Problem Converting M3u

[richiepoor]

I really like the website "download.com" which allows users to download songs for free of mostly unknown musicians (though that does not mean that they do not have talent). The songs are in M3U format.
I would like to burn some of the songs to a regular CD so that I can listen to them in my stereo or in the car. When I use dBPower it will easily pull up a list of songs in the M3U format. However, when I highlight one and then try to convert it into a wave format (which is I guess what I need to do) I get an error message: "Errors Whilst Converting" plus another error stringer such as the one below (this is the typical error message):
The file 'C:\My Music\http://music-files.download.com/mp3/100159341/100259419/Elation_Nation-Morose.mp3' could not be opened.
What am I doing wrong? Any advice is greatly appreciated. THANKS!!!

[xoas]

Re: Problem Converting M3u

Just a shot in the dark, what would happen if you took your file: C:\My Music\http://musicfiles.download.com/mp3/100159341/100259419/Elation_Nation-Morose.mp3'
and renamed it:'C:\My Music\Elation_Nation-Morose.mp3'. Can you convert it then?

[Unregistered]

Re: Problem Converting M3u

xoas, thanks for the suggestion, unfortunately I could not rename the source just the basic music name. Funny, I can easily play the file in WinAmp. Is there anyway to record on the fly?

[xoas]

Re: Problem Converting M3u

Yes you can record on the fly using dMC Auxilary Input. The procedure is basicallly outlined in this thread (which deals specifically with midi files but you should be able to figure out the process): http://forum.dbpoweramp.com/showthread.php?t=2213

Christina S. also has a snippet on m3u files and other meta-file types in the dMC FAQ section.

Could you tell me what the tag settings read for one of your m3u files (codec, frequency, bitrate, channels)? It does seem like there should be a better answer than recording in real time.

Best wishes,
Bill Mikkelsen

[ChristinaS]

Re: Problem Converting M3u

You first download the m3u file which is just a meta-file that you can edit using Notepad. In there you'll find the actual name and path of the mp3 file that will be played.

If the name is given in the format http://...........mp3 than you can simply copy this into your browswer's address bar and let Windows Media Player play it for you, then you can save it to your pc (save media as.... from the File menu in WMP). Similar commands can be used with other media players I should think.

If the name of the mp3 file is given without the protocol http:// in front (or any other protocol), then you can create the true address from the address of your m3u where you preserve the m3u's path up to the m3u's name and then substitute the mp3's name in there. Then put this new path and name in the address bar and let WMP play it and save media as some name with the extension mp3.

Subsequently you can use dMC to convert the mp3 file that resides on your pc.

If the protocol given in the m3u file is other than http:// (e.g. mms://) you may not be able to download the mp3 file at all, so dMC Auxiliary Input while playing the m3u file in the media player is your only option.

Make sure you first enable viewing of file extensions for known file types in Windows Explorer (Tools > Folder Options > View) and make that the default for all folders, it will make your life much easier for everything.

[richiepoor]

Re: Problem Converting M3u

Christina(s) Solution Works Like A Charm!!! Wow, Thanks To All Who Responded. M3u Files No Longer A Problem!!!