Converting m4a to mp3
August 5, 2011 9:19 AM   Subscribe

How to automate conversion from m4a to mp3

Hi, i have a bunch of m4a files that ive purchased from itunes. whenever a new file is downloaded/purchased, i manually move the files to a backup drive in case my normal drive fails/crashes.

ive already automated moving all of my files to the other drive but what id like to do is automatically (at scheduled times) convert all non-mp3 music files to mp3s (so m4a, flac, flv files) basically just to keep things consistent.

there are a bunch of converter tools out there but i haven't found one with scripting/command-line options. can someone please recommend one?

bonus: id eventually like to be able to automatically fill in any missing ID3 tags and rename the files to - .mp3. if anyone knows a good tool for doing this in an automated way please let me know and thanks!!!!!
posted by deeman to Computers & Internet (5 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
The "best" answer will depend heavily on your platform, but will probably involve FFmpeg.

On its own, it's fairly scriptable via the command line if you're on Mac/Linux. On the Mac, you can use a tool like Hazel to "watch" a folder for new m4a files, run your conversion script, and do something with the output.
posted by mkultra at 9:28 AM on August 5, 2011


Open the iTunes import settings, set to desired MP3 stats
Right-click on files, choose "Create MP3 Version"
All tags, etc, are preserved.
Done.

You can automate this with Automator if you're on a Mac.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 10:14 AM on August 5, 2011


The free version of dB Power Amp is awesome for Windows users. It's not fully automated, but it allows for conversion of many file formats, and can utilize multiple processors to speed the process.

And to avoid being a shill, I'll just list a few sites I've bought MP3s on: eMusic is probably the cheapest, but it's a membership site, where you pay a set amount each month (which you can only use that month). Then there's Amazon, where MP3s usually cost less than iTunes. If you like indie bands of all sorts, you might have luck with Bandcamp, where you can specify the bitrate you want (including lossless) for the same price (or name-your-price, depending on what the artists set up). If you like electronic music, there are a LOT of sites, each with different pricing and different exclusive deals with artists and labels. My favorite for user experience is Bleep, an associate of Warp Records, but they now support a lot of different labels. I could go on, but I won't.
posted by filthy light thief at 10:37 AM on August 5, 2011


As others have said, on a mac you can applescript this.

I don't do this myself but if you go search lifehacker.com there have been a dozen different articles over the years about how to do X to files when they show up in directories.
posted by phearlez at 10:48 AM on August 5, 2011


If you have a mac, you can install Hazel and have it monitor the external drive for particular kinds of files and run the appropriate applescript as necessary.
posted by empath at 12:37 PM on August 5, 2011


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