Converting to lower bit rate in iTunes

[harveymt]

Have ripped all my CDs in Lossless. Want to convert them all to 320kps mp3 to stick on the iPod. How do I do that in iTunes? Would i better getting another program to do it? I hear dBpoweramp should do it?

If I get the external program to do it I take it I would then add the folder they are in to iTunes library. This would mean I would have two of every song in main library. I could them set up two smart playlists based on bit rate. This would filter Lossless into one to play through my hi-fi and mp3 into other for iPod.

Do these lists update automatically as I add a CD or do I need to keep refreshing them?

Many thanks

 

[Anonymous]

I don't really know, try this, right click the song of your choice and select create AAC version, this will make it 128kbs AAC file format. To be honest, I think it's better to do it in an external program.

 

[John Duncan]

harveymt:
Have ripped all my CDs in Lossless. Want to convert them all to 320kps mp3 to stick on the iPod. How do I do that in iTunes? Would i better getting another program to do it? I hear dBpoweramp should do it?

If I get the external program to do it I take it I would then add the folder they are in to iTunes library. This would mean I would have two of every song in main library. I could them set up two smart playlists based on bit rate. This would filter Lossless into one to play through my hi-fi and mp3 into other for iPod.

Do these lists update automatically as I add a CD or do I need to keep refreshing them?

Many thanks

They update automatically provided you have "live updating" (off the top of my head) checked when you create (or edit) the smart playlist.

You can do the whole lot at once though within iTunes itself. Your import settings are probably set to "apple lossless" at the moment - change this to be 320k AAC (or mp3). Then as ajharris says, you can select all your songs, right click and there'll be a "make AAC version" option - as it stands at the moment it probably says "make apple lossless version", because it's driven by your import settings.

 

[professorhat]

Beware if you use an iPod Touch / iPhone to control iTunes wirelessly though - as JD pointed out to me, within this, there's no way of knowing which version of the song you're looking at.

The way round is either to have two playlists for each playlist you want (i.e. one for Lossless and one for MP3) or you can create another library and store all the MP3 versions in there.

 

[harveymt]

I get it now. I had right clicked and saw the Create Lossless version but couldnt work out how to create a lower bit rate. Just change it in import settings.

The only thing I was concerned about doing it through iTunes was that I'd lose the Lossless version and be left only the mp3 but there should be 2 versions of every song then in my library if Im thinking right about it?

I tried the smart playlists based on bit rate but found a there was a couple of hundred songs below the 320 mark. Mostly off free CDs and some short tracks off albums. I got round this by using the filter 'Kind Contains Lossless'. This brought up all tracks. The only thing that popped up was a free Coldplay album I downloaded that was an mp3. I created a Lossless version of this by right clicking etc and this was then included too. Might be helpful to someone if they are in that position.

 

[John Duncan]

harveymt:there should be 2 versions of every song then in my library if Im thinking right about it?

Yep

harveymt:I tried the smart playlists based on bit rate but found a there was a couple of hundred songs below the 320 mark. Mostly off free CDs and some short tracks off albums. I got round this by using the filter 'Kind Contains Lossless'. This brought up all tracks. The only thing that popped up was a free Coldplay album I downloaded that was an mp3. I created a Lossless version of this by right clicking etc and this was then included too. Might be helpful to someone if they are in that position.

Yeah "Kind Contains Lossless" and "Kind Does Not Contain Lossless" is what I have I think.