wma9 2-pass grayed out

[matheis]

hello
i'm new to the forum and have a quick (i hope) question. on the recommendation of a head-fi user, i was going to try out dbpoweramp to encode wma files using the 2-pass option. i wanted to compare this to the wma files i've already encoded with wmp. i have d/l-ed and installed the dbpoweramp music converter, wma9 codec, wma9 runtime environment, and the powerpack. after this, i restarted my computer. i fired-up the music converter, selected a cd to covert, chose wma, but the 2-pass check-box is grayed-out. any tips on what i'm doing wrong? i'm running windows2k on a pentium2 os, 256mb ram.
also, what do the "quality" settings correspond to for the wma vbr encoding? are these the target bitrates? giving an abr-style vbr encoding process?
thanks for any help y'all can provide!
nikolaus

[Joseph]

Re: wma9 2-pass grayed out

Check the DMC Configuration Page

XP= Start > All Programs > dBpowerAMP Music Converter > Configuration > DMC Configuration

and check the status of the PowerPack. Make sure it's not expired.

[Unregistered]

Re: wma9 2-pass grayed out

Check the DMC Configuration Page

XP= Start > All Programs > dBpowerAMP Music Converter > Configuration > DMC Configuration

and check the status of the PowerPack. Make sure it's not expired.

thanks joseph!
i checked, and the powerpack status is "trial period expired". however, i just d/l-ed it. doesn't the powerpack have a 30-day trial period? how do i get the trial period started so i can try out the 2-pass wma encoding?
thanks!
nikolaus

[Joseph]

wma9 2-pass grayed out

I think Spoon has a tool that will renew your trial period for the Powerpack for another 30 days.

[Spoons]

Re: wma9 2-pass grayed out

try this http://www.dbpoweramp.com/bin/ReactivatePP.exe

[matheis]

Re: wma9 2-pass grayed out

try this http://www.dbpoweramp.com/bin/ReactivatePP.exe

Thanks! Works like a charm :smile2: I've encoded a few albums wth the 2-pass vbr enabled at the same bit-rate range as i encoded them with wmp. i'll see if there's much of a difference in overall album size and/or quality.
later
nikolaus