Convert WMA to MP3 or WAV
24-Sep-2007I had a need to convert from (unprotected) WMA to MP3 on the weekend so I could edit together a family podcast — something that previous generations might have called an episode of a very amateurish radio show.
I thought I might have to buy something like Microsoft’s mostly harmless and unnecessarily expensive Plus Pack, or use a scary-looking utility from a scary-looking downloads site. After trolling the Internet for utilities and advice I was almost resigned to taking the scary utility option. About the only place I trust that turned up on searches was Audacity’s site, which simply says that WMA is a patent minefield it doesn’t want to play in.
The answer that didn’t turn up anywhere near the top of the search results that should have was iTunes. In iTunes’ preferences, set the “Importing” tab’s encoder to give the output format you desire, and set sub-options to match your taste. Dragging WMA files into your iTunes library now converts them to the format you’ve configured. Just remember to set that format back to something sensible if you’re going to rip a CD.
Better than iTunes (because it's fast at batching) is WinFF.
Jake Ludington | 12-Nov-2007Better than iTunes (because it’s fast at batching) is WinFF. You can quickly convert one or thousands of WMA files to MP3 format using WinFF.