Need help reducing size of MP3s

I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
there something better? How can I convert them?

duck!

On 2/12/06 5:09 PM, in article
, "BootTuda"
> wrote:

> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
> reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
> there something better? How can I convert them?
>

Reduce the bitrate? I bet there's freeware or shareware that will let you do
that in batches. You'll reduce quality, of course.

BootTuda said the following on 13/02/2006 01:09 am:
> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
> reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
> there something better? How can I convert them?
>
Unless there is a lot of silence on them, .zip won't do anything much.
FLAC files will be bigger. Without losing quality there isn't a lot you
can do. A bigger HD would not be very expensive, or burn the ones you
don't listen to a lot onto DVDs
Andy

On Mon, 13 Feb 2006 02:00:17 +0000, news > trained
100 monkeys to jump on the keyboard and write:

>BootTuda said the following on 13/02/2006 01:09 am:
>> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
>> reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
>> there something better? How can I convert them?
>>
>Unless there is a lot of silence on them, .zip won't do anything much.
>FLAC files will be bigger. Without losing quality there isn't a lot you
>can do. A bigger HD would not be very expensive, or burn the ones you
>don't listen to a lot onto DVDs

Or move them out to an external HD...
--
jtougas

"listen- there's a hell of a good universe next door
let's go" - e.e. cummings

sorry, i was just thinking that mentioning MP3's here would be like
talking about helmets in rec.bicycles.mic

>I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
>reduce the size of them?

The main question is 1) do you care about quality and 2) what quality/bitrate
are they at now?

BootTuda wrote:
> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
> reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
> there something better? How can I convert them?
>
The real answer is that they have already been drastically reduced in
size (compared with the raw PCM data they represent) and you can't do it
again.

But as someone suggested, you could convert them to a lower bit rate and
suffer further loss of quality.

Anahata

BootTuda wrote:

> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer.

Not much. Change your perception of "much".

> What is the best way to reduce the size of them?

Size is relative, get a bigger harddisk. If it is an old computer that
would choke on a modern disk, then get a pci sata controller and a
bigger, sata, harddisk.

> Can I convert them to FLAC files

Yes, back to wave and then to flac, a non-lossy compression. They will
sound about the same and probably be at least three times larger.

> or ZIPs

MP3 data are generally not compressible by zip and similar compression
algoriths, because those all work by replacing multiple occurrences of
the same data with a reference pointer to one item.

> or is there something better? How can I convert them?

What you can do is to use some software for batch processing of audio
files and then convert all to a lower sampling frequency, say 32 kHz,
and a lower bitrate, say 96 kbit/second. The loss of quality will be
quite similar to one in recording on compact cassette but for wallpaper
music it may be acceptable.

Which is why the generally agreed best advice is: get a bigger disk.


Kind regards

Peter Larsen

--
*******************************************
* My site is at: http://www.muyiovatki.dk *
*******************************************

jtougas > wrote:
>On Mon, 13 Feb 2006 02:00:17 +0000, news > trained
>100 monkeys to jump on the keyboard and write:
>
>>BootTuda said the following on 13/02/2006 01:09 am:
>>> I have over 20 GB of mp3s on my computer. What is the best way to
>>> reduce the size of them? Can I convert them to FLAC files or ZIPs or is
>>> there something better? How can I convert them?
>>>
>>Unless there is a lot of silence on them, .zip won't do anything much.
>>FLAC files will be bigger. Without losing quality there isn't a lot you
>>can do. A bigger HD would not be very expensive, or burn the ones you
>>don't listen to a lot onto DVDs
>
>Or move them out to an external HD...

Or just delete the ones you don't listen to much anyway.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."