Topic: transferring with a mac

[ethan420]

i usually use a pc. but tonite i am recording a show and i need to use a mac to load it on the computer. i usually use cdwave to split up the songs and convert to flac. how can i do that with a mac. please help

thanks!!

[ljramsey]

Welcome to the world of Mac!!

For audio editing and splitting, you can use Audacity. It is a free program and available at: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Then use xAct to convert your files to flac: http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/21952

Good luck.

[ethan420]

cool thanks alot.
i have used audacity before. but can u serpate them all like cdwave or do u have to do them one at time?

[dean]

cool thanks alot.
i have used audacity before. but can u serpate them all like cdwave or do u have to do them one at time?

   Not sure what you mean by this.  To cut tracks in Audacity, put the marker where you want the track to start, then select Project/Add Label at Selection.  Then when you've got all your tracks/fades/other assorted edits complete and you want to create the .wav tracks, select File/Export Multiple..., making sure to select WAV, etc, from the work box that pops up.  On the bottom right of that work box I select the option to number each tracks, so if the whole deal is called, for instance, LedZeppelin2007-12-10, then each consecutive track will be named numerically, i.e.,
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 01
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 02
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 03

etc...

Then, since you're using a Mac, you'll need to fix Sector Boundary Areas (SBE) for each track. That's where xACT comes in (thanks Scott Brown!!!).  Incredibly intuitive to use.  Just hit the SBE tab, add all the tracks you've exported from Audacity, then fix the SBEs into wav or flac format and you're ready to burn discs/upload/torrent.

Happy New Year!!! 

[taylordb]

cool thanks alot.
i have used audacity before. but can u serpate them all like cdwave or do u have to do them one at time?

   Not sure what you mean by this.  To cut tracks in Audacity, put the marker where you want the track to start, then select Project/Add Label at Selection.  Then when you've got all your tracks/fades/other assorted edits complete and you want to create the .wav tracks, select File/Export Multiple..., making sure to select WAV, etc, from the work box that pops up.  On the bottom right of that work box I select the option to number each tracks, so if the whole deal is called, for instance, LedZeppelin2007-12-10, then each consecutive track will be named numerically, i.e.,
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 01
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 02
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 03

etc...

Then, since you're using a Mac, you'll need to fix Sector Boundary Areas (SBE) for each track. That's where xACT comes in (thanks Scott Brown!!!).  Incredibly intuitive to use.  Just hit the SBE tab, add all the tracks you've exported from Audacity, then fix the SBEs into wav or flac format and you're ready to burn discs/upload/torrent.

Happy New Year!!! 

Being on a mac has nothing to do with SBE's.  In Audacity, you will not get sector boundary errors when splitting tracks as long as you do the following first:

  View > Set Selection Format > cdda min:sec:frames 75 fps [or you can pick cdda sectors+bytes (snap to samples)]

  Edit > Snap-To > Snap On

That way wherever you place your curser, you are snapping to the boundary of a sector.

[willndmb]

+Ts i learned something new
anyway if you do use xACT for sbe fixing you will have to go back and make flacs of any songs that didn't have a sbe issue, so don't just put the files in and fix them without reading the log to see if any were ok, otherwise you will not have all the flacs

[dean]

+Ts i learned something new
anyway if you do use xACT for sbe fixing you will have to go back and make flacs of any songs that didn't have a sbe issue, so don't just put the files in and fix them without reading the log to see if any were ok, otherwise you will not have all the flacs

Unless you do what taylordb recommends above (which works, but I always forget the path so just end up fixing the sbes), all tracks will have sbe's if there are 2 or more tracks.  I've never experienced what you describe with the flacs missing, perhaps because I fix the sbes on the raw tracks twice, once as wav and again as flac?

[db]

cool thanks alot.
i have used audacity before. but can u serpate them all like cdwave or do u have to do them one at time?

   Not sure what you mean by this.  To cut tracks in Audacity, put the marker where you want the track to start, then select Project/Add Label at Selection.  Then when you've got all your tracks/fades/other assorted edits complete and you want to create the .wav tracks, select File/Export Multiple..., making sure to select WAV, etc, from the work box that pops up.  On the bottom right of that work box I select the option to number each tracks, so if the whole deal is called, for instance, LedZeppelin2007-12-10, then each consecutive track will be named numerically, i.e.,
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 01
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 02
LedZeppelin2007-12-10 - 03

etc...

Then, since you're using a Mac, you'll need to fix Sector Boundary Areas (SBE) for each track. That's where xACT comes in (thanks Scott Brown!!!).  Incredibly intuitive to use.  Just hit the SBE tab, add all the tracks you've exported from Audacity, then fix the SBEs into wav or flac format and you're ready to burn discs/upload/torrent.

Happy New Year!!! 

Being on a mac has nothing to do with SBE's.  In Audacity, you will not get sector boundary errors when splitting tracks as long as you do the following first:

  View > Set Selection Format > cdda min:sec:frames 75 fps [or you can pick cdda sectors+bytes (snap to samples)]

  Edit > Snap-To > Snap On

That way wherever you place your curser, you are snapping to the boundary of a sector.

is this still true with 24 bit files? when i've selected the format, audacity reminds me that cdda is for redbook/16 bit audio only. i've been putting off setting the windos (for cdwav) machine on fire until i get a good workflow on the mac or linux box.  to the point though, if i make the cuts in 24 bit, and then downsample/dither will there be sector boundary issues with the resultant 16 bit files? fixing it is easy, but i'd rather not have to bother.

[wbrisette]

No, there are no sector boundaries for 24-bit files. Why? because sector boundaries are for CDs and a CD must be 16-bits. DVD-A or DVD-Audio (regular DVD-V files with only 24-bit audio) are the only 24-bit disc formats that people usually create with 24-bit files (excluding 24-bit flac discs that people play on their computers with certain software).

Wayne

[willndmb]

+Ts i learned something new
anyway if you do use xACT for sbe fixing you will have to go back and make flacs of any songs that didn't have a sbe issue, so don't just put the files in and fix them without reading the log to see if any were ok, otherwise you will not have all the flacs

Unless you do what taylordb recommends above (which works, but I always forget the path so just end up fixing the sbes), all tracks will have sbe's if there are 2 or more tracks.  I've never experienced what you describe with the flacs missing, perhaps because I fix the sbes on the raw tracks twice, once as wav and again as flac?

hmmm
i only input wavs and export them as fixed flacs, never have done it twice
but you can have some tracks that do not need fixing - 1st and poss 2nd, i have never got over 2 without being off
if a track doesn't need fixing it will NOT make a flac though and in the log that pops up will say if a file was fixed or ok
all that are ok you then need to make a flac by itself in the encode tab
i asked scott if he could change the program to make a flac out of files that do not need fixing and in short he said he could but wasn't going to

a question about the audacity method though, once you set it up do you have to do it for every conversion? or does it save the settings and do it automatically from then on?

[db]

No, there are no sector boundaries for 24-bit files. Why? because sector boundaries are for CDs and a CD must be 16-bits. DVD-A or DVD-Audio (regular DVD-V files with only 24-bit audio) are the only 24-bit disc formats that people usually create with 24-bit files (excluding 24-bit flac discs that people play on their computers with certain software).

Wayne

right.. know this, i'm wondering about the resultant 16 bit files one would get from dithering the same 24 bit files.  ie, you cut up a 24 bit file into separate smaller 24 bit files for dvda...  would those files post dither need sb fix?

[wbrisette]

right.. know this, i'm wondering about the resultant 16 bit files one would get from dithering the same 24 bit files.  ie, you cut up a 24 bit file into separate smaller 24 bit files for dvda...  would those files post dither need sb fix?

yes. Although I've never had an issue with this and don't tend to do it myself. I just let the chips fall (or markers in this case) where they normally do and my players don't have any issues with them.

Wayne

[scb]

i asked scott if he could change the program to make a flac out of files that do not need fixing and in short he said he could but wasn't going to

shntool doesn't work that way, and I just didn't feel the need to change shntool.  

[willndmb]

i asked scott if he could change the program to make a flac out of files that do not need fixing and in short he said he could but wasn't going to

shntool doesn't work that way, and I just didn't feel the need to change shntool. 

i hear ya, its not a big deal as long as you can get everything done in the end
i just wanted him to be aware that there is a poss you could be missing a flac or two just using sbe fix > flac

[taylordb]

+Ts i learned something new
anyway if you do use xACT for sbe fixing you will have to go back and make flacs of any songs that didn't have a sbe issue, so don't just put the files in and fix them without reading the log to see if any were ok, otherwise you will not have all the flacs

Unless you do what taylordb recommends above (which works, but I always forget the path so just end up fixing the sbes), all tracks will have sbe's if there are 2 or more tracks.  I've never experienced what you describe with the flacs missing, perhaps because I fix the sbes on the raw tracks twice, once as wav and again as flac?

hmmm
i only input wavs and export them as fixed flacs, never have done it twice
but you can have some tracks that do not need fixing - 1st and poss 2nd, i have never got over 2 without being off
if a track doesn't need fixing it will NOT make a flac though and in the log that pops up will say if a file was fixed or ok
all that are ok you then need to make a flac by itself in the encode tab
i asked scott if he could change the program to make a flac out of files that do not need fixing and in short he said he could but wasn't going to

a question about the audacity method though, once you set it up do you have to do it for every conversion? or does it save the settings and do it automatically from then on?

If you are asking about the setting up of View > Set Selection format >.....  and the Edit > Snap To > Snap On, as far as I know you have to set that up each time you start, and it stays that way until you change it.  Once you get out of Audacity you have to set that part up again.  I can't see a way to make it a preference.  Its not that bad though, just need to remember to do it....that's the hard part

[Depechemode1993]

Or you could put bootcamp onto your mac and get windows xp and only run your audio/video editing on it. thats what I do.