Ripping files with Windows Media Player 10

I have been purchasing songs from MSN, and going through a process to eliminate the DRM stuff, so that I can import them into Movie Maker 2 for a home movie (actually pictures with music) (strictly ligitmate personal non-commercial use). The process (using Windows Media Player 10) is to burn the song to a CD and tnen read/rip it back into my machine, without the DRM stuff.

WMP 10 wants to see a blank disc when copying the song to a CD -- and I am a low volume, doing one song at a time as I need them (only used 4 so far). My problem is I am going through the CDs (yes, I know that it is no big deal, but it bugs me none the less).

Is it true that once you have burned a song to a CD-R disc, that that disc can no longer used for storing additional data (I thonght I had done that before when backing up my files, but maybe I am not remembering correctly).

Does anyone have experience with this problem or know of a better way to do this process.

P.S. I have tried a CD-RW disc, and it worked for one song, but now I can't erase the disc to re-use it, since WMP 10 wants a blank disc. Anyone know about CD-RW erase problems -- shouldn't this work also.

--
Ron in Round Rock

 

1) Once you burn any type of data to a CD-R you can't then erase what's already on their or add more data to the disc.

2) You can however delete and add data to a CD-RW as many times as you want. I know in Nero there is an option to erase the contents of the disc. I'm not sure what other apps you can do this in. You will have to check for yourself.

3) It's not recommended to re-rip an audio CD with a lossy format such as MP3 burnt on to it because the sound quality gets worse. You need to somehow get rid of the DRM protection on the files without having to burn the files to CD first then re-ripping them.

4) Also I wouldnt use WMP to make audio cd's. Use Nero or even a free app like Foobar2000. Here is the link for the Foobar website http://www.foobar2000.org/. I recommend downloading the special version. Foobar2000 lets you do anything. You can even make gapless playlists and burn MP3's to CD without any gaps.

Hope this helps.

 

weazel200 - thanks for the quick response - that was nice. I guess I was remembering wrong when thinking I had "added" files to a already written CD-R - but your response certainly makes more sense, particularly with what I think I know about CDs.

Regarding the use of a CD-RW, yes, I was thinking that this was the way to go. As I mentioned, it worked once, but then I couldn't erase the CD-RW. I used the Writing Wizard in Windows XP to do the erase -- it says it works, but it didn't -- the one song is still there.

I tried using the Nero 6 Erase function (both quick erase and full erase) -- both abort on me (15-30 seconds for the quick erase and maybe 2 minutes for the full erase). Any ideas there -- how can erase not work. (Something may be sort-of working because after trying to erease the disc at least 6-8 times, the music is now has a few skips in it.)

I am also in the market for a good CD / DVD burning and authoring program and was looking at Nero, but not being able to erase a CD-RW disc is bothering me. Why does this stuff have to be so difficult.

-- Ron in Round Rock

 

I've never erased a CD-RW disc so I don't know what the problem is. Do you have access to another PC. If so put the CD-RW in one and see if the file is still on the disc. It might be that that particular disc is faulty or the media you are using isn't that good. BTW what brand of blank CD-RW's are you using. I don't know what brands are good and what ones arent. Ask any questions you have in this forum which is devoted to CD-RW's. http://forums.afterdawn.com/forum_view.cfm/39

 

I am using Memorex CD-RW discs -- 4x multi speed -- which matches the RW write speed on my LITE-ON CD/DVD recorder drive (Gateway).

And thanks, I will also check out the other forum.

--
Ron in Round Rock

 

OK, I will try another brand of media -- hopefully this weekend.

What I am trying to do (burning a song, ripping it back in to eliminate DRM, erasing the CD, and then burning another song, etc.) should work, shouldn't it.

--
Ron in Round Rock

 

I tried using the Nero 6 Erase function (both quick erase and full erase) -- both abort on me (15-30 seconds for the quick erase and maybe 2 minutes for the full erase). Any ideas there -- how can erase not work. (Something may be sort-of working because after trying to erease the disc at least 6-8 times, the music is now has a few skips in it.)


Just for your information, these times are normal. I've done it a lot of times & a full erase is about 1min. 30sec.. Sorry I have no idea why it wouldn't erase though except for the quality of the media. Good Luck!!

 

Digidave - except that the Nero aborts are barely into the projected erase times: i.e. Quick erase aborts 15-30 seconds into a projected erase time of 2 minutes and the full erase aborts maybe 2 minutes into a projected erase time of 25 minutes.

Are you saying you are seeing full erase times of just 1-2 minutes with Nero?

(The Windows Writing wizard erases the disc in a minute-or-so, and it says it completed successfully, but it doesn't erase anything -- the song is still there.)

What can go wrong with an Erase operation -- doesn't sound too high tech to me? I am beginning to suspect a hardware or media problem.

 

Check out the free version of this tool http://www.dvdinfopro.com/
It has a DVD RW & CD RW erasing option.

As said above, I've never used a CDRW but it works perfectly on DVDRWs'

 

DO NOT LOAD THIS (DVDInfoPro) PROGRAM -- IT IS PURE CRAP

Do not load and install this program -- let me tell you what it does:

1. Loaded and installed program (closed all tasks before installing)
2. It came up without my initiating it (that was OK)
3. I Asked it to do a disc Read Test
- Read test failed and the program hung, locked up at 10%
- Program went "Not Responding"
- Did an End Task
- Program would not die
- Ended up with 2 copies of programs(??) -- they would not die
- Must have done 20 End Tasks
- (sort of like those old porno programs that you couldn't kill)
- Could not Restart computer
- Could not Shutdown computer
4. Had to do a Power Off to get my system back.
5. After the cold restart, decided to give DVDInfoPro one more try
6. Loaded DVDInfoPro
7. Tried DVD Erase again
- Wouldn't run -- said it only supported gu/xxx or xxx/gu devices
- (or something like that -- don't remember -- and don't care)
8. Tried DVD read test again.
9. It sort-of locked up again at 10%
10. But program still sort-of running
- sort-of running because now(??), it let me try a Disc Erase
11. It ran for maybe 10 seconds and then hung, locked up again
12. Program went "Not Responding"
13. Did an End Task again, and this time it worked
- Well sort-of
- Program aborted (but wait, I'm not done yet)
14. Tried to load IE -- WOULD NOT LOAD
15. Tried to load another application -- WOULD NOT LOAD
15. Tried a Restart -- NOPE, that doesn't work either
16. Tried to Shutdown -- NOPE, that doesn't work either
17. Powered machine off AGAIN.
18. After cold reboot:
- the 1st thing I did was to Remove/Uninstall DVDInfoPro
- FORTUNATELY, at least that seemed to work
19. System seems to be OK now
20. My advice -- STAY AWAY FROM DVDINFOPRO!


This line added via an edit: Sorry, I was a little upset when I wrote the above -- however, it is all true. Maybe I should have said "USE AT YOUR OWN RISK". I will let it go now -- I don't want to start any wars.