Mpeg Layer 3 CD Ripping FAQ V.1b
                     By the Fourth Stooge (Konfuzion & CEA)


I.  What is Mpeg Layer 3?
II.  How can I rip CD-quality files myself?
III.  What programs are out there and how do I use them?
IV.  How do I play Mpeg Layer 3 files?


I.  What is Mpeg Layer 3?
     1. The first thing you must know about Mpeg Layer 3 files (I will refer
        to them as mp3's from this point) are actually MPEG-1 Layer 3 files.
        (Not MPEG-3's as is often said)
     2. MPEG-1 Layer 3 is a standard of the Moving Pictures Experts Group.
        This group is an international orgainization who creates audio and
        video standards for compression.  One commercial use of the MPEG
        technology is the DSS satellite system.  (The little 18" dishes you
        see at all of the electronics stores.)  This system utilizes MPEG-2
        audio/video compression.
     3. Mpeg Layer 3 is a standard for audio compression.  It supports
        up to 44.1kHz audio (same sample rate as audio cd's!).  I have never
        put a scope to an audio CD and an mp3 file but to the ear they are
        identical.  With this standard, you can encode a song from a CD and
        play it on your pc and never hear the difference.
     4. MPEG has had a difficult time becoming the de-facto standard.  This
        is because licensing a good audio/video compression standard can be
        very expensive.  Another thing that has made standardization
        difficult (especially with computers) is that there are so many
        companies with their own standards and they all tout them as being
        the best/fastest.  You probably have several video players installed
        on your computer now.

II. How can I rip CD-quality files myself?
     1. Ripping an audio CD actually takes 2 steps.  You must first convert
        the audio image from a cd to a wave file (.wav).  This can be done
        with a number of programs, both freeware/shareware and commercial.
        You must then encode the file to meet the MPEG standard.  You may
        also note that not all cd-rom drives have the ability to give you
        a digital copy of a song.  Almost all scsi drives support this.  If
        you know of a non-scsi drive that supports it, then please let me
        know.
     2. I use EZ-CD Pro for Windows 95 so I will use it as an example.  I
        bring up the Disk Info/Tools option.  This allows me to see the
        images on the cd.  I select one of the images and tell it I would like
        to read the image.  It is automatically converted to a wave file.  I
        can then proceed with the next step.  This faq will cover other
        packages in later versions.
     3. The next step is to encode the file.  THE program on the pc and unix
        L3ENC by Fraunhofer.  You can pick up the shareware version by
        following links from http://www.mpeg.org.  The command line you want to
        use is as follows:
        l3enc c:\infile.wav c:\outfile.mp3 -hq -br 128000
        The -hq portion is for high quality mode.  The -br 128000 is to make
        the output ISO compliant.  You must have the registered version of
        L3ENC to use the -br option.  Otherwise, it will default to 112000
        and can only be read by WinPlay3 (I will talk about this program
        later.)  This is a lengthy process.  It takes my 120mHz Pentium with
        48 megs of ram about 1/2 hour per song on average but will compress
        a 40 meg file down to about 3.5 megs.

III.What programs are out there and how do I use them?
     1. The afore mentioned program L3ENC is a fantastic little program.  It
        is used for encoding the files from waves to mp3's.  The package also
        comes with a decoding package that will convert the mp3's back to
        wave's so you can write them back to CD's.  The program is available
        for dos, linux, sun, and soon Windows 95.  The author says the Win95
        version will be a rea-time encoder.  After seeing how long it takes
        on my machine, I doubt it but any speed increase is welcom.
     2. There are quite a few packages that will allow you to read the audio
        directly from CD.  Almost all packages used for creating CD's also
        support ripping songs from CD's.  It is important to realize that the
        songs are being read digitally to wave files and not just being
        digitized by the windows recorder program.  If you attempt to
        digitize a song from a CD like that, then you'll get really crappy
        quality.

IV.  How do I play Mpeg Layer 3 files?
     1. There are several programs that will allow you to play mp3's.  The
        best for Windows right now is WinPlay3.  It will support the 112000
        bit rate the unregistered version of L3ENC puts out.  You should
        really get the registered version, however.  It is best to encode
        using the standard.  As this becomes more poplular, we will get other
        players.

DISCLAMER:  This FAQ is intended to help you archive your personal collection
of songs that YOU bought.  It is in no way promoting the pirating of audio
cd's.  The author of this document does not give you permission to receive
this document if your intent is to break the law by using teqniques described
here.  You may only create ARCHIVAL copies of YOUR CD's and you may not
distribute them.