Music file transfer question?

[osuno1]

Ok, I need some help from somebody that is computer savvy. My husband has about 1000 cds that we want to copy/transfer to an external hard drive. We bought the biggest hard drive we could find (1TB), but just wanting advice on the best file format to transfer these files onto the drive. Is there a format that takes up less space? What are the advantages/disadvantages to the different types of formats? Any help would be appreciated, as we do not know enough about file formats to make this decision and don't want to mess it up.

[Poke2000]

First, what platform is your computer?

Mac OSX uses FAT32. Windows XP uses NTFS but is compatible with FAT32. Looks like Vista is compatible with NTFS, but I'm unsure what it uses exactly (XPS comes up in some forums).

Shooting from the hip, I'd recommend formatting it in NTFS if you use Windows and FAT32 if you have a Mac or a combination of Mac and Windows.

Hope this helps at least a little.

[PokesFanatic]

Is this a question about the file system or the audio compression type? Do you mean .mp3 versus .wma, .ogg, etc?

[FloridaPoke]

I would load that many into my itunes and then back that up off-line.

[Ivan]

Your best bet is to do mp3 format.

[osuno1]

To answer a few of the questions:


We have Windows XP

And yes, I was referring to mp3 vs wma or other options???


I had thought about the itunes options, just wasn't sure with itunes if I would be able to pull them back up later and then copy them again? I guess that is probably the direction I will go unless anybody has any other suggestions.

Thanks for the information.

Jenny

[Vulgar Display of Orange]

vinyl

[Poke2000]

To answer a few of the questions:


We have Windows XP

And yes, I was referring to mp3 vs wma or other options???


I had thought about the itunes options, just wasn't sure with itunes if I would be able to pull them back up later and then copy them again? I guess that is probably the direction I will go unless anybody has any other suggestions.

Thanks for the information.

JennyOops, I thought you were talking about file system formatting for the HDD. I'll let somebody else get into specifics on this, but I'd probably go with MP3. It's not a proprietary format (like WMA, although it's pretty commonly used), and the quality is practically equal to the CDs.

[PokesFanatic]

I use .mp3 at 256 kbps in CBR (constant bit rate) mode. VBR apparently sounds better, but I can't hear it and I also can barely tell a difference between 256 kbps and CD and cannot tell a difference between 320 kpbs and CD, though it is a bigger file. I generally won't bother even listening to a file encoded at anything less than 192 kbps because the 'punch' of the audio track gets lost around there. Any lower than that and the top end starts to feel artificial, with cymbals and sibilance ('s' in speech) being obviously deficient.

To encode to this file type you will need to buy an encoder. I've used dbPoweramp for years with no troubles. It's very easy to do and includes an application to rip direct from CD which fills in the song and album titles for you and updates the id tag.

[osuno1]

Ok, if I go the itunes route and then something happens to my computer, will I be able to restore these to a new computer or itunes account? I have heard horror stories about switching computers and losing all the songs on itunes. Also does itunes store the files in mp3 or somthing else?

[Poke2000]

By default, I think iTunes uses AAC encoding, but you can change it to encode to MP3.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

[PokesFanatic]

Ok, if I go the itunes route and then something happens to my computer, will I be able to restore these to a new computer or itunes account? I have heard horror stories about switching computers and losing all the songs on itunes. Also does itunes store the files in mp3 or somthing else?

Well, you should never expect to have anything after a major crash unless you BACKUP your DATA. I emphasize that because it's a lesson I see people learning over and over and over and they're always surprised when their hard drive fails. If something is important to you, keep it in at least three locations, one of which should be non-volatile (DVD-RW in a safe deposit box or fire safe, for instance). Otherwise, you run the risk of losing data.

I also don't really recommend going the iTunes route because it' costs more than comparable services and gives you nothing that is in any way superior for the extra money (the m.o. for Apple, IMO). However, do what you want. If you already own the CDs, why not just rip them rather than spend $1 a song on iTunes?

[osuno1]

I do already own the cds and plan on just copying them to my external drive. My question is what is the best method to tranfer the music files to the drive?

[Ivan]

are you talking about from CD to the drive, or are you talking about from your internal hard drive to your external hard drive?

[SeaOfOrange]

The best I can tell, by reading, is that she has an external HDD (A TB no less) and wants to "rip" the cd's to the external hard drive.

I suggest downloading a copy of EXACT AUDIO COPY (http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/)

"Rip" each CD to a folder that you designate on your computer and then "transfer" to your external hard drive.

What it will look like is this.

Go to "my computer" and you'll see all your "drives". Your external hard drive should be the "last" drive listed. You could also name it, if that helps and not sure which one it is.

Use the above listed program to "rip" the Cd's songs to a folder. Once each CD is done, take all the files that you "ripped" and open up your external HDD. Once open, click and drag all the files to your "external HDD"

Rinse and Repeat until all CD's are done. You should probably open a bottle of wine and drink it. Then open another. No way around it, it will take a while.

[JimBob]

The best I can tell, by reading, is that she has an external HDD (A TB no less) and wants to "rip" the cd's to the external hard drive.

I suggest downloading a copy of EXACT AUDIO COPY (http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/)

"Rip" each CD to a folder that you designate on your computer and then "transfer" to your external hard drive.

What it will look like is this.

Go to "my computer" and you'll see all your "drives". Your external hard drive should be the "last" drive listed. You could also name it, if that helps and not sure which one it is.

Use the above listed program to "rip" the Cd's songs to a folder. Once each CD is done, take all the files that you "ripped" and open up your external HDD. Once open, click and drag all the files to your "external HDD"

Rinse and Repeat until all CD's are done. You should probably open a bottle of wine and drink it. Then open another. No way around it, it will take a while.

Heysus, is there a Cliff-Notes for the techno-phobes?:officechair:

[SeaOfOrange]

Heysus, is there a Cliff-Notes for the techno-phobes?:officechair:

I thought I did give the cliff notes version.

Here you go, JamesRobert. Here's how YOU should do it. Put your fingers on the CTRL-ALT-Delete buttons simultaneously.

Should fix you right up.:sparta::action-smiley-033::D:ph34r::pacman:

[ARPoke]

I use .mp3 at 256 kbps in CBR (constant bit rate) mode. VBR apparently sounds better, but I can't hear it and I also can barely tell a difference between 256 kbps and CD and cannot tell a difference between 320 kpbs and CD, though it is a bigger file. I generally won't bother even listening to a file encoded at anything less than 192 kbps because the 'punch' of the audio track gets lost around there. Any lower than that and the top end starts to feel artificial, with cymbals and sibilance ('s' in speech) being obviously deficient.

To encode to this file type you will need to buy an encoder. I've used dbPoweramp for years with no troubles. It's very easy to do and includes an application to rip direct from CD which fills in the song and album titles for you and updates the id tag.

I will second this recommendation...I use the same settings when ripping to mp3. I like dbPoweramp, it has some really nice features and is pretty fast. I typically recommend CDex as a starter app since it is free, but it is not as user friendly as dbPoweramp.

[Pokes_Rock]

Not to highjack, but, what if I already have a bunch of songs (all of my music) in iTunes. What is the best way to get them to mp3?

The only reason that I care is that I have been unable to get anything in the ACC format to play through the xBox/Stereo System. Am I missing something somewhere?

[Ivan]

Sorry I can't help you on that one PR, I can not stand apple. But here is a google search...

http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&=&q=acc+to+mp3+converter&aq=1&oq=ACC+to+

[osuno1]

Thanks Sea, I appreciate the simple explanation. I think I can handle that.

[osupride97]

Sorry I can't help you on that one PR, I can not stand apple. But here is a google search...

http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&=&q=acc+to+mp3+converter&aq=1&oq=ACC+to+


Apple hater! What did they ever do to you?! :huh: