How to detect and remove padding from ALAC files

[snoblenet]

I have a number of ALAC files that are twice or three times the size of the FLAC original.

I take it they have been padded with zeroes to fake the desired bitrate or sample rate in XLC.

I don't have easy access to the FLAC originals to find and recreated the affected ALAC files.

How can I use dBpoweramp to detect which files have been padded in this way, removing the padding but not the original information.

I assume that if I just convert at a lower bit-rate, the padding will be treated as actual information, and so actual information will be lost.

[garym]

Re: How to detect and remove padding from ALAC files

It seems you are saying that 16/44.1 FLAC files were upconverted to fake hi-res files (24/48, 24/96, or 24/192, etc.). If so, there is no way to undo this.

[snoblenet]

Re: How to detect and remove padding from ALAC files

Thanks. That's depressing.

Is there at least a way I can automatically detect them to help me build a 'to do' list of files I want to re-import?

[garym]

Re: How to detect and remove padding from ALAC files

Thanks. That's depressing.

Is there at least a way I can automatically detect them to help me build a 'to do' list of files I want to re-import?

There are some frequency analyzer approaches, but there would be about a 50/50 chance of errors in identifying. Best approach is to simply live with the files as is. At least storage is cheap. Or you could simply use dbpa to down convert any 24/x file to 16/44.1 flac using dither. Search this forum for downconvert and dither.

[snoblenet]

Re: How to detect and remove padding from ALAC files

Thanks.