[mpancha]

I have a bunch of mp3 that I had once encoded off CDs at 256kbps, and I want to change them to 160 or 192kbps. I'm still prepping my for an iPod, and I need to conserve space where I can.

any one know how I can re-encode these files via terminal, or automator?

thanks

(I'm not sure if this goes in applications or if it would be better in Development... if its in the wrong one, sorry, and can an admin move it. thanks)

[TETENAL]

I know how to do it with iTunes. Are you interested to hear that too or must it be Terminal or Automator?

[mpancha]

well I know how to do it through iTunes, but I was hoping there was an automater action, or a way through terminal so I could script it, and maybe just click a folder, and voila.

the way my iTunes is currently configured, if u open a file, it imports to the library. And yea, I realize I'm just lazy and dont want to go back and delete the older higher bitrate files.... but u know, tha'ts what automater is for, so I can be lazy

[King Bob On The Cob]

Isn't there a checkbox that automatically re-encodes your music as it's added to your iPod in the iPod preferences in iTunes?

[analogika]

Select the appropriate encoding rate in the iTunes Prefs, select all mp3s in your library, go to "Advanced" menu, choose "Convert to mp3".

All your mp3's will now be converted to the newly selected bitrate.

If you want to clean out your old songs, sort your library by bitrate and delete all those above the new bitrate.

Voilà!

[Cold Warrior]

are you sure you really need the space? That difference in encoding won't make much difference unless you are really trying to eek out every space kilobyte.

[wataru]

The resulting files are going to sound a lot worse than if you re-ripped from CD at your target bitrate. I wouldn't recommend doing that at all.

[mpancha]

I've already tried it with a few files, and for regular use on computer/laptop/car.... it doesn't make a difference. When it comes to wanting crystal clear songs, I buy the CD.

Either way, looks like iTunes is my only route. I already have a smart list that sniffs out anything with a bitrate over 160, and I've already re-encoded everything I can.

Now to find a way to go back from aac -> mp3. I made the mistake of going with aac thinking I would save space like apple kept claiming, but lo and behold, files of the same size in aac and mp3... so i want to go back to just having mp3s without re-ripping my cd library.

[wataru]

If you went with AAC thinking that an n kbps AAC file would be smaller than an n kbps MP3 file, then you should have done your homework first. Apple didn't lie to you; the idea is that AAC sounds as good as MP3 at lower bitrates. Therefore you can use lower bitrates and save space without reducing sound quality.

If you really want to transcode, you do it the exact same way you did it with the high bitrate MP3s. I also wouldn't recommend doing this, though.

[Thinine]

I would recommend reencoding your CDs into 128 or 160 kbps AAC files for your iPod. There's no reason to use MP3s.

[mpancha]

Originally Posted by wataru

If you went with AAC thinking that an n kbps AAC file would be smaller than an n kbps MP3 file, then you should have done your homework first. Apple didn't lie to you; the idea is that AAC sounds as good as MP3 at lower bitrates. Therefore you can use lower bitrates and save space without reducing sound quality.

If you really want to transcode, you do it the exact same way you did it with the high bitrate MP3s. I also wouldn't recommend doing this, though.

Thanks for the constructive criticism regarding my doing my homework though, it was very helpful.

anyways, I tried converting aac -> mp3 before as wel, and it didn't work. There's an old thread around here somewhere, at least a few months old on it, where several folks had the same problem.

Originally Posted by Cold Warrior

are you sure you really need the space? That difference in encoding won't make much difference unless you are really trying to eek out every space kilobyte.

Well, my whole thing is I dont want to have to buy a larger ipod because I didn't eek out every last KB, I've never had an electronic gadget last me less than 5 years, and dont want to have that happen with an ipod simpy over something as controlable as space utilization.

[wataru]

You're welcome for the constructive criticism. I know you're being sarcastic, but it's always a good thing to understand a technology before claiming that so-and-so lied to you.

What do you mean converting from AAC to MP3 "didn't work?"

[Sosa]

Well when I try converting my AAC files purched from iTunes to MP3 (using the advanced featuere on iTunes) I get a message stating that protected songs can't be converted. What gives?

[TETENAL]

Originally Posted by Sosa

Well when I try converting my AAC files purched from iTunes to MP3 (using the advanced featuere on iTunes) I get a message stating that protected songs can't be converted. What gives?

You are not allowed to do this directly. The purchased AAC files are protected by digital rights management. Encoding into mp3 is not one of the rights given to you for the purchased iTunes music. However burning the songs as audio CD is. So what you can do is burn the purchased songs to an audio CD then re-rip the audio CD as mp3s.

[Busemann]

Originally Posted by mpancha

I made the mistake of going with aac thinking I would save space like apple kept claiming, but lo and behold, files of the same size in aac and mp3... so i want to go back to just having mp3s without re-ripping my cd library.

Cheese makers follow the same dirty tactic. They keep claiming light cheese is 17% lighter, but lo and behold, one pound of light cheese is exactly as heavy as one pound of regular cheese

[analogika]

excellent analogy.