online music sample from CD

where to start

[D_Blackwell]

I need to put samples of two CDs on a site. One track from each, that can be clicked on for playback. I've never done this and need a starting point. Permissions are not a problem. I just need an effective way to get the tracks from the CD to the page.

[PatrickDeese]

Why don't you just encode them as MP3s? You can do a fairly low bit rate, like 64 Kbps which will make them small enough.

Both Windows Media Player and iTunes play MP3s, so there is no problem at all as far as compatibility (PC vs Mac), and no special player needed to be downloaded.

[D_Blackwell]

Any recommendations for a MP3 recorder?

[PatrickDeese]

> Any recommendations for a MP3 recorder?

I used to use WinAmp - which is a free music player - and there is a free plug in for it that is an MP3 encoder - encodes at 96 Kbps I believe.

There's a ton of that stuff out there - just try to avoiding a program that bundles "spyware" in the installation.

As far as I know, WinAmp is clean. I use iTunes nowadays, even though the other one is probably better, but I like seeing how many times a track in my playlist has played. I still use WinAmp to play back video files.

[rogerdp]

Winamp can track how many times a song is played. Open the Media Library.

What is the name of that plugin you mentioned?

[tbear]

>>I just need an effective way to get the tracks from the CD to the page.<<
First you need to extract the audio files from the CD, I use 'dBpowerAMP music converter' (free and clean) which will save them in the format you choose.

[PatrickDeese]

> What is the name of that plugin you mentioned?

It is called "CD Ripper", but I can't find it on their site any longer. I still have the install file, if anyone wants it you can sticky me.

[D_Blackwell]

Thanks to everyone. I am starting with "dBpowerAMP". I have just downloaded it and will see where I stand after familiarizng myself with its functions.

[D_Blackwell]

"dBpowerAMP" is off to a good start. I got the tracks, saved as mp3s, and have tested on a page with <embed>. The last step (I think), is to put them on the page (maybe with a small control panel?), with code that will pass XHTML 1.0 strict. So far, no luck on a good resource for this (that I can follow). Recommendations?

[rogerdp]

Just put a link to download them.