Rippin' CDS to MP3 Format

[Oblivious]

I got an MP3 player for Christmas and was trying last night to copy some music to it. I was using Windows Media Player and it appears that you have to purchase a plug-in to save CD files to MP3 format

What software do you guys generally use? The player I have did not come with any, unfortunately.

 

[Foofish]

Found this online (if you want it free) http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22784,00.asp

Otherwise, you will have to use at least two programs - a ripper and an encoder.

You might want to look at Exact Audio Copy (EAC) for ripping. This is a really good ripper, but not sure if it does mp3 encoding. http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/

And LAME MP3 for encoding (look for LAME MP3 on google or something).

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

I use MusicMatch (I'm pretty sure they have a free version for download) - it coverts CD's to MP3's and you can also burn CDs from there. I usually convert all of my CDs to MP3s, then make "mix" CDs of my favorite songs from different CDs. So it's just a big back and forth process for me. LOL

 

[Dracil]

Foofish has it right. EAC and LAME is the way to go if you want the best quality MP3s.

 

[jons911]

It's not quite free, but I reall ylike using AudioGrabber... you can get a free version, but it only rips and encodes 5 songs picked at random from a Cd...

 

[Durelen]

I got an MP3 player for Christmas and was trying last night to copy some music to it. I was using Windows Media Player and it appears that you have to purchase a plug-in to save CD files to MP3 format

What software do you guys generally use? The player I have did not come with any, unfortunately.

Yeah, it used to give you the option of mp3 format.
*shrugs* I really don't format mp3's any more. I have an Ipaq and it has Windows Media Player, I play all my music through my Ipaq (connected to stereo systems) so I just use the Windows Media format. I do have a ripper/mp3-encoder on my Linux box but I'm sure you are looking for a Windows version.

 

[Foofish]

I use MusicMatch (I'm pretty sure they have a free version for download) - it coverts CD's to MP3's and you can also burn CDs from there. I usually convert all of my CDs to MP3s, then make "mix" CDs of my favorite songs from different CDs. So it's just a big back and forth process for me. LOL

I believe the freebie MusicMatch doesn't rip or encode to MP3 (due to MP3's royalty, unless someone implemented LAME for MM).

 

[JOYfulbeliever]

I believe the freebie MusicMatch doesn't rip or encode to MP3 (due to MP3's royalty, unless someone implemented LAME for MM).

Ahhh...okay. MM came installed on my computer. The older "free" version (I'm talking about 3 years ago) did allow ripping...but it makes sense that it would have changed since then.

I stand corrected.

 

[seebs]

I mostly use LAME.

 

[jono1]

are you sure your mp3 player doesn't support .wma?? i believe quite a few do. in which case windows media player is fine...

 

[Robert Bingham]

Check out a program called CDex. Should be available at www.download.com and works just fine for converting audio CDs to mp3 files.

 

[4thwatcher]

i use the very old software, real jukebox, of REAL player to convert cds to mp3. luckily, i managed to grab a copy from my old software collections. very quick & no hassle at all.

 

[Oblivious]

I believe the freebie MusicMatch doesn't rip or encode to MP3 (due to MP3's royalty, unless someone implemented LAME for MM).

Actually it does, well, at least the version I have does.

I am a dumbazz - I double checked the CD last night that came with my mp3 player and sure enough, literally hidden on the CD, was the .exe file for music match . I was up until midnight loading music to my mp3 player, so that I can use it today at work. It works great!

 

[Foofish]

So what was the first CD you ripped?

 

[Oblivious]

So what was the first CD you ripped?

Some songs off of both Darude CDs I have. If you don't know his music - it's techno and really good IMO.

 

[72_Chev_Truck]

Music Match all the way

 

[Dracil]

The reason why a couple of us are recommending EAC above the others is that, the other programs don't guarantee bit-by-bit copying from your CD, which means other rippers can cause quality loss, before you've even encoded it into an MP3.

Go around any audio ripping forum and you should hear the same thing. For example http://www.ipodlounge.com/forums/archive/topic/4954-1.html or http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread/t-51045.html or http://mp3d.monsternet.org/premp3.php

But then again, some people prefer speed/simplicity over quality. *shrug*

 

[doofus125]

Adaptec/Roxio Easy CD Creator extracts music into the MP3 format......

 

[Foofish]

I double Dracil's comment. EAC or bust. Nothing like bit for bit ripping IHMO. But if you plan to encode below 192K mp3s, I guess it would be a moot point.

 

[mrgrandyman]

For the absolute best quality mp3's use Exact Audio Copy (EAC). If there are too many options in EAC you may use a program called CDex. It's a little simpler but still still ranks up there quality wise. Probably only second to EAC.

CDex also alows you to use the LAME codec for maximum quality mp3's.

For more high end info you can browse the forums at hydrogenaudio.org.

Just curious...are there any other people into audio out there or anyone who uses iTunes on the PC?

Adam