How to split merging tracks without stutter on playback

2011-04-25 15:33:45

Hi Everyone,

Firstly, I'm brand new to the forum, so please be gentle with me.

I have tried some searching but I'm struggling with all the terminology (CUE, etc) so I'm not sure if I've found the answer to my question or not.

Some tracks merge from one into the next (e.g. Pink Floyd, The Wall). When I use EAC to rip the CD image it preserves all of that but then does not separate the tracks, so if I want to listen to specific tracks I can't. If I rip as tracks, that solves this problem but then when playing it all from one track to the next there is a stutter on playback at each track gap - the seamless merging from one track to the other is lost.

Also, I have recorded many albums from LP via pre-amp onto wav format. A similar problem occurs if I want to split tracks in the wav file - on playback there will be a stutter as one track ends and the next one starts.

Please can anyone help me and tell me how to solve this problem? Everything is kept in wav at the moment (space is no problem), and then I MP3 anything from the wave file (CDEX) to use on mobile hardware. It would be extremely useful if any solution would be retained in the MP3 conversion, so that seamless transition from track to track would be heard when in the car too.

How to split merging tracks without stutter on playback

Reply #1 – 2011-04-25 16:17:21

What exactly are you using for playback, and are you talking about playing back WAVs or MP3s?

WAVs are inherently "gapless", i.e. sample-accurate, so if there are any audible gaps when playing them back, it's the fault of your playback software/hardware.

MP3s are not inherently gapless, but can be if the right combination of encoder and decoder is used.

How to split merging tracks without stutter on playback

Reply #2 – 2011-04-25 17:34:23

Right, you've discovered that many "mobile hardware" do not support gapless playback.  You can load the entire album as one file and be happy or load the individual tracks and accept the short space between them on playback.  Of course, the former will eliminate the possibility of adding tracks into a playlist or random play.

That said there are some portable players that do support gapless on some formats.  iPods have been able to do this for some time.  I think Zune can also do it as can some Cowon players.  There is a list in this article but I'm not sure how current it is.  Seems to be an issue that has somewhat faded away.  I used to obsess over it having once loved my gapless Rio Karma player but it died and the Sony I now have is good enough if not completely gapless.

If you're using an iPod to play tracks in your car there should be a solution.  If you're playing back via some sort of "MP3/WMA Compatible" CD deck then I think it's somewhat unlikely.

How to split merging tracks without stutter on playback

Reply #3 – 2011-04-25 20:57:16

Thanks for your quick replies.

Playback is on a variety of hardware (#1 and #2 being the most important):
1.  On a USB stick through my car audio (Sony / Ford), MP3 playback.
2.  On burned CD's (EAC) through home CD player (Marantz) or car audio, WAV playback.
3.  On my PC (typical Win 7 Dell machine, with Media Monkey), either WAV or MP3 playback.

For the albums where this matters to me (i.e. where tracks are not separated by a silence on the album), I would be happy to burn and use WAV CD's if there is a way to track split without hearing the track change. How can I do this?

If the MP3 solution is unlikely without an iPod, I'm happy to restrict MP3 use to "separated track" albums and singles.