Ripped cds not playing very loudly
Hi,
I purchased a brand new Powernode 2i in April 2020 and haven't really been completely satified with it. The streaming services are fine and the volume I'm experiencing through my Bowers & Wilkens speakers is very satisfying. My issue is the ripped cds I have on my external hard drive. Most of them were imported to Apple Music at "Apple Lossless Encoder" rate but still, when I play my cds via the hard drive, the overall volume is about a third of that I get when streaming. Is there something I have done incorrectly and how can this be corrected? There might be around 5,000 cds on my hard drive. I'm actually to the point where i might invest in another product from another manufacturer. I previously owned an NAD amp and preamp and all of my cds played extremely loud.
thank you!
Trae
-
Offizieller Kommentar
There are tagging programs available for free that will show the tags, “Quod Libet” can calculate values.
There is software on the Mac that can change the iTunesnorm tags on ALAC files but in all honesty you really want to use FLAC as replay gain works very well.With XLD try ripping just one CD and pop it onto a memory stick and plug it into the USB port on your Powernode. This way you will be able to hear if the volume is fine or at least louder before ripping any more.
I do generally find that no matter what hardware I use streaming services tend to be a bit louder than CDs but certainly not 2/3rds louder.
If you don’t have any joy I would suggest sending a sample of music to Bluesound so they can have a look.
Also you can download some test files from the 2L.no website so you have an idea of what level they play at, download the original CD version test tracks. Again just stick them on a USB memory stick.
-
A slight correction - I previously owned an NAD 1155 pre-amp and a B&K ST120 2x60w power amp
0 -
You might want to check the tags to see if you have any normalisation added, and / or if replay gain is enabled as these could affect the volume.
Normally normalisation is added to a tag at the ripping stage and some programs can let you set your own level, if this was set low then it would effect the playback.
On the Mac I use XLD and rip to FLAC and adds the replay gain value for me.
0 -
Thanks, Seppi.
I'm not too certain how to check the tags but I can have a look when I get home. If normalization is set to low, can I then change this?
So, I guess it is a bad idea to import cds into Itunes. I should download XLD. I still have 1,000 cds I can rip to FLAC in XLD once i download it.
0 -
Great. I will have a look at this later todnihgt and let you know. Thank you so much. Trae
0 -
Hi Seppi,
I downloaded XLD to my Mac last night and ripped a couple of cds. I will put them on a usb tonight and test the sound. I will also download a track or two on 2L.no. and test them as well.
Dumb question. but once I have imported thousands of cds to my itunes, is it then possible to change the sound quality of the file or is that etched in stone? It's more what I should do about all of my music which has been ripped by one shape, form or fashion. Some were ripped into my Brennan JB7 player (compressed at 192K / 320K) while others were imported into my iTunes.
I am downloading Quod Libet tonight.
thanks,
Trae
0 -
Hi Trae,
The albums you have imported into iTunes… depends on what quality they were imported, the ones you did in the Brennan compressed should really be redone as the audio quality is low.
If your iTunes imports are lossless you can converted them (quite quickly) with XLD to FLAC. In the past I have done this but you you then need to tidy up artwork as iTunes does not store the artwork along with the tracks.
Personally I would just start again, ripping the CDs using something like XLD, this way you get FLAC quality, artwork and hopefully all the metadata tags correct.
Of course the Bluesound Vault was built for this very purpose…
0 -
Thanks, Seppi.
I believe the source of Bluesound my low-volume issues stem from the low-compressed cds from the Brennan days (and those cds have been long sold - my ENTIRE jazz collection). I made a beginner's mistake and must live with that but it hurts.
I do, however, have about 500 cds left in my collection which I can rip in the XLD program. Plus, the majority of the iTunes imports are lossless or close to that so that's good.
Back when I had my B&K amp + NAD pre-amp, I could just turn up the volume while playing my ripped cds on the Brennan without volume being an issue. With the Bluesound, the situation is somewhat different and I didn't expect that.
I do so appreciate your thorough responses.
sincerely,
Trae
0 -
You can still turn up the volume… the Bluesound RC1 is probably going to be your best friend as it’s instant volume control without having to use a computer, phone or tablet.
Have a look at Bluesound Presets, you can specify a volume level… youncould have one set high and one low with instant access on the RC1.
Alternatively streaming services have much more music than I could ever possibly own, Amazon HD has a good Jazz catalogue but also Spotify and Qobuz. Free trials can be had on all so worthwhile giving them a go.
I still have every single CD I have ever bought, the jewel cases long gone but the booklet, liner and CD are stored in clear vinyl envelopes which cuts down on storage space immensely and gives me another “backup”.
0 -
I have the RC1 and use it everyday but there is still a considerable sound difference with the 192k / 320K hard disc tracks vs. the lossless ones or streaming. Considerable. I will check the XLD ones tonight. With the NAD / B&K, I nearly couldn't be in the room when turning the volume even half-way up. I should have a look at the Bluesound presets again... Who knows, maybe I'm just doing something all wrong or my expectations are set too high.
I do Spotify as well. There's just something about having ones "own" collection on the hard drive. I'll check out Amazon HD. Thanks. I also have Apple Music sharing with my wife but often, the sound quality on some of their tracks is very poor quality.
That's really cool you saved your entire collection. I moved thousands of mine on eBay after ripping them and regret that to a large degree. Many were rare, signed or just nice to have. I bought JewelSleeve cd sleeves which hold both front and back inserts without damaging them (esp. the back insert). I love them. I just purchased 100 more. People are unloading cds at the local flea market for under a dollar each (Danish kroner in my case).
https://jewelsleeve.com/shop/jewelsleeve-bulk-package-100.html
0 -
Hi Seppi,
I played the 3 FLAC albums files which I ripped Tuesday night and they were definitely louder and clearer, so that's good. Everything concerning them appears correctly in the Bluesound app (cover art, artist, title, tracklisting...)
The XLD program didn't save my settings despite saving them, so I had to create a new settings profile and now my Bluesound app can't identify the newly recorded artist and title, nor will it save the cover art (says unknow album with empty cover art). They appear when I access the album info via Metadata in XLD and all looks to be ok at that point. The tracklisting is fine in the Bluesound app, so just one more thing to use time on.
sincerely,
Trae
0 -
XLD does have quite a steep learning curve to get things right but Google is your friend. I recall struggling getting files converted into the path I wanted along with the artist name but it’s easier to use now than it was years ago.
0 -
I believe that!
I found 2 (nice) step-by-step guides and set up XLD based on one of them and it worked perfectly Tuesday night. When I shut my laptop down and continued on it last night, the presets were gone so I set it up again according to the guide I used the night before with quite a different result. I'll tackle it again this evening / weekend. Thank you.
Trae
0 -
I have now been working with this XLD on and off for a week or so. After the initial download, the first three cds were ripped perfectly (I followed an online step by step guideline). I didn't save the intitial preference settings but easily recreated them same profile 2 nights later. Still, the bluesound app doesn't recognize the album or artwork. I have tried about 10-15 different combinations but the result is the same. Seems like I highlighted the YES box next to AccurateRip and things changed but I'm not certain. I tried deleting the app and re-installing but my old settings were saved. Still, the Bluesound app only recognizes the album tracks but not the artist, album title or artwork. I simply don't understand what has happened since I perfectly ripped the first three cds (they still appear correctly in the app). Is there any guidance out there? thanks, Trae
0 -
You may want to seek out another application such as dbpoweramp, although a paid application is does have a support forum.
0 -
Hi Seppi,
Thanks. I used CC cleaner and COMPLETELY uninstalled the first download of XLD and reinstalled it just now with the same preference settings and it worked perfectly. Strange. I dunno... haha
Thanks for always lending a helping hand.
Trae
0
Bitte melden Sie sich an, um einen Kommentar zu hinterlassen.
Kommentare
16 Kommentare