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Music
This just in: CDex is a freeware Windows application which is able to extract audio tracks from a CD-ROM digitally, and save those files to disk as either regular WAV file or MP3 files.
We use it here to rip CDs for our Clips section.
You can read more about CDex and download it here. (New link as of 1.11.05.)
From the author, Albert Faber: "Why use CDex? Well CDex can extract the data directly from an Audio CD, which is generally a called an Audio CD Ripper or CDDA utility. But hey I hear you say, I can do that too with my fancy sound-card for which I've paid big bucks. That's true, but with your fancy sound card you can only record (sample) the analog signal from the CD. This means that the signal is first convert to an analog signal by the CD, which is fed into the sound-card and digitized by the sound-card. In practically all situation the quality of the recording will be deteriorated. CDex on the other hand, is reading the digital audio data directly from the disc, which can be stored in either a WAV file or a MP3 sound file."
You can let CDex do it for you, or you can learn more. Read on...
Introduction
Getting your music out onto the Web requires two separate steps. First, you
need to digitize your music and save it on your hard drive as an audio
file. You can then encode the digital information, using a compressed
format suitable for distribution on the Web.
If your music is on a tape or phonograph record, you'll need to use an appropriate
audio patch cord to connect the stereo signal to the audio input jack of your
computer. You then use an audio utility to record the music and save it on your
computer as an audio file. For help, skip to "Creating an
audio file by recording".
If your tunes are already on a CD, half the job is already done for you; you'll
just need to "rip" the tracks you want, copying them from your CD to your
hard drive. Not all CD-ROM drives will do this properly. If the ripping
techniques below don't work for you, use an audio
CD player to transfer your music to your computer's "audio in" jack, just
as if you were transferring a tape or record.
Creating an audio file by ripping
1.) Open the MoviePlayer application that came with your Mac.
2.) Select "Open" from the File menu.
3.) Click "Desktop" and select the audio CD you wish to rip from. Click "Open".
4.) Select the track to be ripped, and click "Convert".
5.) Click the "Options" button before saving the file, and set the choices to 44.1 khz rate, 16 bit size, and Stereo. Name the file, then click "Desktop" and "Save".
Proceed to "Encoding your audio file".
1.) If you don't have a CD ripper for your PC, you can download a copy of AudioGrabber. AudioGrabber used to be free; it's now
2.) Insert an audio CD in your CD-ROM drive and open the AudioGrabber application.
3.) When track listings appear, leave check marks next to the tracks you wish to copy to your hard drive.
4.) Press the "Grab" button to copy the tracks as WAV files.
Proceed to "Encoding your audio file".
Creating an audio file by recording
If you don't have an audio recorder/editor for your Mac, you can download a trial version of Sound Studio from http://www.felttip.com.
Remember that shareware requires you to pay a registration fee if you intend to keep and use a product.
A text document titled "About Sound Studio" contains instructions on using Sound Studio. Be sure to record using the following options:
16 bits -- 44.1 khz -- Stereo
After you've recorded and edited your sound, save it as an AIFF file. Proceed to "Encoding your audio file".
If you don't have an audio recorder/editor for your PC, you can download a shareware version of Goldwave from http://www.goldwave.com.
Remember that shareware requires you to pay a registration fee if you intend to keep and use a product.
When you first open Goldwave, a "Help" screen will appear. You can click the link marked "Recording a sound" to get instructions on how to use Goldwave. Be sure to record using the following options:
16 bits -- 44.1 khz -- StereoAfter you've recorded and edited your sound, save it as a WAV file. Proceed to "Encoding your audio file".
1.) If you don't have a MP3 encoder already, you can download a trial copy of SoundJam MP from http://www.soundjammp.com. This free trial version will only allow you to convert 10 files to MP3s.
2.) Open the SoundJam MP application. From the "Window" menu, select the "Converter" window.
3.) Drag the AIFF files you wish to encode into the "Converter" window. Press "Start Converting". Enter the appropriate information about your audio, and yourself. Press "Next".
4.) SoundJam MP will save your MP3 files inside the "Music" folder inside the "SoundJam MP" folder. Make sure each file has only one extension; in other words, if a file is named "filename.aif.mp3", rename it "filename.mp3" by deleting the ".aif" in the middle.
1.) If you don't have it already, you can download a freeware copy of Basic RealProducer G2 from http://www.real.com/products/tools/producer/index.html.
2.) Open the RealProducer G2 application, and when the Recording Wizard appears, select "Record from file" and press "OK".
3.) Select the AIFF file you wish to encode. Press "Next." Enter the appropriate information about your audio, and yourself. Press "Next".
4.) When the "File type" window appears, select "Single-rate for web servers". Press "Next".
5.) When the "Target audience" window appears, select "28k modem". Press "Next".
6.) When the "Audio format" window appears, select "Stereo music". Press "Next".
7.) When the "Output file" window appears, make sure the name and saving location are displayed as you would like. If not, change them. Press "Next".
8.) Review the information in the "Prepare to record" window. When everything is as you wish, press "Finish". RealProducer G2 will encode your music as a .rm file.
1.) If you don't have it already, you can download a freeware copy of AudioGrabber from http://www.irnet.ru/audiograbber/download.html.
2.) Open the AudioGrabber application, and select "ID3 Tag" from the "Settings" menu. Fill out the editing form with your appropriate information every time you convert a new audio file.
3.) When finished with the tag editor, select "Make MP3" from the "File" menu.
4.) Select the WAV file you wish to encode. AudioGrabber will encode the file, and save it with a ".wma" extension. Don"t worry; it really is an MP3 file. To make things easier for our server, change the extension to ".mp3".
1.) If you don't have it already, you can download a freeware copy of Basic RealProducer G2 from http://www.real.com/products/tools/producer/index.html.
2.) Open the RealProducer G2 application, and when the Recording Wizard appears, select "Record from file" and press "OK".
3.) Select the WAV file you wish to encode. Press "Next." Enter the appropriate information about your audio, and yourself. Press "Next".
4.) When the "File type" window appears, select "Single-rate for web servers". Press "Next".
5.) When the "Target audience" window appears, select "28k modem". Press "Next".
6.) When the "Audio format" window appears, select "Stereo music". Press "Next".
7.) When the "Output file" window appears, make sure the name and saving location are displayed as you would like. If not, change them. Press "Next".
8.) Review the information in the "Prepare to record" window. When everything is as you wish, press "Finish". RealProducer G2 will encode your music as a .rm file.
Your best bet for listening to MP3s, as well as many other multimedia formats on your Mac, is simply to install QuickTime 4, which is available free from http://www.quicktime.com. The site will walk you through the installation process.
Once installed, you'll see an icon for "QuickTime Player" on your desktop. After opening this player, options under the "File" menu will allow you to open a MP3 file that's already sitting on your hard drive, or open a URL (Web address) to stream music in real time over the Internet.
Instructions: "How to listen to RealAudio files live over the Internet without downloading the file"
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
1.) Obtain the RealAudio Player, available FREE for download at the following web site: http://www.real.com
2.) Install RealPlayer
3.) In your web browser, copy the LINK LOCATION for the file you want to hear over the Internet
4.) Open the RealPlayer program
5.) Under the "File" menu, choose "Open Location..."
6.) Paste the copied link location into the dialogue box that appears
7.) Click "OK"
WHAT THE PROGRAM WILL DO:
Realplayer contacts the web site that contains the file. It then transmits small chunks of musical information (called "buffering") to your computer and plays them in sequence.
IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE...
•windowsThe files are encoded such that 1 second of musical information takes up 1 kilobyte of space. Thus, if your download speed is 1 kilobyte/second, you will be able to hear 1 second of music every second, which results in continuous play.
Instructions: "How to listen to RealAudio files live over the Internet without downloading the file"
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
1.) Obtain the RealAudio Player, available FREE for download at the following web site: http://www.real.com
2.) Install RealPlayer
3.) In your web browser, copy the LINK LOCATION for the file you want to hear over the Internet
4.) Open the RealPlayer program
5.) Under the "File" menu, choose "Open Location..."
6.) Paste the copied link location into the dialogue box that appears
7.) Click "OK"
WHAT THE PROGRAM WILL DO:
Realplayer contacts the web site that contains the file. It then transmits small chunks of musical information (called "buffering") to your computer and plays them in sequence.
IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE...
The files are encoded such that 1 second of musical information takes up 1 kilobyte of space. Thus, if your download speed is 1 kilobyte/second, you will be able to hear 1 second of music every second, which results in continuous play.
Instructions: "How to listen to MP3 files live over the Internet without downloading the file"
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
1.) Obtain the Winamp Player, available FREE for download at the following web site: http://www.winamp.com
2.) Install Winamp
3.) In your web browser, copy the LINK LOCATION for the file you want to hear over the Internet
4.) Open the Winamp program
5.) Under the little ~ symbol in the top-left corner, choose "Play Location"
6.) Paste the copied link location into the dialogue box that appears
7.) Click "OK"
WHAT THE PROGRAM WILL DO:
Winamp contacts the web site that contains the file. It then transmits small chunks of musical information (called "buffering") to your computer and plays them in sequence.
IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW MORE...
MPEG (Motion Picture Expert Group) files were originally used to compress video only. The technology has been translated for audio in Layer-3 format, and gives additional streaming capability.
To spread the music. Because we can. music at projo.com
