Jump to content
Hamer Fan Club Message Center
  • 0

CD burner/copier for Mac


tommy p

Question

I have now looked at at least 10 free apps and even paid software for Macs for the simple function of burning or copying CD's.  Literally every one I've researched has tons of negative reviews for anything from not working correctly to not starting up at all to only burning partial songs to not working with the latest Mac OS (I'm on Catalina 10.15.1).  I've downloaded 3-4 only to find out the complaints are legit.  I have tried many times unsuccessfully to use the Disk Utility native to Macs.  I look up the instructions and invariably, 3 or 4 steps they tell you to click on something or change some setting that doesn't exist.

Does anybody know a free or low cost option for CD burning on a Mac that WORKS??  Damn, I'm frustrated!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

3 minutes ago, cynic said:

You have Music now?  Same same.

OK, I'll Google that.  I was able to do that before but it was still a cumbersome process.  I'm looking for something along the lines of insert CD to be copied, click copy, insert blank CD, done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, tommy p said:

OK, I'll Google that.  I was able to do that before but it was still a cumbersome process.  I'm looking for something along the lines of insert CD to be copied, click copy, insert blank CD, done.

It's not quite that simple, but this link describes how to do it from either Music or from the Disc Utility.

I agree this is something that's been more difficult than it needs to be for far too long.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, mathman said:

I use Roxie toast titanium and iTunes. Toast titanium can sometimes be found on special for a decent price.

The reviews I've read say that won't even open with newer versions of the Mac OS, and nobody is getting their money back.  Roxio and Apple just point the finger at each other.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, since moving to Catalina, I've noticed a number of annoying issues. The shift from iTunes to Music is also created a few issues; spent 20+ minutes on the line with Apple support trying to iron out some issues moving between the former and the latter. Hell, I was grousing about the hardware not allowing for it years ago. Hasn't since they did away with the onboard drives. The days of being able to throw a CD into a Power Mac and burn a disc or download the music are long gone. <sigh>

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I remember the days when I used to love Apple and looked forward to their new OS releases, which I had to pay $100 for. Now the new OSs are free and I hate how they're always screwing with things that people like. Apple has gone from the company I raved about to the company I rant about. If I weren't so invested in them, I'd probably be a PC guy...No, I actually don't care for Windows OS. I still generally like Apple's OS (with many caveats) but I hate their manipulative practices. They've turned into the kind of company Steve Jobs hated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/17/2019 at 8:03 AM, FGJ said:

I remember the days when I used to love Apple and looked forward to their new OS releases, which I had to pay $100 for. Now the new OSs are free and I hate how they're always screwing with things that people like. Apple has gone from the company I raved about to the company I rant about. If I weren't so invested in them, I'd probably be a PC guy...No, I actually don't care for Windows OS. I still generally like Apple's OS (with many caveats) but I hate their manipulative practices. They've turned into the kind of company Steve Jobs hated.

This was to be a grand experiment for me.  I wanted a Mac because everyone said they're so great to use for home recording.  After nearly 2 years, I still haven't gotten started on that and there are so many other things I dislike about it, I'll never have another one - that's 100% certain.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/17/2019 at 7:03 AM, FGJ said:

I remember the days when I used to love Apple and looked forward to their new OS releases, which I had to pay $100 for. Now the new OSs are free and I hate how they're always screwing with things that people like. Apple has gone from the company I raved about to the company I rant about. If I weren't so invested in them, I'd probably be a PC guy...No, I actually don't care for Windows OS. I still generally like Apple's OS (with many caveats) but I hate their manipulative practices. They've turned into the kind of company Steve Jobs hated.

Exactly.  I've had Macs at home ever since I could afford them, about 15 years now, and used them in an office for a decade before that.  What happened to "It just works"?  Now it's "Keep up or you'll be abandoned" and compatibility be damned.  If you don't want to join the cult and do it their way, you have your work cut out for you.  Grrr.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, mrjamiam said:

"Keep up or you'll be abandoned"

The iPhone, iPad, and watch make up nearly 70% of their revenue.  The bulk of the innovation seen in Mac OS unless something changes will be to make it more supportive of iOS features and functionality.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, tommy p said:

This was to be a grand experiment for me.  I wanted a Mac because everyone said they're so great to use for home recording.  After nearly 2 years, I still haven't gotten started on that and there are so many other things I dislike about it, I'll never have another one - that's 100% certain.

Thx for starting this thread! I was considering an external CD burner for this thing. Up until now I just put the data on a thumb drive and move the files over to my PC tower.

So far I've used mine for nothing but tracking/mixing music and it's been pretty stellar with the beefed up specs, SSD and thunderbolt connectivity.  For me the biggest PITA was learning how to navigate the folders with that crappy Finder interface. It's been an education, that's for sure! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@tommy p It's really pretty simple. You do have to import the CD you want to copy, that said you want to make sure that your settings are set to lossless. Once this is set, you never have to mess with it again, unless you want to import as a smaller file format. To do this, just go to MUSIC on the toolbar, top left, click "Preferences" from drop down menu. Preferences panel opens. Click "FILES" top center, click on "IMPORT SETTINGS" at bottom, Choose "APPLE LOSSLESS ENCODER", SETTING: "AUTOMATIC", check "USE AUTO CORRECTION", and save. 

To perform the task it is super easy:

*Put a CD in, and IMPORT it.

*Once it is imported, below the "LIBRARY" header on left, choose "Albums."

*Then drag the album you want to copy to "PLAYLISTS" on the left.

*Select the album in the "PLAYLIST" and either right click and select "BURN PLAYLIST TO DISC", or select it from the "FILE" menu at the top left of the toolbar. 

Done. Four steps, the internet makes things so much harder than it really is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 hours ago, gtrdaddy said:

@tommy p It's really pretty simple. You do have to import the CD you want to copy, that said you want to make sure that your settings are set to lossless. Once this is set, you never have to mess with it again, unless you want to import as a smaller file format. To do this, just go to MUSIC on the toolbar, top left, click "Preferences" from drop down menu. Preferences panel opens. Click "FILES" top center, click on "IMPORT SETTINGS" at bottom, Choose "APPLE LOSSLESS ENCODER", SETTING: "AUTOMATIC", check "USE AUTO CORRECTION", and save. 

To perform the task it is super easy:

*Put a CD in, and IMPORT it.

*Once it is imported, below the "LIBRARY" header on left, choose "Albums."

*Then drag the album you want to copy to "PLAYLISTS" on the left.

*Select the album in the "PLAYLIST" and either right click and select "BURN PLAYLIST TO DISC", or select it from the "FILE" menu at the top left of the toolbar. 

Done. Four steps, the internet makes things so much harder than it really is.

Thanks, my local brother!  That was the easiest to follow explanation yet.  Still a bit convoluted compared to using EZ CD Creator back in the day but this works.

Still, if anyone ever finds another CD burning app for Macs that works, let me know.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On November 19, 2019 at 6:47 PM, cynic said:

The iPhone, iPad, and watch make up nearly 70% of their revenue.  The bulk of the innovation seen in Mac OS unless something changes will be to make it more supportive of iOS features and functionality.

Yep, which is why Apple cares nothing for creative professionals and desktop users any more. It's understandable since they're only doing what makes the best business sense as far as their focus on iOS goes, but that still doesn't excuse their manipulative business practices. 

Regarding the difficulty someone had with the finder, I find it incredibly easy to use. But like anything else, familiarity will determine how simple one finds anything. 

Also, the 'keep up or get left behind' practices seem to have been applied industry wide. That, and the subscription model that Adobe kickstarted is such a pain. I don't mind practices that make for improved profits since that's the point of business (we all expect a return for our efforts), but when it becomes manipulative, that's where it crosses the line. I don't mind Apple controlling terms of use on the iTunes/App Store, but when they tell you that you can only purchase apps for your mobile device from them, that's manipulative and monopolistic. It's like Toyota selling you a car and then telling you that you have to buy your gas from them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have to say that whatever the bitching is about a MAC, it is by far more reliable and headache free than any Windows machine will ever be. I’ve two Windows 10 machines in the house out of necessity for my wife’s work, and two MACS. I’ve spent more time resolving issues with the Windows computers each month than I’ve spent over the entire life of any MAC I’ve owned. My oldest current Mac is a 2013 that I only put into sleep mode when I’m not using it, I never power it off and has only been rebooted maybe five times in the past year out of necessity for OS updates. It is also running on the original 2013 disk OS installation and has never been wiped clean and reformatted. That said, when it does reboot, it still boots faster than the newer Windows machines. Despite any perceived headaches, life in the MAC world is much preferable to the alternative.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i agree with everything you just wrote, but that only adds to my frustration. I prefer Apple's OS to Windows, but I hate their manipulative business practices. My decision to stick with them is entirely predicated on the fact that I'm already heavily invested in software that I can't afford to purchase all over again for a PC. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve never found myself aggravated with Apple. I’ve seen people gripe about all kinds of stuff, but I never really understood it. If it wasn’t the App Store, it was iTunes or something else to complain about. I don’t mind the App Store, in fact I’m glad it’s there. Because everything there has (supposedly) been vetted and is safe to use. No one is forced  into only using the App Store. You can in fact download .dmg files from third party sites all day long and install them. So no one is forced to use the App Store. iTunes, yeah it morphed into a half a shit-pile of stupid, but it worked, and it was free. Also free was every new OS X release, unlike Microsoft which annually shafted its users for a hundred bucks for an upgrade package or two hundred for a full install disc until a couple of years ago they decided to follow the Apple way and give it to people who invested in their OS platform. I never understood the complaints.
 

My sister and her husband have never owned a MAC. He is in IT support for a county library and thinks Microsoft is the Second Coming. They both espouse opinion that Apple is the worst, worst company, worst  computer OS (iOS too!), and they’ll never own one. When I asked him what brought them to these conclusions they say the same thing (and I’ve heard this before lol) “we hate the Apple ECOSYSTEM.” 

They’ve never owned any Apple products to gain an opinion from. When I point this out they say that’s because “we don’t want to be stuck in their ecosystem with iTunes and the App Store.” This silliness is akin to political talking points. I’ve heard it a lot, “.... the Apple ecosystem.” I think this was a term injected into society by Microsoft operatives. Perhaps the Ukrainians, the Russians maybe? Maybe, it’s just something stupid people just made up. No one has to use iTunes. 

I’ve puked enough here. My stuffy head hurts, I’m out of Kleenex in this room and it’s time for more Theraflu. 

gtrdaddy out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, gtrdaddy said:

I never understood the complaints.

Word.

I've got 2010 (his) & 2011 (hers) iMac's running here and I've never had an issue with either.  I just bought Kiz's 2015 machine to replace the 2010 as my primary desktop, but that purchase was all want, no need.

My dad uses his 2008 iMac daily and my mom has a 2011 or 2012 that used to belong to a family friend who said the "geek squad" determined was "irreparable" and sold them a new computer.  They gave it to me to use as parts.  I replaced the hard drive several years ago and it works as new.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...