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Unless you have
been living under a rock for the past few months, I am sure
you’ve heard about MP3 technology and its advantages for
DJs, consumers and artists alike.
Getting down to brass tax about what it does, MP3 is a compression
technology that basically allows for files (let’s say songs
that are saved on the computer) to be shrunk down to about
1/10 the size, without affecting the audio quality of the
file. Because the benefits of MP3 technology are endless
for DJs, remixers and artists, I thought this would be a
good time to take some files, known in computer language
as .wav files, and show you how beneficial they can be when
turned into MP3 files.
First off, let’s make some things clear. I will be working with a
PC, though some similar software is available for MAC. If
you want to know how to turn CD tracks into .wav files,
refer to my DJ Times article (February, 1999) on CD Burning.
My PC is a digital unit, meaning I have a digital sound card so that
I can take data straight into the computer via DAT player
or CD player, providing they have digital outs.
Digital sounds cards are becoming more and more popular,
but you can still do this process if you have a regular
(i.e. – analog) sound card. (Check the web for more manufacturers,
but I am using a GINA card from Event Electronics.) I prefer
not to play with sound levels, so I like the fact that my
digital units can just dump the data without messing around
with the levels.
Let’s assume you want to make a phat mix tape or demo reel and you
are interested in making them into MP3 files so that you
can post them on a web site or send the file over to someone
via e-mail. You’ll first need to make your mix into a .wav
file. That process can either be done through recording
onto the PC or taking your mix or track from DAT and dumping
it into the computer. Once you’ve done that and you have
a .wav file ready to encode into MP3, you’ll be almost on
your way into the world of compression, cyberspace and cool
audio.
So let’s say I have recorded a mad hot mix tape. I was mixing two
turntables and a sampler. I had bits and pieces of hip hop,
rock and electronica, turning them into a cool mix reel.
I recorded the mix to DAT in the normal way one would record.
The analog output of my mixer went into the analog input
of my DAT machine. Once I like the mix and I am happy with
the levels and performance, I dump the data from DAT to
the computer using a software program. I am using a program
called Cool Edit Pro from Syntrillium (www.syntrillium.com),
but there are
numerous other two-track digital editors/recording programs including
Sonic Foundry’s Sound Forge (www.sonicfoundry.com). At that
point, I have the mix in the computer and I save it to my
hard drive as a .wav file. Now I am ready to turn that file
into a MP3 piece of gold.
To do so, I am using a product that I found to be superior to other
compression programs. I fell in love with the ease and simplicity,
along with the reliability of Audio Active Production Studio
from Telos (www.audioactive.com). For this article, I am
using the Pro edition. (There are numerous programs that
can turn .wav files into MP3s, especially from the Internet,
available as shareware or freeware. It’s been my experience
that the reliability of these free software programs from
the net could be a bit shaky, so I’d rather use this program
for conversion.) Upon opening the Audio Active Production
Studio, I click on the ADD FILES tab so that I can make
the software program search for the .wav mix I have recorded.
Once I click on the file to be encoded, I hit the open tab.
Now the program is prompting me to encode the file I have
saved and I will now check the encoding properties so that
the files get converted properly.
When setting up the encoding properties, most of them will be perfectly
set in the default mode. You’ll want to make sure that your
source file is correct and the source destination is correct.
In English, this means you want to make sure that you're
taking the file from the proper location and then, once
it is encoded, placing it in a file location that you are
OK with. Once that is done, I check the compression. I am
using a compression option that is 128 kBit/sec. It’s going
to take the .wav file (the one I am working with is 33,760
KB), and compress it down into an 11:1 ratio. Make sure
the output format of your conversion is MP3 and you are
on your way. Click OK and head back to the main compression
page.
By clicking encode, which is at the bottom left hand corner, you
start the process. One minute and 33 seconds later, I now
have an MP3 file of my mix. Depending on the size of the
.wav file, it will take more/less to convert in relation
to the size of the file. It might be a good idea to start
playing with conversions to MP3 with regular tracks from
a standard audio CD. Same process applies but working with
a three-minute song while experimenting can be more tolerable
than converting a 20-minute mix tape.
Now once you get the hang of it, you’ll want to use a MP3 player
that will allow you to hear the files. Fortunately for us,
Telos provides a great MP3 player as well in their software
package. You can check the Internet for a wide variety of
MP3 players as well. Check
out Winamp (www.winamp.com) or RealNetworks (www.real.com)
for some more options. I actually like the Winamp player.
It’s stable and has some nice features, including an EQ
and an easy-to-use play list.
If you want to get creative, post some of your MP3s on a website
and send out the address/link to hundreds of people. If
you are a mobile DJ and someone wants to hear a mix of what
you usually play at an office party, do the mix and post
it on your site instead of sending a reel. MP3 makes promotion
and listening instantaneous. Here’s another idea.
Got an old-folks home party? Place all your MP3 files
onto a CD-R, then bring your laptop to the gig. You won’t
even have to take a crate of CDs or tapes. You can hook
your computer up to a powered speaker and play tracks for
hours – even setting up your own list beforehand.
Remember that if a typical CD-R holds 650MB of data or 74 minutes
audio in typical stereo format, you can get more than 700
minutes of compressed audio or easily over 175 tracks depending
on the size of the files. Portable MP3 players are now also
available. Just dump the tracks from your computer into
a small device like RIO player (a small Walkman-sized unit)
and connect the audio outputs to your rig.
If you are a remixer/DJ trying to break into the scene, place your
mix on a website or e-mail it to someone in the business.
Most likely if they’re in the music business, they have
the ability to play your files. It can cut down on time
sent with mailings. Think about it. Send an A&R director or manager an e-mail link where they can
hear your latest work.
They can download the file quickly and never have
to leave their office.
It’s tough enough being a DJ, so why not let technology be your friend?
It might sound lame to the old-school jocks, but I’ll bet
that you get hooked on MP3 quicker than you can imagine.
Surely, MP3 can improve your creativity and business opportunities.
Read as much as possible on MP3 and, again, don’t be afraid
that the technology will leave us as quickly as it burst
onto the scene. They said the same thing about CDs years
ago, remember? This is the next step, so take it before
you’re left behind.
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