Have you ever needed to convert a music file to another format? For example, do you want to convert MP3 files to WAV, or MIDI files to MP3? Here, in a nutshell, is how to convert all the most popular types of music files: CD Tracks to MP3 or WMA: Converting files from a music CD to MP3 is called "ripping," and there are lots of software programs for this. A very good commercial program is CD to MP3 Ripper, which can also rip tracks to Microsoft's WMA format. Mac users can benefit from the free and excellent iTunes. Other choices are listed in the CD Ripper section. Streaming Audio to MP3: "Streaming" audio files are those which play without having to download them first. These include Internet radio broadcasts, and are usually in RealAudio or streaming MP3 formats. Since this audio comes in as a continuous stream, there is no file to save. However, you can record streaming audio with software such as All Sound Recorder XP. RealAudio to WAV: To make a CD from RealAudio files, you must convert the RA files to WAV. The aptly named All Sound Recorder XP comes in handy. MIDI to WAV, MP3 or CD: MIDI can't be directly converted, but there are ways to record it. Mid Converter is such a software. MP3 to MIDI: You can't really "convert" any audio format to MIDI, since MIDI is just a set of instructions for playing music on a synthesizer. You can read the full explanation here. WAV to MP3: There are many software programs that can do this. One of my favorites is the aforementioned MP3 Wav Converter. You can also use a high-end editor such as Cool Edit. Useful Software for Other Formats: A big list of music software is available on this site. Recommend: Audio MP3 Converter. Professional editors such as Cool Edit and SoundForge can convert among less-popular formats such as MP2, AIFF, AU, etc., as well as video formats like AVI. Software for Mac users: If you own a Mac, you definitely need iTunes. Its intuitive interface lets you quickly encode music CDs into MP3 files, create playlists and burn music CDs. And, it's free! Another useful utility for file conversions is SoundApp. - From MP3 About.com |