[kmcdonou]

I've been using Sveta Portable Audio to convert my flac files on the fly to MP3 files for my 4g Ipod.

I was going to recommend that my buddy get a new Ipod (because of the abundance of accessories) and use Sveta like me (he also has a flac file library). However, would he still get gapless playback? Does he have to use Itunes to get gapless functionality?

Just like me, I suspect he does not want to keep a parallel library of MP3 files and rather deal with on the fly conversion. Yet, if he won't get gapless playback that might be a consideration.

If you have to use Itunes, could he use DBpoweramp to convert all the flac files to MP3s, have Itunes import them to the Ipod, and then delete the files from his computer? If so, what would happen when he attaches his Ipod up to the computer again? Would Itunes recreate the music library on the computer via the Ipod? That would be a PITA when he wanted to add new music.

I appreciate your help.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

You cannot bring the music back from an iPod without a program or two. It's a one way thing with the Apple OS.

See Rockbox (rockbox.org) to see if the iPod model is supported for drag-and-drop support as well as many other options not available with the Apple OS.

 

[kmcdonou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMarchingMule /img/forum/go_quote.gif You cannot bring the music back from an iPod without a program or two. It's a one way thing with the Apple OS. See Rockbox (rockbox.org) to see if the iPod model is supported for drag-and-drop support as well as many other options not available with the Apple OS.

I am not sure what you are saying. I don't want to take music from an Ipod and put it on a computer. I simply want to know if I can get gapless playback from a new Ipod without using Itunes.

I also don't want to use Rockbox. It is a PITA to set up from my experience and prefer the Ipod software. I suspect my friend would too.

 

[m_memmory]

I use foobar with the LAME codec to create my MP3 files and just use iTunes to transfer the files to my iPod. All these files play gaplessly (when they are meant to)

 

[kmcdonou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by m_memmory /img/forum/go_quote.gif I use foobar with the LAME codec to create my MP3 files and just use iTunes to transfer the files to my iPod. All these files play gaplessly (when they are meant to)

I realize I can use third party software to convert my files to MP3 and import them to Itune. However, I don't want to maintain a library of MP3 files. If I import them to Itunes and load them on my Ipod, can I then delete the MP3 files from my Itunes library?

 

[Jaska]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmcdonou /img/forum/go_quote.gif If I import them to Itunes and load them on my Ipod, can I then delete the MP3 files from my Itunes library?

Yes. Be advised, however, that your friend's iTunes preferences must be set such that files are managed manually rather than synchronized between iTunes and the iPod.

I know you know that third-party programs can be used to create gapless-capable MP3s for iTunes & iPod, but keep in mind that these need to be encoded with recent versions of LAME. Sveta vs. foobar2000 vs. others is a matter of personal preference, so to each his own. I personally use foobar2000 to convert my FLACs to MP3 and then add the MP3s to my iTunes library.

FWIW, it's definitely a good practice to keep the MP3s (whenever possible) stored on a computer running iTunes to avoid the hassles of re-encoding MP3s, etc. when you discover that your album art was wrong, or something was messed up with some song tags and so on. To save HD space, it's understandable that you'd want to just use the iPod to store the music, but at the same time this isn't really ideal.

 

[Febs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmcdonou /img/forum/go_quote.gif I also don't want to use Rockbox. It is a PITA to set up from my experience and prefer the Ipod software. I suspect my friend would too.

There is a new installer for the Rockbox bootloader that is much, much easier to use than prior installation methods. If your concern is the installation, it's worth another look at Rockbox.