Making CD to play in CD player from MP3

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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I sent someone a CD I burned using Imgburn that contains just one file, an MP3 recorded at 128kbit/sec, 44 100hz, Stereo, constant bitrate (standard MP3 recording). The selection is a few seconds short of 90 minutes, is 84MB. I wrote him that he could copy the file to an MP3 player, his computer, his cell phone. He wrote me back today saying he put the disk in his CD player, which indicated a track of 9:20 in length and it wouldn't play... "nothing happened."

I wrote him back that I'd work up a CD that would play in his player.

Googling, I saw a couple things saying use Windows Media Player, drag the file to the Burn List, put in a blank CD and hit Start Burn. I did that and a message pops up saying the file is too big.

Why is that? Do I have to reduce the quality of the MP3 (e.g. using Total Recorder, a program I use a lot) before I can produce a CD playable in his CD player?

I could split the file in two and produce two CDs, but I'd prefer to supply him a single CD that would play the whole thing.
 

mxnerd

Diamond Member
Jul 6, 2007
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Data CD filled with MP3 files (can be hundreds of short songs) (up to 650MB or 700MB) <> Audio CD with tracks.

There are no files on audio CD. Audio CD that can be played in plain old audio CD player only have tracks, not files.

650MB blank CD can record 74 minutes of songs with audio CD format. 700MB blank CD can record 74 minutes of songs with audio CD format. You can tell from the label on blank CD.

http://acoustica.com/kb/how-many-songs-can-i-put-on-an-audio-cd_901.html

https://www.askdavetaylor.com/do_most_music_cds_have_12_tracks/

https://www.howtogeek.com/322676/wh...-if-my-mp3s-take-up-less-than-700mb-of-space/

Your 90 minutes long song MP3 file is over either 650MB 74 minutes CD or 700MB 80 minutes CD in audio format.

You have to cut it short (the length of the song), reduce the quality does not help.
 
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VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
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They DO (or did) make 90- and 99-minute audio CD blanks. But they are specialized, and you need a CD burner capable of "overburning" to that extent. Also, attempting to play back the audio tracks past the 74- or 80-minute mark, on an audio CD player (especially older ones, non-computer ones), can actually PHYSICALLY DAMAGE THE DRIVE.

Think of it like over-extending your shoulder, and throwing it out. That's kind of what the laser read head has to do, to "reach" for those additional minutes on the disc. (They may extend past the "safe detents" on the laser head's guide.)
 
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VirtualLarry

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What kind of bloke has a CD player but no MP3 player these days? I know, cars still have CD players, some of them. Good luck!
 

Insert_Nickname

Diamond Member
May 6, 2012
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Ah, this thread just took me down memory lane. Thank you all.

The reason your burned CD isn't working in a CD player is simply that you've burned a data CD containing an MP3 file. It's fundamentally a different format to an audio CD. Audio CDs contain unencoded* PCM audio without any compression what-so-ever.

An old fashion CD player won't work with a data CD because it has no way to read the filesystem and file on the disc. Only an MP3 enabled CD player can do that.

*Back in the early eighties when the CD was standardised, just playing an unencoded stereo 16bit/44.1KHz PCM track required almost all the computing power you could scrounge up in the consumer sector. That's the reason audio CDs lack both encoding and DRM. There wasn't system resources for it... ;)

They DO (or did) make 90- and 99-minute audio CD blanks. But they are specialized, and you need a CD burner capable of "overburning" to that extent. Also, attempting to play back the audio tracks past the 74- or 80-minute mark, on an audio CD player (especially older ones, non-computer ones), can actually PHYSICALLY DAMAGE THE DRIVE.

Think of it like over-extending your shoulder, and throwing it out. That's kind of what the laser read head has to do, to "reach" for those additional minutes on the disc. (They may extend past the "safe detents" on the laser head's guide.)

900MB CDs are generally available in Europe, if you know where to look. As you write, they come with several drawbacks. Best to stick to regular 80-minute/700MB ones. Most players will play those without issue.

I actually had a CD player way back when that wouldn't play burned 80-minute CDs. Regular 74-minute worked just fine.
 

mrblotto

Golden Member
Jul 7, 2007
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Dang, this thread jogged my memory about a question I have yet to see an answer to:

Let's say I have a bunch of .mp3's, and I want to burn them onto a DVD to play in my car.

Well, I do have a bunch of mp3's and I do play the resultant DVD's in my car, but for the LIFE of me, I cannot get the 'order' or playlist right.

Some albums, like a lot of Dream Theater ones (and some Judas Priest songs, and many others I'm sure), have a set 'progression'.

So I drag the mp3's into the burning program in the order they should be played, but what comes out is just a random order.

What do? Is it a naming thing? Am I using the wrong app? It's been so long since I've xferred any mp3's to DVD
 

corkyg

Elite Member | Peripherals
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Mar 4, 2000
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It's not that hard. What you want to do is convert mp3 files to cda format.
Just Google that and you will get instructions.
 

Hans Gruber

Platinum Member
Dec 23, 2006
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Reminds me of the old days with programs like MusicMatch to rip CD's converted from MP3's
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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It's not that hard. What you want to do is convert mp3 files to cda format.
Just Google that and you will get instructions.
If what I read online the other day is true, it won't work with MP3s that are more than about 80 minutes. I'm guessing the only workaround for this is to split the MP3 into two MP3s and burn two disks... Disk1 and Disk2 and send them off to him. He has a computer at his office, and I'm sure a smartphone, but at home his preferred means to listen to music is his CD player (or radio, and probably turntable), however old it might be, and it evidently doesn't support MP3s. He doesn't have a computer at home!

I don't think my CD players support it either (but not positive). They don't even support CDs copied to CDRW disks, which annoys me!
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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What kind of bloke has a CD player but no MP3 player these days? I know, cars still have CD players, some of them. Good luck!
My car does NOT have a CD player, have never had a car that did. I wish I did! My car has a radio/cassette contraption! I have a gismo that you insert in the cassette slot that supports plugging an external source into it with a mini-plug. I've resorted to using a portable CD player for that on a few occasions! Once when I had a telecommute job that necessitated a very long arduous commute a few times! I just don't drive enough to warrant my buying a replacement stereo in the car these days.
 

Insert_Nickname

Diamond Member
May 6, 2012
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It's not that hard. What you want to do is convert mp3 files to cda format.
Just Google that and you will get instructions.

Most burning software should handle burning from an MP3 source without needing to convert first. Just tell the burning software to make an Audio CD, not a data CD.

cdburnerxp is a good choice, if you only need the capability once in a (long) while.

Back in the day, you -did- need to convert first. Remember, not particularly fondly, doing MP3 encoding on a Pentium 90(MHz). Took a good while... :eek: Handling both burning and transcoding would have been impossible back then.

If what I read online the other day is true, it won't work with MP3s that are more than about 80 minutes.

Yeah, you'll need to split it if it's longer then 80 minutes. You can f.x. use audacity for that. It's pretty simple as far as sound editing software goes.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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Yeah, you'll need to split it if it's longer then 80 minutes. You can f.x. use audacity for that. It's pretty simple as far as sound editing software goes.
I use a utility called MP3 Trackmaker to split my MP3s into smaller pieces. You play the MP3 in Winamp, pause it and the utility grabs the position when you hit the appropriate button. You place a maximum of two positions for the split in the free version, and then click "Create Tracks" and wait a bit. When done, rename the output files, discard the segments you don't want. Works nicely for trimming off unwanted portions and isolating portions you want from start to finish.
 

ultimatebob

Lifer
Jul 1, 2001
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What kind of bloke has a CD player but no MP3 player these days? I know, cars still have CD players, some of them. Good luck!

Even my old 2009 era SUV has a audio aux jack for an MP3 player. Unfortunately, my new iPhone doesn't have a headphone jack, so I need an adapter cable for it.

For my even older cars with a cassette deck, I used a tape deck adapter for my MP3 player.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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Even my old 2009 era SUV has a audio aux jack for an MP3 player. Unfortunately, my new iPhone doesn't have a headphone jack, so I need an adapter cable for it.

For my even older cars with a cassette deck, I used a tape deck adapter for my MP3 player.
It just boggles my mind ... why would anyone buy an iPhone... no headphone jack???? I just bought 3 android phones ($30 per), each has a headphone jack and accepts up to 32GB SDHC cards. I bought them as remotes for my 3 new 4K Roku TVs, their headphone jacks allow "private listening." Sheesh.
 

UsandThem

Elite Member
May 4, 2000
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It just boggles my mind ... why would anyone buy an iPhone... no headphone jack???? I just bought 3 android phones ($30 per), each has a headphone jack and accepts up to 32GB SDHC cards. I bought them as remotes for my 3 new 4K Roku TVs, their headphone jacks allow "private listening." Sheesh.

There was a user on here in another thread who claimed that phones like the iPhone that didn't have a headphone jack was because of "progress". He claimed that Bluetooth audio was superior to plugging in an audio cable, and he seriously believed all phones (and audio devices) should remove the headphone jack. o_O

Even when many of us pointed that while Bluetooth is convenient at times not having to have a cable plugged in, an audio cable still provided superior results. They just didn't want to hear any of that, and said users like us were holding onto "old tech". :p
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,476
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Even when many of us pointed that while Bluetooth is convenient at times not having to have a cable plugged in, an audio cable still provided superior results. They just didn't want to hear any of that, and said users like us were holding onto "old tech". :p
I have some of what's probably the most expensive (and audiophile) headphones around. I'm not profligate, am actually very very frugal, but I have spared no expense on headphones. I have 3 sets of Etymotic earbuds (wired, of course), that cost upwards of $200 each. Also a set of Bose noise cancelling headphones (AFAIK, their best), that cost in the same neighborhood. I use the Bose when napping (cancels out ambient noise) and on airplanes, pretty much exclusively (kills the roar of the engines considerably). The Etymotics are for music, movies, DVRed TV.

I was appreciating the quality of the speakers in my kitchen last week, they are easily my best. Most of my speakers are relative crap. You can spend a small fortune on speakers! I don't think my ears deserve audiophile speakers anymore. Tinnitus!
 
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UsandThem

Elite Member
May 4, 2000
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Yeah, there's just something to firing up a random Pink Floyd album, slipping on a pair of really nice headphones, and stretching out on couch or a comfortable chair immersed in audio nirvana. :D

It's an expensive hobby for sure, but you always remember the first time you listened to a really good pair of headphones, realizing what you missed out on all those years with junk ones.
 
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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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Listening to music with decent headphones is a revelation, an experience never to be forgotten.
 

Insert_Nickname

Diamond Member
May 6, 2012
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I would have almost bet my life this was a necro... lol

No. Its real enough. This is the future... :cool:

What made it really sink in was a few years ago cleaning up and reorganising an older music library. Some re-encoding was required. Seeing AIMP ripping through PCM .wav files 16 at a time was... impressive... o_O
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,476
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I would have almost bet my life this was a necro... lol
Don't be so inclined to bet your life...

I'm not above revitalizing an old (or very old) thread if its subject and content is still relevant... it can make responses redundant and save people time, alas. However, this thread is no necro (and yes, I am the OP).

I have used programs/utilities that enable batch music file conversions, a super time saver.

BTW, I did split the ~90 minute MP3 in two (at an appropriate moment) and send the guy two audio CDs, which he appreciated. He's not super tech-savvy, I didn't want to prevail upon him.
 

ImpulsE69

Lifer
Jan 8, 2010
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Dang, this thread jogged my memory about a question I have yet to see an answer to:

Let's say I have a bunch of .mp3's, and I want to burn them onto a DVD to play in my car.

Well, I do have a bunch of mp3's and I do play the resultant DVD's in my car, but for the LIFE of me, I cannot get the 'order' or playlist right.

Some albums, like a lot of Dream Theater ones (and some Judas Priest songs, and many others I'm sure), have a set 'progression'.

So I drag the mp3's into the burning program in the order they should be played, but what comes out is just a random order.

What do? Is it a naming thing? Am I using the wrong app? It's been so long since I've xferred any mp3's to DVD

Most likely it plays them in alphabetical order, so you would probably need to either add 1 - <name> for track order on each album to them or the other option would be if your player supports playlists create a play list for each album.
 
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PingSpike

Lifer
Feb 25, 2004
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My car does NOT have a CD player, have never had a car that did. I wish I did! My car has a radio/cassette contraption! I have a gismo that you insert in the cassette slot that supports plugging an external source into it with a mini-plug. I've resorted to using a portable CD player for that on a few occasions! Once when I had a telecommute job that necessitated a very long arduous commute a few times! I just don't drive enough to warrant my buying a replacement stereo in the car these days.

The car cassette deck aged better than in car CD players in my experience. That cassette adapter you have has been around forever, I remember seeing them at Ames in the early 90s at least. You can use that ancient adapter to plug into a phone or mp3 player and now you've got modern audio on your ancient setup.

My car unfortunately came with a regular CD player with no mp3 functionality. No 3.5mm aux jack. After trying several horrendous fm transmitters (max volume I could barely hear, audio quality was terrible) I decided to bite the bullet and install a new head unit to fix the problem. But all the car stereo places had shut down! I ended up doing it myself based on a youtube video. The whole thing became a big pain in the ass. I wish I'd had a cassette deck! Much easier to work around.
 
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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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The car cassette deck aged better than in car CD players in my experience. That cassette adapter you have has been around forever, I remember seeing them at Ames in the early 90s at least. You can use that ancient adapter to plug into a phone or mp3 player and now you've got modern audio on your ancient setup.

My car unfortunately came with a regular CD player with no mp3 functionality. No 3.5mm aux jack. After trying several horrendous fm transmitters (max volume I could barely hear, audio quality was terrible) I decided to bite the bullet and install a new head unit to fix the problem. But all the car stereo places had shut down! I ended up doing it myself based on a youtube video. The whole thing became a big pain in the ass. I wish I'd had a cassette deck! Much easier to work around.
Yeah, and fact is the audio in my 'ol '97 Mazda coupe sounds pretty damn good! It's got a surround thing going on, the speakers are pretty good, the amp pumps clean sound. Mostly I do FM with it. Keep a good cassette in it for when I don't like the radio. I just don't drive enough to warrant messing with it all. Haven't used that cassette contraption for a long time, but I keep it in the car.