CD to iPod
Yes, iTunes is not the only source of music for your iPod;) If you already have a physical CD you can rip it and transfer the music to iPod. But every CD ripper offers you a wide range of parameters: different output formats, bitrates, samplerates, etc. What to choose to fit your iPod best?Sure you may rip CD to lossless WMA or FLAC and later convert it to the format iPod supports. But why should you do the routine job twice?
Let's see. iPod Classic supports AAC, MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible, Apple Lossless, WAV, and AIFF. Audible is good for audio books and doesn't fit our need. We also cast aside Apple Lossless, WAV and AIFF. Files in these formats are usually large in size. Assuming that you are going to use standard iPod earphones you are unlikely to distinguish MP3 from WAV. So you choose between MP3 and AAC.
iPod settings for both MP3 and AAC are similar. Normally they are:
With these parameters you will be able to fit 30,000 songs to your iPod (160GB model), which is pretty much. If you prefer higher quality use higher bitrate but the size will also be larger.
CD to iPod: how-to instruction
Ripping CD is an easy thing with Factory Audio Converter. Launch it and insert the CD into your CD-Rom. Press Rip CD button in the main menu. Answer all the wizard's questions (destination folder, output format, etc.). Remember to set samplerate at 16000Hz and Bitrate at 128 kbps or higher. Then press Start button to rip CD. Now you have the tracks on your hard drive ready for uploading to iPod. It's the fastest and easiest way to get your CD to iPod.
Tips and tricks:
