Re-ripping CD's to overwrite mp3 to AAC and playlists.

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tommy41950 Author

Level 1

4 points

Re-ripping CD's to overwrite mp3 to AAC and playlists.

I started using iTunes way back and ripped CD's in mp3 format as that was all that was available. And due to storage issues, sometimes I only ripped one or two tracks off an album. These tracks were then used to create playlists.

Now I find I can re-rip my CD's into AAC and iTunes replaces the mp3 versions with the AAC versions.

However, I have noticed that on my playlists, the mp3 track hasn't been replaced with the AAC version.

Is there anyway to get iTunes to do this during the ripping of the AAC version?

If I have to do this manually, is there anyway to click a song in the library and find out what playlists it's been entered into? I've also created playlists, mostly for driving, that are maybe 14 hours long, that are created by dragging other already created playlists into the new playlist.

This also leads me to wonder if the iTunes Match process replaces the tunes in playlists with the new updated versions from the iStore?

Thanks for any guidance on this matter.

Cheers

MacBook Pro (15-inch Mid 2010), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.4), Apple 27" Cinema LED Display

Posted on Aug 18, 2013 10:31 PM

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Answer 1

Aug 18, 2013 11:09 PM in response to tommy41950

Most likely the only way to do everything automatically would be to use a script.

If you have the full album in your library already in mp3 format, you should be able to create the AAC version by selecting the album, then going to File>Create New Version>AAC version.

(The AAC encoder must be selected in preferences).

iTunes will create the duplicates in the same folder on your hard drive where the mp3s are located, and the duplicates will be visible in iTunes with very little distinction from the originals.

You will likely need to recreate the playlists yourself. Though if you planned to re-rip your CDs, I imagine the extra five minutes to reconstruct the playlist isn't too daunting.

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Answer 2

Aug 19, 2013 12:22 AM in response to tommy41950

tommy41950 wrote:

However, I have noticed that on my playlists, the mp3 track hasn't been replaced with the AAC version.

Is there anyway to get iTunes to do this during the ripping of the AAC version?

You might find aa AppleScript to help you at http://dougscripts.com/itunes/.

tommy41950 wrote:

This also leads me to wonder if the iTunes Match process replaces the tunes in playlists with the new updated versions from the iStore?

No it will not. Nothing in your iTunes library is replaced automagically.

FYI, if you are using Smart Playlists, and the criteria is not dependent on the file format, then the new tracks will show up in the playlists no problem. However if it is a static playlist then the new tracks will have to be added back to the playlist manually.

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