My playlist burned to CD doesn't include track and artist info.

If you are burning this to an audio format CD then no CD contains that information (except the few unusual ones using CD-text which not all devices support, including iTunes itself although it can make one). When you put an audio CD into a computer, the computer uses characteristics of the CD to get the track information from a central database (Gracenote). If you burn a custom made audio CD, that information isn't in Gracenote.

If this is a mp3 CD, the files themselves hold the track information, but the CD itself will just show whatever the file names happen to be.

None of this has anything to do with which operating system version you use.

How iTunes remembers audio CDs - http://support.apple.com/kb/TA27785

Like mp3s, AAC files also carry tags.

It would really help to know the context in which you are doing all this. Are we talking about a CD you burned and then put in the same player? Are we talking audio CDs, or are we talking about data CDs with mp3s or AAC?

I am near positive the configuration is still there in the new iTunes, but I run an old iTunes so I can't say exactly where. I suggest:

iTunes 10 for Mac: Create your own MP3 CDs - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH1748

iTunes 10 for Mac: Disc burning overview - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH1746

undie wrote:

Still, my latest version of itunes does not have any preferences for burning, while older versions did.

The preferences are there when you select Burn.

As Limnos noted, MP3 & AAC both have tags.

When I burn a playlist to a CD, the disc doesn't list track titles and artists

Where are you not seeing these? An application or a CD player?

undie wrote:

Thanks for the links, I will check them out later. What happens is that I burn the disc (CD-R) on a mac book pro, then insert in in my iMac. I've done a little experimenting. If I click under File---Burn Playlist to Disc---the burn preferences come up and I check Audio CD and include CD text. The disc that burns has no Disc Title, Track Title or Artist, only Track 1 6:05.

iTunes will write CD-TEXT but will not read CD-TEXT.

Note that CD-TEXT is only for audio CDs and it doesn't matter what the source file is (AAC or MP3).

I then tried burning the playlist as a Data CD. The results...I get the titles, artists and the disc is named, but the order of songs is scrambled

The songs are sorted on whichever column header you have selected. If you select the first column, that is the order they are on the CD.

The files, which were created as AAC files are now a combo of m4a's and mp3's

You must have had some mp3 files in their as iTunes does not convert them unless you tell it to.

What happens is that I burn the disc (CD-R) on a mac book pro, then insert in in my iMac.

The disc information for an audio format disc is stored in a database on the computer that created the disc (that is in the first link I provided). When you take it to the second computer the data isn't in that computer.

Audio CD and include CD text. The disc that burns has no Disc Title, Track Title or Artist, only Track 1 6:05.

It's only burning a single track to the disc?

As I said before, iTunes can create CD-text but does not use it, even if it makes it. The data in a format iTunes can use is only present in the first computer. You would have to transfer that database to the second computer in order to get the CD recognized (again, read the link about how iTunes recognizes CDs).

I then tried burning the playlist as a Data CD. The results...I get the titles, artists and the disc is named, but the order of songs is scrambled.

If you look at the CD in a Finder window it will display it in whatever order you have set for viewing files in general. It's just another folder full of files. It doesn't get burned on in a particular order unless you specify. See:

iTunes: How to set the play order of songs on an MP3 CD - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2455

If you read this link you will see that iTunes forces the tracks into your desired order by adding a number onto the beginning of each file so they get sorted in that order by whatever is reading the files.

The files, which were created as AAC files are now a combo of m4a's and mp3's.

Are you absolutely positive they were all AAC? If you read the link I provided about burning mp3 CDs in iTunes 10 you will note it does not convert AAC to mp3. You have to make them. A data CD just burns your audio files in whatever format they happen to be to a CD in data format. You have to make sure they are in one format if that is what you want.

i don't think you guys understand what undie is saying. i think i get it because I'm having the same issue. basically what i want the outcome to be, is a burned cd that can go in any cd player (my mac, a friend's car stereo, my mom's Dell, whatever...) and have the cd text be there. meaning, the artist, song title, and album name. as undie stated, his friend has given him burned cds and when undie plays them, the cd text is there. of course his computer wouldn't have the cd information because it wasn't burned on his computer it was given to him and yet, there it is. So the question is, what is the friend doing that undie is not in order to get the cd text on there using any player???

i am trying to burn a master cd of an album i made to have it replicated but i've tried toast and i-tunes checking the boxes to include the cd text yet when i test it out on my mom's dell computer, no cd text is showing up, just track 1 and the time duration of the song. getting frustrated.....

Mod_Meg wrote:

i don't think you guys understand what undie is saying.

I understand exactly what he is saying.

So the question is, what is the friend doing that undie is not in order to get the cd text on there using any player???

Nothing since "any player" does not necessarily read CD-TEXT info. iTunes will not read it.

Mod_Meg wrote:

So the question is, what is the friend doing that undie is not in order to get the cd text on there using any player???

It's quite clear that the friend is burning a data CD with MP3 files - the OP says, 'CD's I've received from a friend include the track names and artists. However, he does burn them as mp3s while I prefer AAC for the (slightly) better sound quality.'

You are evidently burning an audio CD. You can burn CD-text into this but most audio CD players don't recognize it as it was not part of the original CD specification (which does not allow for any data - you have to remember it's over 30 years old and was invented long before personal computers which could play CDs were available).

My iMac is having the same problem. My computer at work will allow me to make an audio CD and have the CD text on it. When I put it in my car, the text comes up. My computer at work is a mac mini. When I try and run the same thing at home, I cannot select the include audio text when I burn the audio CD. There are two boxes you can check check on under Audio CD, the first is use sound check, the second is Include CD Text. I cannot check the Text one, it is faded out.

Same issue here on a Mac Pro. I used to always include the CD text, now the option is grayed out. I'm assuming this is an issue with a recent update to itunes.

One other thing I noticed here in the discussion. It's mentioned that the payer does not recognize the CD text, this is not true. As stated above, I always previously included the CD text, so my car receiver displays track information and artist/title of the CD. Something I admired, was that if I place the CD that has the CD text included into another one of my computers; When it goes to search for the title/track names, they're automatically there. I've used this to export cd's from one computer and then re-import the songs into another computer without having to rename everything, and without having to re-import the whole original CD. I make a lot of mixed artist CD's.

I'm still on the borderline of importing all 2500+ of my CD's onto my NAS, but the organization is still not there, so I'm still waiting for the ease to be there befoer I import them all.

Anyhow, appears itunes 10.5.3 (My version at least) appears to have broken this feature.

FYI. Just tested on my MacBook with teh same exact version, and the same exact playlist on that computer, and it works as expected. Something screwey is in teh works. 8)

Yes it is true. iTunes does not read CD-TEXT.

Something I admired, was that if I place the CD that has the CD text included into another one of my computers; When it goes to search for the title/track names, they're automatically there.

Because either the player you are using reads CD-TEXT or it gets the info from Gracenote or whatever database if not using iTunes.

I've used this to export cd's from one computer and then re-import the songs into another computer without having to rename everything, and without having to re-import the whole original CD. I make a lot of mixed artist CD's.

You should be copying them to the new computer as a data/MP3 DVD/CD, not an audio CD. (all tags are there, no loss of quality and you can fit ~100 to 200 songs on a DVD),

And if you are doing it as data/MP3, all the info is in the file.

Well, good news, and good news.

First, I updated to 10.6.1 and rebooted the machine, and I have the "Include CD text" box back.

2nd. Yes, it does take in the CD text. I made a CUSTOM cd of 18 random tracks, burned as an audio cd, 1 second gap, include cd text. Brought the CD to another mac, dropped it in, and the name of teh CD appears on the desktop in teh finder, and all tracks populate in itunes.

If you don't believe me, I'll take a video 😉

I have no reason to use data or MP3 cd's as if I want to transfer them that way, I can just use the network.

I only make the CD's for the car, and a jukebox I have at work. Neither reads data or MP3 cd's.