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How to Convert Audio Files to Mp3

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There are a number of audio file formats available, and some are more popular than others. The most widely used audio format today is MP3, since it can be used by virtually all digital devices and PCs. MP3 files take up less space than other formats, as well as providing excellent sound quality. This audio format is so compact you can store millions of music files on your computer.

What is MP3?

Developed in 1993, MP3 is short for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3. Since its introduction, it has quickly become the world's most widely used format for music files. The main purpose of the MP3 format is to cut out the unnecessary sound data that's out of most normal hearing range. It also reduces the quality of sound that isn't easily detectable to human ears, and then efficiently compresses all other audio data. Most digital devices these days can read and play MP3 files, including PCs, Macs, iPhones, Androids, and Smart TVs. When you need universal audio files you can count on MP3.

Common Audio File Formats

There are a handful of audio file formats, such as WAV, WMA and OGG, that are commonly in use today. How you convert your file depends on which type of format you have. If you aren't sure which audio files you're working with, it's easy to distinguish them by the extension in the file name. For example, tropical.wav, indicates that it's a WAV file. This file format was created by Microsoft and IBM, and was one of the first developed for PCs.

Converting Audio Files

In order to convert audio files to MP3, you must start with a non-compressed audio format, such as a computer WAV file, or a store-bought CD. These files are defined as lossless, meaning that nothing has been lost, and the files are large and complete. Most compressed (lossy) files show little or no detectable loss of sound quality, but each time you compress a file it loses some data and results in lower quality audio. There are many programs that allow you to convert audio files to MP3. Some of the programs are free, while others need to be purchased. Each of these programs works slightly differently, so it's necessary to follow instructions. Most computers commonly have Windows Media Player installed, so this is the program we'll use here.

Converting a CD to MP3

Step One: Insert the audio CD into your computer's CD drive.
Step Two: Click on the arrow below the "Rip" tab on the Windows Media Player menu.
Step Three: Select the option to change the format to MP3.
Step Four: Click "Rip" and the file will be loaded as MP3.

Converting a WAV File to MP3

Step One: Import a WAV file into the Windows Media Player library by clicking and dragging the soundtrack into the library section.
Step Two: After the file has been imported, go into the "Options" menu and select the "Rip Settings" tab and move the cursor to the "Format" tab.
Step Three: When the Format menu expands, select MP3 from the menu. Click "Apply" and then select the WAV file and press the "Rip" button. This converts your WAV file into MP3 in the destination folder you select.