I'll just answer your question. So please don't get me started on that trading thing...!

M4A is a container format that is specified to handle audio formats (hence the "a").
The most common formats are AAC (lossy like MP3, WMA) and ALAC (lossless like FLAC, WAV, AIFF).
Both formats are compatible with SL out of the box so you can play them without any issues.
If they are AAC files you should not convert them to MP3 since converting from one lossy to another lossy format just brings quality issues without having noticable advatages (except for the compatibility in players).
If they are ALAC files you can convert them with the already known quality issues every lossy format comes with. The advantage here will be a much smaller file size (and again, compatibility).

So in the end it's up to you, your favorite player (hard-/software) and the file format within the M4A container.

For more information check the Wikipedia article on M4A:
en.wikipedia.org

Most people (ok - some people) here are real DJs and get music from digital Record Pools in MP3 format instead of swappin iTunes tracks with friends.

That said, I think iTunes can batch convert multiple tracks to Mp3 format with a single click. Just right click on the track(s) and one of the options should be "Convert to Mp3".

+1

I won't use the internal converter in iTunes though because it uses the Fraunhofer algorithm which (imo) is inferior to Lame.

thank you serkan. but all the files says m4a. I can't tell if it's AAC or ALAC. so i'm not sure what to do with them

I can't play them with serato unless I install quicktime (which is what i'm kinda asking here, should i convert the files, or just install quicktime and handle it that way)

And i'm not quite clear on why i'm being blasted for not being a real dj here?? I pay for music, some of which i pass off to friends, who then give me music that they have paid for. So what's the big issue that i'm violating here?

No blasting - but more of a inside joke for swapping iTunes tracks with friends. ITunes is a cool source of music for those that need it, we just having fun at the swapping thing...

Are you Mac or PC - I thought SSL could handle M4A's out of the box without any "helper files".



Also wondering if you already have Mp3s in your library - if so what is the bitrate? If he already has a bunch of 128 Mp3's that he has swapped with friends - that iTunes conversion quality becomes a somewhat non issue.

Have you looked into some of the newer "record pools"? Pools like www.i12inch.com allow you to buy tracks a la-carte similar to itunes if you don't want to pay monthy subscriptions to DJcity.com, www.latenightrecordpool.com or www.idjpool.com

(^^^oops - got off track but since i typed it anyway - LOL. )

sounded like i was getting s**t on for trading files with friends which makes no sense

I'm using a PC. when i try to add the files to serato it says it can't add the file unless i install quicktime

90% of my mp3s are ripped at 320. although i think amazon does 256 (am i wack for buying through amazon also now?). So maintaining audio quality is a concern.

I'll be honest, I know absolutely nothing about record pools. I'm a 10yr+ hip hop dj / turntablist, with skills, but in my bedroom only, with no other friends that dj, and only 1 year doing it digital. I guess i'll have to investigate the record pool thing. thanks...

It's not about where you buy the music.
It's just against copyright law to share your music. Whether it was bought by you anyone of your friends. I don't know how it's in your country/region though. But here in Germany it's not allowed to play tracks in front of an audience if the tracks don't belong to you - so if the proper authority asks, you have to show them your receipts of the tracks you've on your hard disk.

With the M4A files on a windows machine I don't have a clue to be honest.
When I used a Windows laptop for SL I already had Quicktime installed. Now I'm on Mac which already comes with the required libraries.

I keep all my ripped CD's in my master external library at ALAC quality, for my SSL internal gig library I convert everything to 320, using XLD (on a mac, ie LAME conversion)

News flash:
converting an M4A file into an Mp3 doesn't improve the file quality. It will still sound like an M4a file. You're only increasing the file size, which is pointless.

The file hierarchy goes:
AIFF (CD quality)
WAV
Mp3 (WMA)
AAC (M4a, etc)

You can downgrade a larger file into a smaller format with no problem. iTunes or any other converter works great for this. However to upgrade file size & QUALITY. You'll need a DAW (Pro-Tools, etc) or other 3rd party program to help you correctly do this.

Same rules apply for bitrate.

Bitrate hierarchy:
320
256
192
128
64

At the end of the day, iTunes sells you M4a files, which are really only intended for earbuds, computer speakers, etc.. For the same price point, Amazon sells actual mp3 files which will work & convert much better.

Sure.
Now tell me how one lossless format (AIFF) is better than the other (WAV).
And:
Many (many!) tests say that an AAC file with the same bitrate sounds better than an MP3. I don't hear a differece though, but that doesn't matter at this point.

So if the tests between AAC and MP3 are correct, the 256kbps VBR AAC (iTunes) should be better than the 256kbps VBR MP3 (Amazon).
But it's utter crap that the iTunes (Plus!) files are for ear buds (which can sound superior if you pay it's price) or computer speakers. I used them in club environment and they sound really good (if not compared to lossless on a really good sound system).

great info in here. thanks everyone

I'm thinking maybe i'll just install quicktime and deal with it that way. while trying to minimize any future m4a files I accept. If converting m4a to mp3 is gonna result in loss of audio quality (which seems to be the understanding here) then i'll just keep as m4a and deal with it

and for the record, i wasn't trying to improve audio quality at all here. just more of a compatibility issue.

Thanks again...

Not sure what all the fuss is about. I have a PC.....I buy a song on iTunes....build an overview for it in ScratchLive....and start mixin. No problems.

He just wanted to know, since his library was already 90% mp3s, if he should go with converting the m4a's.

Me personally? I think I have 1 m4a, so I basically stick with the mp3 format, as I seem to remember some mp3 editing tools didn't recognize the m4a format immediately, so when things like total counts came up, I was always off by one.

Take that into account.

read my original post. I don't buy anything from itunes. If I did, I would have quicktime already installed and this would be a non-issue. These were files that were given to me from friends.

yea, this is totally inaccurate don't listen to this.

basically, aiff and wav are pretty much the same with aiff containing some tagging fields that wav doesn't have. Sometimes the Aiff bitrate may appear higher than wav but at that high a bitrate, those numbers are pretty meaningless.

ALAC which is Apple's proprietary lossless format (compatible with serato) and FLAC (not usable with serato) are data-compressed lossless files which have the same sound quality as aifs and wavs with about half the space. ALAC is your best bet for retaining CD-quality sound while using less storage space. It also has the benefit of having robust tagging fields.

AAC and MP3 are pretty much interchangeable with 256 AAC = 320 mp3 quality more or less with different reports and studies claiming one is better than the other.

Do NOT convert any lossy formats (mp3, aac) to anything else. I don't understand why anyone would do this. Regardless of whether you do it in a conversion program or a DAW - lossy formats have already lost the audio information in the conversion process. This means particular frequencies have been compromised and/or removed from the track already. Any form of re-compression is going to result in even more audio information being lost. So it doesn't matter if you convert it in Pro Tools, Logic, iTunes, or whatever, it is *impossible* to "upgrade" a file size with an already lossy file. All you're doing is at best, keeping the same audio quality (converting an mp3 to a wav for instance) and at worst, you're re-compressing, and losing even more quality (i.e. converting an aac to a wav in ProTools and re compressing it to an mp3).

Basically,

#1 - AAC files are fine and in fact, iTunes bought AAC are probably a better bet than random mp3s (not store-bought mind you) since legal stores are receiving the masters directly from the label/publisher

#2 - don't bother transcoding your lossy files. It's already the best quality for the format and any attempt to change their format is going to result in audio degradation regardless of what you use to convert them.

Granted, this also depends on what you play - if you're playing for a typical top40 mainstream crowd, then chances are you could get away with playing 128s all night and no one would care so long as they know the words to all the songs...

if this were the case, i would suck it up and actually purchase those tracks in the format you can actually use.

I feel like Abbot & Costello - Who's on 3rd - THIRD BASE!

Record pool again.... LOL. Youy mentioned turntabist - I assume U play rap and hip hop mostly?

More like 65% - 75%% disk space for ALAC files compared to the "original" Wave/Aiff.
But yeah, absolutely agree dj_soo. That's why I said:


DJ Gurge, just install quicktime on your laptop, test the files with your Rane hardware on some decent monitors, and be done with it...

From all the comments here, I'm definitely not converting the files. keeping as is, then installing quicktime. I just haven't had the time to do it just yet.

i play mostly hip hop. I'm gonna need to investigate the deal with record pools now.

thanks again

Okay, so my brother bought me an itunes gift card and I downloaded a bunch of music I was intending on using as a DJ (as opposed to a casual listener using earbuds or whatever).

In short, I'm fucked...right?

im guessing that's why itunes is only charging me 99cents instead 1.29 like im buying from juno or similar sites?

Have you even read this thread?

I did soo...lots of people talking shit about where other people buy their music an it wasn't a huge help. I'm in a situation where Ive downloaded these shitty files via a gift card and the last post was in feb of 11. I thought there may have been some new information that might be helpful. This is why forums exist.

Read it again.

There's nothing wrong with itunes files. If you're fine with 320 mp3s then you should be fine with 256 aac. If you need to only play wavs then don't dj with then

I've been creating music on GarageBand, which provides several options when exporting the final project. My two main methods are to either compress the song as an MP3 at 320kbps or to export the song without compressing it all, and then converting it to an "Apple Lossless Version" also known as an ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) or an ALE (Apple Lossless Encoder). The new format does not appear as an ALAC or an ALE. It appears with the m4a file extension because it is a container format which can handle both lossless and lossy formats. However, when I do this, I still have extremely high bit rates which take up a lot of memory, but if memory is not an issue for you, m4a is usually going to be better than MP3 (but not always).
For example, the most recent song I created, was exported as an AIFF, which had a bit rate of 2116 kbps, a 24 bit sample size, and a file size of 65.9 MB. I then converted it to an ALAC to reduce it's size and increase it's compatibility without losing quality, which reduced the bit rate to 1636 kbps, reduced the file size to 50.9 MB, and kept the same 24 bit sample size. The ALAC data is stored within an MP4 container with the filename extension .m4a.
So this means m4a files have a much larger range of bit rates than MP3's, which can only handle a maximum of 320kbps. This also means some m4a files may be worse than some mp3's, and vise versa. An mp3 can be compressed at a variety of different bit rates, but can never exceed 320kbps. All mp3s are lossy, while only some m4a files are lossy, and some m4a files are lossless. It depends what type of file is contained within the m4a format.
AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) is a standardized, lossy compression and encoding scheme for digital audio, which is also contained by the MP4 format, but it produces better sound quality than MP3's at similar and even less bit rates. This is because the AAC format allows developers more flexibility to design codecs than MP3 does, and this increased flexibility leads to more efficient compression.
Conversions have four main directions: lossless to lossy, lossless to lossless, lossy to lossy, or lossy to lossless. Obviously, it would be counterproductive to do the latter two, as the first two are the better choices. If you're unsure whether or not your m4a is lossless or lossy, you can always right click the track on iTunes, and select "Get Info". This will give you the exact information as to what type of file you have. If it's a lossless file, it will usually say something like "Kind: Apple Lossless audio file" and it will have a bit rate in the thousands, as well as a substantially larger file size, usually about five to ten times larger than a typical MP3. If this is the case, it is usually (but not always) safe to convert it to an MP3, because you're converting from lossless to lossy, and you're not overly compressing the file. (The reason it's not always safe, is sometimes someone else may have made the mistake of converting a lossy file to a lossless file, thus creating a larger file with even worse audio quality, and any further compression will result in even worse quality.) Make sure the MP3 bit rate is set to 320kbps for maximum audio quality. With MP3's, anything less than 320kbps will start to have a noticeable reduction in quality. This is not true of the AAC format, however, which can still retain sound quality at lower bit rates.
Do not convert the file to MP3 if the type of file contained in the m4a format is an AAC, because you will be converting from lossy to lossy, and marked reduction in sound quality will occur. Additionally, if the file's bit rate is 320kbps or less, it is usually not a good idea to convert the file. The file will not get any better by converting it, and if the file has a bit rate of 320kbps or less, it shouldn't be taking up too much memory, so there is no need to reduce its size. If the issue is a matter of the m4a being incompatible with your media player, I suggest you upgrade your media player, as the m4a format is quite standardized.

both aac and alac utilize an .m4a tag. You can tell the difference in the "kind" field or by looking at the bitrate.

Yes. You pretty much just summarized everything I just said in two sentences. LOL. Well done.

What you guys suggest about the difference in the ''kind'' field isn't reliable or am I crazy?
If i would say convert an mp3 to lossy m4a doesn't mean it has the right quality of a correct m4a. So if you share music with freinds I would ask them how the converted etc.
Like allready mentioned for some reason enough people seem to convert mp3 to flac thinking the quality would be better, Not!!!
Either way just buying your songs from a legit place would be the best option. I guess for most people buying a ALAC music file is the best option. Then converting to a smaller size like m4a for use on ipod or mobile devices.

you can't buy ALAC files anywhere - I wish that was an option in itunes.

You can only buy .wavs from places like beatport or juno and then convert them to ALAC yourself.

Got it! Clear as mud, lol. I'm gonna have to read this thread a few times when I have more time. I have a question that maybe somebody can help me with. I would like to start from scratch and gradually rip my entire CD library on a hard drive and keep that as a master library and grab music from there as needed. I want these rips to be the best possible quality or as close to the original CD as possible. I can always convert down for other uses if I have to. I have a MBpro. Should I be doing this in iTunes? If so, what settings do you guys recommend? Sounds like you guys know a little more about it than me. Thanx in advance.

Dj soo, you can buy Flac files in many different places, that's what I actually meant.

iTunes works well in my experience. In import settings, use "Apple Lossles Encoder".
Also turn ON "Use error correction when reading Audio CDs"

If you have a fairly large CD collection you should consider buying an/several external CD reader(s), as the reader will suffer over time. From my experience tray loaded players are more stable than slot loading ones. Others may have different experience though.

There are also other good alternatives to iTunes, eg Max > sbooth.org or XLD tmkk.undo.jp
I like XLD, as it also have options for "secure ripping/CD Paranoia" and AccurateRip database check.

If a cd is ripping at slow speeds in iTunes, its usually a sign of a damaged CD, sometimes I've had success using XLD instead, or moving to another computer/cd reader. Also, always try to make sure the tags are fairly correct before starting the rip. Trying to fix it after, will normally lead to a lot of issues down the line. Been through about 20.000 CDs, over a period of about 2,5 years. Now, 4 years down the road, I'm still organizing the master archive... no fun... lol

You want to convert m4a to mp3? Maybe some programs can help you. I just know m4a is drm protected. If you want to play it without iTunes, you need to remove drm. I found this and I don't know if it can help you
www.adoreshare.com

M4a hasn't hasn't had drm since like 2010.

I wish people would stop spreading this misinformation.

lofl

I guess most people get m4a and m4p confused. As far a I know m4a's (from iTunes specifically) were never DRM'ed. The DRM versions were the m4p file extension (which means MPEG Layer 4 Audio Protected).

I helped a coworker re-encode a bunch of m4p's way back when so he could play them on a Zune.

I do think it's a better idea to convert the M4A file to MP3. Because compared with M4A, MP3 is widely used and accepted by almost all kinds of devices and media players. As for M4P, I know that many of us don't know how to convert M4P to MP3 as they are DRM-protected. But as long as you use a DRM removal software like Apple Music Converter, it will make it easy to convert M4A to MP3 or convert protected M4P to MP3.

You can choose from various website available in the web. To name a few of my favs. - zamzar or convert.world. Hope it helps!

M4A is one of popular audio formats developed and generalized by Apple. MP3′s have something of a poor generational half-life. You start with an MP3 rip of a CD – even at 256Kbps, you’ve already lost audio information. That MP3 then gets sent to a friend of yours. More data lost (probably a fair bit, too). Your friend loses the digital original, and re-rips the MP3 from the CD to give it to a friend – by now, there is a very noticeable loss in audio quality in the file. Errors and irregularities have started popping up, and in the strictly archival sense, the song is now basically worthless as a record of the original.So, if you want to convert M4A, I would like to recommend convert to WAV because compared with M4A to MP3, M4A audio to WAV can keep the original audio quality. I downloaded a program for several years www.videoconverterfactory.com It must be useful for you, cheers

well, I welcome better ideas and more programs

You don't lose quality sending or copy a digital file.

Also you would not lose quality re-ripping a CD. It will be the same as the original rip. If you were to rip it over you might as well do it as flac, wav or aiff.

Converting m4a to mp3 is such a waist of time it's like asking to trade a new car for a certified used car with miles on it.

Simple Google search should sort everyone out, this thread should have not gotten this far

If you plan to play off usb note that not all CDJ's read .m4a files

Just play the wav file from the CD then

So, I have roughly 4k songs on iTunes (all converted to AAC) and I've been looking at getting a mp3 player since I lost my old iPod classic. I have a collection of over 500 CDs that most of this music came from but I didn't know any of this stuff until now and all the CDs I ripped are 128kbs/256kbs aac files now. I was looking at an alternate to iPod since it's been a few years and came across lots of mp3 players including lossless ones. My question is, since all my music in in this iTunes library, can I put the files into a non Apple mp3 player and should I change my audio player/library on my computer to windows media or any of the other music managers? Seeing as how I downloaded everything to aac I don't see the point in maybe losing more quality by converting it to mp3. Oh, and what should I do in regards to ripping the rest of my CD collection?

rip your remaining cd collection in flac or alac, smaller lossless files.

Can I use the older AAC files on a non-apple mp3 player? Or do I need to convert them to mp3?

so many options with mp3 players, it would be impossible to know unless you had one in particular

Yeah I guess so, thanks for the help!

I think MP3 is more compatible than M4A, so I always convert to MP3 and then transfer to other devices for listening. The converter I use is a free video converter. It satisfies me a lot because it's free but still serves me the best quality. Here it is: www.videosolo.com

most any MP3 player nowadays should have at least some kind of support for AAC

Personally, I prefer web-based tools since no installation is required. Try fvdtube.com , its really easy to download any video from any site (youtube, Dailymotion, Vimeo, liveleak, vevo, etc...)

I suggest you to use tubemate.zone for downloading and converting videos online. No need to purchase or download any software.
It is free, fast and easy to use. just give it a try.

listentoyoutube.online

This one will give you 320kbps if the video is available in 720 or higher. Not all of them do.

don't quote me but I'm pretty sure youtube encodes @256kbps AAC (or maybe even 192kbps?), so I don't really think theres a way to get 320kbps MP3 out of there

youtube encodes at 192 AAC. Also doesn't take into account the source of the file which could be lower.

lol, stuff like this cracks me up...

I am Use mp3xd.world website for using convert any m4a file in mp3 file. because it's fast, secure and easy to use.

Hi, as for the problem of how to convert M4A files to MP3, I'd like to recommend you can make a test with AudFree DRM Audio Converter, which is a one-stop streaming audio solution supports convert M4A audios to MP3 losslessly.

If you want to learn more about this powerful software, you can go here right away.
www.audfree.com

Convert M4A to MP3 is easy. There are many online converters and free video and audio converters. Considering better overall compatibility, I personally prefer to convert M4A to MP3 by using Free HD Video Converter Factory. I think convert through a desktop software seems more secure than convert online. Of course, this is my own opinion.

convert em to .wav

far more efficient and better sounding

In most cases, that's not true. if your m4a's are lossy (the vast majority of m4a's are), converting to wav is pointless. All it does is make the file size larger without increasing sound quality. The reason for this is that when a full res file is converted to lossy, musical information is lost. That's why its called lossy. Once the information is gone, you can't get it back. Converting to wav is a processing trick. Non musical information is added to the file so that it meats the standard for the format, and as a result, can be played on something as a wav file.

If you have a lossless m4a, converting to wav may make a very slight difference in SQ. Its not likely you'll hear it with DJ equipment, but its theoretically possible.

aac's and alac have an m4a tag.

and alac is a compressed non lossy file, aac is lossy.

you need to look at what kind of file it is before you do any converting.

there is no sound difference between lossless files.

yall need to do some research, you are on the internet.

"if your m4a's are lossy (the vast majority of m4a's are), converting to wav is pointless."
"If you have a lossless m4a, converting to wav may make a very slight difference in SQ.'

Research what? Some m4a's are lossy, and some are not. What was missed? It appears we agree, except for this.

"there is no sound difference between lossless files."

But that's understandable because you probably don't have an audio system capable of providing the resolution needed to hear the difference. Its not huge, but you can hear a difference. Also, not everything you read on the internet is true. Quite often, a lot of people share the same view or opinion, but that doesn't mean they are right.

there are two kinds of files that are labled m4a, unless you look at the file name (or you can tell by the size) they are lossy(aac) and lossless(alac)

its not opinion.

Let me quote myself again.

"if your m4a's are lossy "
"If you have lossless m4a's"

I think I'm being pretty clear. I don't understand why this is confusing.

One of the emerging formats of audio files is M4A. As they contain lesser file sizes than MP3, they are more convenient to use especially for iPhone and MacOS users.
Here is a text about Detailed Guide On How To Convert YouTube Video To M4A,you can click it.

One of the emerging formats of audio files is M4A. As they contain lesser file sizes than MP3, they are more convenient to use especially for iPhone and MacOS users.
Here is a text about Detailed Guide On How To Convert YouTube Video To M4A,you can click it.

One of the emerging formats of audio files is M4A. As they contain lesser file sizes than MP3, they are more convenient to use especially for iPhone and MacOS users.
Here is a text about Detailed Guide On How To Convert YouTube Video To M4A,you can click it.

Hi,
Glad you asked this question, might this answer helps you, what you want So, Yes, video converters or facebook video downloader/ fbtube.biz are quite helpful for the easiest way to convert Facebook videos to mp3 or any format.

God you spammers are desperate

No don't convert m4a files not worth it

If they are ALAC files you can convert them, it would tremendously reduce the file size. Compared with MP3, the former has a lot of disadvantages. Such as poor compatibility: developed by Apple Inc., M4A is mainly applied to iTunes, iPod and other Apple devices and can't be widely played on many other popular devices. Here's an article about M4A that might enlighten you. (www.winxdvd.com)

Thanks for the information on this. I really enjoy the information. www.google.com