>> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

[BradP]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

[/QUOTE]Download:

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/beta/dBpowerAMP-codec-mp4b5.exe

1.2MB

after installing the above (it uses fastenc AAC encoder) if you want a slightly higher quality encoder, but slower encoder then install this mp4-aacenc codec over the top:

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/beta/dBpowerAMP-codec-mp4-aacenc-alter.exe

327KB[/QUOTE]

So, if the second modified codec is installed over the first one, we have slower/better encoding? Is there any way to switch between the two?

Which type of encoding is used by iTunes? (I am using the Windows version of iTunes in addition to dBPowerAmp)

Thanks!
- Brad

[Bernie_bolt_sa]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

Thank you!!!!! I'm gonna tryit now!!!!! Yay!

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

iTunes has its own Codec, that they created themselves.

You could have them both, if you installed the fast codec, then look in dbpoweramp\compression

and rename mp4 (CLI).dll and the 'mp4 (CLI)' to something like mp4 Fast (CLI), so they both match, then install the fast codec + the slow codec and rename those two to 'mp4 Slow (CLI)'.

Make sure you 'Locate' encoder after to the correct folders.

[Sylla2]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

This post is about the tag-issue:

I've used dbpowerAMP to rip all my CDs to mp3. In this proccess ID tags were created for each track based on Freedb info.

Now, when I convert my mp3 tracks to mp4 using dbpowerAMP the ID tags are NOT preserved!

Am I the only one with this problem? If not I hope you'll look into this.

Thanks for all your work, by the way. I find your software to be superior to anything else I've tried!

Sylla.

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

If you hold the mouse over one of the mp4 files after conversion, does it show any tags?

[Sylla2]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

If you hold the mouse over one of the mp4 files after conversion, does it show any tags?

No Sir, it DID not. But after installing your "DCM File Selector" it now does! Actually, I'm not sure if the "DCM File Selector" has anything to do with this. But after the installation I restarted my machine and I think the restart probably did the trick.

I feel like a fool.. Sorry :-(

Again, thank you for providing this great software!

[Unregistered]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

you said there is an itunes/mp4 decoder? I'm not sure I understood your post though...what codec do i need to install? do i need to get a seperate codec from apple?

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

It will decode itunes files (either mp4 or m4a), but not the protected m4p files.

[Ryouga]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

Alright, I've been using both the fastenc version and the aacenc version with my iPod. Here are my notes.

First, to make the tags work with iTunes and iPod - go into Options.txt in the codec install directory and change .mp4 to .m4a - it seems to change the way the tags are written to the file.

Now, I started with using aacenc and modified the options a bit. I like -vbrhi -qvbr 100 -ultra - it gives a Lame-like -q 0 effect where it will allocate however many bits to any given frame as required. Usually they come out around 150-170kbps average. But, I noticed something unusual - I ripped a few rock CDs and they had a higher bitrate than the others I had previously ripped with these settings (170k average as opposed to 160k) and even though iTunes would play these files perfectly well, iPod would have problems and either skip the song about 10-20sec into it, or crash the iPod entirely and it would have to reboot.

I did a bit of testing and eliminated all the variables but the encoder; fastenc works fine (but no -qvbr 100!) and then I found the problem.

It seems either a problem with aacenc's encoding or iPod's decoding, but on frames that go higher than a certain bitrate, using aacenc, iPod will either skip the file at that point or crash. I'm assuming the skip is because it thinks it can't decode fast enough? Or maybe it just thinks "invalid data" and jumps. Either way if you manage to fastforward past the offending frames it will continue to play the file as if nothing had happened until the next "shitframe".

I discovered this by encoding a file with -vbrhi -ultra; the file comes out around 300k; and within two seconds of running it will skip to the next one or crash and burn. My settings of choice, it seems, will work fine on a file that encodes to lower than 160k all around, but screw up when it gets larger than that.

fastenc is acceptable to me right now, however, at -vbrhi -normal. But this is something I've noticed: fastenc encodes to MPEG-2 standards (as shown when you invoke with no arguments) and aacenc encodes to MPEG-4. Unless this is just a programming oversight, it would also explain the higher-quality claims and such.

In any case, -qvbr would be a nice option in fastenc, or fixing aacenc... Thanks for reading up till here...

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

I think it is most likely a bug in Ipod, are you able to find any players on the PC that have this bug?

[Ryouga]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

I think it is most likely a bug in Ipod, are you able to find any players on the PC that have this bug?

My thought is that the iPod is much more strict about what it can accept (which is the case with all hardware players) so when it reaches a badly encoded frame, it has much less error-handling than a PC player. But, as I said, iTunes and dB play it fine...

I'm going to run the new 2.1 firmware and see if that changes anything. Didn't know there was an update. :P

[Ryouga]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

Nope, new firmware didn't fix it. (But it started to play...)

I've also noticed something about the tagging support in dMC: If you're encoding a CD to m4a, it tags correctly (iTunes is case-sensitive for the tag names, so they have to be all-caps) but if you encode to ape and then later transcode to m4a, it copies the tags as an APE tag. Loading it into dBA will recognize the tags okay, and if you rewrite the tags to file from dBA it works in iTunes - EXCEPT the genre tag. (foobar2000 will rewrite all but the track tag.)

But then, if you go into iTunes and try to fix the genre tag, it results in a file unplayable by anything! If you look at the tags (like in the tooltip) after dBA rewrites it, the GENRE tag is identical to a genre tag from something else; I don't understand why it's not working. I learned the rewrite tag trick when I was earlier trying to rename .mp4 to .m4a and it wasn't working well.

In any case, maybe there should be some code in the options.txt file that determines tag format? For full compatibility you should force all-caps tag names for things such as m4a...

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

It is a case of Apple coming onto the scene without looking at what is out there. I believe Apple are looking at updating iTunes, I talk to the other mp4 developers to see if this can be accomodated. Thanks for your investigating.

Anyhow now released from Beta.

[Ryouga]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

All right then, thanks for your help too

[Spoon]

Re: >> Beta: mp4 Beta 5

Looked into it a little, I cannot see how capital letters, or non-capital letters should affect it (when it goes into mp4 the ARTIST is changed into something like @ART), I think iTunes is struggling with the order of these tags - ie dAP will rewrite them as ARTIST TRACK etc in that order, converting from Monkeys can put them in any order - I think it is one for Apple to fix.