audiobook

MP3 players Sansa Clip | Clip+
1

Hi,

I have no idea what is wrong.I loaded an mp3 audiobook to the audiobook folder in my clip+.  Audiobook shows in the files displayed on the computer but not on the menu of the clip. The only reference to audiobook is in settings where you can change a couple of options. I have tried to update the firmware but I get a not available message . I tried the manual way but again no good  My present firmware is 1.01.05p I run Windows 7 . Any help would be appreciated

2

First of all, are you navigating to Music->Audiobooks to look for it?  If you have the Clip+, have you tried navigating the folder view through Music->Folders?  If it shows up on the computer, it should show there, too. 

These might answer the most basic reasons you wouldn’t find them, let us know!

3

Are the audiobook files tagged properly? If not, use a tag aditing program to fix the tags. The files are probably listed on your player under the audioboook submenu as unknown due to missing tags.

4

Many thanks for the swift reply. I kept looking for audiobooks in the root menu but could not find it I found it under music audiobooks This is fine except I will have to make sure this is set up for my wife who has visual problems and navigating small menus is almost impossible have got a book up and running and starting where it left off so it looks good.

Any problems I will certainly post here

Many thanks

5

I forgot to add they are listed as unknown how do I tag them please? I use a CD to MP3 programme to convert the discs

8

Thank everyone once more. I was a bit reloctant to try tagging as some times there is 15 cd’s to a book each with about 20 tracks. I will try using the folder method but I will have to rip a couple of books first. . The Sansa clip+ user manual has about four lines dedicated to audiobooks which basically state " yes we do audiobooks  load your books to audiobooks and get started"  If only it were that simple. I have an MP3 where it is that simple but the battery life is poor so I thought I would try the clip.  My wife is pleased with the sound and I am sure she will eventually master the controls. I will let you know in a few days how I get on

G’day from Australia and thanks

10

I’m a real newbie at this, so I beg your indulgence.  But how does one get an audio book to begin with?

Do you have to get the book on CD, copy it to your PC, then transfer that to your Clip+?  Seems like a lot of work.

Are audio books available preloaded on mini-smart cards?

Thanks for your help . . .

13

Loaded a book went to folders as advised. Works brilliantly I even managed to update the firmware thanks to the tip about the bin file being the only one required, I was trying to load the entire download. Makes me wonder who writes computer instructions - not you good people- I mean the so called experts. Or am I the only person in the world who does not know that when you download an update you only add one small part?

15

Just a quick note regarding updates to the firmware.  The Sansa firmware versions can be considered “portable”, or “standalone” depending upon how you look at it.  Firmware upgrades are not cumulative, meaning that you don’t need to add them in sequence like a Windows Update.

Each revision is a complete bin ary file containing all updates and functionalities.  You can swap between a current version or a previous version as you wish.

Now, about that audiobook question.  Audiobooks are currently available in one of two main venues, on CD, or via download.  It’s pretty amazing just how many CDs it can require to publish an unabridged edition, isn’t it!  This is because the audiobook is published for playback in a conventional CD player, using Red Book standard CD audio (cda) PCM sampled at 44.1 kHz, just like a music CD.

When the Compact Disc was envisioned, getting 70 minutes or so was a hurdle. It was really nice to be able to listen to classical music in one CD, packaged in one “jewel box”.  Pop music releases were much easier to fit in that single format, as an album is shorter than one would find in the classical music venue.

Times have changed, haven’t they?  Today, it’s safe to say that the mass market is downloads of MP3, AAC, or WMA format online.  The venerable CD format could use some “catching up”.  One can encode those files on the CD in MP3 format, allowing several hours, at the very least, on that common CD.  The problem is that portable CD players don’t all play this format.

As an audiobook publisher, I would look seriously into the more portable MP3 possibility, but the problem of media rights and protection against piracy rears its ugly head.  This is why library books are available through the NetLibrary and Overdrive formats as secure WMA files (requiring the Sansa to be connected in MTP mode for the transfer, with licenses).  Having the files in MP3 / WMA format makes loading your Sansa (or any portable digital player) much easier.

Audible has bypassed this problem by offering a great selection in .aa or .aax formats, with convenient chapter breaks.  I’ve gotten spoiled with Audible, as I love listening to books, and I hate abridged versions.

If you are transferring from an audiobook CD, you must “rip” the CD into a digital (compressed) format for your Sansa.  When doing this, you will run into the Big Problem:  the commercial CD tag libraries that Windows Media Player and other rippers use are geared towards music releases, and not audiobooks. 

 

One can end up with a gaggle of files that will not display correctly or won’t play in the correct order, a problem easily corrected by editing the ID3 tags embedded in each audio file.

To do this, prior to transferring the CD to your Sansa, use an ID3 tag editing utility like MP3Tag.  It appears complicated the first time you use it, but the Auto Numbering Wizard is very powerful, correcting the track numbers for you in one pass.  It’s very important, listening to a murder mystery, that after listening to Chapter 1, the player doesn’t zip to Chapter 14, and whodunnit is revealed!

Bob  :smileyvery-happy:

16

Wow, Milkerman, not for nothing do you carry the label SanDisk Guru.

More than enough info to get me started, & thx for the tip re: libraries.  I’m a big user of libraries.

Thanks.

18

For free audio books, try your public library.  It is surprising the number of libraries out there that offer this service.  All you need is a library card

19

@prinyerscove wrote:

For free audio books, try your public library.  It is surprising the number of libraries out there that offer this service.  All you need is a library card

Shhhh . . . music CD’s too. :stuck_out_tongue:

20

prinyerscove wrote:

For free audio books, try your public library.  It is surprising the number of libraries out there that offer this service.  All you need is a library card

Sssshhhh . . . don’t tell anybody, but they have music CD’s & DVD’s too.

21

There are thousands of classic books that can be downloaded for free in MP3 format at librivox.org.  Only books that are in the public domain are in their catalog.

22

You can  buy them online from major book stores or download them from your local library.  They are usually WMA or MP3 files.   The CLIP plays them better than the CLIP+ wich has rewind issues.  

 Make sure to copy the files to the Audiobook folder listed under MUSIC.  You will may not see that folder in WINXP Media Player, so just use the file manager  (Explorer) to copy and paste.

 Also you must have the lastest  Media Player version loaded to verify the file license. (DRM) If the file plays on your computer it should play on your CLIP.  Note: library books won’t play on the miniSD card for the clip.