Newsgroups: rec.audio.tech
Subject: How to match volume and copy any protected audio CD to PC (Re: How to match volume?)
References: <[email protected]>
[email protected] (Dennis Wilson) writes:

> First, forgive me if this is worded clumsily, but...
> 
> As I understand it, every WAV file has an average volume level, or
> loudness, inherent to it.
> 
> So if a CD can't be ripped the usual way -- as with these new
> protected CDs -- and must be line-in recorded from a CD deck -- is
> there any way to get those tracks recorded at the exact same volume
> level as if they'd had been ripped digitally?

First take a non-protected CD. 
Rip it digitally to wav format.

Ten record the same track through analog way (44.1 KHz sample rate, 
16 bits resolution, stereo).
Adjust the recording volume settings so that you get the
same volume as you got with "digital ripping".

Now store those settings.

Then move to protected CD and record it using the smae method.


This method works no matter if the "digital ripping" and
"analogue playback" devices are the same CD-ROM or different
devices (like external CD palyer connected to line in of
soundcard and your internal CD-ROM). The calibration made
with one CD work with all CDs in the future as long as the
analogue playback device and settings of devices
(soundcard and playback device) are kept the same.



Here is some information on CD copy protection and how to
beat it (the information your recording company which invested
lots of money to stupid not-much-help but lots-of-problems
type "CD copy protection"):


Using method described above and an external CD player connected to 
soundcard line input you can successfully record any CD which you 
can play back with that CD player to your computer to
a digital format (WAV, MP3 or any suitable format).
This will beat any CD protection techniques which keep
CDs such that normal CD players can play them
(and if normal CD player can't play them, you cant call
those disks CDs and sell then as such). So no copy
protection known at the moment or something which
works with normal CD players will beat this method.
The downside of this method is some loss of sound quality
(distortion, noise, possibly frequency response). The
amount of sound quality loss depends on the quality
of the CD playback device, soundcard quality and wiring used.

So if you have something on CD you can play with
your CD player, you can easily copy it to your computer
in analogue format. No CD copy proection will stop it.


-- 
Tomi Engdahl (http://www.iki.fi/then/)
Take a look at my electronics web links and documents at 
http://www.epanorama.net/