FLAC to Apple Lossless

[Giorgio]

Hello again to everybody and Happy New Year.

I receive for Christmas a new I pod, so now I would like to convert all my music that is in Flac format into Apple Lossless (because the quality for me is very important and I still want to lissen the Ipod with the cd quality) and save it.
Then I would like to convert the Apple Lossless into AAC format (because my Ipod is 8 GB and is not enough for all my music) so that in case I can still bring all my music with me, in a good quality.

My question is:
1) to avoid to loose any information, to avoid to have errors and to be sure that input and output files are identical (Flac and Apple Losses) like the original cd, what is the best way to convert it ? I convert it directly or I should first convert it in audio cd format and then in Apple Lossless ?
2)what is the best way to convert to AAC format: convert from Apple Losses to AAC or convert from Flac to AAC ?

I wait for your help, thank you !!
Giorgio :smile2:

[LtData]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

1) The only way I know of right off is for you to listen to the converted tracks to make sure they were converted ok.

2) Either way you go, you will get the same result.

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

Sorry Ltdata,

thank you for your reply, but I don't understand. Do you mean I have just to lissen to compare it ? I'm looking for well detailed answers.

Best regards,
Giorgio

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

:blush: Please help me!! :blush:

[LtData]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

I misunderstood your first question. Converting directly from FLAC to Apple Lossless would be your best bet. Since both formats are lossless, as long as you don't get any errors, your input and output files should be exactly the same.

[xoas]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

I agree with Lt Data. Both FLAC and Apple Lossless are lossless codecs so the only source for error would be the conversion itself and a one-step conversion should be safer than a two-step conversion in terms of whatever very low odds there are of a glitch in the conversion process. It may be that the actual "one-step" FLAC to Apple Lossless conversion may involve converting from FLAC to Wave (CD standard) and Wave to Apple Lossless even though it appears to be a direct conversion to the user (I hasten to add that I am not sure on this point).

As to your second question-since both Apple Lossless and FLAC are lossless, it makes little difference which you use to convert to AAC. If you have a CD track ripped directly to AAC, the same track ripped to Apple Lossless and then converted to AAC (same setting as before), and the same track ripped to FLAC and then converted to AAC (same settings as in the previous cases)-all three AAC files should sound the same. My guess would be that FLAC might be a bit faster to rip and/or it might allow you somewhat greater compression (smaller file size, though this would be at the expense of ripping speed) but that Apple Lossless might convert more quickly to AAC. Again, this is all supposition on my part. From the perspective of sound quality, however, it does not make a difference which lossless codec you use for storage.

Best wishes,
Bill

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

ok, I understand that may be is not directly the conversion, but Flac to wave and wave to Apple Lossless but we don't see that.

But you are telling me that dbpower converter convert Flac to Apple Lossless. Can you please explain me how to do this with dbc without loose any information in terms of quality ?

Also in the Codec Central, under the Apple Lossless codec, it says Decodes, but not Encodes. What does it means ?

And why some people told me that I probably need to convert FLAC to AIFF first, then AIFF to Apple Lossless, if is possible to have the same result just converting from Flac to Apple Lossless ?

I'm waiting..............Thank youuuuuuuu

[LtData]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

That is wrong, the Apple Lossless codec will both decode and encode. Originally, ALAC (Apple Lossless) could only be decoded but now it can also be encoded.

I am not sure why people told you to do a multi-step process except maybe they didn't know that there was a program that could go directly from FLAC to ALAC.

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

Hi,

finally I have downloaded the ALAC codec in the correct way and I converted the song "What's Up" (the band is "4 Non Blondes").

What I see is that the file in Flac format is 30.134 KB and the same in m4a (I think m4a means Alac) is 28.679 KB.

Why there is this difference if both are is Lossless ?

[xoas]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

I believe that ALAC will use an .m4a file tag, but there the mp4/m4a codec will also create lossy files with an .m4a tag.

But since you created the file with the ALAC codec, it should be lossless and the difference you not in file size is simply due a different amounts of compression used in creating your FLAC and ALAC files. (FLAC allows you a range of compression options, all of which are lossless, I don't know about ALAC).

Best wishes,
Bill

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

Ok Xoas,

everything is clear now, thanks.

Just in case I want to compare the two files, do you know if exist a software that can analize these 2 files to see if they are perfectly the same ?

thank you

[Deano]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

Foobar2000 has a plugin that should be able to facilitate that. It decodes the files and can say if the files are the same. I think it's called Comparator or something similar, my memory currently escapes me.

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

I will try Foobar2000 (thank you Deano), also because I try to import the same track from the cd to Apple lossless using iTunes and the size is different:

28.406 KB converted to Apple Lossles from cd using iTunes
28.679 KB converting the Flac file to the Aplle Lossless using dB converter

Why this discrepancy ? Who can help me ? Pleeease

[Giorgio]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

I used Foobar2000 and I compared the 2 songs:
28.406 KB converted to Apple Lossles from cd using iTunes
28.679 KB converting the Flac file to the Aplle Lossless using dB converter

But I don't understand the result:

Comparing:
"C:\Giorgio\priv\Flac\4 Non Blondes - What's Up.m4a"
"C:\Giorgio\priv\Flac\01 What's Up [Edit].m4a"
differences found: 22486396 sample(s), starting at 0.2727664 second(s), peak: 1.5723572 at 175.4030159 second(s), 1ch

[Spoon]

Re: FLAC to Apple Lossless

If you were to compress a word document using zip and another zip method (such as .gz) then the files would be different sizes even though the contents when unzipped are identical.

It looks like you are comparing different files...