Converting .wave Files To mp3

[Cass Broadview]

If i use Windows Media Player to convert some songs on "wave" file format to "mp3" format, will the mp3 files have the DRM info encoded into them by WMP?
Cass

[John Cipriano]

As long as they are MP3, they won't. WMA and MP4 format support DRM but MP3 predates that. You can double check the file extension or right click on the file and hit properties if you need to be sure.

I thought Windows Media Player didn't make MP3s unless you bought the encoder plugin though? Did they change that?

So yes MP3 files will play anywhere, no restrictions, etc. But you should double check that you're actually making MP3s and not WMA files. You should be able to set the MP3 option resembling the fourth screenshot down on this page:

http://www.askdavetaylor.com/produce_mp ... layer.html

[Richard Sinkler]

Is DRM the info like artist, album name , date etc that you see when viewing the the songs in Windows Explorer, and displays on your Mp3 player? If so, I use Roxio Record Now 10 Music Lab software. When you install it, it adds a selection to the menu that you get when you right click on an Mp3 title in Explorer. It brings up a screen that asks if you want to add that info to the file. You can have it search a database online (and I'd say 99% of the time, it comes back with the right info), or you can manually enter the info. Then it becomes part of the file so the info displays In Windows Explorer, on Mp3 players, car radios (if you have the Mp3's on a CD and the radio will read and display the info.

EDIT: OOPS. Missed John's link showing that Media Player will do it also.

[Earnest Bovine]

Is DRM the info like artist, album name , date etc that you see when viewing the the songs

No, DRM means Digital Rights Management. It is meant to restrict unauthorized use of copyrighted material.

[Chip Fossa]

AND, Richard, to give you more of a clue about assigning TITLES & ARTISTS to a specific audio file - I've been going thru hell with this for quite a time.

Mp3tag is a freeware program that helps to straighten out idiosyncracies with this 'naming'.

I find, I still go back and right click a file and go to PROPERTIES.

After you align really screwed up files via MP3tag, you may have to amen a few things in PROPERTIES.

However, none of this stuff is 100% gehr-own-teed to properly display what you intended; in ALL CD players.

Just this afternoon, I re-vamped two folders of GOLD INSTRUMENTALS - 1 & 2.

I used NERO to make the CDs, but all the hard work was done previous to this. Both folders/files had the exact same TITLE/ARTIST setup in PROPERTIES. All were intially run through MP3tag.

RESULT: Gold1 - initially when I punched in the CD, Winamp showed TRACKS, but when the song would play, it changed over to title/artist.

Gold2 - never changed over from simple track listing.

Maybe I missed something. But none of this comes out the same in all venues. There's always a quirk. It can drive you insane.

More so, cuz you think you can go back and correct it. And wind up, unfortunately, more nuts than before.

Send me an email, if you want, and I'll try to explain things a bit better. IMHO

[John Cipriano]

Yeah I guess I should clarify. MP3s have tags where you store the data about the file (album, artist and so on). This is not DRM though, DRM is what you find on the newer Microsoft and Apple formats. Basically the file is encrypted and you need a key to unlock it. They use this ability to put terms on the purchase, like with iTunes you used to only be able to listen to files on 5 computers. They did away with that now for newer files though.

[Cass Broadview]

Thank You all so much for your help. The reason i was asking, is i have a software program that has it's own controls, volume, eq etc, these controls will not work on any DRM encoded music. Yes my WMP does make mp3. Thats why the nature of my question. I will give it a try today after work. Cass