ripping issue - losing the end of tracks

[skeptic]

I have been using EAC to rip to FLAC, but I am having a repeated issue with the loss of the last few seconds of a significant number of tracks. I experienced the same issue when I was ripping to FLAC via Winamp, at minimum speed, max priority to the compression algorithm, etc. While the quality of the rips has definitely improved by using EAC, my data loss issue persists.

Has anyone else experienced this issue? Is this a sign that I need to pick up a newer/better CD/DVD drive - or is there some magic software switch I need to flip to get full and consistent rips? Thanks in advance for any suggestions you all may have.

[bigshot]

I've found that on CDs that have deliberately misplaced chapter stops. Extremely irritating. The only solution is to rip extended chunks to AIFF and break the tracks up manually.

See ya
Steve

[Golden Monkey]

Did you find the offset value of your CD drive, and enter that in EAC? Not sure if it will remedy the issue or not, but check this guide for help:
jiGGafellz' Step-by-Step Guide to Secure CD Ripping w/Exact Audio Copy
To find your offset:
Digital Audio Extraction

[skeptic]

Thank you both for the helpful comments! I'll have have to confirm my offset value and then compare on a CD by CD basis when I get home tonight.

Many thanks again.

[skeptic]

Well, I ran through the "Jiggafellz" guide and manually set the drive's offset value - but I'm still seemingly losing the end of every track.

I wonder if it could actually be a playback issue? I'm using an ASIO output via winamp, through a X-fi with bit perfect playback enabled. Interestingly, the tracks seem to reflect the proper length in the tagged information displayed in the library, but most cut off ~10 seconds early. I assume the displayed length is just data in the tag that doesn't actually reflect the true length of the track?

The drive is old, and I'm not against replacing it - but if this is just a software issue, I'd love to get it figured out. If anyone has any further suggestions, I'd love to hear them. Thanks again.

[zaren]

If ur having the same issue's with different sofware i guess the only possibility left is ur hardware.

U could try put ur drive in another computer to see what happens.

[skeptic]

Good news - it was a playback error all along!

Apparently, in mucking around with my settings, I had been using an unnecessarily high buffer value in Winamp ASIO and had also set the thread priority to real time. Changing thread priority down to "highest" and dropping my buffer down has both eliminated the clipping issue (my rips were fine all along!), and has also seemingly changed the SQ for the better, presenting a much improved soundstage

I searched around a little on this topic, and came up with the following thread on audio asylum confirming what I was hearing: Audio Asylum Thread Printer Apparently, the width of your sound stage varies inversely with your buffer?!? If anyone can offer a lay/E&M 101 level explanation of this phenomena, I would be really curious to hear it.

Another question on the Winamp ASIO configuration settings: there's a check box labled "convert 1channel to 2channels." The default setting is checked, and my ears seem to prefer it that way...but what is this actually doing? Thanks in advance for any further input you all are able to offer.

[Solan]

Good you solved the problem.

Such a problem can also arise if the pre-gaps are not handled adequately, since some records actually have music in the pre-gaps!