Recording music onto a CD requires a basic understanding of hardware, software and access to a personal computer. Almost anyone who possess the appropriate tools and the motivation can quickly record music onto a CD, whether that music has been created with a computer-based audio program, or is simply a collection of previously recorded songs that you wish to arrange onto one disc. Time constraints and audio quality will be two key factors that influence how you record the music onto the CD.
Hardware Requirements
If you are planning to record one CD at a time, the CD burner that is standard in most personal computers, whether PC or Macintosh, will perform admirably. CD-R, which stands for CD-Recordable, is the preferred disc for audio recording, as opposed to CD-RW, which stands for CD-Rewritable. CD-R's will play in any CD player, while the CD-RW format is often not recognized by standard CD players. However, while CD-RW's can be recorded, erased, and then recorded again, CD-R's can only be recorded once. CD-R's have an upper limit of 80 minutes of recording time; be sure to know the length of the music you are recording in advance.
Software Requirements
Programs, such as the free, open-source program Audacity, allow you to create MP3's, a file format that elegantly retains the nuances of music while also recording easily onto CD. If you are recording a CD of music that you have created yourself, convert your audio files into the MP3 format. There are several other formats, including wav and aiff, which will not record with nearly as much clarity and ease as an MP3. Convert the audio files into MP3's by selecting this feature from the menu of options within the software program. Lame-Lib, another free, open-source program, is required as a plug-in to Audacity to convert the files. Be warned, however; other optional formats, such as MP2, and MP4, will not be recognized by most CD players as audio files. Be very careful to specify MP3 when converting your audio files.
Recording Onto CD
Once you have converted your audio files into MP3's, you may use a program such as iTunes or Roxio to "burn"' the MP3's onto the CD. Click and drag the MP3's into either a new playlist in iTunes, or the audio CD feature in Roxio. Insert a blank CD-R into the CD burner of your personal computer. Click the "burn CD"' button in either software program. The music will be recorded onto the CD within a matter of minutes.
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