[gbhgbh]

I have FLAC files that I'd like to convert to ALAC so that I can play them in iTunes and also keep a copy in a lossless format. Right now, I'm using Max to convert them from FLAC to AIFF, then using iTunes to finish converting them to ALAC. However, when I do this, the final ALAC file is significantly larger than the original FLAC file. For example, in one case the FLAC file was 300 MB, the converted AIFF file 750 MB, and the final ALAC file was 550 MB. I had expected the resulting ALAC to be about the same size as the original FLAC.

Is this right?

Is there a better way to do this?

[SpaceMonkey]

I don't have an answer for your question, but have you tried converting directly from FLAC to ALAC in Max and seeing if you get a different result?

[gbhgbh]

I don't see an option to convert to ALAC in Max.

[gbhgbh]

Nevermind, I found it under one of the MP4 options. Converting the files directly to ALAC with Max resulted in the same file size, however it did not copy the meta data. So I'm better off using the 2 step process of going first to AIFF, then letting iTunes convert to ALAC.

[druber]

Sorry, the same size as the FLAC or the previously-made ALAC files?
I'm off to download Max. Straight from FLAC to ALAC/LAME MP3s? There goes my share ratio at Dime!

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by gbhgbh 

I have FLAC files that I'd like to convert to ALAC so that I can play them in iTunes and also keep a copy in a lossless format. Right now, I'm using Max to convert them from FLAC to AIFF, then using iTunes to finish converting them to ALAC. However, when I do this, the final ALAC file is significantly larger than the original FLAC file. For example, in one case the FLAC file was 300 MB, the converted AIFF file 750 MB, and the final ALAC file was 550 MB. I had expected the resulting ALAC to be about the same size as the original FLAC.

Is this right?

Different compression, different sizes. I don't do compressed audio but I'm guessing that the FLAC codec is much more efficient than the ALAC one.

[mduell]

Originally Posted by gbhgbh 

I have FLAC files that I'd like to convert to ALAC so that I can play them in iTunes and also keep a copy in a lossless format. Right now, I'm using Max to convert them from FLAC to AIFF, then using iTunes to finish converting them to ALAC. However, when I do this, the final ALAC file is significantly larger than the original FLAC file. For example, in one case the FLAC file was 300 MB, the converted AIFF file 750 MB, and the final ALAC file was 550 MB. I had expected the resulting ALAC to be about the same size as the original FLAC.

Is this right?

Yes, that is right. ALAC is pretty poor compression compared to FLAC (or most of the other lossless codecs). ~7MB per minute (~500MB per CD) is normal for music compressed with ALAC.

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally Posted by mduell 

Yes, that is right. ALAC is pretty poor compression compared to FLAC (or most of the other lossless codecs). ~7MB per minute (~500MB per CD) is normal for music compressed with ALAC.

On average, FLAC and ALAC are not that far off in terms of compression. See Lossless comparison - Hydrogenaudio Knowledgebase, Comparaison des performances des encodeurs lossless -- musique classique, and synthetic soul

For different kinds of music, sure, there can be variations, but the extreme difference that the OP is reporting is very, very unusual.

[qnxde]

Have you tried installing the FLAC quicktime component and converting them to ALAC directly from itunes?