CD to mp3
- Thread starter GAZZ
- Start date
Dev
Moderator
I recommend iTunes (unless Julian is reading this) 
ilockyer
rockin' in the free world
I really don't understand what peoples problem is with iTunes. Simple, easy to use... is it just the fact that it's Apple that bugs people?
julian2002
Muper Soderator
my problem with i tunes is more to do with apple's drm strategy - i.e. you don;t actually have the right to listen to the music - or you do but only for as long as apple say you do. so you could wake up tomorrow and find you can only listen to your music collection on the pc you used to buy the music. i'll stick to buying the music on cd, ripping it to an open source format and using foobar to transcode it to whatever i fancy using (currently wma as it sounds better than mp3 at lower bit rates). also i don;t like the way they mush up the files on the ipod - yes there is 3rd party s/w that lets you get the stuff off there but it's unneccessary.
if you want to use it in 'apples way' then fine but if you want to be a bit different then it gets in your way - surely not what apple is about.
if you want to use it in 'apples way' then fine but if you want to be a bit different then it gets in your way - surely not what apple is about.
Dev
Moderator
Yes but iTunes itself is a very good product IMO and Apple won't make any money out of you if you only use it to burn/play CD or MP3 files.
Anyway I did add a smilie at the end of the sentence.
Anyway I did add a smilie at the end of the sentence.
julian2002
Muper Soderator
i know dev but to be honest i've got slimserver to organise / find my music if i need it and eac to rip it accurately - if i only wanted it for lossy compressed stuff and had an ipod then i'd probably find it great. however i've got one of these: http://www.archos.com/products/pc_centric/gmini_500/index.html (or i will have tomorrow)
as for your smilie i'll trump it with this ruddy great chip i have on my shoulder.
as for your smilie i'll trump it with this ruddy great chip i have on my shoulder.
Dev
Moderator
That looks good. The size of that screen!
ilockyer said:
Its the fact its slow and bloated that is my problem with it.
Its no better than Windows Media Player, but the fact that the latter is Microsoft REALLY bugs people
Some good software to rip is EAC... however its not an "out of the box solution" like iTunes, but the results are potentially better. CDEX is an alternative.
Good for music you do not yet have in your cd collection.
A mate of mine makes great use of allofmp3, good quality, no drm and you pay according to the size of the file downloaded (lots of bit rates to choose from). Now I know it is a Russian site but my friend spent a couple of days scouring the web for bad reviews, bad news and general slagging off using a pile of search engines and could find only good reports so he gave it a try over the holidays and throughly recomends it. You pay USD15 and credit is reduced when you download tunes.
A mate of mine makes great use of allofmp3, good quality, no drm and you pay according to the size of the file downloaded (lots of bit rates to choose from). Now I know it is a Russian site but my friend spent a couple of days scouring the web for bad reviews, bad news and general slagging off using a pile of search engines and could find only good reports so he gave it a try over the holidays and throughly recomends it. You pay USD15 and credit is reduced when you download tunes.
Bob McC
living the life of Riley
As high as you can!
julian2002
Muper Soderator
gazz,
it's a compromise between storage space and quality - however the quality is always capped by your players output abilities. i tend to use wma as i think the quality at lower bit rates is better than that of mp3 - as a rough guide i reckon a 128 bit wma sounds as good as a 192bit mp3. therefore i usually transcode to 128bit wma however you should do some tests to see where your space / quality sweetspot is for your ears and hardware.
cheers
julian.
it's a compromise between storage space and quality - however the quality is always capped by your players output abilities. i tend to use wma as i think the quality at lower bit rates is better than that of mp3 - as a rough guide i reckon a 128 bit wma sounds as good as a 192bit mp3. therefore i usually transcode to 128bit wma however you should do some tests to see where your space / quality sweetspot is for your ears and hardware.
cheers
julian.
greg
Its a G thing
I think it is exactly what Apple is about. Apple fans (I think) perceive Apple as the renegade, the free thinker, the people's vendor. I think they are as or more proprietary than Microsoft and if they were as successful they would be as or more dislikeable. It's important not to confuse the beautiful designs of Jonathan Ive with Apple being any of the above.julian2002 said:
I dislike Quicktime and am ambivolent about iTunes. What Julian describes above puts me right off.
ilockyer
rockin' in the free world
How you getting on with the new toy then Julian? That does look like a pretty decent bit of kit. Detailed review forthcoming?
Have never used the iTunes shop facility, am merely using the software to convert stuff for the iPod. Easy, one application solution which is great for lazy gits like me!
Have never used the iTunes shop facility, am merely using the software to convert stuff for the iPod. Easy, one application solution which is great for lazy gits like me!
