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Very strange iTunes problem, I need help!

post #1 of 17
8/22/09 at 7:58am
Thread Starter 
I am ripping my CDs on my PC using EAC.

But I have EAC rip directly to Apple Lossless.....

But I wanted to transfer my library from my PC to my Mac

So today I transfered the files and noticed that ALL the album cover art was about 10% darker on the Mac screen....I immediately thought it was just a monitor difference. BUT it is not! because when I changed a few of the album covers on my mac, the artwork looked correct (not too dark)....Please note the original cover art I acquired on the PC is the exact same file I acquired on the Mac, but when transferring the files from my external harddrive, the pictures came out darker.

Now this doesn't seem like a huge problem, and it isn't.......BUT....

I began thinking....What if the music files themselves are being changed somehow in the transfer from PC to Mac.....If the Jpg files can change quality, why not music?

I am very frightened that I Will have to re-rip every CD all over again because I really wanted the Mac to be the main music server.

Please, if someone can explain to me why the album cover art is different, but the music would not be different, it would be much appreciated.

Just to repeat one key thing......the monitor difference is NOT the factor, because when I erase the album cover art which was transfered from the PC, and I reacquire it on google from the same page I copied it from on the PC, it looks correct (not too dark)....

Thanks
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post #2 of 17
8/22/09 at 11:30am
Could it be the brightness setting from your iPod getting applied to the file?
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post #3 of 17
8/22/09 at 12:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moontan13 View Post
Could it be the brightness setting from your iPod getting applied to the file?
None of the songs have been put on any ipod yet tho
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #4 of 17
8/22/09 at 12:16pm
Have you posted your question on the Apple discussion forums? I get excellent assistance there.
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post #5 of 17
8/22/09 at 12:31pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pale Rider View Post
Have you posted your question on the Apple discussion forums? I get excellent assistance there.
Just posted it there as well, thanks.......

but anyone who can still answer this here, it would be much appreciated!
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #6 of 17
8/22/09 at 12:45pm
This is just a theory and could be totally off base.......

Mac and PC monitors have different gamma with the Mc default being darker than PC's.

Perhaps (and this is a guess), when you get artwork for the audio files Itunes determines if it's on a PC or mac and adjusts accordingly? So the artwork is PC oriented and is thus dark on the mac.

If that's the case, the music is fine and it's just a parameter setting in Itunes.
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post #7 of 17
8/22/09 at 1:41pm
My guess is that it could be a color profile issue.

Have you tried to open a transferred and "dark" album art in Mac´s preview? Does it still look dark?
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post #8 of 17
8/22/09 at 5:41pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nowhere Man View Post
My guess is that it could be a color profile issue.

Have you tried to open a transferred and "dark" album art in Mac´s preview? Does it still look dark?
Yes, the dark transfer still looks dark in Preview.........if I use the brightening parameter, I can make it look normal. I don't mind doing this, but I'm very afraid that the music is changed too
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #9 of 17
8/22/09 at 6:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DavidMahler View Post
Yes, the dark transfer still looks dark in Preview.........if I use the brightening parameter, I can make it look normal. I don't mind doing this, but I'm very afraid that the music is changed too
I searched google for mac color profile. This might interest you.

Half a year ago I made the same move from Windows to Mac. I had flac files and converted those to alac on pc. I didn´t have problems when transfering files to Mac and iTunes. I have not noticed any sound quality issues.

But if somebody knows there can be something wrong in this method, I also would like to know
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post #10 of 17
8/23/09 at 1:43am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nowhere Man View Post
I searched google for mac color profile. This might interest you.

Half a year ago I made the same move from Windows to Mac. I had flac files and converted those to alac on pc. I didn´t have problems when transfering files to Mac and iTunes. I have not noticed any sound quality issues.

But if somebody knows there can be something wrong in this method, I also would like to know
this does help me slightly, however......it's a little bit above my understanding...........

can anyone explain to me what's going on and clarify that its not screwing with the audio?
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #11 of 17
8/23/09 at 2:22am
Forgive me if this is stupid (and it probably is), but when you listen do you hear problems with the audio (if you A/B PC/Mac)?
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post #12 of 17
8/23/09 at 2:29am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by West726 View Post
Forgive me if this is stupid (and it probably is), but when you listen do you hear problems with the audio (if you A/B PC/Mac)?
No i don't hear any problems, but i can't use the same Dac with the PC and the Mac, so i'm also hearing a different DAC........meanwhile the variances in the picture are small, if it were in the music too it would be small.....but I wont be satisfied until I know for sure it's not creating any issues.
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #13 of 17
8/23/09 at 6:19am
are you worried the audio has been altered in a way that you cant discern?

Apple - Support - Discussions - My pictures appear too dark in Iphoto, ...

Dark Pictures from Samsung Spp-2020 on Mac - CNET Peripherals Forums

How to fix photos that are too light or dark in iPhoto '09 | Video « Wonder How To

it seems to be a common problem so i really wouldnt worry about it
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post #14 of 17
8/23/09 at 8:22am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Adab View Post
i appreciate the help from everyone.....

but this still doesn't really apply, because it doesn't appear to be itunes itself as when I redownload the images from safarit they look fine in iTunes, but when I transfer the images from my PC they look slightly darker....my only concern is that it may be altering the music somehow
I've been talking headphones with you for years. Now I can help you with your purchase:) Sales Specialist & Headphone Guru @ Headphones.com
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post #15 of 17
8/23/09 at 10:38am
Do this. Extract one of your Apple Lossless files (or an entire CD) back to WAV, and generate an MD5 sum for those files. Re-rip that same CD on the Mac directly to WAV and compare the MD5. If they are the same, nothing has changed.
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