I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to save
them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as .wma
files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I dont want to
be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with Windows
XP.)


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wrote in message
...
I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to save
them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as .wma
files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I dont want to
be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with Windows
XP.)

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

Audiograbber might be a bit more user friendly for you.
-----------------------------------

The process is called "ripping". You need to specify a bit rate when doing
so, it determines the degree of compression. I would suggest 128 kbps for
you as it results in files which are a bit more that 1/12 the size of the
song on the CD; it also provides decent sound.

On Sat, 24 Sep 2016 16:44:29 -0400, "dadiOH" wrote:


wrote in message
.. .
I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to save
them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as .wma
files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I dont want to
be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with Windows
XP.)

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

Audiograbber might be a bit more user friendly for you.
-----------------------------------

The process is called "ripping". You need to specify a bit rate when doing
so, it determines the degree of compression. I would suggest 128 kbps for
you as it results in files which are a bit more that 1/12 the size of the
song on the CD; it also provides decent sound.


Back in the olden days Winamp would make a WAV file but I am not sure
if it still does. I bought a copy of sound forge a while ago and it
does all of my sound stuff. It does far more than ripping CDs

There are many CD rippers out there.
One of my favorite free ones is Exact Audio Copy
http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/

I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to save
them as MP3 songs before they get worse.
Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as .wma
files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I dont want to
be locked into WMP.
I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with Windows
XP.)

There are many free CD rippers, but as with most free software, but you get
what you pay for...

On the paid side, I have been using "EZ CD Audio Converter" for several
years. It works great for ripping CD's and converting to MP3 files, as well
as converting existing audio files into MP3 format:

https://www.poikosoft.com/

Anthony Watson
www.watsondiy.com
www.mountainsoftware.com

Sat, 24 Sep 2016
18:54:43 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they
might "skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like
to save them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as
.wma files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I
dont want to be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with
Windows XP.)

EAC for the ripping, Use secure mode rip once you've properly
configured your drive. Use CDEX and lame 3.90.3 alt present standard
(or if you'd prefer) alt preset extreme. so you can batch encode
them. Use Morgoth renaming/tagging if you want to make them 'scene'
grade.

The result will be high quality mp3s. I recommend that version of
lame due to the fact it's had the most testing done including many
double blind tests. The engine is also refined for maintaining high
quality audio (for an mp3 anyway) while using a lossy compression
algorithm. Later versions were hit and miss and none received as much
testing as the v3.90.3 version did. In fact, some later versions were
so poor, anything marked as encoded by them wasn't even submittable
to dump sites and other 'scene' release avenues.

I don't expect you to just take my word for any of this. Instead, I
invite you to checkout this url and download something to sample with
your own ears:

https://thepiratebay.cr/user/raidy/

Or

https://thepiratebay.org/user/raidy

If you're uncomfortable downloading via torrent, pick something from
that list and provide me another way to send you the mp3(s)
associated. Anything from a single song to the entire album.



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Cow, Inc. unless otherwise noted. Any reproduction or use of this
material is forbidden without the written consent of the owner.

Websites (such as Homeownershub) who reproduce these messages
without permission, WILL BE PROSECUTED!



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PAINTED COW








--
MID:
Hmmm. I most certainly don't understand how I can access a copy of a
zip file but then not be able to unzip it so I can watch it. That
seems VERY clever!
http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=145716711400

"dadiOH" Sat, 24
Sep 2016 20:44:29 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

wrote in message
...
I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they
might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to
save them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as
.wma files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I
dont want to be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with
Windows XP.)

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

Audiograbber might be a bit more user friendly for you.
-----------------------------------

The process is called "ripping". You need to specify a bit rate
when doing so, it determines the degree of compression. I would
suggest 128 kbps for you as it results in files which are a bit
more that 1/12 the size of the song on the CD; it also provides
decent sound.



I have to respectfully disagree with you. 128 kbps sounds like ****
compared to VBR anyday of the week. The VBR results in slightly
larger mp3s, but, still much smaller than the original source .wav
they were generated from.


https://thepiratebay.org/user/raidy

or

https://thepiratebay.cr/user/raidy/

You can hear a big difference for yourself in the quality. Also,
neither of the apps you suggested offer secure mode rip as EAC does.
Without that, you can't guarantee the rip to be dependable.


--
MID:
Hmmm. I most certainly don't understand how I can access a copy of a
zip file but then not be able to unzip it so I can watch it. That
seems VERY clever!
http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=145716711400

HerHusband
Sun, 25 Sep 2016
05:05:29 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they
might "skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd
like to save them as MP3 songs before they get worse.
Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as
.wma files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I
dont want to be locked into WMP.
I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with
Windows XP.)

There are many free CD rippers, but as with most free software,
but you get what you pay for...

Except that EAC is free and beats the **** out of your 'EZ CD audio
converter" anyday as it offers whats called secure mode rip.

Combined with LAME codec, v3.90.3, specifically, using either alt
preset standard or alt preset extreme, theres' no competition
whatsoever. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right.

--
MID:
Hmmm. I most certainly don't understand how I can access a copy of a
zip file but then not be able to unzip it so I can watch it. That
seems VERY clever!
http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=145716711400

"Diesel" wrote in message
...
"dadiOH" Sat, 24
Sep 2016 20:44:29 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

wrote in message
...
I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they
might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to
save them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as
.wma files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I
dont want to be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with
Windows XP.)

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

Audiograbber might be a bit more user friendly for you.
-----------------------------------

The process is called "ripping". You need to specify a bit rate
when doing so, it determines the degree of compression. I would
suggest 128 kbps for you as it results in files which are a bit
more that 1/12 the size of the song on the CD; it also provides
decent sound.

I have to respectfully disagree with you. 128 kbps sounds like ****
compared to VBR anyday of the week. The VBR results in slightly
larger mp3s, but, still much smaller than the original source .wav
they were generated from.

VBR can certainly effect an improvement depending on the target bit rate.
Same for ABR. Joint stereo can improve too.
------------------------------

You can hear a big difference for yourself in the quality. Also,
neither of the apps you suggested offer secure mode rip as EAC does.
Without that, you can't guarantee the rip to be dependable.

The only ripper I have ever used/heard that consistently did a bad job was
Audiocatalyst.

On 25/09/16 04:44, dadiOH wrote:

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Might need to use older versions.

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

And:

- Exact Audio Copy
- AudaCity


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"dadiOH" wrote in message
...

wrote in message
...
I have a few CDs that are "touchy". In the car CD player they might
"skip" or error. But on my computer they play fine. I'd like to save
them as MP3 songs before they get worse.

Windows Media Player 9.x (for XP) has an option to save them as .wma
files (which is Windiws Media Player's own format). But I dont want to
be locked into WMP.

I want them to be converted to a standard format (MP3).
What FREE software can I use for this? (Must be compatible with Windows
XP.)

CDex
http://cdex.mu/features

Audiograbber
http://www.audiograbber.org/

Audiograbber might be a bit more user friendly for you.
-----------------------------------

The process is called "ripping". You need to specify a bit rate when
doing so, it determines the degree of compression. I would suggest 128
kbps for you as it results in files which are a bit more that 1/12 the
size of the song on the CD; it also provides decent sound.

Both the suggested programs will "rip". Both need an encoder to convert the
ripped music to MP3. IMO, the only encoders worth considering are LAME and
Fraunhofer. It is unlikely that you would find the Fraunhofer and even if
you did, there are more than one version and I no longer recall which is the
desireable one. That leaves LAME which AFAIK still comes with CDex, with
Audiograbber it may be a separate download.

Should you want more info, here is a link to a tutorial I wrote more than 15
years ago. It was a help file I hosted on my web site - which no loner
exists - but Shareup asked for and received permission to convert it to html
and host it. What they have is not the latest version but it does contain
info that may be useful to you.

http://www.shareup.com/dadioh/index.html

Except that EAC is free and beats the **** out of your 'EZ CD audio
converter" anyday as it offers whats called secure mode rip.
Combined with LAME codec, v3.90.3, specifically, using either alt
preset standard or alt preset extreme, theres' no competition
whatsoever. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right.

That could be. I haven't ripped a CD in years, but the EZ CD program worked
fine to rip the CD, convert to MP3, and automatically name the files. I
never had a problem with it, so I had no reason to try anything else.

These days I use the EZ CD program mostly to convert music from iTunes to
MP3 files. It was one of the few programs that could make the conversion
and keep the album art.

I'll have to try EAC one of these days if I ever need to rip a CD again.

Thanks,

Anthony Watson
www.watsondiy.com
www.mountainsoftware.com

I have to respectfully disagree with you. 128 kbps sounds like ****
compared to VBR anyday of the week. The VBR results in slightly
larger mp3s, but, still much smaller than the original source .wav
they were generated from.

Technically VBR can sound just as bad or worse than a 128 kbps constant bit
rate. It depends on the min/max bitrates you use.

VBR just means variable bit rate, using fewer bits for sections that don't
have as much detail to encode, and more bits for sections that have more
detail. A VBR with 128 kbps min and 320 kbps max won't sound any better
than a constant 320 kbps bitrate. The file size will just be smaller. It
will also take longer to encode (though the difference will probably be
inperceptable on todays computers).

As I mentioned earlier, a 7MB or 8MB MP3 file size doesn't matter much
these days. You can still fit a hundred MP3's on a CD, or hundreds on a
flash drive.

Anthony Watson
www.watsondiy.com
www.mountainsoftware.com

HerHusband
Sun, 25 Sep 2016
14:29:58 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

I have to respectfully disagree with you. 128 kbps sounds like
**** compared to VBR anyday of the week. The VBR results in
slightly larger mp3s, but, still much smaller than the original
source .wav they were generated from.

Technically VBR can sound just as bad or worse than a 128 kbps
constant bit rate. It depends on the min/max bitrates you use.

And the codec. It actually has several variables I didn't bother
going into. The links I provided are actually scene (as in pir8) spec
rips. I'm one of the co founders of the group responsible for the
albums available at the links I provided...

So for me, your attempt to educate is wasted. I know this stuff,
intimately. You don't run a 14 year old group because your material
sucks.

As I mentioned earlier, a 7MB or 8MB MP3 file size doesn't matter
much these days. You can still fit a hundred MP3's on a CD, or
hundreds on a flash drive.

It only matters to me concerning sound quality. I don't care that I
might lose the ability to fit a few more on a single cd because I
opted for better sound quality.

Thanks for the educational effort, anyhow.


--
MID:
Hmmm. I most certainly don't understand how I can access a copy of a
zip file but then not be able to unzip it so I can watch it. That
seems VERY clever!
http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=145716711400

"dadiOH" Sun, 25
Sep 2016 13:11:34 GMT in alt.home.repair, wrote:

The only ripper I have ever used/heard that consistently did a bad
job was Audiocatalyst.

You need to do a bit more googling and do some reading then. As I said,
secure mode rip exists for a very specific reason. I didn't pull the
suggestions out of my ass, in other words.



--
MID:
Hmmm. I most certainly don't understand how I can access a copy of a
zip file but then not be able to unzip it so I can watch it. That
seems VERY clever!
http://al.howardknight.net/msgid.cgi?ID=145716711400