Audio distortion running Windows 7

[iGowanus68]

Although this is not strictly speaking a dBpa problem, it is one that I have encountered in the process of ripping numerous CDs to iTunes using dBpa. What follows is the text of a message I recently posted at the Microsoft & Dell community support sites. I have not yet gotten any response. I thought that someone in the dBpa community might have experience with the problem:

Running Windows 7 Professional 64 bit, Service Pack 1 on a Dell XPS 8700 Special Edition PC. I am experiencing audio distortion/breakup & dropouts/skips when playing music from the computer through headphones or external speakers. The problem occurs whether the source is iTunes, Windows Media or the optical drives. The longer the listening time, the more frequent & severe the errors become. When listening to ripped copies of the same music through an iPod Classic connected directly to the audio system or headphones, no errors occur. I have installed an ASUS Xonar U7 external sound card. This seems to have improved the overall sound but it has not solved the distortion issue. The relevant drivers appear to be up to date. Any suggestions? Thanks.

The rips have been by and far "Accurate". The ones that were identified as being "Inaccurate" or having "Errors" (with one exception) still played well when listened to on the iPod as described.

So, any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Bill

[Spoon]

Re: Audio distortion running Windows 7

Try a player like foobar2000, it allows you to set the output mode as WASAPI which is a low level direct access output mode.

[iGowanus68]

Re: Audio distortion running Windows 7

Thanks, Spoon. I downloaded Foobar2000 & added the WASAPI component. I viewed a couple of video tutorials on YouTube. It looks promising but a little more complicated than I think I want to get into at the present time. I am too busy ripping CDs. For the present I'll settle for listening with the iPod connected to my little Tivoli Audio Model 2 or to headphones. Still, I am curious: would it be necessary for me to rerip to FLAC all of the CDs that I have ripped so far to iTunes using Apple Lossless, or would I be able to simply import them to Foobar2000? Also, is Foobar2000 similar to MediaMonkey?

[Spoon]

Re: Audio distortion running Windows 7

Reripping with a secure ripper gives piece of mind about the tracks being error free.

Foobar is configurable to have the same functionality of any system, see the plug-ins for it.

[iGowanus68]

Re: Audio distortion running Windows 7

Reripping with a secure ripper gives piece of mind about the tracks being error free.

Foobar is configurable to have the same functionality of any system, see the plug-ins for it.

On the strong recommendation of forum members, I have already reripped a few hundred CDs using dBpoweramp. I ripped them with Apple Lossless to go into my iTunes library(ies). At the time, being new to the game (still am), I knew of no other media management applications. I guess my question is: is it possible to convert Apple Lossless to FLAC as I copy/import the files into Foobar or perhaps MediaMonkey? Am I correct in assuming that FLAC is compatible with the iPod Classic 160 6th & 7th gens? Thanks again. I really appreciate your help.

[Spoon]

Re: Audio distortion running Windows 7

FLAC is not compatible with any apple product. However Apple Lossless is compatible with the other programs you mention.