How to Choose a Format for Music CDs for Burning
Choosing the right format for music CD burning is essential to ensuring that your CD plays properly. CD-burning programs often have multiple options for the format of your CD, so pick wisely to guarantee playback will work correctly. Many CD-burning programs provide descriptions of each format and why you should choose one or the other, and often more advice can be found searching the program's help topics. There are several easy-to-use digital music players that often come standard with your computer or are free to download online, such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, and Winamp, and you could use these to easily burn CDs.
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Instructions
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Determine how you will use the CD you are burning. Are you simply storing files for backup? If so, create a "data disc." You will be unable to listen to a data CD in a stereo or other music-playing device. Are you burning a CD so you can listen to it in your car or other stereo? If so, create an "audio disc." Are you burning a CD of MP3s, which makes a CD usable for MP3-capable portable CD players and car stereos? If so, burn an "MP3 CD." In most case, if you're burning a CD to listen to music, your best bet is an "audio CD," as this will work in most players.
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Insert a blank CD into your computer.
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Open your music burning program of choice.
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Create a playlist of the songs you'd like to burn. In iTunes this is done by clicking "File" and then "New Playlist," and then dragging and dropping songs into the new playlist. If you're using Windows Media Player this is done by clicking on the "Library" button and then "Create Playlist," which is located in the left column. Add songs from the library into your playlist by dragging and dropping the desired songs into the new playlist. If you're using Winamp, you can create a playlist by first clicking the "Playlist" button in the left column and then selecting "New" on the bottom of the player. Finally, drag and drop songs from your audio library into the playlist you just created.
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Burn the CD. If you're using iTunes, click the "Burn Disc" button in the bottom right corner. Here it'll give you the options of burning an "Audio CD," "MP3 CD" or "Data CD or DVD." Click the one that is your desired format. If you're using Windows Media Player, click the dropdown menu below the "Burn" button near the top of the player. Here you can choose whether you want to burn an "Audio CD" or "Data CD." Finally, click the "Start Burn" button in the bottom right corner of the player. If you're using Winamp, click the "Send To" button on the bottom of the player and select your CD-burner drive. Click the "Burn" button on the bottom of the player and your CD will begin burning. Be aware that Winamp only allows audio CDs to be burned.
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