Making a playable CD on a mac without itunes

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

That's not the problem. It must be something else. Shall we carry on talking about it until you actually get a chance to try out 'Burn' or shall we wait for the results of that experiment?

Let's go on/round in circles.

OK ok, I just thought you were saying my problem was that I was importing from a CD.

 

[Crispy]

Let's go on/round in circles.

OK ok, I just thought you were saying my problem was that I was importing from a CD.

No not at all. Someone suggested a potential cause of the problem, then we dismissed it. Good science

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

One thing I don't understand is what's going on with the files imported into iTunes.

Are the file sizes different from the originals to those in the iTunes Library?

Another thought: have you got 'Use Sound Check' enabled in Preferences > Advanced > Burning and/or Preferences > Playback?

It normalises the volume level across tracks on the disk you burn or in your Library.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2425?viewlocale=en_US

I don't think it is that because it says the files are not affected.

I did however notice this

1. Sound Check works with .mp3, .AAC, .wav, and .aiff file types. It does not work with other file types that iTunes can play.
2. Any boosts in playback volume are protected against clipping by iTunes' built-in limiter.

Built in Limiter eh?

This would explain why I have never come across this problem before. I am mastering at not only extreme volume (0) I am pushing that beyond what you normally would across the board. The result is that despite being mastered at zero it is pushed so hard it sounds a lot louder. This is maybe kicking in itunes limiter to a horrible extent.

The upshot is that when I bring this back into itunes at any point it will get fucked up. Dropping the level by a few DB is against my principles; after all I am trying to make the loudest (sounding) CD ever.

 

[Crispy]

The files themselves are not affected, but I suspect that the normaliser/limiter (which normally just affects playback) is applied to the sound as it's written to CD. Have you tried turning it off?

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

The files themselves are not affected, but I suspect that the normaliser/limiter (which normally just affects playback) is applied to the sound as it's written to CD. Have you tried turning it off?

Can you turn it off?

This sounds like a fine solution.

 

[Crispy]

Should be in Preferences somewhere.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

This is my favorate thread ever to date.

Thanks everyone.

 

[Crispy]

Crispy's priorities in life:

1. Food, Water, Shelter, Sex
2. Lego
3. ATOMIC SUPLEX's Apple Mac

 

[pk]

Dropping the level by a few DB is against my principles; after all I am trying to make the loudest (sounding) CD ever.

LOL fair play.

Though this is the likely cause for your iProblems.

iTunes is not pro-software, especially for mastering.

I still master to DAT, force of habit...

 

[Vintage Paw]

Ok

Your mac does not have a tool for doing this that is not iTunes. So you'll need to get a tool.

http://burn-osx.sourceforge.net/

This is software called "Burn", which is free.

Install it (should be straightforward)

Follow this guide:

http://burn-osx.sourceforge.net/Pages/English/Burn Guides/Audio.html


iTunes is great for managing a music collection, but I wouldn't choose to use it as the last step in the mastering process!

That's what I said.

(In far fewer words, I'll grant you that.)

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

LOL fair play.

Though this is the likely cause for your iProblems.

iTunes is not pro-software, especially for mastering.

I still master to DAT, force of habit...

So far I have managed to get the mastering I did to sound about 10db louder than it is (matching two songs by ear).

I always found DAT a bit of a pain. It was only using really high end decks that I could get satisfactory results. I quite liked MD apart from the data compression. I even mastered some adverts I did and delivered them on MD.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

That's what I said.

(In far fewer words, I'll grant you that.)

You didn't mention it wasn't on the mac and that it was a download.
You didn't post a link of where to find it, or even explain what it was.
You said nothing of itunes.

Crispy wins.

Far fewer words? Yes (I use burn)
What Crispy said? Not really.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Should be in Preferences somewhere.

Cocks. It doesn't seem to be there. Looks like I will have to go back to burn.
itunes are pussies.

 

[tarannau]

Yes, it bloody is. Under the playback preference pane, untick the boxes marked 'Sound Check' and' 'Sound Enhancer'

Crispy will be along with a bigger spoon to feed you with shortly.

 

[cybertect]

I think he's talking about the clipping limiter, which is separate from Sound Check and Sound Enhancer (though that might also be contributing to the problem).

This may help with the limiter.

Problem: During audio playback the volume will suddenly drop down to a lower level and then come back up for no reason.

Solution: According to some veteran users of iTunes, the player has a built-in audio limiter that defends against sudden spikes in volume by dialing down the internal amplifier momentarily. This limiter may overreact to volume changes by adjusting the volume down unexpectedly. One user-generated tip for this problem is to bypass iTunes’ internal amplifier altogether. To do this, bring up the Equalizer (icon in the lower right). With the On box checked, drag the Preamp slider all the way to the bottom. This will lower the volume of iTunes output, but you can raise your speaker volume to compensate. This little maneuver may bypass the iTunes limiter and put all of the amplification chores onto your speaker amplifier.

It's possible that if the track is mastered very loud, it's banging up against the limiter all the time [?]

P.S. Surely the real test is to take the Audio CD you burn and play it on a regular CD player?

 

[boskysquelch]

Crispy will be along with a bigger spoon to feed you with shortly.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Yes, it bloody is. Under the playback preference pane, untick the boxes marked 'Sound Check' and' 'Sound Enhancer'

Crispy will be along with a bigger spoon to feed you with shortly.

I'm not talking about them. Neither are switched on.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

It's possible that if the track is mastered very loud, it's banging up against the limiter all the time [?]

P.S. Surely the real test is to take the Audio CD you burn and play it on a regular CD player?

Er? Yes of course it is. That's what I did in the first place, that's how I knew I couldn't burn a CD in itunes without it fucking up, that's why I asked of a way to burn outside of itunes.

The new problem is that if it is the iLimiter then the CD I produce can never be used on a Mac because it will always get fucked up because of the volume. This shouldn't really happen as you can only make a digital recording as loud as 0db (though my PPMs are going nuts and saying it's more).