[Wul]

Anyone help me with the best free and non-freeware software to rip CD's to MP3? I only have realplayer at present and i hate the way it takes over your computer.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[0wen0]

For free, I like Easy CD-DA Extractor by Poikosoft. http://www.poikosoft.com. If you really like it you can register it for only $19.95.

[Logan5]

LAME is great. There are many rippers that use the LAME encoder, including LAME and CDEX. I prefer CDEX. Both are free. CDEX is open source and can be downloaded from http://cdexos.sourceforge.net/index.php?pg=downloads

I recommend ripping them at least at 192kbps or higher. 256kbps is, to my ears, as good as the original

[Bonnie Scotland]

Wul,
Go to http://www.musicmatch.com
Download the free programme, approx 9 MB, it's a great programme.

I'm offshore again, coming home friday, PM me if you download it, i can help you with any queries.

alan fae bonnie scotland

[msenkbeil]

I've had good luck with dBpower AMP Music Converter. It's the second link on their homepage

No only can you convert a whole CD on the fly using their program, you can right click on files and convert them amongst standard CD audio files, MP3, WMA (Windows Media Player Audio) and other formats.

Plus, it's free.

[erichui]

i reckon Lame Codec is the best
and which program depends on ur perference.
also.
read some audio site before testing out sound quality of mp3s..
they recommend that using variable bit rate offers better overall sound quality, and saves space too.
when econding the encoder determines which part needs higher bit rate and which part doesnt and adjust the bit rate accordingly.
just some ideas..
might not be right tho since i am a audio newbie

[Logan5]

Quote:

i reckon Lame Codec is the best

You're right about the lame codec. I mentioned that above. I think it's in version 3.93.

Whatever you use, try to get a program that allows you to pick which codec you want to use... or incorporates Lame.

[Rich-UK]

I've found EAC and Lame to be the best combination, and I think i've tried them all!


www.exactaudiocopy.de

lame.sourceforge.net




P.S. Use the '--alt-preset extreme' switch to get excellent quality MP3's

[LeeH]

I'd second MusicMatch, but Windows Media Player will also do it if your using Windows.

Lee.

[thegrommit]

Another vote for CDEX. If your CD's are in good condition, EAC is probably overkill.

[thepilo]

if you have Windows, you have the best one built right in.. Windows Media Player, just make sure to disable security, then choose the format that you want, and you ready to rip!

[vespa]

Wow! I'm amazed at the variety of responses. I figured this thread would simply have a dozen reiterations of EAC/LAME. Anyway, here's my 2 cents (or quid, if you prefer):

Windows Media Player is great, whatever you do, download the free version 9 upgrade. Very easy to use and very well equipped but I don't know of any free MP3 plugins for it. The plugin tab will give you a choice of 2 $10 MP3 options, otherwise Windows Media Player is limited to WMA files. Be SURE to turn off the copy protection.

Exact Audio Copy is a free CD ripping program that lives up to it's name by either making a perfect extraction or informing you of the errors. LAME is a highly respected and free MP3 encoder that can integrate into EAC. This program combo is a very popular choice as it is free, powerful, accurate, and compatible. It requires a little effort to track down, install, and properly configure the programs but there are many tutorials on the web to help get you going.

And yes, RealPlayer is the work of Satan.

[Minty]

Quote:

Originally posted by thegrommit
Another vote for CDEX. If your CD's are in good condition, EAC is probably overkill.

and another, ive been using it for about a year now, and i cant fault it.

[Hat]

i've been using musicmatch for a couple of years now & find it great. mp3/wav/mp3pro no problem. i upgraded from the free version to the full version for no more than the cost of a CD & get lifetime upgrades for free

[GBMINI]

Just experimenting with MP3 ...
Trying the Phatnoise Music Manager software because I would love to put the Phatbox in my MINI.
It converts MP3 much quicker than the "Exact Audio Copy" program - I cannot tell any difference.

For these other programs - what are the benefits?

[vespa]

The only difference is that Exact Audio Copy makes sure the file is correct. That's why it is slower.

Some of the other programs may use different MP3 encoders which can provide different levels of quality and compatibility. LAME is the preferred standard and I believe Phatnoise uses it as well.

Have you checked to see if the Phatbox will fit inside the rear panel? That is what I was hoping to do.

[GBMINI]

Vespa,
Thanks for MP3 info.

Yes I am also hoping that the Phatbox can be hidden within the bodywork - although I am not sure about cutting a hole to access the slot.
Also not sure if it is compatible with the Harmon Kardon.

But since I do not have my new MCS for a few more weeks, and since Phatbox is currently out of stock, it will be a while before I can investigate further.

I think it would be a cool product for the MINI though!

[Wul]

Cheers to everyone who has posted (so far) will have a look at them all and have a play.

Out of interest - i presume there are no programs out there that allow you to rip the CD whilst not hooked up to the internet and then dial up later to retrive the ID3 info etc?

I only have a crappy dial-up modem at present and the time spent on line could be scary!

Cheers for the help.

[Hat]

music match lets you do that. It has what it terms 'deferred look-up' so next time you connect up, it gets the track info it needs & updates your music library.

i'm not sure if this feature is on the free version but to buy the full version is only the cost of a CD (around $19/ £12). I have dial up too & this feature is useful

[Dom]

I've got music match some some weird named encoder (got a 'van' in it I think)... Only takes me 2 minutes to encoder about 90 minutes at 128kb/s...

They're then dumped onto my MStation in the car