[david12]

 Sorry if this is all very basic. I have FINALLY got my discless system going and very nice it is to. I rip into my PC with DB power amp, transfer to a Synology NAS, then into a modified Mac Mini, then into an Ayre QB9 DAC. I won't bore you with the troubles I had and how I drove the dealer mad with stupid questions.

 Currently I am uploading my 1500+ CDs in Apple Lossless and AIFF for my favourite CDs. I am looking at downloading Hi Rez files but most are in WAV or FLAC. I am right in thinking they have to be changed to Apple Lossless or AIFF to work in a MAC mini and I-tunes? perhaps I'm not. If so, what's the best tool to use?

 I have to say I don't find the difference between Lossless and AIFF, to be earth shattering.

[Crimson]

iTunes will play WAV files, but not FLAC files. I'm not a PC user, and maybe others can chime in, but I'm pretty sure DB Power Amp can do the conversion.

[Atlplasma]

You would need to add a player like Pure Music to import and play FLAC files. But a lot of people prefer Pure Music to iTunes for sound quality. Also... I've had issues with importing CDs into iTunes as Apple Lossless files. On some CDs (and for reasons that are not clear), I'll have noise on the last one or two tracks during playback. I've never had these issues with FLAC--or AIFF for that matter.

[david12]

Thanks for that guys. I have to say I am a bit wary of WAV, only because I believe it is hard to add Metadata. At the moment, I am using Audiovirna on the MAC.

 DB power amp do have a converter programme, but it is not the same as the ripping one. They are'nt that expensive though, so no reason why I can't use both

[JohnR]

I believe Audirvana will play FLAC. Check the manual.

[ratso]

always a danger to say things like this around forums as everyone seems to have some strong opinions about it, but here is mine. i just spent weeks converting and re-tagging all my flac files into apple lossless. they are both lossless formats and i cannot tell any difference sound quality wise (try converting a few tracks and try for yourself). but, however, apple just does not play nice with flac. if you ever want to transfer songs to an ipod/ipad/iphone it is much easier to do it with apple files than flac files. and you can still use your favorite music player software (like pure music) as they all play apple files. just my .02 cents, but it would have saved me weeks of headaches if i had done this in the first place which is why i am sharing now. **edit: btw i just saw altplasma's post. i personally have had no problems that i have discovered with apple lossless files playing (i haven't gone through all my cd's - i have over 1000 i ripped) but have used it for months now without discovering any problems. i used dbpoweramp to convert from flac to apple lossless.

[Atlplasma]

always a danger to say things like this around forums as everyone seems to have some strong opinions about it, but here is mine. i just spent weeks converting and re-tagging all my flac files into apple lossless. they are both lossless formats and i cannot tell any difference sound quality wise (try converting a few tracks and try for yourself). but, however, apple just does not play nice with flac. if you ever want to transfer songs to an ipod/ipad/iphone it is much easier to do it with apple files than flac files. and you can still use your favorite music player software (like pure music) as they all play apple files. just my .02 cents, but it would have saved me weeks of headaches if i had done this in the first place which is why i am sharing now. **edit: btw i just saw altplasma's post. i personally have had no problems that i have discovered with apple lossless files playing (i haven't gone through all my cd's - i have over 1000 i ripped) but have used it for months now without discovering any problems. i used dbpoweramp to convert from flac to apple lossless.

Just to clarify, my problem with apple lossless occurred when I imported CDs. When I redid those imports as AIFF, the noisy tracks disappeared. I know. It's strange.

[Mike Nomad]

You don't have to convert files if you are willing to use something else other than iTunes for playback.

I use Decibel for playback on my Macs. No problems w/ hi-rez WAV or any FLAC.

For tagging, etc. I go with Media Rage. The UI is a little klunky in places... Otherwise, it does what it's supposed to do.

[Atlplasma]

You don't have to convert files if you are willing to use something else other than iTunes for playback.

I use Decibel for playback on my Macs. No problems w/ hi-rez WAV or any FLAC.

For tagging, etc. I go with Media Rage. The UI is a little klunky in places... Otherwise, it does what it's supposed to do.

I think ratso was referring to mobile Apple devices.

[Mike Nomad]

I think ratso was referring to mobile Apple devices.

I missed that. All I saw was reference to a Mac mini, regular desktop stuff.

[jMelvin]

Audirvana plays FLAC without issue but if you want to convert to AIFF (or anything else for that matter), Max (http://sbooth.org/Max/) is a great program. It will rip and encode to just about any format as well.

[Stu Pitt]

I've ripped all my CDs as Apple Lossless.  Never had an issue; not that I'm doubting Atiplasma's findings.  Been using iTunes for several years without a single hiccup.

I've also converted a few FLAC files to Apple Lossless using a free version of dB Poweramp.  Quick and painless in my experience with 2 dozen or so albums.