Overview

This document covers the step-by-step process for creating an audio CD with Windows Media Player 12 on Windows 7. Windows Media Player supports AAC, AIFF, MP3, WAV, and WMA audio formats.

Note: AAC, MP3, and WMA are compressed audio formats and may not sound as good as uncompressed AIFF or WAV files.

Before you get started

Remember to bring your own blank discs, as we do not provide them here in GroundWorks. Within the building, you can purchase blank discs at the circulation desk on the second floor of the Duderstadt Center or at the bookstore in Pierpont Commons.

We recommend that you use CD-R. They are far preferable to CD+R or rewritable (RW) discs.

CDs typically hold up to 80 minutes of audio. The exact capacity for your disc is usually located on the CD case or the CD itself.

It’s best to copy all the files you’re archiving onto the hard drive of the computer you’re using to burn the disc. Otherwise there’s a slight chance that your disc will fail if you’re burning files located on a networked drive or external drive (such as a USB stick or SD card).

Learn more about Windows Media Player 12 by using the tutorials at Microsoft.com.

Step 1: Set up the CD-writing software

  1. Open Windows Media Player (WMP) by clicking the shortcut on the taskbar or by clicking Start and searching for “Windows Media Player.”
  2. In the WMP window, click the Burn tab towards the top right of the window.
  3. By default, it should say “Audio CD.” If it says “Data disc,” click the Settings button under the Sync tab towards the top-right of the WMP window and select “Audio CD” from the drop-down menu.
  4. Eject the disc tray and insert a blank CD making sure the recordable side of the disc is facing down.

Step 2: Prepare your tracks

  1. Locate and select all the files that you wish to burn to disc in Windows Explorer.
  2. Add your files to the burn queue by dragging them from Windows Explorer into the “Drag items here” area of the WMP window.
     To remove a file from the burn queue, select it and press the “Delete” key on the keyboard.
  3. WMP will automatically order your files in the order they were in Windows Explorer (usually alphanumerically). To rearrange the tracks so they play in the order you want, simply click and drag a file to the spot you want it to be.
  4. Be sure not to exceed the maximum capacity of your CD. There is a bar showing the space remaining and length of time remaining on the disc to the right of the disc icon towards the top-right of the WMP window.
  5. If you would like to name your CD, click on “Burn list” just above your burn queue and type in the new name.
  6. You can click the “Settings” button under the Sync tab at the top-right of the WMP window and select “More burn options…” for further burn options.

Step 3: Write to the disc

  1. When you have finished adding tracks and they are in the order you wish them to play, click “Start burn” under the Play tab at the top-right of the WMP window to begin the burn process.
  2. WMP will show the burn progress of your CD. When your disc has finished being recorded, it will automatically eject if the “Automatically eject the disc after burning” box was checked.

Summary and last steps

You now have an audio CD which is playable on any CD player or computer! Be sure to write a label on the top of your disc with a soft-tip pen or permanent marker. It is recommended that you test your disc by playing it on a CD player or another computer. If you copied files to the computer in order to burn them to the disc, move them to the Recycle Bin on the desktop, right click the Recycle Bin icon, and select “Empty Recycle Bin.”

Need to make a quick copy of your disc? Check out How to Use the Disc Duplicators.

 

This tutorial was written by GroundWorks Consultant Stephen Ratkovich.

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