Five years since this original thread. I did a search with the intention of finding out why some people insist on ripping FLAC files (or other lossless) to a single file instead individual files. If there was a performance reason, I'd consider it, but I've come to find there's no good reason at all. Some of the comments supporting the single file method is it's less cumbersome (wtf?), it's easier, and in general the reasons became benign and reduced to a few comments said they just like them that way. Someone else said if the software doesn't use cue sheets, replace the inadequate software.

Adobe Audition doesn't use cue sheets, and although I don't know why, that isn't the point. It mops the floor with what it does do over others with similar features and is hardly a reason to change because it doesn't. The real solution is to rip to individual files. Some people want access to the individual tracks and shouldn't have to deal with cue sheets and deal with rediculous methods to create them on their own. Individual FLAC files are gapless so there's no contention on that part. From a sharing standpoint, some people like to pick which songs in a torrent they want which is impossible with a single file. Putting your albums on a USB or HD for the car is impossible when the player doesn't read cue files. The benefits of single tracks far outweigh one single file. Just because some people want them for some myopic reason or another doesn't make it a proper method for the masses. Privately, do what you want, but for sharing it's utterly useless. How about keeping them separate tracks and let the end user combine them and make their own cue sheets if that's how they want them? Funny how a practical solution isn't so popular when the shoe's on the other foot.

Also, the comment about lossless files are overkill? Most people won't hear the difference if it's just high a bit-rate version anyway? You can never get the quality back once it's thrown out so it only makes sense to start lossless, THEN compress. The end-user can diminish the quality to whatever BS compression scheme they want. Man, years ago you couldn't get high enough quality. Amazing how little some have become satisfied with lo-fi and "good enough". Welcome to our dummied-down sub-standard world.

oook then!

You know, I look back at my comment above and it was a rant and reads like a temper tandrum. That wasn't the intent, but the meds have kicked in (and I'm feeling much better now).

But seriously, I've manually split quite a few single files into individual ones and out of frustration started searching around for what attracts the usage of single file output. Guess I didn't find what I'd been looking for and lashed out like...ok, an ass. I still feel the same about them conceptually, but couldn't go back to edit the undertone, so I'm just calling myself out on it. Sorry.

Buy the music yourself and you can rip it just like you want!! We don't take kindly to pirates 'round here.