How to convert MP4 audio files to MP3 using iTunes version 7

[First posted at RamblingLibrarian.blogspot.com, 10 Jun 06]

NOTE: THE FOLLOWING STEPS WORK ONLY FOR NON-PROTECTED FILES

Here’s something I learnt — how to convert MP4 audio files to MP3 using iTunes version 7.x (OS X):
[The screens are for iTune versions 7.x. on a Mac. For iTunes version 8, the Import settings has been moved to the “General” pane in “Preferences”. You should see a “Import Settings” button, and then a “Import Using” options. Or check out this post.]

Background: I’d created my Saturday In May in GarageBand and it was saved as an MP4 audio file. Apparently some of my friends were unable to play in that format so I searched for a way to make the conversion. Kevin described broadly how it could be done via iTunes.

I’d also found this freeware called Switch (www.nch.com.au/switch), which worked quite well but I realised iTunes, while a bit cumbersome compared to using a software convertor, allowed more control over the conversion (e.g. setting the bit rate and overall sound quality). So here’s a step-by-step process of how a conversion could be done using iTunes (click on the images for larger sizes):

#1 – Open iTunes:

#2 – At iTunes, select the song you want to convert. In this case, I’ve selected “Saturday In May” among my other song titles:

#3 – Go to your iTunes menu bar, select Preferences (or you can press ‘Command’ and ‘comma’ keys, i.e. “⌘,”):

#4 – At the Preferences window, select the ‘Advanced’ option:

#5 – At the ‘Advanced’ section, click on the button that says ‘Importing’ and then for the part on ‘Import Using’, choose ‘MP3 Encoder’:

#6 – Under Settings, choose ‘Custom’ (you can choose any of the options there, but ‘Custom’ settings ensures you set the right bit rate as you will see in step #7):

#7 – If you’ve selected ‘Custom’, you’ll see this window; just check that your Stereo Bit Rate and Sample Rate are to your desired settings (sorry, I can’t give through explanation on audio settings. I just know that it’s safest to set the Sample Rate at 44.1 khz or else the audio file you upload might playback with a Sped-up High-pitched Chipmunk effect)

#8 – Close the Preferences window; here I’ll just double check that I’ve selected the right song

#9 – At the iTunes menu, select Advanced -> Convert Selection to MP3 and the conversion would start (note: If you’ve selected something else in Step #5, you’ll see that respective option. E.g. if you’ve selected ‘AAC Encoder’ under ‘Importing’ at Preferences earlier, you’ll see Convert Selection to AAC instead)

#10 – Once iTunes has completed the conversion, you should now see TWO songs of the same title, like so:

#11 – To confirm, select that song title and press the ‘⌘’ and ‘i’ keys to view the file information, and you should see a new window with the file details: