Archive for June, 2007
An MP3 converter is a piece of software that takes your audio files that may not be in MP3 format and converts them to MP3. There are a lot of reasons someone may need this but, these days, one of the big reasons is to allow people to download the music CDs they own to their portable MP3 player. There are many different file formats for audio files but for people looking to download their music to their MP3 player the most popular conversion is from WMA (windows audio) to MP3. Most of the good MP3 converters out there can make this conversion and for some of the less expensive ones this is the only conversion they do. Many manufacturers offer you a free trial prior to purchasing so you get a chance to test out their software prior to buying it. That being said here is a list of 5 MP3 converters that you should really consider when you are in the market for an MP3 converter.
But first a little word of warning. MP3 files, and MP3 converting, is extremely popular right now. While that does tend to open up the market to an array of different products for you to choose from, it also attracts the less desirable people as well. The kind of people that would just as soon give your computer a virus than a good MP3 converter. That being said I am going to suggest that you do not deal with what is advertised as free MP3 converters. Most of these products offer a free trial and that should be more than enough for you to convert some files and find the software you like. But a free MP3 converter is an invitation for a devious person to get a dangerous, and destructive virus, on to your computer. That isn’t to say that an MP3 converter you pay for couldn’t also cause you problems, but a company that is taking your money from their own website is a little less likely to destroy your computer than an anonymous company offering you something for free.
Audio Conversion Studio. This is an extremely easy to use piece of software that covers a fairly broad range of audio file types. It also comes with a CD ripper which helps to combine the act of ripping your CD to get the music off it and then converting to MP3. This software makes the entire process very easy.
Smart Audio Converter. This one has a little easier to understand user interface and a more windows-type look to it. This one is very easy to use and also comes with a CD ripping function as well. This one is a little frustrating to test out because the trial version only coverts 60% of the source file which leaves almost half of your song not converted. It’s nice to see the speed, and range of compatibility, on this one but you pretty much have to buy it if you really want to use it.
MP3 WAV Converter 3.6. This one deals only in WAV to MP3 and vice versa. It is extremely fast and comes with a very neat looking user interface. If you are only looking to convert WAV files to MP3 then this software is definitely powerful enough to do the job and it does have compatibility with a broad range of Windows operating systems. You pay for the speed and power on this one though as it is a little pricey for a converter with a limited scope.
Blaze Media Pro. I have used this software often and this is probably one of the most powerful, fast, and versatile MP3 converters out there. The range of audio file types that this software can deal with, along with its long list of audio and video editing functions as well as the CD ripping and burning functions, make this software well worth the price tag.
Total Audio Converter. This is a very reliable program that can deal with a very wide range of audio file types and also offers a built in MP3 player as well. Total Audio Converter offers a little more interaction with your existing files and that really makes it easy to find the files you want to convert. All in all this is probably the more user friendly of the software being mentioned here.
June 26th, 2007
Music can be found anywhere. It’s something that’s intrinsic to humanity, and important enough that it’s been a defining point of almost every culture on Earth. From the drumbeat that kept the slaves rowing to the techno that keeps the rave going, music is as much a part of us as our very heartbeat.
Music can be found in the weirdest places. The weirdest places are online, where music has been stuck in personal profiles, hidden on web pages, and even categorized into some interesting topics.
Myspace is a great place for music-lovers. Myspace is an interesting cross-section of the world, where millions of people with a vast range of hobbies and interests post everything that they even think would be interesting to someone else, or even what is just interesting to them. Even better for music-lovers, some posters use the site for self-promotion. This means that there is plenty of music to be had for even a few minutes of looking around.
I’d advise starting with local bands, and going up from there. A number of local bands use Myspace to get people interested in them, and post facts, history, gigs, and contact information, as well as some of their tracks. The more famous a band is, the more likely they are to have a Myspace account.
Local publication sites are another great place to find tracks. If you peruse the local venues, some of them will have links to either bands or tracks, so as to better show what kind of music is going to be played there. As local publications are keyed into the local music scene, they tend to stay up to date when a band makes major changes, and will usually bug bands to post new tracks.
Some of the online merchandising shops (such as CafePress) allow their members to create CDs. This is another great resource when it comes to looking for music, as you have a number of bands and musicians that are so specialized that they have decided to sell their music through self-promotion. It may take a while longer, but you can usually find enough music to satisfy your appetite for a long time.
As you are probably looking for songs for your iPod, easy-to-rip CDs are definitely going to be part of the search. But you will need a good CD ripper for them. The internet allows you to look far and wide, with local stores being just the beginning. You can look at stores in other countries. Think about that for a moment: If a shop in Australia carries the music you are looking for, you can buy it and have it shipped to you. You’re not really limited to the mega-stores and auction site unless you really want to be; don’t be afraid to look far and wide for the most obscure songs!
Just remember to look in weird places; you would be amazed at where you can find music. As long as there are humans, there will be music, so you know that it’s not hard to find!
P.S. Find a simple but free source of music for your iPod
June 21st, 2007
Movies can be great fun to go to, even when the movie is bad. If it’s great, the discussion can go on for hours, especially if you try to figure out any of the stunts. If it’s bad, there will be discussions, usually centered on why the person who picked the movie this time won’t be picking it next time.
But we tend to remember the music from movies, and track it down. There are services to help us track down music, and we use them in order to find the music that we heard in the movies that we just saw. It can mean a trip to the local music store, visiting a website looking for the download, or going to a movie site to find out more about the music. In that vein, here are some fun soundtracks to track down!
Hackers: Besides having some great young stars that became great not-so-young stars (Johnny Lee Miller, Matthew Lilard, and Angelina Jolie), the soundtrack featured mostly electronica and techno, including some songs that became perennial favorites (such as Click!Click!BOOM!). The soundtrack is longer than movie (by almost fifteen minutes), and features almost every song in the movie. The coolest thing about this CD is that you are almost guaranteed to have some great music, and a number of the songs may find their way to your burned CDs.
Armitage III: If I really wanted to have a fun anime CD, I’d almost suggest Evangelion, which has 52 versions of “Take Me to The Moon”. However, this one is worth tracking down because it’s great for rounding out your home-made CDs. Although it’s more of the ambiance school of electronica, the songs fit with almost anything, including country or classical. There is even a torch-song (“Phantom World”), that sounds like it could have been sung in the 1930s, even allowing for its futuristic imagery. The record, like a good ambiance record, are best listened to unshuffled, as the record builds emotion like a movie, and will astound you.
Pure Country: Occasionally, you will find a great source of music that’s not rock, classic or synthesized. Pure Country is that rarity of rarity: A country soundtrack that did well on the charts. The first (“Heartland”) became the definitive country ballad that year, and “Cross My Heart” was one of the most played romantic slow songs. “Overnight Male” is a fun song, and “She Lays it on the Line” was a romantic song of another type. “Where The Sidewalk Ends” is a song that became an anthem on its own. Overall, it’s a fun CD that will get a lot of play, and give you a number of songs that will end up in the weirdest places.
Just remember to seriously debate selling any CD; a back-up is always nice, and nothing beats using the original as the back-up. For that matter, you can burn the music and create your own CDs. You can put the CD somewhere safe and use it whenever you upgrade your computer. A little care, and you can have your favorite for a long time!
June 14th, 2007
q
