I Tunes, how to download into a Wav file

[sostoobad]

Hello I am pretty much a computer dunce, especially with this stuff.

Here is the deal, I am trying to download music and put into a USB stick, to then put into my separate DAC. This DAC I am told will read Wav files but not the standard way music seems to be downloaded from I tunes.

It gets stranger....I download 4 songs on my 2014 I Mac, tried to play them in my DAC..no sound. at home I have a 2012 Mini, and kind of started over.
The Mini would only let me drag one song to the USB stick. I did manage to "convert" it to a Wav file and it worked.

I am now back at my 2014 I mac and converted the other 3 and it comes up M4a instead of Wav, but now all 4 are on the stick..

Is a M4a the same as Wav ?
why doesn't my 2012 let me convert the other 3 or let me drag them to the stick, which I can do on my 2014 I iMac .

Any help would be appreciated, I am stumped

 

[McScooby]

I'm assuming,

that you're converting to a wav through iTunes?

It sounds suspiciously like you've created apple lossless instead, remember to goto iTunes > Preferences > Import Settings > make sure wav encoder is selected?
Or what's the source file you're trying to convert to wav?

 

[sostoobad]

Hi thanks for the response, I tried that and when I go to convert it comes back M4a not wav on all but one.

I guess the file or folder ? is whatever gets used when I use I tunes.

 

[McScooby]

so to recap, wav is full uncompressed audio such as a cd image, so for example, if your source file is an mp3/m4a (smaller than original file size / compressed) & you convert to wav, all you are doing is massively inflating/increasing the file type where the quality of the sound is much still the same but in a much larger file size with all the padding it needs to be put in it.

Dependant on how you have your library set up thru preferences (organised & add to library, which moves stuff/copies onto your computer hd location using said importer i.e. wav or preferences unchecked where original audio files stay in their original location - in my case on external drives) when you import whatever the source is into iTunes you have to select tracks individually or all at once using shift key & right click create wav version, in your library you'll then have 2 versions if not imported as a wav, original dumped into iTunes & wav version you just created, so delete original, wav files will then show .wav on the end.

Again assuming that your source files are of a lesser quality, m4a 256 aac, or even apple lossless as m4a, a much simpler method what your trying to accomplish would be to plug mini directly into DAC, or even stream to a airport express plugged into DAC as both these have optical to optical/analogue out & will give the same quality as converting to wav, whilst retaining original file size & playing anything on your mac?

What model manufacturer is your DAC?

 

[sostoobad]

Again appreciate the help, but this is way beyond me, I am just trying to download songs from i tunes, drag them to the USB stick and put that into my DAC, which I have been told reads wav and flac.

This is my problem with the computer world, what should be 1.2.3 done
instead turns out to be endless hours of confusion and complexities.

Which is why I have stuck with Lps and cds for music playback.
It is simple and works and sounds very good.

I very much appreciate your input, but this is parallel to instructions on starting a car....tap the hood, jump on one foot, kick the tire, run around the car,
have a coke, do ten push ups, get in, hit the dash, turn the key and go.

I am just looking to turn the key and go, clearly the digital world isn't even close to that. Files, folders, wav, flac aac lmnop, this one reads this, but doesn't read that etc etc.......just not for me

BUT I do appreciate your response and help, thanks, Ben

 

[McScooby]

It's all a bit like vinyl, cd's & cassettes - wav is carbon copy of cd quality, flac is like apple lossless, less quality but smaller file size. iTunes sells their music as AAC smaller file size yet trying to still retain quality, mp3's are like AAC, they sacrifice bass & high treble to get smaller file size, AAC finds similar frequencies to duplicate to get smaller file size.

If your DAC supports flac or wav, then music bought off iTunes must be upconverted i.e. bits taken out put back in to make a larger file size, maybe just check out music converter on mac app store if it makes it easier for you to do it that way.