CD Ripping and Burning Software

AudioGrabber V1.83

AudioGrabber has been around for ages, and is no longer being updated, but still one of the best ripping programs for the money - it's FREE!

Probably the fastest ripper on the planet, and can look up tag information on the internet. Not as full featured as many of the newer programs, but everyone should have a copy.

Express Rip V1.x

Express Rip, is a nice little ripping program, similar to AudioGrabber. Nothing fancy, but it gets the job done nicely.

It can look up CD information on both FreeDB and MusicBrainz servers, and is pretty quick.

iTunes V8.x

Included with Apple computers, iTunes is also available for Windows based PCs as well. It has some nice features, such as the album art browser shown here.

On Windows PCs, it can be a somewhat resource hog. We also recommend switching the default ripping format to MP3.

MediaMonkey V3.x

Best known as an organizer and tagger, MediaMonkey also is a respectable media player, as well as a ripper and burner.

Tons of options, rips, burns, volume leveling, etc. Free version, as well as the Gold version, that has additional features.

Zune V3.x

Even if you don't have a Zune player, this free software makes a wonderful addition for playing and organizing your MP3 or Windows Media music collection.

Has some very cool player effects and visualizations as well.

Windows Media Player 11

Included in all recent versions of Windows, this is a nice all around player, that also lets you rip your CDs into your computer, as well as burn your custom CDs.

We recommend switching the format this rips CDs from to MP3, from the default WMA. This will allow you to play your files on virtually any software or MP3 device.