I’ve ripped a fair chunk of my CDs to AAC format, using iTunes. I used AAC 128kbps, but since I’ve just bought a new 250GB Hard Drive to use for Movies/Television, I can have the 160GB one used almost solely for Music (and data backups for the various computers on my network).
I’m thinking of re-ripping my CDs to 192kbps AAC, which will make the files about 1.5 times their current size. I currently have 43 GB of music, but some of this is downloaded (iTunes Store and Podcasts), so the whole database won’t increase by this much.
I’m also going to make some other structural changes. I’m not going to have iTunes manage my music files, just the tags inside of them. That way it will play nicer with a variety of clients. iTunes moves files around when you change the ID3 tags, so another version of iTunes, or Xbmc, or whatever, can’t find them anymore. It might mean the filenames are wrong, but I think every system I use will have a database of the tags, rather than the files themselves. I just hope the various systems update the tags when they have been changed.
I’m also going to stop using my Wireless Router as my DHCP/DNS server. I just don’t like the inflexibility that Netgear’s system has in this regard. I want to be able to add static IP addresses, and have the hostnames resolve. Which I know the SpeedTouch modem did using it’s DHCP/DNS setup.
And then I can isolate the wireless segment of the network a bit more. Not that that’s too much of an issue using WPA, but you never know…
Hey Matt,
I get the idea that yours is a very Mac-centric environment, but I’m just curious, why didn’t you opt for MP3 format instead for compatibility sake?
When I began our CD ripping project, I was still using an older off-brand player, so MP3 was the only practical format to choose. But even though my wife & I both have iPods now (Nano v2 & Mini, respectively), I’m still really happy with sticking with MP3s.
While the 192kbps MP3 files are a little larger than their more-tightly-compressed AAC counterparts would be, I think the compibility & flexibility that this format offers warrants the extra space. We’re a Windows-centric setting here but I certainly didn’t want to get into WMA format. Amd we use our wi-fi-connected TiVo to stream the MP3s stored on my PC into the living room’s surround receiver so we can enjoy the tunes throughout the house. There’s also the (albeit very rare) instance when we load digital music onto my wife’s PDA, so AAC would definitely not work there.
Rob
15 hours, 8 minutes after the fact.
Hi Rob,
Actually, we only have one Mac - there’s also a PC, an Xbox (as media server), and an NSLU2 (linux) server. I also have an iPod, and Palm Zire.
I’ve found all of my machines work fine with AAC, including the PalmOS machine.
As for size issues - 192kpbs is 192kpbs, AAC and MP3 will be the same size at the same bitrate, it’s just that AAC will be better quality.
And I like being different, but ogg vorbis is not widely enough supported.
(So, I can’t really give a reason, but it just makes me feel different to the rest of the world).
18 hours, 41 minutes after the fact.
With the mix of platforms you have over there, Matt, it sure seems like MP3 format would provide much greater interoperability…
You can get AAC music to work on an Xbox?!
1 day, 21 hours after the fact.
Yup, using Xbox Media Centre.
http://www.xboxmediacenter.com
It’s rather hard to find to download, try http://schinckel.net/2006/10/08/xbmc-download-details/ - the password is xbmc. Leave another comment when you are done, and I’ll remove this part of the comment.
2 days, 6 hours after the fact.