What is the best way to copy or convert songs to MP3 format?
 

When I copy my favorite songs from purchased CDs to my computer, I use Windows Media Player in WMA format. Since the MP3 player in the car can't read those, I used Advanced WMA Workshop to convert the songs to MP3. Then, I burned the songs to a CD in data format.

Here's what's going wrong: The MP3 player treats the songs differently even though they were batch-copied and batch-converted. Some songs play normally, some play at a slightly speeded up rate, some play in super slow motion, some don't play at all... just skips to the next song.

I put the CD into my computer to test it, and a bunch of the songs won't "initialize", but a bunch of them are just fine. There does not seem to be a trend, such as the malfunctioning songs all being from the same album or whatever. All of the songs that I originally created in MP3 format are playable. The converted WMA files... it's a crap shoot.

What the heck is the problem, here? Do I have to start from scratch and recopy 800 songs directly to my computer in MP3 format? It took me hours and hours to get them on my computer in the first place. If that is what I have to do, what would be the best software to do it?

P.S. The MP3s on my computer play just fine. It's when I burn them to a CD that they no longer play correctly (I think).

MusicMatch JukeBox works excellent CD->mp3 directly

I'm pretty sure that iTunes for the mac and PC can take care of that, and fairly easily.

I'm really starting to think it's my CD burner. I went through a bunch of the converted MP3s on my hard drive and they play just fine. It's on the burned CD that they don't play... so that has to be the link.

I use Adaptec Easy CD Creator. Can I use a different software to burn CDs or are you only able to use what is installed with the CD burner?

Naw, you can use anything. I'm using Ahead Nero 6 on my computer and it works flawlessly. Plus I can use it to burn all my DVD's too (I've got an external DVD burner for my laptop). Definately a good investment. There's a trial too, so check it out. www.nero.com

Ok, thx, will do.

does anyone know if a song that can only play on realplayer can play on our radio?

Hes right!! I use the same program and its very affordable and works perfectly if you decide to buy it.

I have a home-studio and I am constantly recording samples, cds, and other things. Nero 6 is what use to burn my cd's, convert my sound files, preview tracks, mix mp3 tracks, and burn dvds! You cant go wrong.....

it is definately best to rip all your tracks as Mp3 in the first place. I have also had a ton of trouble converting wma to mp3. But i love our mp3 player. I managed to cram 12 and a half hours of music on 1 cd! Thats around 80 hrs of music in my changer!...just set that baby to random, and your set! :wink:

I use Ahead Nero 5 that came with my burner. It works great. www.nero.com. good luck with getting your mp3s in order.

What do you work on Proto?

Well, I downloaded the Nero program and burned the CD again. Same exact problems as the other CD I burned using Adaptec. That must mean it's the song itself. For some reason the song will play on my hard drive, but won't copy correctly to a CD.

I guess I will have to break down and recopy the songs from the original CD to my hard drive in MP3 format.

Realplayer or *.rma files will not play on our decks. I'm not even sure if they can be converted to mp3's. I've found that rma format isn't extremely good quality anyway unless you're making your own rma files. If you're downloading that off the net, the quality will DEFINATLY not be there, so even if you could convert them, I would reconsider.

Are you sure that it's not the drivers for your CD burner? Sometimes you run into problems if you drivers are out of date or corrupted. Try re-installing them... or actually first uninstall them and then re-install them. Did that make sense? Before you do that though, I would definately try and re-encode them just to be on the safe side. Hopefully it's just something simple like that.

I make samples, beats and ryhmes.

I work some sh*& out using Reason, Recycle, Acid Pro, Soundforge, Korg's Ms2000, my MkII's, and some other stuff. I have all kinds of gadgets.......


I can tell by your name that your into sumthin also, what about you Urban?----

Some songs are copyrighted, so in fact yes you own the song but not the rights. It probobly is the songs that are having the probem and not your process. I have never had that problem, where are you getting this music?

Hey.. I do all that stuff too!!... We should hook up at the NORCAL SOCAL meet and have a little cypher session. I'm actually in the process of trying to get myself a keyboard/workstation. Those things are expensive.... We should hook up and make a scion track... and we can email beats and vocals back and forth until the song is finished. Acid would probably be the easiest way. If your interested PM ME!!!!!

As far as your question. Sound Forge it what I use. I also tend to find that some CD-Rs arent as reliable as others.. HTH

I had a problem with ripped Audio tracks, after being converted to a compressed format, that wouldn't play or even intialize on the Scion head unit.

I came to find that the problem was after the program I use to compress it is finished compressing the files, it still keeps a RIFF-WAV header on each and every "compressed" audio file. I thought this was already MP3 format, since they were MP3 sized, and would play on my pc just fine BUT, it had the RIFF WAV header attached.

I went through, and removed the header, and they all turned into normal MP3's.

That solved my problem...don't know if it will help any with you though...good luck!

How did you remove the header? Need instructions so I can look at that, please.

As to where I got the music, I have about 150 or so CDs that I have purchased over the last few years. I only like certain songs on them, so I use Windows Media Player to copy the songs in uncompressed WMA format to my computer. I unlock the "personal rights management" thing so that I can also transfer the WMA file to my Nomad Jukebox and still be able to play it. (Then my Nomad is hooked into my stereo receiver and speakers, bypassing the need for a CD player.) I needed a program to batch convert these WMA files to MP3, so I got "Advanced WMA Workshop" for that.

I doubt that the copyright is the issue, here. Why would I be able to transfer the song in WMA format onto a CD which will play in any computer? Why would I be able to burn new music (not data) CDs from my hard drive that convert the WMA file back into a music file with no problem?

I think I will sit in my car and make note of which songs won't play, then go burn those songs from the original CD to MP3 on my computer; then burn a new CD to try to play in the car. I think I have to test a few different areas in order to pinpoint the problem.

It may be in the fact that you're encoding the songs twice. You need something that'll rip the CD and then just create mp3 files not go to wma and then to mp3. I bet something is going screwy between that conversion. That Nero program has a CD ripping utility (or I'm pretty sure it does) that converts the songs directly to mp3 format. Try taking out that middle step and see what happens.