Hi, I'm running Mandrake Linux 10.0 and I'm just trying to read my cd for starters, which it's not even attempting to do for some reason. I pop the cd in the drive... and nothing. I get that my cd has been encoded against being copied, but most other computer cd players I've used can pick it up.

Next, when I open up Kaudio I get two messages saying I need to select an encoder in order to read the cd I've loaded, and that there are no tracks available to rip. This with the cd disc spinning in the drive.

So, is there a way to determine whether or not my cd is being read - that it's readable - and I'm the one who's stupid here? Or if it isn't (and I'm not missing the obvious) what kind of encoder I need in order to play an up-to-date audio cd?

Thanks!

Are you able to play other audio CD's in that drive with that operating system?

If not, maybe you don't have the audio cable running from the back of the ROM to the Soundcard on the motherboard. This is necessary unless your application/OS is capable of DAE, digital audio extraction. This is the ability to send audio along the IDE cable that connects the drive to the motherboard and transfers binary data. I'd try a different application, something like grip or mplayer.

Cool

run grip and see what it sees... And can you read a data CD in the drive?

Try running cdparanoia or grip as root - I have to to rip tracks because audio cds aren't mounted like normal ISO9660 CD's.

Ha. You were right MasterC. I was trying to run these off of my burner since my cd/dvd drive had a disc in there already. Simply swapping drives allowed it to read and play just fine, although I don't remember ever having to be specific of which drive it was in before.. but hey, maybe I'm just a clueless newb.

Now, KAudioCreator is also ripping them, apparently. It rips then it encodes... but what format is (ogg)? I need mp3 rips.

THANKS!

PS. I also can't seem to play these .ogg files. What application runs them?

If you must encode as mp3, configure KAudioCreator Encoder to Lame.
Ogg Vorbis files sound better at a comparable bitrate and aren't encumbered by legal kludge... Xmms (and many others) play Ogg Vorbis files, just make sure the input plugin is enabled.

I do ogg and mp3... They are slightly different and I think over the years i've gotten used to the mp3 sound, which to me seems to have more high end... Ogg is probably more accurate, but I think I'm used to the faults of mp3 maybe... I always do at least 160VBR in either...

ogg is just a better format than mp3 but fewer people use it so it doesn't work in everything like mp3 does.
Just like comparing linux with windows, linux is just a better operating system then windows but fewer people use it so it doesn't work in everything like windows does.

I only use ogg, never mp3.

So Linux isn't capable of DAE?

Not last time I checked, not from a vanilla kernel anyway. However, there was some work being done, and that was probably about a year ago, so I'm sure there is at least some beta going on now, if not full fledge DAE, but with a really new kernel, or a tained module...

Cool

cdda2wav and cdparanoia do DAE. i think you mean that you can't play audio cd's in most? linux apps without the audio cable.

Ok, I'm trying the LAME encoder in Kaudio (to rip MP3s), but when the encoding phase begins Kaudio throws an error saying:

What now?

Thanks!

it looks like lame isn't installed. and change the lame line from --r3mix to --preset standard after you get a new copy of lame.

Why wouldn't lame be installed if it was a selectable option in Kaudio? Am I missing drivers or something?

Probably not, you are just missing an application. There are plenty of reasons why it isn't installed, and kaudio might simply have it there as an option by default.

Cool