Ripping is transferring the content of a CD to a hard disk.
Ripping is a bit different form making a copy.
The content is not only read but transformed at the same time to an audio file format a PC can understand.
Almost all ripping software also looks up the CD in an internet database and supplies the tags.
There is another reason to call it a rip instead of a copy.
Ripping is duplicating copyright protected material.
Depending on your personal circumstances and the laws in your country, ripping might be your first (or next) step in your criminal career.
The true audiophile worry is of course “is the rip bit perfect”
The answer is No, by design.
If you install software or data from a CD-R, it must be bit-perfect otherwise the integrity of the data is not guaranteed. In case of CD-R the standard (yellow book if I remember correctly) sees to it by adding a lot of error correction code.
As a result either the data is bit perfect or the process aborts.
Adding error correction data to the CD is at the expense of the capacity.
In case of audio cd (Redbook), they decided that maximum capacity is more important than bit perfect. So they dropped the additional error correction. As a consequence a bit perfect copy is not guaranteed by design.
This is a common design decision, e.g.
- Streaming audio uses UDP instead of TCP/IP as a protocol.
TCP/IP is strict, UDP is not. UPD allows for dropping packages but requires less bandwidth.
- USB in isochronous transfer mode (USB audio) doesn’t feature a retry in case of errors.
You have ripped a CD and maybe there is a bit toppled over.
As a true audiophile you can’t sleep at night.
This is where specialized ripping software comes at your rescue.
The moment a reading error occurs, the optical drive put this on the status line.
The ripping software knows there is an error.
Just read the sector anew and do so a couple of times.
A common criterion is: if you read the same value 8 times in a row, this is the correct value. Of course the ripping software should be able to bypass the cache of the drive otherwise it will read exactly the same cashed data….
Most ripping software today has a secure mode including iTunes (http://www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/SW/OSX/OSX.htm) and WMP (http://www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/SW/WMP/ErrorCorrection.htm ) .
But there is an additional check possible.
There is a mathematical technique to calculate a checksum (the hash, the MD5, etc.).
The whole sequence of 1 and 0 is a unique pattern. If literally 1 bit changes its value, you get another checksum.
Submit this checksum to the AccurateRip database and compare it with the results of others. If your result matches those of others, there is a certain confidence that the rip is bit perfect.
“Certain Confidence”? Yes there is no absolute reference.
Assuming that ripping errors are random it is highly unlikely that the rip made by another will have exactly the same error on exactly the same spot as yours.
Although you can’t rule out that if your rip differs from 10 other identical ones, yours is the only right one, the likelihood is very low.
The more rips with the same checksum, the higher the likelihood that this checksum represents the bit perfect rip.
Few rippers support AccurateRip.
EAC, dbPoweramp and MusicBee are the ones known to me.
EAC was the favorite on almost any audio forum. Today the sentiment is towards dbPoweramp. Faster and easier to configure than EAC.
dbPoweramp is also a very fast format converter.
Optical drive.
Does the drive matters?
Up to today you will hear people recommend Plextor.
They have a great reputation but ceased to produce their own drives a couple of years ago. Today a Plextor is just a rebadged ‘some’ brand.
In my opinion if your rip matches AccurateRip, your drive is ok.
Magnitude
If 1 bit is wrong, the whole sample is wrong.
A sample is 1/441000 of a second.
Are we able to hear this?
If a CD transport can’t read a part it will mute or interpolate between the last and the first correct sample. Have you ever heard the difference between the samples read correctly and the interpolated ones?
Personally I do think the bit perfect rip is an overrated issue.
Even software like WMP or iTunes do a decent job today.
If you want to be nuke proof, AccurateRip support is a must.
If you ask me What is Best, dbPoweramp is my vote.
Excellent software with excellent performance.
Ripping is a bit different form making a copy.
The content is not only read but transformed at the same time to an audio file format a PC can understand.
Almost all ripping software also looks up the CD in an internet database and supplies the tags.
There is another reason to call it a rip instead of a copy.
Ripping is duplicating copyright protected material.
Depending on your personal circumstances and the laws in your country, ripping might be your first (or next) step in your criminal career.
The true audiophile worry is of course “is the rip bit perfect”
The answer is No, by design.
If you install software or data from a CD-R, it must be bit-perfect otherwise the integrity of the data is not guaranteed. In case of CD-R the standard (yellow book if I remember correctly) sees to it by adding a lot of error correction code.
As a result either the data is bit perfect or the process aborts.
Adding error correction data to the CD is at the expense of the capacity.
In case of audio cd (Redbook), they decided that maximum capacity is more important than bit perfect. So they dropped the additional error correction. As a consequence a bit perfect copy is not guaranteed by design.
This is a common design decision, e.g.
- Streaming audio uses UDP instead of TCP/IP as a protocol.
TCP/IP is strict, UDP is not. UPD allows for dropping packages but requires less bandwidth.
- USB in isochronous transfer mode (USB audio) doesn’t feature a retry in case of errors.
You have ripped a CD and maybe there is a bit toppled over.
As a true audiophile you can’t sleep at night.
This is where specialized ripping software comes at your rescue.
The moment a reading error occurs, the optical drive put this on the status line.
The ripping software knows there is an error.
Just read the sector anew and do so a couple of times.
A common criterion is: if you read the same value 8 times in a row, this is the correct value. Of course the ripping software should be able to bypass the cache of the drive otherwise it will read exactly the same cashed data….
Most ripping software today has a secure mode including iTunes (http://www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/SW/OSX/OSX.htm) and WMP (http://www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/SW/WMP/ErrorCorrection.htm ) .
But there is an additional check possible.
There is a mathematical technique to calculate a checksum (the hash, the MD5, etc.).
The whole sequence of 1 and 0 is a unique pattern. If literally 1 bit changes its value, you get another checksum.
Submit this checksum to the AccurateRip database and compare it with the results of others. If your result matches those of others, there is a certain confidence that the rip is bit perfect.
“Certain Confidence”? Yes there is no absolute reference.
Assuming that ripping errors are random it is highly unlikely that the rip made by another will have exactly the same error on exactly the same spot as yours.
Although you can’t rule out that if your rip differs from 10 other identical ones, yours is the only right one, the likelihood is very low.
The more rips with the same checksum, the higher the likelihood that this checksum represents the bit perfect rip.
Few rippers support AccurateRip.
EAC, dbPoweramp and MusicBee are the ones known to me.
EAC was the favorite on almost any audio forum. Today the sentiment is towards dbPoweramp. Faster and easier to configure than EAC.
dbPoweramp is also a very fast format converter.
Optical drive.
Does the drive matters?
Up to today you will hear people recommend Plextor.
They have a great reputation but ceased to produce their own drives a couple of years ago. Today a Plextor is just a rebadged ‘some’ brand.
In my opinion if your rip matches AccurateRip, your drive is ok.
Magnitude
If 1 bit is wrong, the whole sample is wrong.
A sample is 1/441000 of a second.
Are we able to hear this?
If a CD transport can’t read a part it will mute or interpolate between the last and the first correct sample. Have you ever heard the difference between the samples read correctly and the interpolated ones?
Personally I do think the bit perfect rip is an overrated issue.
Even software like WMP or iTunes do a decent job today.
If you want to be nuke proof, AccurateRip support is a must.
If you ask me What is Best, dbPoweramp is my vote.
Excellent software with excellent performance.