Eli's Suggested EAC settings for FLAC, See wiki for official EAC guides Options

[Eli]

This guide is now becoming out of date, but should still give a very good start. I have not personally used EAC since some time mid-07. I now strongly suggest using dBpoweramp Reference. Note, EAC is free, dBpoweramp is not, plus to get the real benefits you need the better (ie more expensive package - Reference, not powerpack). However, dBpoweramp outperforms EAC in secure ripping on drives with C2 handling (basically most modern drives), being both faster and more reliable. In my experience dBpoweramp is also more stable than EAC. dBpoweramp is also being actively developed and updated. Spoon, its developer, is an active member here at HA. dBpoweramp is much easier to set up and configure, and features the best meta-data system available - PerfectMeta! A guide is available dBpoweramp FLAC guide


First, install EAC V0.95, Accurate Rip and configure with a key disk, and FLAC

EAC Options:

Extraction Tab
[X] Fill up missing offset samples with silence *Optional. For drives that overread lead in/out this is not needed.*
[ ] No use of null samples for CRC calculations *Doesnt change audio*
[X] Synchronize between tracks
[ ] Delete leading and trailing silent blocks
[X] Skip track extraction on read or sync errors (wont affect rip, but I check yes for next 3)
[X] Skip track extraction after duration longer than X times realtime
[X] After each 30 minutes of extraction, cool down the drive for 5 mins
[X] Lock drive tray during extraction
Extraction and compression priority: Normal
Error recovery quality: Medium **this is a change from my previous recommendation. This will decrease the number of error bars from 5 to 3. I have never had a rip go past 3 bars (really usually only 2 at most) and have an error free rip. Save the time. Plus its easier on your drive.

General Tab
doesnt matter for ripping.

Tools Tab
[X] Retrieve UPC/ISRC codes in CUE sheet generation
[X] Use CD-Text information in CUE sheet generation
[ ] Create '.m3u' playlist on extraction - **user option
[X] Automatically write status report on extraction
[X] On extraction, start external compressors queued in the background [1] - **user option.
[X] Do not open external compressor window - **user option
[X] Submit drive features after detection
[ ] Activate beginner mode, disable all advanced features

Normalization Tab
NOT CHECKED!!!

Filename Tab
Naming Scheme: %A - %C - %N - %T (or as you prefer, check EAC's FAQ.txt)
Various Artists: %C - %N - %A - %T (see above)

Catalog Tab
Not important

Directories Tab
**user option.

Write Tab
Nothing to do with extraction here

Interface Tab
Not so important, you can use the Native one



Drive Options

Extraction Method Tab
Secure Mode (after "detect read features" option is used, with appropriate settings)
**It is also reasonable to use Burst Mode if you always use Shift-F6 (Test & Copy). It has been argued that this is more secure then secure mode and its tends to be faster. Burst mode alone (without Test & Copy) is not secure!
[X] Drive caches audio data (clears the drive cache)
[ ] Drive is capable of C2

Drive Tab
Autodetect for drive read command
[ ] Big endian
[ ] Swap channels
[X] Spin up before extraction

Offset / Speed Tab
Offset locked by AccurateRip
Overread into lead-in and lead-out data (You will need to test this one on a disc, if you get a read sync error on the first or last track of a new CD your drive cant overread and the option should be unchecked - this will mean that you loose the number of samples equal to your drive offeset on either the first or last song, the only solution is a different drive)
[X] Allow speed reduction during extraction
[X] CD-Text Read capable drive

Gap Detection Tab
Gap/Index retreval method: per drive setting (start with method A or B)
Detection Accuracy: Secure (some prefer to use accurate)


Compression Options

External Compression Tab
[X] Use external compression
User defined encoder
Use file extension: .flac
Program including path: -browse and select flac.exe-
Additional Command Line Options:
-6 -V -T "artist=%a" -T "title=%t" -T "album=%g" -T "date=%y" -T "tracknumber=%n" -T "genre=%m" -T comment="%e" -T "comment=EAC (Secure Mode)" %s
Bitrate: Doesn't matter
[X] Delete WAV after compression
[ ] Use CRC check
[ ] Add ID3 tag
[X] Check for external compression return code

Offset Tab
[ ] Use offset detection for encoding and decoding Do NOT check this as it will add gaps to gapless music

When ripping the tracks, I suggest using Shift-F6 (test & copy) to decrease the chance of having a bad rip go undetected. The CRCs should match for the T&C, if they don't there is a problem.

You may want to look for a drive that can overread into the lead in and lead out. You will need to get this feature to get 100% perfect copies of CDs, though you probably wont notice if you dont have it. A list of drive features can be found here:
DAE Drive Feature Database - look for green in the overread column. The smaller the read offset the better too.

Plextors are almost a universally good choice. I strongly suggest investing in a Plextor since you will be archiving your CD collection. Do it once and do it right. In addition, there is a switch available that works for most Plextor drives that disables the drives cache. This gives burst mode speeds (often >30x) in secure mode. Search the forum for the -USEFUA switch if you have a plextor drive.

Edit: Removed broken links.

This post has been edited by Eli: May 5 2009, 22:24

[user]

Hi Martin,

very good summary, why I prefer ripping to single tracks, too, no huge image file.

May I copy your text, and implement(&reference to your nickname) it one day to www.High-Quality.ch.vu , if I find time for an update ?

[TCM]

[ ]Fill up missing offset samples with silence

shouldn't this be on? one could argue that samples that are zero don't matter anyway but i see it this way: the length of a track is information, too. by cutting some samples off you are modifying information that could otherwise easily be preserved.

edit: that is also the sentiment why i rip full images + cue as opposed to single tracks. track gaps are information. by throwing them away you throw away information.

thoughts?

This post has been edited by TCM: Aug 4 2005, 17:38

[lmpine]

[ ]Fill up missing offset samples with silence

shouldn't this be on? one could argue that samples that are zero don't matter anyway but i see it this way: the length of a track is information, too. by cutting some samples off you are modifying information that could otherwise easily be preserved.

edit: that is also the sentiment why i rip full images + cue as opposed to single tracks. track gaps are information. by throwing them away you throw away information.

thoughts?

I have a related question regarding “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” in EAC. I too am ripping to FLAC using EAC ( I am ripping individual tracks, not images with cue sheets). I have a Plextor Premium (external USB model) with the offset configured using AccurateRip. I have ripped about 40 CD’s so far and I think everything is going fine. The EAC report always shows “No Errors Occurred.” The AccurateRip results vary against the database…it most cases I get all tracks accurately ripped although in some cases I get a message indicating that my CD is most likely a different pressing than the one stored in the database.

I have alternated using “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” and I don’t see a difference in either the EAC or the AccurateRip results. Given that I am using the Plextor Premium (which supports over-ride into lead-in and lead-out…which I do have selected in EAC), is it safe to assume that I am getting rips with no missing samples; thus making the missing offset samples with silence selection irrelevant. Is there any way for me to verify (beyond what I am already doing) that I am getting a bit for bit perfect copy? Thanks in advance for your help.

[MarkK]

[ ]Fill up missing offset samples with silence

shouldn't this be on? one could argue that samples that are zero don't matter anyway but i see it this way: the length of a track is information, too. by cutting some samples off you are modifying information that could otherwise easily be preserved.

edit: that is also the sentiment why i rip full images + cue as opposed to single tracks. track gaps are information. by throwing them away you throw away information.

thoughts?

I have a related question regarding “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” in EAC. I too am ripping to FLAC using EAC ( I am ripping individual tracks, not images with cue sheets). I have a Plextor Premium (external USB model) with the offset configured using AccurateRip. I have ripped about 40 CD’s so far and I think everything is going fine. The EAC report always shows “No Errors Occurred.” The AccurateRip results vary against the database…it most cases I get all tracks accurately ripped although in some cases I get a message indicating that my CD is most likely a different pressing than the one stored in the database.

I have alternated using “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” and I don’t see a difference in either the EAC or the AccurateRip results. Given that I am using the Plextor Premium (which supports over-ride into lead-in and lead-out…which I do have selected in EAC), is it safe to assume that I am getting rips with no missing samples; thus making the missing offset samples with silence selection irrelevant. Is there any way for me to verify (beyond what I am already doing) that I am getting a bit for bit perfect copy? Thanks in advance for your help.

Correct. If you have a drive that over reads, you don't have any missing samples to fill up with silence. The option doesn't have any effect in that case.

[lmpine]

[ ]Fill up missing offset samples with silence

shouldn't this be on? one could argue that samples that are zero don't matter anyway but i see it this way: the length of a track is information, too. by cutting some samples off you are modifying information that could otherwise easily be preserved.

edit: that is also the sentiment why i rip full images + cue as opposed to single tracks. track gaps are information. by throwing them away you throw away information.

thoughts?

I have a related question regarding “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” in EAC. I too am ripping to FLAC using EAC ( I am ripping individual tracks, not images with cue sheets). I have a Plextor Premium (external USB model) with the offset configured using AccurateRip. I have ripped about 40 CD’s so far and I think everything is going fine. The EAC report always shows “No Errors Occurred.” The AccurateRip results vary against the database…it most cases I get all tracks accurately ripped although in some cases I get a message indicating that my CD is most likely a different pressing than the one stored in the database.

I have alternated using “Fill up missing offset samples with silence” and I don’t see a difference in either the EAC or the AccurateRip results. Given that I am using the Plextor Premium (which supports over-ride into lead-in and lead-out…which I do have selected in EAC), is it safe to assume that I am getting rips with no missing samples; thus making the missing offset samples with silence selection irrelevant. Is there any way for me to verify (beyond what I am already doing) that I am getting a bit for bit perfect copy? Thanks in advance for your help.

Correct. If you have a drive that over reads, you don't have any missing samples to fill up with silence. The option doesn't have any effect in that case.

Thanks for the response. Should I be doing something else to verify my rips to make sure that they are perfect bit for bit copies?

[Mechannibal]

Should I be doing something else to verify my rips to make sure that they are perfect bit for bit copies?

Test & Copy? The fact that accurate stream can result in different CRC's kind of worries me. Doing Test & Copy makes it a little bit more secure, but there is a chance that T&C passes and its still not a 100% bit for bit copy.

One time I had a problematic track on a scratched cd. I reripped it numerous times w/T&C, and I had matching T&C CRC's occur twice out of about 6 to 10 tries. The two sets of matching T&C CRC's were different.... I didn't truly trust EAC had ripped it ok.

For example:

Track 6:
Test CRC: Blah123
Copy CRC: Blah123

and ripping again until they both match...

Track 6:
Test CRC: Doh!456
Copy CRC: Doh!456

Uh oh, they match each other, but not if I rip multiple times!

Test & Copy seems to be useful because it can give you a heads up that the track might be suspicious.

Problably the best way would be to rip (which you are doing already, lmpine) with an offset corrected drive with EAC in secure mode (accurate rip enabled) and compare your hashes to the database of ripped cd's. Keep in mind the 1st and last track may have different hashes because of a drive's inability to overread into lead in/lead out.

This post has been edited by Mechannibal: Aug 4 2005, 21:57

[TCM]

from what i understand, the "more sophisticated" settings of eac (accurate stream, c2, cache) only serve to speed the process up if the drive supports it. turning accurate stream and c2 off and turning "drive caches audio" on will increase the safety of the rip while making the process slower. what were your other settings when you got different checksum each time while not changing any settings? from personal experience i can tell that c2 error checking with lite-on drives is to be avoided.

[Mechannibal]

from what i understand, the "more sophisticated" settings of eac (accurate stream, c2, cache) only serve to speed the process up if the drive supports it. turning accurate stream and c2 off and turning "drive caches audio" on will increase the safety of the rip while making the process slower. what were your other settings when you got different checksum each time while not changing any settings? from personal experience i can tell that c2 error checking with lite-on drives is to be avoided.

I was using a Lite On drive , but I was using the safest (slowest) settings:
Secure Mode with Accurate Stream, Drive Caches Audio checked, C2 not checked.

I was sometimes getting matching CRC's with T&C, sometimes not matching. I did notice the CRC's it came up with would occur again, so it wasnt totally random. Mind you, the drive would slow down considerably at the rough spots of that track.

This post has been edited by Mechannibal: Aug 4 2005, 22:48