAC
by bubbamike - 8/27/05 3:14 AM In reply to: Free is good in this case. You can decide if you want by KiddpeatI would suggest that you not convert to MP3 if possible, but convert to FLAC. FLAC is a loseless format that doesn't compress down as much as MP3 but also doesn't lose any information. The FLAC converter is free and the files will sound just like the CDs they are ripped from. And you can convert them back to WAVs that are identical to the original.
However if you insist on MP3 I would suggest you rip with EAC using Lame. EAC will give you the most accurate rip and Lame the best conversion. Convert to alt preset extreme or standard. They should sound decent.
And for those out there who don't know it most classical music isn't songs, but symphonies, concertos, sonatas, etc. Popular music is made up of songs, classical of larger compositions.
I use WAV MP3 Converter
by dvautier - 8/18/05 1:37 PM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwllWell aside from all the MP3 discussion, I use a product called WAV MP3 Converter marketed by American Shareware. I think I paid $15 for it. I was sick and tired of the poor results I was getting from the free stuff.
I first create a high quality WAV file then convert to MP3. There are parameters in this program that controls the quality and size. Remember better quality, bigger size. I can reduce most WAV files down to about 1/5th without any noticeable loss of quality (but be warned, my ears aren’t what they used to be). The program is a little clunky but the results are good.
I sent my bro a 3 1/2 minute MP3 song (450 kb). He said that it was very good but needed more headroom. I converted it again at 900 kb and he said it was as good as gold.
The free stuff IS better
by - 8/18/05 3:53 PM In reply to: I use WAV MP3 Converter by dvautierWhat free stuff did you try, anyway?
And if you paid for a program that uses LAME internally to make the MP3's, then you've been robbed, because you can pick up LAME for free.
Nod to NRen2k5 and LAME.
by R. Proffitt
- 8/19/05 6:08 AM
In reply to: The free stuff IS better by
Yup. Good stuff.
Thanks
by hwll - 8/19/05 10:56 AM In reply to: I use WAV MP3 Converter by dvautierI will give a trial.
I agree whole hardedly about this converter
by angelbabz - 8/26/05 11:05 AM In reply to: I use WAV MP3 Converter by dvautierI did the same with the converter and got great sound. We are Very diverse plus he is a Bass Trombone player so he need to hear the sound crisp and clean. He also love the metal bands and such so he likes to understand everything without distortion,,,,much,,,,,lol. I am just glad he likes Mozart, old rock and such along side of Rob Zombie and NIN. But quality is definately it no matter what.
Check out MusicMatch Jukebox
by schumand - 8/26/05 5:49 AM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwllThe newer version of Jukebox has fields for the Composer, Opus, Movement, Period, etc. - great for grouping your listening pleasure.
Also with the auto lookup via the internet, the performers and tracks are usually already named for you.
Third, the software also allows you to select what quality level MP3 you want to rip (default is 128).
You can also check it out for free.
Converting Classical Audio CDs to MP3
by Daviddude - 8/26/05 6:54 AM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwllI use Windows Media Player 10 to convert my cd's to MP3's. Under the tools/options window, I have the Rip Music section set to 320 Kbps which is the best setting for this program. It makes the end result mp3 file roughly 2.5 times bigger than the default setting of 128 Kbps. Can I tell a difference? Yes I can and that is why I switched to the 320. I have almost all of Janet Jackson (yes so very far away from Classical music) BUT she has alot of quiet parts and loud parts in her songs, and I listened to a cd one day, ripped it (at the lower 128) and listened to the mp3's and new immediately it didn't sound right. I also have under the tools/devices tab I have it set to rip Digitally and if the cd is really scratched I use the error correction also-but this makes the ripping process 2-3 times longer but gives good results for a scratched up CD.
If you are hooked up to the internet - Windows Media Player will search the web for the album title and song titles and you can configure the ripping process to automatically name the ripped MP3's. If it can't find the album and song titles on the internet, there is an option to enter this information yourself. And yes, it will use manually entered info in the ripping process too.
I also have ITunes (for my IPod) and if Windows Media Player can't find the album and song titles I have used ITunes to rip the CD if it's web link can find that info. You can get ITunes for free (I think) off of apple.com). ITunes will let you choose the Kbps but naming the end result MP3 automatically doesn't have the same options as Windows Media Player.
Good Luck & Happy Ripping !!
D
How to convert to high quality MP3 Cd's
by Keldawwg - 8/26/05 8:43 AM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwllI am responding to both this question and also to comment on one of the previous replies...
I have used many programs to rip MP3's from audio Cd's, and my favorite is DBPowerAmp. You can get it at www.dbpoweramp.com. It used to be free, but they got sued and now must charge a small fee for the program... (I think it was $14... Very inexpensive) The Powerpack costs a little extra, but it adds even more power and functionality...
The DMC Audio Cd Input is very fast, flexible and powerful. You can choose whatever naming convention you would like, you can choose what type of file you want to rip to (MP3, WMA, Ogg-Vorbis, Ogg-Vorbis aoTuv b3 SSE2 or Wave)
You can specify constant bitrate, average bitrate or variable bitrate. And you can set the bitrate to whatever level you would like. I am a bit of an audiophile, and I have to be honest in that my ears cannot detect any improvement in sound quality from 256KBPS to 320KBPS (Constant bit rate), but since hard drives are so cheap there is not much reason to compress the files these days...
It supports slow, accurate ripping to CD quality... Which is really all you need to know. CD's are digitally mastered copies of the original... They are imperfect, as any fanatical audiophile will be only too happy to tell you... But compressing them using MP3 at the highest quality level will result in a copy that even the fanatics simply cannot identify...
Exact Audio Copy is another one that audiophiles would be happy with, it is just not as easy to use as DBPowerAmp.
Windows Media Player 10 is OK, but you have to fuss around with the settings (The default is set to rip to WMA, and copy protection is enabled... So you would have to go in and change that... And they have made the interface fairly clunky for people that are not really computer savvy, so a lot of my audiophile type friends don't know how to change things around...)
DBPowerAmp also has a very complete codec page, with codec's to convert just about any audio type to any other type you would like... They even have codecs for files that I haven't ever seen, like Monkee's Audio and OptimFrog. It's very easy, you just right click the file in Windows Explorer and choose convert to... I use this function to convert my 320KBPS MP3 files to smaller WMA files for my little MP3 player I use at the gym or riding my bike... I typically will convert 100 or so songs at once into a folder I created just for WMA files, and after I trasfer them to the mp3 player I delete them... Check out the codec's and other utilities at http://www.dbpoweramp.com/codec-central.htm
I am a bit anal when it comes to music quality and organizing and naming my music, and this is the best program out there... I don't think you can do any better than this one.
Nero mp3PRO also ...
by Mick - 8/26/05 3:51 PM In reply to: How to convert to high quality MP3 Cd's by KeldawwgI'd agree with Keldawwg's suggestions here though I think dBpoweramp is avaliable free as a very good cd ripper and you pay for the plug-ins such as mp3 conversion, powerpack or the sveta portable connectivity. All in one good app. If you're looking for small file size and quality to copy across to your mp3 player Nero has mp3PRO which is relativly inexpensive also. As a rule I keep my files in wav. Compress them to your mp3 player, delete them, you still have your original wav.
I advise against MP3pro
by - 8/27/05 2:01 PM In reply to: Nero mp3PRO also ... by MickMP3pro is only supported by RCA players. The MP3pro files will play as low-quality MP3 files on most other MP3 players; so you have to ask yourself: why not just use MP3?
Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3
by 109 - 8/26/05 11:48 AM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwllAs I understand it "high quality MP3" is an oxymoron. Wait for the MP4 standard or use another program & protocol altogther.
Wan't High Quality Mp3?
by kofster - 8/26/05 12:28 PM In reply to: Classical Audio CDs; How to Convert to high quality MP3 cds? by hwlliTunes 4.9 is available for download from the apple website for both Macintosh and PC platforms. It is the only software I use because the replication quality on the CDs are great! I do CDs for my friends and all they can remark is how clean and clear it sounds. However, the quality of the CD from which you are copying has to be good. It even comes with an error correction function that I can put my head on a block for. It works really well, surpassing the quality of even Windows Media Player.
You can make and burn your playlists easily and finding your music works on the fly, as you type yourletters.
Another good feature of this product is that it burns music CDs in approximately 1 minute 43 seconds. And burn MP3 CDs in seconds! What more can you want from that? The quality is great asnd I'm sure that if you were to get the opinions of other people that use this application, you will only get the high praises for this product. It is free for download at this link: http://www.apple.com/itunes
Re: Wan't High Quality MP3? [sic]
by - 8/27/05 2:08 PM In reply to: Wan't High Quality Mp3? by kofster"It is the only software I use because the replication quality on the CDs are great! I do CDs for my friends and all they can remark is how clean and clear it sounds. It even comes with an error correction function that I can put my head on a block for."
Yes, but EAC+LAME is even better.
"It works really well, surpassing the quality of even Windows Media Player."
That doesn't say much. Windows Media Player is not impressive in the least.
"Another good feature of this product is that it burns music CDs in approximately 1 minute 43 seconds."
That depends on your CD burner and really has nothing to do with I-Tunes. Any program will burn a CD very quickly if you choose to burn at 40×, for example. Oh, don't count on the CD-R having a very good lifespan if you burn at that speed, by the way.
"And burn MP3 CDs in seconds!"
I suppose you tried burning an MP3-CD of one album? Of course that would finish quickly. The burner is only writing about 50MB of data. Try burning 6 albums to an MP3-CD. That's where the fun is at. 
But it will take a little longer.
Poor quality CD at 40x? Then at what speed should I burn?
by KookyKat - 9/2/05 11:14 AM In reply to: Re: Wan't High Quality MP3? [sic] byIf I want my CD to last, what speed should I set my burner to?
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