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Ripping CDs

Tip

dbPoweramp's CD Drive Accuracy 2024 Report should be used as a reference when looking for a good drive to rip CDs with.

Rip logs, usually with the extension .log, are status report files produced by CD ripping software. They describe what settings a particular CD was ripped with and contain information about any errors that occurred during the ripping process. This gives an idea of how likely the extracted data is accurate to the data on the CD.

Rip logs are scored by log checkers, which can be found on private trackers. The log checker of the Orpheus private tracker is available on GitHub at OPSnet/Logchecker. Alternatively, there is the Cambia log checker, which is easier to integrate in code, supports more log types and has more accurate log parsing logic than checkers on trackers. The log score should be added as [XX%LOG] (e.g. [100%LOG]) to the folder or zip name when sharing.

Info

A 100% log does not guarantee that the data is accurate. It should be interpreted as "very likely to be accurate judging by the info in the log" but not as "100% accurate".

If a log scores less than 100% the configuration of the ripper should be rechecked. If the problem persists, the issue might be with the disc itself (dirty, scratched, rotten, etc) in which case cleaning the disc and reripping before switching to another ripper as a last resort is the way to go.

Warning

People tend to confuse track quality and peak level in the log text with the actual log score. They are not the same. Track quality and peak level are not used for scoring.

Each ripper should only be used on their respective platforms. Some communities don't acknowledge Whipper logs, in that case consider finding a Windows machine or dual booting.

Danger

Using rippers that don't produce scoreable logs or aren't widely used should be avoided as they are likely to alter the audio in unforeseen ways, not count for all variables during ripping and not perform thorough error checks. Do not use any software with CD ripping as a secondary feature to rip discs. Examples of software that should not be used to rip CDs are Winamp, iTunes, foobar2000 and MusicBee.

Known and respected rippers for all platforms:

Guides for ripping with them:


Salty • Created 2021-10-04 • Updated 2024-12-06