Karaoke forum for PowerKaraoke (karaoke software to create, play, and burn CD+G and video karaoke)

[Golden Girl]

Trial did good, with the Power SCDG Ripper, so activated it. I did another trial of 10 songs, both as ZIP files and then BIN files. Everything was great, and I ripped the whole disc (450 songs - SCDG1001)as ZIP files, into a portable storage drive...surprisingly quickly, and all was well. Now I also need the songs in BIN, so that they can be adjusted in the Karaoke Tools Program.
This morning I set it to rip to the storage drive in BIN format...but all did not go well. I have spent half my day deleting the files that it did rip; about 85, one of the times. It does not seem to be the same song that hangs it up every time. I have tried the SCDG disc in all 3 drives, I have washed the disc, which I really thought would help, but did not. I finally did get it to work, saving to 2 thumb drives (to eliminate the deleting until I was sure it was going to work properly). Got one rip in BIN, but wish the BIN copies on the 500 GB portable, to be listed by Artist, so it must be ripped again, not just copied from the small drives. When I set it to rip as BIN into the portable, it got only about 5% into it and stopped working again. It copies that last file in another format, 2 files, not BIN.
What am I doing wrong? There are not much instructions.

[adam]

Please use the ripping to ZIP mode, and then convert the files to BIN using the Convert tab of Power CD+G Burner (the demo version will suffice for the purpose). Please let me know if the process is successful.

Also, could you please explain why you need the BIN format?
_________________
Adam
info@powerkaraoke.com
PowerKaraoke
www.powerkaraoke.com

[Golden Girl]

I often need to make adjustments to songs, using Karaoke Sound Tools, and I need BIN files for that, because it will not work with ZIP files. I normally have to burn to a disc, wasting a disc, then rip it to BIN, do the adjustments on the file, then burn the song again, for the girl to have it to practice with. Since the SCDG Ripper offers BIN also, I wanted to do my "by Artist" file in BIN, so I could locate songs either way, plus be able to do any corrections to a copy of the song, before burning it to a practice disc.
I looked at your suggestion, converting with the Power CD+G Burner, but it does not offer a ""select all", so would be no easier than the method I have worked out using the SCDG Ripper. I am dealing with 4500 songs, that I am transferring to a 500GB (still too big) portable USB storage drive. Then we can burn any needed songs for use, from either the laptop at practice, or the desktop here at home.

[adam]

You may add as many files to the Convert tab of Power CD+G Burner as you want. Could you please describe the problems you are having when converting with more details.

Regarding the purpose you are using the BIN format for. You may rip to MP3+G (instead of BIN), and process those files using Karaoke Sound Tools, which makes the whole described process unnecessary. Have you tried to do it like that?
_________________
Adam
info@powerkaraoke.com
PowerKaraoke
www.powerkaraoke.com

[Guest]

I have not tried the MP3+G format, because only the MP3 is listed, and even my MP3s, adjusted or not, have to be in BIN format to get burned onto a disc with CD+G Burner for our programs...Karaoke and dance songs.

The only problem I would probably have in using the converter, would be having to click on each file to add it to the list, since there is no way to choose "Select All" in a folder. 4,500 clicks would be a lot of single clicks while holding down Ctrl.

It was even a lot of clicks having to do 25 or 50 songs at a time in the SCDG Ripper...until I discovered that after I delete the file that ripped incomplete (and jammed things up), I can "Check All" on the Ripper, and it gives me the option to skip the ones already ripped. It doesn't tell you that anywhere, you just have to discover that it works that way. Anyway, I just finished the 4,500 songs, into a ZIP Title folder, and a BIN Artist folder. The Party Pack disc is all Multiplex, so I am going to do it over again into a Multiplex Folder, by title and BIN files, because some of them got skipped, due to the same song titles already being ripped from the other discs. (That was when I learned I could set it to do that, instead of individual checkmarks to prevent duplication.)

I do wonder what has made songs hang it up. Basically the ZIP files went smoother, less hang-ups; but the BIN files had lots of stops on some of the discs...and I had cleaned the discs. It was never the same song twice. One of the 450 song discs would not even open for ripping in one of my computers, but did fine in the other one. I am strickly an amateur in what I do for our group with the music, but I am severely depended on.

Now that we have all these songs ofrom one of our members in the portable storage drive, we won't have to be downloading songs constantly; most of them will be readily available at my fingertips.

[adam]

What do you mean by "only MP3 is listed"? Could you please specify what program are you referring to.

Also, there is Add Folder button on the Convert tab of Power CD+G Burner. Have you tried to use it?

Regarding burning of CD+G discs with Power CD+G Burner, MP3+G format can be used as well. You do not have to use BIN format for the purpose.
_________________
Adam
info@powerkaraoke.com
PowerKaraoke
www.powerkaraoke.com

[Golden Girl]

Okay, in Karaoke Sound Tools, when you browse to bring in a file, the Files of type: at the bottom of the window shows "Supported formats (MP3, WAV, BIN)".
In Power CD+G Burner, the Files of type (lists): "CD+G tracks (BIN, CDG, ZIP, KMA, MCG)" for burning. If you choose "All Files" from the drop down, and try to add an MP3 to the burn list, you get an error Pop-up, that says:"Only BIN and CDG file formats are supported". Therefore, I use ZIP downloaded songs, or BIN files that I have ripped (in BIN) from the ladies' own discs. My dance songs all have to be ripped to BIN files as well, to be able to burn a Golden Girls Entertainment Program Disc for each performance.

I know the "Folder" button is on the Conversion tab, but had not thought about using it, since the music file I am converting is usually not accepted by the program anyway. I always have to rip the MP3's as BIN files, so they are usable in all the places I may need them.

[adam]

MP3 file contains only the audio part of the karaoke. When using Power CD+G Burner and burning CDG+MP3 pair, you just have to add CDG file to the burn list, and the MP3 file has to be located in the same folder where CDG file is. In result, karaoke with lyrics will be burned.

The same applies to the Convert tab to convert MP3+G (CDG+MP3) to BIN. You have to add CDG files to the burn list only, and make sure MP3 files are in the same folder.

In case of Karaoke Sound Tools it is the other way around. You need to open MP3 file in the program, and CDG file will be included in the process, if it is located in the same folder where MP3 file is.
_________________
Adam
info@powerkaraoke.com
PowerKaraoke
www.powerkaraoke.com

[Golden Girl]

Sounds like the way I have learned to do this stuff, through trial and error, is the easiest way for me, for what I have to do on a regular basis.

Our girls follow and sing the on-screen lyrics so closely, and unfortunately even the original version is sometimes off a little from the music. Our Director would much prefer them learning the songs and singing to the MP3 Karaoke songs (what I call Flat Karaoke), but they all claim they can't remember the words. I can sure understand that; if my dancing was not all ad-lib, I'd never make it through a song. I have done some comedy skits too, and can only learn and remember one at a time; still panickying through the whole skit. If I look at people's faces, I forget my lines...actually Lilli Tomlin's lines.

I notice that when I do an adjustment of some kind (most often key adjustment) to a BIN file using Karaoke Sound Tools, there is a notation "Updating Graphics" that follows, on the screen. That gives me a little bit of confidence, that those screen lyrics are still with the music, at least as close to them as they were to begin with.

I basically wanted to know why the Ripper program was hanging up so much, and more so when Ripping to BIN. It got a little easier once I 'discovered' that I could checkmark all, and have it skip the ones it had already ripped. Would have been nice to have known that up front.

I have finished this initial rip of the SCDG discs belonging to this member. Unless we get some more of them, I should not even need to use the program again. Her daughter had bought them for her, because she Hosts Karaoke at the VFW on Sun nights; but the bad wiring down there ruined the player they are normally played on (and was real expensive to fix). Now I can burn and label discs for her, of the songs that she and her regulars like to sing to.

[adam]

Regarding the problems with ripping to BIN, we are working on a solution.
_________________
Adam
info@powerkaraoke.com
PowerKaraoke
www.powerkaraoke.com

[Golden Girl]

Thank You, I hope so, because I have a lot more to rip now.
I bought 3 more of the SCDG discs, brand new, 3668 songs, that I hoped would rip better...but only the ZIP did it smoothly. It seems like what hangs it up with the BIN rip, is the 3 files it initially rips and puts in the folder on the storage drive, fail to go back together as one .bin file...so the program stops. You delete those 3 files, and run the Ripper again, and it usually does that one and more, before it happens again. I have watched the songs get deposited as they rip, and have seen the 3 files then they dissappear into one BIN file.