Getting music from CD straight to iPad

[nickponty]

Hi,

I have a new iPad and an iPhone 4, but no PC and no Mac (I find the iPad does everything I want a PC/Mac for).

However, there doesn't seem to be a way to get music from my CDs onto my iPad and iPhone without a PC/Mac, which is a bit annoying. I'm happy to buy new music on iTunes, but I have a big CD collection that I don't want to have to repurchase.

Is there anything I can do or am I stuck with simply buying it all from iTunes?

Thanks very much,

Nick

 

[Night Spring]

There are some devices that lets you copy music from CDs to hard drives, such as this one (http://www.cocktailaudio.com/home.html), but they seem rather hard to find -- for instance, I found this on Amazon UK, but not in the US. And even if you do get a device like this, getting music from there to the iPad is tricky and convluted. Also, keep in mind that the iPad with maximum storage is 64GB -- if you have a large CD collection, it's entirely possible that they won't fit onto your iPad. So you really do need a computer if you want to manage a large digital media collection. I know many people who say the iPad meets all their computing needs except for storing and managing their digital media. Unfortunately, it sounds like you may be one of those people. On the other hand, since you don't currently own any computer or other digital media management hardware, if all your music CDs are avaiable through iTunes, then repurchasing them could be cheaper than going out and buying the hardware you need to rip your CDs to mp3s. All I can say is good luck figuring this out, and getting the best use out of your iPad!

 

[nickponty]

Thanks, I suspected that might have been the case!

Just wondering if I could borrow a laptop, burn all my CDs to iTunes then sign up to iTunes Match? Would that mean all my music was available on my other Apple devices?

 

[HazyCloud]

Yes, iTunes Match will push your library to all of your devices.

 

[WilliamDu]

CDs to iPad

Best solution depends on the size of your "big CD collection".

1. Depending on type of ODD, you may be looking at a substantial investment of time to rip them all to digital storage. Laptop lender may have a problem with that and how much space is available on HIS/HER disk?

2. You might consider investing in an external hard disc which will work with lender's laptop (or other friend with a MAC of some sort) and rip all your CDs to your own hard disc for permanent, safe storage. You can get a good LaCie from Amazon or MacMall for a very minimal cost. (Less than $100). This is probably the least expensive, safe, long term solution.

3. You could probably find a good used laptop or iMac for a lot less than you might think. An old G5 (Like the one I'm donating in December when my new 27" iMac is running.) is only worth about what you would pay for an external disc, and you could stash it in a closet when you aren't ripping CDs. Old and slow doesn't matter for your purpose.

I have all my music (about 4500 tracks) on an ancient 64GB iPod Touch dedicated to that use, and it's FULL. I have also lots of unripped CDs, but they won't even fit on my ancient G5s hard disc, nor will additional music I will be buying in the future from iTunes. If you have more than about 150 CD's, it's not going to fit on your iPad anyhow, so you need a computer then to manage your iPad suite. I'm investing in an iPod Classic to work with my new computer with a 3GB HD. With a BIG CD collection, you might consider the Classic. Don't max out your iPad with just music.

How can you live without a computer? I've had a Mac continuously since my first Little Mac in 1984.