How to Create a Digital Music Library for PCM
11-19-2014, 01:18 PM
#1
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How to Create a Digital Music Library for PCM
Many of you already know how to do this, but I thought I’d explain how I got my PCM Music Library looking and sounding amazing.
This process will outline a great way to take advantage of our newest (991 MY2014) Porsche PCM stereo systems - Bose or Burmeister.
When completed, your PCM will show full color cover art and metadata for all your music and will sound amazing.
FYI, I’ll be using Apple iTunes on a Macintosh to create the proper music files with full metadata.
Then, I’ll show you how to copy the iTunes music files onto a USB memory key for transfer into your PCM Jukebox hard drive.
Please Note: At the time of this posting, the Porsche PCM has a bug when playing back high-resolution music files directly from the USB port.
When playing music from this port AND trying to navigate music files from the little round digital display in the dash - will cause the PCM to freeze, crash, and then restart.
Typical German software development.
STEP ONE
Verify the iTunes 'Music' folder organization.
Open iTunes and go to:
iTunes/Preferences…/Advanced
And make sure you check both “Keep iTunes media folder organized” and “Copy files to iTunes media folder when adding to library”
These are usually already checked as default.
STEP TWO
Open iTunes and set the CD conversion settings.
Go to:
iTunes/Preferences…/General/Import Settings…
Set these settings as follows - AAC Encoder, 320 kbps, 44.100 kHz, Channels set to ‘Auto’ - uncheck everything else.
Why AAC and not MP3? MP3 even at 320 kbps is a highly compressed audio format. Our stereo’s can sometimes hear this compression ‘twang’.
AAC is a much more modern - MP4 - audio codec. AAC compressed at 320 kbps would be equivalent to an MP3 at over 1,000 kbps.
Why not use AIFF or WAV versus AAC? Because AIFF and WAV cannot hold metadata your PCM can use. Like cover art and artist information.
FYI, both AIFF and WAV are lossless codecs. AIFF is what artists record their music into. It’s also what’s used on the original CD. The problem is you cannot store cover art, etc. in this format for the PCM. iTunes can tag cover art to these formats, but once the file is moved outside of iTunes, you lose that connection and your PCM will not display cover art etc. You only get the name of the file - which is usually the song name.
But doesn’t AIFF and WAV sound better than even AAC? Trust me on this. It will be impossible for you to hear the difference between an AIFF, WAV, and AAC when the AAC is encoded as I outlined above. And with AAC, you get all the cool cover art and artist data displayed on your PCM. It’s worth it.
FYI, file sizes are not a reason to use AAC. If AIFF or WAV could hold onto the metadata, then I would do that.
Now import all your original - legally owned - music CD’s into iTunes as outlined in this step.
Of course, if you already have digital music in iTunes in other formats like MP3 you can still move forward.
But it won’t sound like a clean conversion from CD to AAC.
STEP THREE
Use iTunes to get all the cool album art and metadata set for all your music.
This is the longest part. Take your time and get your music library setup the way you want it.
Start by going to File/Library/Get Album Artwork
This will do an OK job of setting everything up. You can override and fix mistakes by selecting the album and hitting ‘Command-I’.
From this dialog box, make sure all your data for the album or song is correct. You can correct and add everything - including album art.
TIP: You can Google the album to get the best cover art if iTunes doesn’t provide it or it’s wrong.
Just Google the album and go to ‘Images’. Find the cover art you like and drag it to your desktop then into your iTunes album information dialog box.
STEP FOUR
Make a USB memory key and copy the files to it.
Format the USB memory key to MS-DOS (FAT). If you’re a Microsoft Windows person - format it to FAT-32.
On a Mac you format the memory key using the Apple Disk Utility. It’s located in your Utilities folder, which is in your Applications folder.
Copy the CONTENTS of the ‘Music’ folder to the USB memory key. It’s located here:
Users/Your User Name/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Music
This ‘Music’ folder that iTunes has created includes all your original AAC files properly organized and with all the metadata tagged to it.
Just drag the contents of this folder to your USB memory stick to start the copy process. This could take a long time depending on how big your library is.
Once the USB memory stick is made. You can rename the folders and fix other weird names that iTunes may have used.
At this point, the PCM will display the music exactly as shown on the USB key.
Please Note: The extension on the music tracks are NOT displayed in the PCM, so you can leave it as is.
Just make sure you like the way the folders, folder hierarchy, and song names look.
STEP FIVE
Copy all the data from the USB memory key to your PCM Jukebox internal hard drive.
Insert your USB memory key into the USB slot located in your glovebox.
Please Note: The PCM Jukebox (terrible name) only has 40 GB of space for music files.
Or, you can play directly from the USB port, just don’t try navigating from the dash display or the PCM will crash and restart.
Hit the ‘Source’ button and select USB.
Your PCM will start to analyze the music files and start to catalog it.
It’s reading all the metadata and stuff so you’re music files will look awesome on the display.
Hit the ‘Option’ tab and hit the ‘Copy All Tracks’ button to move all the files off the USB memory key and into your PCM Jukebox.
Depending upon your library size, this may take a while.
If you have a long drive, it’s a good idea to start it before you leave, so as you’re driving it’s copying.
YOU’RE DONE
Enjoy and show-off to your friends how cool your new Porsche PCM displays and plays all your music files back.
There are many ways to do this, I’ve shown you a way using iTunes. If anyone has any other cool ideas or methods, reply to this post.
This process will outline a great way to take advantage of our newest (991 MY2014) Porsche PCM stereo systems - Bose or Burmeister.
When completed, your PCM will show full color cover art and metadata for all your music and will sound amazing.
FYI, I’ll be using Apple iTunes on a Macintosh to create the proper music files with full metadata.
Then, I’ll show you how to copy the iTunes music files onto a USB memory key for transfer into your PCM Jukebox hard drive.
Please Note: At the time of this posting, the Porsche PCM has a bug when playing back high-resolution music files directly from the USB port.
When playing music from this port AND trying to navigate music files from the little round digital display in the dash - will cause the PCM to freeze, crash, and then restart.
Typical German software development.
STEP ONE
Verify the iTunes 'Music' folder organization.
Open iTunes and go to:
iTunes/Preferences…/Advanced
And make sure you check both “Keep iTunes media folder organized” and “Copy files to iTunes media folder when adding to library”
These are usually already checked as default.
STEP TWO
Open iTunes and set the CD conversion settings.
Go to:
iTunes/Preferences…/General/Import Settings…
Set these settings as follows - AAC Encoder, 320 kbps, 44.100 kHz, Channels set to ‘Auto’ - uncheck everything else.
Why AAC and not MP3? MP3 even at 320 kbps is a highly compressed audio format. Our stereo’s can sometimes hear this compression ‘twang’.
AAC is a much more modern - MP4 - audio codec. AAC compressed at 320 kbps would be equivalent to an MP3 at over 1,000 kbps.
Why not use AIFF or WAV versus AAC? Because AIFF and WAV cannot hold metadata your PCM can use. Like cover art and artist information.
FYI, both AIFF and WAV are lossless codecs. AIFF is what artists record their music into. It’s also what’s used on the original CD. The problem is you cannot store cover art, etc. in this format for the PCM. iTunes can tag cover art to these formats, but once the file is moved outside of iTunes, you lose that connection and your PCM will not display cover art etc. You only get the name of the file - which is usually the song name.
But doesn’t AIFF and WAV sound better than even AAC? Trust me on this. It will be impossible for you to hear the difference between an AIFF, WAV, and AAC when the AAC is encoded as I outlined above. And with AAC, you get all the cool cover art and artist data displayed on your PCM. It’s worth it.
FYI, file sizes are not a reason to use AAC. If AIFF or WAV could hold onto the metadata, then I would do that.
Now import all your original - legally owned - music CD’s into iTunes as outlined in this step.
Of course, if you already have digital music in iTunes in other formats like MP3 you can still move forward.
But it won’t sound like a clean conversion from CD to AAC.
STEP THREE
Use iTunes to get all the cool album art and metadata set for all your music.
This is the longest part. Take your time and get your music library setup the way you want it.
Start by going to File/Library/Get Album Artwork
This will do an OK job of setting everything up. You can override and fix mistakes by selecting the album and hitting ‘Command-I’.
From this dialog box, make sure all your data for the album or song is correct. You can correct and add everything - including album art.
TIP: You can Google the album to get the best cover art if iTunes doesn’t provide it or it’s wrong.
Just Google the album and go to ‘Images’. Find the cover art you like and drag it to your desktop then into your iTunes album information dialog box.
STEP FOUR
Make a USB memory key and copy the files to it.
Format the USB memory key to MS-DOS (FAT). If you’re a Microsoft Windows person - format it to FAT-32.
On a Mac you format the memory key using the Apple Disk Utility. It’s located in your Utilities folder, which is in your Applications folder.
Copy the CONTENTS of the ‘Music’ folder to the USB memory key. It’s located here:
Users/Your User Name/Music/iTunes/iTunes Media/Music
This ‘Music’ folder that iTunes has created includes all your original AAC files properly organized and with all the metadata tagged to it.
Just drag the contents of this folder to your USB memory stick to start the copy process. This could take a long time depending on how big your library is.
Once the USB memory stick is made. You can rename the folders and fix other weird names that iTunes may have used.
At this point, the PCM will display the music exactly as shown on the USB key.
Please Note: The extension on the music tracks are NOT displayed in the PCM, so you can leave it as is.
Just make sure you like the way the folders, folder hierarchy, and song names look.
STEP FIVE
Copy all the data from the USB memory key to your PCM Jukebox internal hard drive.
Insert your USB memory key into the USB slot located in your glovebox.
Please Note: The PCM Jukebox (terrible name) only has 40 GB of space for music files.
Or, you can play directly from the USB port, just don’t try navigating from the dash display or the PCM will crash and restart.
Hit the ‘Source’ button and select USB.
Your PCM will start to analyze the music files and start to catalog it.
It’s reading all the metadata and stuff so you’re music files will look awesome on the display.
Hit the ‘Option’ tab and hit the ‘Copy All Tracks’ button to move all the files off the USB memory key and into your PCM Jukebox.
Depending upon your library size, this may take a while.
If you have a long drive, it’s a good idea to start it before you leave, so as you’re driving it’s copying.
YOU’RE DONE
Enjoy and show-off to your friends how cool your new Porsche PCM displays and plays all your music files back.
There are many ways to do this, I’ve shown you a way using iTunes. If anyone has any other cool ideas or methods, reply to this post.
The following 3 users liked this post by PsychicDreamer:
11-19-2014, 04:40 PM
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That's very helpful. Thanks!
I'm now accessing most of my music in ALAC format from an iPod Classic connected to the Burmester. The iPod decodes, and the sound quality is disappointing. I want to give the Burmester a shot at better decoding and sound quality.
Two questions:
1) does anyone have a particular recommendation for a 40gb USB drive to use? Does it matter?
2) can the Burmester decode ALAC, or do I need to first convert ALAC files to AAC or WAV? If I need to convert, can anyone point me to the steps to take? I want to keep the original files in ALAC on my computer and iPods, so these will be duplicate copies.
Thanks!
I'm now accessing most of my music in ALAC format from an iPod Classic connected to the Burmester. The iPod decodes, and the sound quality is disappointing. I want to give the Burmester a shot at better decoding and sound quality.
Two questions:
1) does anyone have a particular recommendation for a 40gb USB drive to use? Does it matter?
2) can the Burmester decode ALAC, or do I need to first convert ALAC files to AAC or WAV? If I need to convert, can anyone point me to the steps to take? I want to keep the original files in ALAC on my computer and iPods, so these will be duplicate copies.
Thanks!
11-19-2014, 06:04 PM
#7
Drifting
On a related note, I have a 160gb iPod Classic I'm planning to use in my GTS... assuming everything is setup correctly in iTunes (which it is currently) does the PCM display album art by default? My past cars (Mercedes/BMW) have worked fine so just want to confirm.
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11-19-2014, 06:55 PM
#9
Track Day
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I also have all my files as ALAC, and I believe the PCM does not decode ALAC, thus I am also looking for a way to convert them to AAC and use a USB stick to play the music.
I have a 2012.5 and I have never seen any album artwork when using my iphone 5s even though my iphone 5s has the mp3s on them with album artwork data.
I have a 2012.5 and I have never seen any album artwork when using my iphone 5s even though my iphone 5s has the mp3s on them with album artwork data.
11-19-2014, 07:18 PM
#10
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I'll try to answer the questions pointed out above this reply.
The Porsche PCM does not support the direct playback of ALAC.
ALAC stands for Apple Lossless Audio Codec. This is an older music codec designed to complete with the Microsoft WAV file format. ALAC will not be able to store metadata such as cover art, etc. ALAC has the same musical performance as AIFF and WAV. However, if your source music file is poor and you converted it to ALAC, your music quality will be limited by your source.
The music file format (codec) does not define the musical performance. It's the source file and how you convert that source file into a usable digital file for the PCM system.
As I mentioned in my original post, the AAC format is currently the highest-quality musical codec that will still hold onto the metadata such as cover art and artist info for display on the PCM system.
To create the best AAC musical file, start from the original CD and convert it to AAC using the settings I've explained in my original post.
You can use virtually any USB memory key. The speed is not a big deal because musical files do not require that much read speed. Just get a good USB memory key that will fit nicely in your USB port located in your glovebox.
If you are connecting a iPod to your USB port, you may or may not see cover art. It all depends on how your iTunes library is setup. Use my tips in my original post to setup your iTunes library properly.
Please Note:
Both the Bose and Burmeister systems are capable of amazing musical performance. Using a standard iPod with low-quality MP3 files is just sad. You are not taking full advantage of these systems. As a benchmark, insert a music CD and play from there. Then compare this to your iPod version. You'll find the CD and the AAC (if you created it like i've explained) will sound far superior to a crappy MP3 file.
Keep sending the questions and I'll try to answer them as I get time.
The Porsche PCM does not support the direct playback of ALAC.
ALAC stands for Apple Lossless Audio Codec. This is an older music codec designed to complete with the Microsoft WAV file format. ALAC will not be able to store metadata such as cover art, etc. ALAC has the same musical performance as AIFF and WAV. However, if your source music file is poor and you converted it to ALAC, your music quality will be limited by your source.
The music file format (codec) does not define the musical performance. It's the source file and how you convert that source file into a usable digital file for the PCM system.
As I mentioned in my original post, the AAC format is currently the highest-quality musical codec that will still hold onto the metadata such as cover art and artist info for display on the PCM system.
To create the best AAC musical file, start from the original CD and convert it to AAC using the settings I've explained in my original post.
You can use virtually any USB memory key. The speed is not a big deal because musical files do not require that much read speed. Just get a good USB memory key that will fit nicely in your USB port located in your glovebox.
If you are connecting a iPod to your USB port, you may or may not see cover art. It all depends on how your iTunes library is setup. Use my tips in my original post to setup your iTunes library properly.
Please Note:
Both the Bose and Burmeister systems are capable of amazing musical performance. Using a standard iPod with low-quality MP3 files is just sad. You are not taking full advantage of these systems. As a benchmark, insert a music CD and play from there. Then compare this to your iPod version. You'll find the CD and the AAC (if you created it like i've explained) will sound far superior to a crappy MP3 file.
Keep sending the questions and I'll try to answer them as I get time.
11-19-2014, 10:58 PM
#12
Drifting
11-19-2014, 11:46 PM
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PsychicDreamer, thanks again, but I'm hoping that someone has a different answer. Now that my full CD collection is uploaded to iTunes in ALAC, I'm hoping to find a process to convert a subset of it to WAV on a USB for use in the car. I'm not willing to re-upload everything into AAC; instead, I want to convert what I already have. I plan to convert to WAV, not AAC, because I care more about sound quality than album artwork. The reason for uploading to USB is the improved sound quality of the Burmester DAC instead of the iPod DAC.
In sum, does anyone know the simplest way to convert ALAC files stored in iTunes and my computer hard drive into WAV files stored on a USB?
In sum, does anyone know the simplest way to convert ALAC files stored in iTunes and my computer hard drive into WAV files stored on a USB?
11-20-2014, 12:16 AM
#14
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@Montesquieu
I understand your request. Because you already have a high-quality music library in ALAC, you just want it compatible with PCM. Cover art is not as important.
Because you want a direct digital USB audio connection - like I've outlined in my OP - and not via an iPod connected to the same port, I would recommend the following.
Download the free audio conversation software called MAX. You can google it. It's a professional audio conversation software, design to convert a large number of audio files into other codecs.
This software will allow you to quickly convert all your ALAC files into individual WAV files. Since WAV is also lossless, you will retain all your musical performance exactly as your ALAC version contained, but now your PCM will play them back over a direct digital USB connection.
I understand your request. Because you already have a high-quality music library in ALAC, you just want it compatible with PCM. Cover art is not as important.
Because you want a direct digital USB audio connection - like I've outlined in my OP - and not via an iPod connected to the same port, I would recommend the following.
Download the free audio conversation software called MAX. You can google it. It's a professional audio conversation software, design to convert a large number of audio files into other codecs.
This software will allow you to quickly convert all your ALAC files into individual WAV files. Since WAV is also lossless, you will retain all your musical performance exactly as your ALAC version contained, but now your PCM will play them back over a direct digital USB connection.
