DRM Protected WMA
WMA is the abbreviation of Windows Media Audio. It's a compression audio format developed by Microsoft. WMA file is contained in the Advanced Systems Format (ASF) format. Like mp3 file has ID3 tags, ASF specifies how metadata about the file is to be encoded. Metadata includes song name, artist name, track number, and audio normalization values.
Even though wma files can be plain, it can support digital rights management (DRM), which is a controversial enforcement on digital intelligence rights protections. WMA codecs does not contain any DRM. But the ASF container format can has DRM facilities. , And WMA file is encapsulated ASF in container. That's to say, in conjunction with Windows Media DRM，wma can be protected files, too.
While iPod supports a variety of formats, Microsoft Zune does not even the standard Windows Media DRM system, thus making protected wma files unplayable on the device. This has been rampantly criticized. Microsoft released a series of WMA codecs since the year of 1999.
- Windows Media Audio 2 in 1999
- Windows Media Audio 7 in 2000
- Windows Media Audio 8 in 2001
- Windows Media Audio 9 in 2003
Protected WMA to MP3 Audio Converter
Those who are not pleased with the restrictions take into street to claim their rights. And they even try to crack the DRM protection, or bypass the DRM protection, using wma to mp3 converting software to unlock the protection. NoteBurner is one of the kind. It's the first conversion program that applies virtual burning to remove DRM protection, thus convert protected wma to mp3, as well as m4p to mp3, aac to mp3 and audiobook to mp3.
Due to the virtual burning mechanism, NoteBurner has to work simultaneously with media players, like Windows Media Player, Real Player, iTunes and so on. Generally, NoteBurner can work with all programs that have burning features and options. NoteBurner works well with audio editing software like Adobe Audition. NoteBurner program will install a virtual driver called NoteBurner Virtual_CD-RW. The most critical step before starting converting is to set NoteBurner Virtual_CD-RW as the current burner.
System Requirements for using NoteBurner Protected WMA to MP3 Audio Converter
The basic requirements for NoteBurner Protected WMA to MP3 Converter is that you have the ability to burn your purchased music or audio files to a normal CD-R disc on iTunes, Windows Media Player, Real Player or Napster. If you cannot burn your purchased music files to a normal CD-R disc, NoteBurner cannot help you convert any music files. NoteBurner M4P Converter converts any M4P, M4a, WMA music or audio to MP3, WAV, WMA with the following basic requirements:
- 32- bit Windows XP, Vista or Mac OS X
- 256 megabytes (MB) or higher of RAM
- 1GB of available hard disc drive space or more
- Monitor with 1024x768 pixels or higher resolution
- Media player such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, RealPlayer, etc
- DRM music license (if you want to convert protected music)
NoteBurner WMA to MP3 Converter is a program that can be used to convert music files, MP3 downloads or even iTunes Music Store songs to other, more compatible formats. It operates a little differently than the other products we reviewed because it is a virtual CD burner. It must be used in conjunction with a media player that can burn CDs because it makes the media player “burn” the song as a file on the hard drive instead of onto a real CD.
NoteBurner's features depend largely on the abilities of the media player you are using. NoteBurner WMA to MP3 Converter can control the bit rate, sampling rate and channels, but it doesn't do much else because it operates differently than the other audio converters in this review. NoteBurner allows audio tag editing and can also extract audio signals from video files by burning them on the virtual drive. But its best feature, and the one that makes it stand out in our review, is the DRM removal that is indispensable when you're having music compatibility issues.
The number of formats that NoteBurner WMA to MP3 Converter can convert varies depending on the media player that you are using to create a burn list. If your player can't burn it, then NoteBurner can't help you. But if you find the right player, NoteBurner WMA to MP3 Converter can handle whatever it will burn. We found that Winamp had the fewest problems with file compatibility, although Windows Media Player and the iTunes Music Player were both compatible with NoteBurner. NoteBurner is limited in its choice of output formats. It will only convert protected WMA music to MP3 and WAV files. But these are the most common file formats, so it shouldn't be a problem for the average user.
