Redbook CD burning

[mhelm01]

I need a program that will burn redbook cds. I see Roxio a lot and will probably use that but I also see free programs. Anything worth a try? Or is there anything a little less expensive than Roxio? Its not that its overly expensive but with everything I've purchased lately I'm going to have to start choosing between plug-ins and feeding my girlfriend (I figure she'll be good for a couple of days, but the nagging may get to me). Thanks

[albee1952]

WaveLab and CD Architect are both capable programs(designed for pros....Roxio leans toward consumers). WaveLab has a version called Essentials that might be a bargain, but real burning software is worth paying for. If you are broke, just use iTunes(but make sure your files don't get converted to AAC when you import them to iTunes).

[jdutaillis]

I read somewhere that iTunes compresses the audio in some way when you burn to CD using it... Can anyone confirm this??? I would love to know what is actually happening here as I've been using iTunes in the past to burn CDs, but now I'm not so confident in it!

[AdamPT8]

buy this...

http://www.rm.com/shops/rmshop/Produ...cref=PD1519032

It's £106 in total, don't have to prove your a student at all, its like £500 from apple.

With it you get...

Logic Pro
Mainstage
Sound track Pro
Waveburner

Waveburner does redbook.

All of that is awesome for that price, it's a crime not to.

[daeron80]

Originally Posted by jdutaillis

I read somewhere that iTunes compresses the audio in some way when you burn to CD using it... Can anyone confirm this???

It doesn't unless you tell it to. The factory settings might cause that, IDK. You need to go through each page of the prefs, setting them as needed. In "Import Settings" make sure "Use error correction..." is checked. It's maddening that it defaults to unchecked because there's practically never a situation where you would not want an audio CD to be read with error correction. Just to be safe, you could set "Import Using" to WAV. But it won't convert your files unless you import them from a CD or something.

If you just make a new Playlist and drag your 16-bit, 44.1 kHz stereo WAV files into it, with the right spaces between tracks already built into the files, you can burn a CD from that Playlist and it will come out fine. I've burned hundreds of production masters that way, never had an issue except when there was a problem with a bad blank, but no software is gonna fix that. Of course, you don't get to set custom PQ codes, ISRC codes, blah, blah, blah. For many projects, those aren't important. When they are, well, you gotta shell out for a program that can read/write them.

If you're in doubt about whether iTunes is doing something funny to your tracks, burn a CD, import into PT, and do a null test with the original mixes. If you get perfect null, you're good.

[EDIT:] Keep in mind that in audio, "compress" can refer either to dynamic range reduction or to data rate/size reduction. iTunes certainly does not compress your audio in the former sense. Only the second, and not always then. If you import audio using a data compression scheme, such as ACC or mp3, then, obviously, it's going to compress it (reduce the size of the file/transmission bit rate). You can have it show a "Kind" column. Make sure the files you're burning are WAV or AIFF "Kind," and as long you know that they're Redbook sample rate and bit depth, you're cool. What would happen if you were to burn a CD of 24-bit or 48 kHz files, I daren't think. That would not be the professional thing to do.

[jdutaillis]

Very good answer =) Thanks! I thought this was the case as it has always been my understanding of how itunes would (or should..) work. I'll try doing a null test (great idea!) and see if it does work exactly.

Cheers!!!

[layres]

What programs would you recommend for a PC based protools system?

Thanks,
Larry Ayres
California

[albee1952]

Originally Posted by layres

What programs would you recommend for a PC based protools system?

Thanks,
Larry Ayres
California

Wavelab is my choice. Take a look at Wavelab Essentials as its much cheaper and may do all you need. I think you loose DVD-audio authoring and surround sound

[M-ManLA]

Originally Posted by layres

What programs would you recommend for a PC based protools system?

Thanks,
Larry Ayres
California

I like CD Architect. That is one of the next purchases. You should download the demos and try them out to see which one you like. I know CD Architect is a fully functional 30 day Demo.

[clgood]

Looking for an answer less than 5 years old, and for a Mac. I'd like to be able to optionally produce a CD image rather than burn a CD.

I know how to do the ghetto method with iTunes. Wondering if there's an inexpensive, simple dedicated program.

From some other (very old) discussions I found DSP-Quattro. Is there a better alternative?