Convert .ac3 w/o besweetgui

Toshi.des · Post by **Toshi.des** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:58 am

Is there another way to convert .ac3 files to wave without using besweetgui?

I'm not sure if it's an incompatibility issue with vista or that I can't just figure out how to use it but besweetgui keeps crashing when i try to run it from the AMVapp or try installing a new version.

Error is "This application has failed to start because MSVBVM50.DLL was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem."

Same for install.

Help appreciated.

mirkosp · Post by **mirkosp** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 1:11 pm

Open the .ac3 file in winamp. Press Ctrl+P and go to Plug-in > Output and select Nullsoft Disk Writer (my version is 2.14, if you have an older version, it should work anyway).
Click on Configure, check the single file mode, choose the file path and name and as format... it should be 44,100 kHz; 16 bit; Stereo for CD audio and 48,000 kHz; 16 bit; Stereo for DVD Audio.
After doing this, open up your ac3 file and hit play (be sure that loop isn't active). After you did that, go back to the Plug-in > Output and select Nullsoft DirectSound Output.
The wav file should be where you told it to be made, try to check if it sounds right.

Toshi.des · Post by **Toshi.des** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:27 am

Well I got all the way through it till I tried to play the file.

I open the .ac3 file and it lists it player as if it's about to play but doesn't do anything from there on.

Any ideas?

Also since this is the complete audio from the DVD, does that mean I would have to listen to all of the audio of the DVD before I could use it?

Toshi.des · Post by **Toshi.des** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:31 am

Ok just tried it on just some normal audio and I think I get how it's suppose to work.

I play the audio under these settings and it in a sense records it but at a faster speed. Though I'm still stuck at it not playing the .ac3 file. Plays .mp3 fine.

Do I need a plugin for it to play the .ac3?

Kariudo · Post by **Kariudo** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:32 am

the nullsoft disk writer won't playback the audio, it only transcodes it.
it's been a long time since I've used this trick though...in the disk writer configuration you should have set a folder to put stuff in, check that folder.

Toshi.des · Post by **Toshi.des** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 2:04 am

Yeah that's what I figured out when I tried a normal .mp3 file, but it wont seem to even play a .ac3 file.

That's the issue, I set location to desktop and for the .mp3 that's where it ended up, but the .ac3 only opens and wont play so it doesn't transcode it.

Kariudo · Post by **Kariudo** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 11:20 am

you will hear no audio when you are using the nullsoft disk writer.
IIRC, once you push play it'l go through the song fast (this is when it transcodes, so no audio will be played back)

don't forget to change back to the direct sound output after you're done transcoding (or else you'll end up transcoding everything you try to play in winamp)

Toshi.des · Post by **Toshi.des** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 4:02 pm

... yeah that's what I figured out.

Again it works with .mp3 files fine the whole process of hitting play and it transcoding
it to my destination folder. The issue is it wont play .ac3 files. And I'm not saying it
wont play the audio, it wont play through the track even by transcoding it. Which is
why I was asking if there's a filter winamp needs to play .ac3.

So I do know that I wont hear anything, but it should be playing through the track and
a file should appear in the destination folder in wave format. Which again happens with
any normal audio file but not for .ac3.

LivingFlame · Post by **LivingFlame** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 4:27 pm

If all else fails, you can always try the old 'burn-and-rip' trick.

Is this like a protected .ac3 file you got off iTunes or something? Those are the ones I ran into problems with. I just burned the track to a CD with iTunes and then used WMP to rip it again. WMP will rip it as an .mp3 and strip the protection as a result.

LivingFlame · Post by **LivingFlame** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 4:29 pm

Forgot to mention you can also tell WMP to rip it as a .wav since it's better quality.*

Sorry for the double post.