I was using SoundTaxi, but they want me to re-buy the software everytime I reinstall Windows. I just need something that will convert iTunes M4A files over to (unprotected) MP3 files. I've seen some other programs out there, but I made a mistake when I dished out money to SoundTaxi, I want to see if anyone here recommends anything (preferably with a one time cost heh) before I jump in. Thanks!
maybe foobar2000 Support for ripping Audio CDs as well as transcoding all supported audio formats using the Converter component. http://www.foobar2000.org/ its free * Supported audio formats: MP3, MP4, AAC, CD Audio, WMA, Vorbis, FLAC, WavPack, WAV, AIFF, Musepack, Speex, AU, SND... and more with additional components. * Gapless playback. * Full unicode support. * Easily customizable user interface layout. * Advanced tagging capabilities. * Support for ripping Audio CDs as well as transcoding all supported audio formats using the Converter component. * Full ReplayGain support. * Customizable keyboard shortcuts. * Open component architecture allowing third-party developers to extend functionality of the player.
You can convert them using iTunes somehow. I have converted my whole library from m4a to mp3 (some programs dont play m4a, so sending music to friends was a pin), but I don't recall how to do it.
Doesn't matter if I could work around it or not. I don't want to use their icky poo poo software. Free? Sold! Have you used this personally to convert files? I will definately check it out, thanks a ton. Lol, that's odd, I thought iTunes used the M4A format specifically for the purpose of not letting you send songs to your friends, hehe. That would be killer though, I will definately research that before spending any money, thanks.
iTunes can be used to convert to mp3 from M4A. I cant quite remember how to do it though. Just right click on the song and see if the option is there, or if it is on one of the menus. I know there is a way as i did it for an album i bought off there a while back. However some M4A files are fully protected and wont let you convert them unless you use another program. Also make sure you have a updated version of iTunes as i dont think older versions have the conversion option. Its just a matter of looking around to find the option but it can be done
LOL, yep. I downloaded the latest version of iTunes, and sure enough there are steps to convert (almost) all the songs to MP3s. Thanks a ton for the info guys, I never expected to even be able to do that with the corporate media Nazis!
Hehe glad it worked! I hate iTunes, i use it to get music and thats it... Tis the only thing its good for - Media Player all the way!
First off be careful if you convert itunes bought mp4/m4a files. While m4p files are protected and unable to be converted without burning them to cd and re-ripping (safest way, really), the non-protected ones are id tagged and possibly watermarked with your itunes account id and name. Not that you would be sharing said files, just warning if you do. If you use iTunes to convert files with your idtag in them, it will retain it. It is unclear if amazon bought mp3s have any tracer tags embedded. That said, I've found http://mediacoder.sourceforge.net/ to be the best and most extensible converter. Most do the job just fine, though.
yeah itunes can burn songs to MP3 if you burn them to CD if I am not mistaken. I don't think you would need to re-rip them as they are being saved as MP3. Should just be a matter of browsing to the CD and drag and drop? If that is not the case, burn to CD at the highest quality you can, not mp3 and then re-rip
There's actually an option you can enable that will allow you to save purchased songs right as MP3's without having to do anything other than right clicking and "Save as MP3". I've been able to convert maybe 50ish songs so far with no probs. Haven't seen any I need to re-rip yet. I stopped sharing files a long time ago heheh. I just want to be able to listen to the songs I paid for using WMP or winamp or whatever else. Because iTunes is about the biggest hunk of crap I swear. That damn thing starts more processes than I've ever seen. My system ends up having all these ipod and iphone and imac turds laying around every time I try to buy a damn song.