Free MP3 and Ogg Vorbis Software for Old Macs and the Classic Mac OS
Low End Mac Reader Specials
Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core Memory 4GB kit $154 / 2GB kit $94, New 2008 iMac 2GB $46. MacBook Pro / MacMini / iMac Intel Core2 DUO 2GB $44 / 1GB $23--Free shipping available.
Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com
LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.
OWC: OWC Mercury On-The-Go FW400/800/USB2/eSATA Portables High Performance A/V Rated, **Bus Powered** **Up to 500GB in the Palm of your Hand** Macworld Editor's Choice, CNET 'Very Good' - from $75.99!
Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.
Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.
New MacPro Memory 800Mhz With Apple Spec Heat Sink 2GB $88 / 4GB $138 / 8GB $274 - Click to Maximize your Macs...
- 2006.03.08
The concept of listening to music on your Mac isn't a new one - essentially any Mac with a CD drive can play audio CDs - and even the more recent fascination with newer digital music formats is several years into its course. Yet many people have designated the classic Mac platform as unsuitable for the task of audio jukebox, which is not an entirely accurate assessment.
True, pre-OS X versions of the Mac OS may be limited in their support for some recent codecs, particularly those which contain Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) software (thus no iTMS support or support for those service licensing Microsoft's Play4Sure), but all is not lost.
The classic Mac OS remains surprisingly capable in its support of non-DRM lossy audio formats. "Lossy" simply means the compression used trades off some audio quality in exchange for smaller files.
On the other end of the digital music spectrum are lossless codecs, such as Apple Lossless and FLAC. However, other than the common WAV and AIFF formats (audio CD format), there is zero support for common lossless codecs, even the open FLAC.
Furthermore, I'm going to discount the various RealPlayer and non-DRM Windows Media formats on account of the lackluster official playback software from RealNetworks and Microsoft and the paucity of support in alternative players.
MP3 and Ogg Vorbis
This leaves us with two remaining formats - the near ubiquitous MP3 and the open Ogg Vorbis.
If you need your digital music to be compatible with the widest range of hardware and software, MP3 is the safest choice. MP3 is a lossy format, but quality it certainly acceptable at higher bit rates, especially considering the much smaller files sizes granted by encoding your music. By choosing different bit rates you can further maximize file compression by encoding at a lower rate or make better quality files by encoding at a higher rate.
Variable bit rate (VBR) adds another wrinkle by allowing the bit rate to fluctuate higher or lower depending on the complexity of sound at any portion of the audio track. The average bit rate is calculated, giving the overall sound quality of the file.
Another wrinkle is mp3PRO, which allows even better compression. This results in higher quality at lower bit rates, which means smaller file sizes. There's not much support for this codec, but non-mp3PRO players will play these files as normal MP3s, albeit without sounding as nice and lacking the added mp3PRO characteristics.
Free MP3 Software
MP3 Players
All the MP3 players listed have a few features in common. Notably, support for creating playlists (either through the application itself or via helper applications), recognition of ID3 tags (some provide more support than others), shuffle, repeat, and compatibility with VBR MP3s.
Air Whisper: A persistent window always on top ready for quick access, coupled with a skinnable interface and low system requirements make this player an interesting choice.
Aqueous: A lightweight, simple to use MP3 player. Can use WinAmp skins.
Audion: A jack of all trades. Supports many codecs other than MP3, including mp3PRO. Some of the included features as follows: set wake and sleep timers, encode music, stream music, listen to streaming audio, and many more functions. Is skinnable with the ability to download or create many different faces.
Cabrio: Another basic player with modest system requirements. Skinnable and has sleep timer.
iTunes 2: Similar to Audion, but does not support quite as many features, nor codecs.
MP3 Strip 1.5: Very similar to its sibling, Air Whisper, except it operates as a control strip module. Otherwise same basic feature set.
MpegDec: Another very simple player. Can play streaming MP3s and has 68k Mac support.
MP3 Encoders
Both Audion and iTunes supports VBR encoding and CDDB lookup, but Audion has more features overall, including support for the MP3 Pro codec along with the LAME MP3 codec.
Ogg Vorbis
Ogg Vorbis is similar to the MP3 codec in that it is a lossy format and has access to VBR encoding, but sound quality is often deemed to be superior. Whether this claim is true, Ogg Vorbis benefits from the fact it is a truly free codec. There aren't any licensing fees for building software to support this format.
Unfortunately, even with the openness of the codec, support is not nearly as universal as support for MP3. This fact is reflected in the relatively few applications supporting Ogg Vorbis encoding and playback.
Free Ogg Vorbis Software
Ogg Vorbis Players
Audion: See the MP3 player section for more information on Audion. The key here is support for Ogg Vorbis decoding.
JustOgg: Essentially a twin to MpegDec, except JustOgg support Ogg Vorbis decoding.
Ogg Vorbis Encoders
Ogg Drop: The only Ogg Vorbis encoder freely available for the classic Mac platform.
MacAmp: The last versions of MacAmp ($10 shareware) has support for encoding Ogg Vorbis files, but MacAmp for the classic Mac OS hasn't been updated in five years.
Lastly, if superior sound quality is the goal, and hard drive space is not an issue, you could always use iTunes or Audion for playback and decoding of AIFF and WAV files.
I hope this article was able to serve as an adequate
introduction into the world of digital music on the classic Mac OS.
In my next article, we will proceed to step two, where we look at
ways to actually get audio into our digital audio jukebox. Until
then, feel free to start trying out some of the software I made
mention of during step one. Although I certainly have my favorites,
until we start getting into the details of setting up the jukebox,
there is no need to get too specific. Better to let you experiment
and enjoy the fun and frustrations of exploring each application.
Until then, happy computing.
Downloads
Where system requirements have been posted, we have included them here.
- Air Whisper 1.5, Mac OS 8.6 or later, QuickTime 4.1 or later, CarbonLib 1.5 or later
- Aqueous 1.0.2
- Audion 3.0.2
- Cabrio 1.4.6
- iTunes 2.0.4, Mac OS 9.0.4 and later
- MP3 Strip 1.5, Mac OS 8.6 and later, QuickTime 4.1 and later
- MpegDec 3.1.1, 68020 or later (68040 or 50 MHz 68030 recommended), System 7.0 and later (7.5 or later recommended), QuickTime 2.1 and later
- JustOgg 1.0.1, 68040 or later
- Ogg Drop 10b2
- MacAmp, PowerPC, Mac OS 8.5 and later
Articles on LEM
- Best Web Browsers, Word Processors, and MP3 Players for the Classic Mac OS, Adam Robert Guha. Recommends Audion.
- Software to Make Life Easier, Evan Kleiman. Recommends Audion.
- Make Your Own Digital Jukebox, Evan Kleiman. Recommends Audion.
- Picking MP3 Software, Evan Kleiman. Recommends Audion.
- Review: Cabrio PR 1, Paulo Rodrigues. "Cabrio gets my vote as the best everyday MP3 player for the Mac."
- Cabrio a Simple, Compact, Free MP3 Player Ideal for Older Macs, Charles Moore.
Recent Embracing Obsolescence articles
- Steve Jobs stirs up the DRM hornet's nest, 02.12. Stripping DRM would level the playing field for players and allow digital music services to compete on price, quality, and selection.
- SoundApp an audio workhorse for PowerPC, 680x0 Macs, 12.22. For those using the classic Mac OS, SoundApp can convert tracks, play music, and look up CD tracks online.
- The iAudio G3: More features than an iPod nano at an iPod shuffle price, 12.14. The iAudio G3 lets you avoid DRM lock-in while providing multiformat support, more features than an iPod nano, and a price lower than Apple's iPod shuffle.
- Does Zune improve the DRM landscape or just increase confusion?, 12.08. Microsoft has forsaken backward compatibility with its own PlaysForSure standard to take on the iPod. Won't that just further confuse potential customers?
- More in the Embracing Obsolescence index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: PowerBook 170, Oct. 1991 - At 25 MHz, the PB 170 was at the top of the original PowerBook line.
- List of the Day: The iPhone List Low End Mac's forum for discussing and supporting Apple's iPhone.
- August 30 in LEM history: 99: The truth about USB speed - 00: Could Eazel kill the Mac? - Mac OS 8.1 on a IIci and LC III - 01: Beyond MHz and GHz - Getting a handle on email - Thanks for the IBM PC, Dad - Apple's anniversaries - 02: Mac OS X v10.2 - iBook video out - 04: Things that freak out my students - 06: Nvu and SeaMonkey can't replace Home Page - 07: DVD-RAM support
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Looking for a Content Management System That's as Easy as Mac, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 08.29. Low End Mac needs to move to a content management system, but the few we've tried just don't cut it for people used to the simple elegance of the Mac.
- First 3 Million Mac Quarter, Skinny on Mac mini Pricing, Mac-like gOS, and More, Mac News Review, 08.29. More plan to buy Apple products than ever before, complete reset can fix MobileMac synch problems, Apple boosting computer and smartphone share, and more.
- New 'Books Likely in September, 17" PowerBook Display Fault Site, SSD Security, and More, The 'Book Review, 08.29. Also 6 ways to speed up your MacBook, next generation MacBook Air CPU, MacBook Air Update, LapStrap carrying solution, rise and fall of ultraportables, bargains from $220 to $2,699, and more.
- iPhone 3G Reception 'Completely Normal', AT&T International Data Plans for iPhone, and More, iNews Review, 08.29. Also longer life for iPod earbuds, an alternative to MobileMe, new cases and apps for iPhone, AppStoreGems website launched, and more.
- Best Power Mac G4 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 450 MHz AGP, $75; 500, $99; 800 QS, $199; 1.25 GHz MDD, $375; 450 MHz dual, $179; 867 dual, $300; 1 GHz dual, $395; 1.42 dual, $575.
- Best iBook G3 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 300 MHz clamshell, $150; 500 CD, $150; 800, $200; 600 CD-RW, $240; 900 Combo, $300; 14" 600, $360; 900, $400.
- Best iPod nano Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 2 GB iPod nano, $89; refurb 3G 4 GB, $99; new, $140; refurb 8 GB, $149; new, $179.
- 10 Mac Browsers Compared, Simon Royal, Mac Spectrum, 08.28. A look at Internet Explorer, Radon, Opera, Safari, Shiira, iCab, Firefox, Netscape Navigator, Flock, and Camino running in Leopard.
- Clone and Boot: Another Advantage of the Mac OS, Kev Kitchens, Kitchens Sync, 08.28. Unlike Windows, Apple makes it possible to clone a bootable drive (Classic Mac OS or OS X) and use it with another supported Mac.
- Best MacBook Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. Used 1.83 GHz, $799; 2.0 black, $875; refurb 2.1 GHz, $899; 2.4, $1,099; black, $1,299; new 2.1, $1,019 after rebate; 22, $1,094; 2.4, $1,219 a/r; black, $1,394 a/r.
- Best iMac G5 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. Used 17" 1.6 GHz Combo, $499; 1.8 SuperDrive, $530; 2.0, $600; 1.9 iSight, $625; 20" 1.8 GHz, $580; 2.0, $650; 2.1 iSight, $700.
- Best classic Mac OS Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. System 6, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5.1, $4; Mac OS 7.6, $13; 8.0, $13; 8.1, $48; 8.5, $25; 8.6, $20; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $20; more.
- CrossOver Strikes Out, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 08.27. Running Windows apps on a Mac without paying for Windows is great in theory, but actually getting Windows software working is another story.
- MacDrought: 4 Months with No New Macs, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 08.27. The most recent Mac update was over four months ago, and the Mac mini has been unchanged for over a year.
- Resurrecting a Dead Pismo, Spotlight Search Tip, and EasyFind a Good File Finder, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 08.27. Lots of tips on bringing a comatose Pismo back to life, a Spotlight file name search tip, and EasyFind as an alternative to Spotlight.
- Best Intel iMac Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. Used 17" 1.83 GHz, $625; 20", $599; 2.16, $749; 24", $950; refurb 20" 2.4, $999; 2.66, $1,299; 24" 2.4, $1,299; 2.8, $1,549; new 3.06, $2,094 after rebate; more.
- Best 15" PowerBook G4 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. Used 1.25 GHz Combo, $600; SuperDrive, $650; 1.33 Combo, $640; 1.5, $680; SD, $725; 1.67, $730; hi-res, $800.
- Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. 500 GB Time Capsule, $294; 1 TB, $468; AirPort Extreme Card, $39; 802.11n Base Station, $166; 802.11g AirPort Express, $60; 802.11n, $98.
- More links in our archive.
About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts
Have a question?
Ask an expert!
Navigation
Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Best Used Macs
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum
Favorite Sites
MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System
6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Affiliates
The Apple
Store
Mac
Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial
Memory
batteries.com
Advertise
