- #Coding technologies mp3 encoder for mac
- #Coding technologies mp3 encoder software
- #Coding technologies mp3 encoder mac
With version 1.0 the latter optiocould result in a burst of static at the beginning of an encoded track, a problem acknowledged by Xing in the ReadMe file. If you select the Enable Temporary Buffer option in Audio Catalyst's encoding preferences window, the program rips to disk first then encodes from the ripped file, while with the buffer off it encodes as it rips. If you're ripping tracks from CD as well as encoding them then the overall process takes longer, of course using Audio Catalyst's Rip Faster option, which copies the data at drive rate (24x in this case), the same four‑minute track took just over half a minute to rip. With the program running on a 233MHz G3 Power Mac, a four‑minute track took just under half that time to encode at 128kbps. Xing claim that Audio Catalyst offers the fastest MP3 encoding times available, and it certainly doesn't hang about. With 128kbps stereo encoding, Audio Catalyst compresses a four‑minute track down to a 3.6Mb MP3 from a 40.5Mb CD‑quality stereo WAV or AIFF file. This is because 128kbps is considered to provide the best‑case combination of reduced file size and acceptable audio quality, combining as it does an 11:1 compression ratio with what is variously called 'CD‑quality' or 'near‑CD‑quality' stereo audio. The de facto bit rate for MP3 files on the Internet is 128kbps (leading MP3 site MP3.com even specifies this rate for MP3 tracks hosted on its web site). MP3 encoding is scalable, meaning that you can choose the bit rate you want to encode at, offsetting sonic quality against file size. The program can also skip the ripping stage and just encode AIFF or WAV files into MP3s - so you don't have to burn your own recordings to CD before you can encode them. Part of Audio Catalyst's appeal is that it can rip a track from CD and then automatically encode the ripped file into an MP3 file - effectively combining the ripping and encoding stages into one process. For those not familiar with the terminology, 'ripping' is the term traditionally used in MP3 circles to describe the process of converting a CD track's digital data into a computer‑readable stereo 16‑bit 44.1kHz audio file (WAV format on PCs, AIFF on Macs) which can then be encoded into MP3 format. Good TimingĪudio Catalyst, then, is a combined ripper and encoder.
#Coding technologies mp3 encoder mac
Audio Catalyst, in both its Windows and Mac incarnations, is modestly priced at $29.95 from, the official online retail outlet.
#Coding technologies mp3 encoder for mac
Fortunately for MacOS users, Xing also released a Mac version of Audio Catalyst in February this year, and with the recent release of version 2.0 for Mac hot on the heels of the Windows v2.0 release, Mac users seemingly won't be the poor relatives either. Xing has positioned itself well to catch the commercial upswing of the MP3 market, a fact borne out by its acquisition in April this year by the media streaming giant RealNetworks.
#Coding technologies mp3 encoder software
It also made a demo version of the program available online, and sold the software in downloadable form from an online retail outlet. Sensibly, the company priced the software at the upper end of the shareware market, striking a balance between affordability and viability while also appealing to the large base of shareware users. Last year it launched its XingMP3 product range, including an MP3 ripping and encoding program for Windows called Audio Catalyst. Last year, MP3 technology licensing issues concerning royalties on encoding technology saw many freeware encoders disappear when the Fraunhofer Institute began pursuing its MP3 patent rights and associated royalty demands.Īs a company which has specialised in developing MPEG encoding and decoding software since the early nineties, Xing Technology was well placed to involve itself commercially in the MP3 software scene. While MP3 player software has been the undoubted star of the MP3 scene, the software to encode audio in MP3 format has been thinner on the ground.
There again, the shareware approach has proved a very effective way of building a large user base, which in turn makes small companies attractive to bigger ones with plenty of money to spend - as Nullsoft, developer of the Winamp MP3 player, found when it was acquired by AOL in a multi‑million dollar deal this June, and MediaScience may yet find if the rumours as at writing about Yahoo! acquiring their Sonique MP3 player pan out. Historically, the software to rip, encode and play back audio in MP3 format has largely been made available as freeware or inexpensive shareware, more as a result of grassroots enthusiasm than any calculated commercial strategy. But does it produce worthwhile results? Simon Trask has a ripping time with Audio Catalyst. An inexpensive program from MPEG software veterans Xing makes MP3 ripping and encoding quick and easy.
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