You’ve downloaded a show or two from DimeADozen and now you want to convert the ape files to mp3 to take with you on your iPod or MP3 player. This tutorial will walk you through the steps to do just that, using OS X. note: this is another tutorial in the Beginners guide to lossless audio series.

First things first, make sure you’ve downloaded and installed Max, an application for creating and converting high-quality audio files in various formats. Not only is Max straight forward to use, it’s free.

1. After you’ve installed Max (which is very straight forward, just drag it to your Applications folder) - launch it.


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2. Select File and then Convert Files.. from the top menu.



3. Navigate to the .ape files you want to convert to .mp3 and select them. Click Open.


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4. From the bottom of the Max window, click Setup output formats…



5. Click the Formats tab from the top window, and in the list of Available output formats: double-click on MP3.


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6. From here you can select the quality of the MP3 files that Max will create. The default, Transparent, is what I use - but feel free to make any changes you feel are appropriate. Click OK when you’re done.


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7. Back in the Formats window, make sure there’s a check in the box next to MP3.


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8. Now select the Output tab from the top menu. Choose a location to save your MP3 files from the Output files: drop down list. When you’re done, close the Output window and return to the main Max interface.


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9. If everything looks good, click the Convert button…


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10. And watch the .ape files magically convert to mp3.


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11. When it’s done, give your mp3 files a listen to make sure everything went smoothly. That’s it!