{rw_text}Giveaway of the day for February 24, 2009 is:

MIDI to MP3 Converter

Version Reviewed:

1.1

Software description as per GOTD:

MIDI to MP3 converter quickly and easily converts your MIDI and karaoke files to mp3, ogg, wma and wav. The program has a simple and intuitive interface. The program supports batch processing. You will not need any special knowledge to be able to work with MIDI to MP3 converter. Just drag and drop the file you want to convert onto the program window, select the output format and click Start Conversion.

• Fast and simple to use
• Convert MIDI to MP3, WAV, WMA, OGG using SoundFonts
• Set MP3 tags for output files
• Batch process multiple files
• Support drag and drop MIDI files for conversion

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{rw_good}

• Simple, easy to use, and straightforward.
• Fast conversions.
• You can add ID3 tags.
• Supports multiple MIDI formats (.MIDI/.MID/.RMI/.KAR).
• Batch processing.
• You can drag + drop.
• Good quality of output files.

{/rw_good} –>

{rw_bad}

• Does not have WMA as advertised.
• Drag + Drop is done in a weird way.
• You can’t chose the name of your output file.
• Limited to MP3, WAV and OGG outputs.
• You can’t stop conversion once it starts.

{/rw_bad} –>

{rw_score}
{for=”Features as Described” value=”7″}I give this a 7 because it does not support WMA outputs.
{/for}
{for=”Ease of Use” value=”10″}Point, click, go.
{/for}
{for=”Usefulness” value=”7″}Being limited to only MIDI formats, not everyone will find this useful, but many will.
{/for}
{/rw_score} –>

{rw_verdict}[tupr]
{/rw_verdict} –>

Registration and installation went fine.

MIDI to MP3 Converter is yet another program by MediaVigor; the general problems with MediaVigor are, similarly, also present with this program. However, this time around MediaVigor has hit a smaller niche market by offering MIDI conversions as opposed to a general audio converter.

This is what the program looks like:

The interface is simple and straightforward. Click on “Add MIDI file(s)” to add your file. This program supports .MIDI, .MID, .RMI, and .KAR input formats, all which are MIDI formats in a sense. When browsing for MIDI files, you can select multiple files and add them at once to the program. You can also drag + drop files into the program. However note that if you try to drag + drop in the white box that lists the file names, drag + drop won’t work. However if you drag + drop anywhere else in the program, drag + drop will work. This is what I meant by “drag + drop is badly done”; yes I know, you must be thinking “what the hell?”.

Add as many files as you want to convert. Then go to the “Settings” tab where you can chose your output format (WAV, MP3, OGG), change the Hz and kbps, and add ID3 tags if you chose to convert to MP3 format:

After you are satisfied with your settings, go back to the “Convert” tab. If you would like to save your output file in a location other then the location of your input, uncheck “Save to the same folder” (located near the bottom of the program) and set your location:

Once you are ready, hit “Start Conversion”. Be sure that you are 100% sure you want to start the conversion because once you start it, there is no way to stop it unless you close the program. If you chose to convert into MP3 or OGG format, the conversion will start automatically. If you chose to convert to WAV format, you will be prompted with a window asking you for some more specifics concerning your WAV file:

From the “Name” drop down menu you can chose preset settings. “Save As…” is not to save your output file but rather to save a new profile under “Name”. If you don’t know what this window is talking about, just hit “OK”. The conversion will then start automatically. If by chance you hit “Cancel” at this window, the program will be ‘locked’ and you must close/reopen it.

Wait for your files to convert. MIDI to MP3 Converter converts files pretty quickly so you should not be waiting long. Once done, go enjoy your MIDI files. The output file sound quality is pretty good, all things considered. However, it is not perfect.

In the end, being a niche market, I have to give MIDI to MP3 Converter a thumbs up. However, there are still basic things that the developer needs to address:

• Either add WMA file support or stop advertising WMA file support.
• Fix drag + drop so that you can drag + drop into the most logical location – the file list.
• Allow the user to chose the name of the output file.
• Allow the user to stop the conversions once they start instead of having to close the program when they want to stop conversions.

In addition to the above, in order to make this program more competitive, I would suggest to the developer to add more then just MP3, WAV, and OGG output file support. Yes I understand that the program is called “MIDI to MP3 Converter” and therefore anything above MP3 format is more like a plus then a minus, but still, looking at the competition, this program lacks in this area.

{rw_freea}

Switch

Sound file converter for Windows or Mac. Convert audio files from many different file formats to mp3, wav or wma. For example convert wav to mp3, mp3 to wav, wma to mp3 or many other formats. Just add the files you want to convert, select the output format, and then click convert.

Switch is not simply an audio converter – it is the most comprehensive and stable sound file converter program around. You can convert your sound files into the formats you need to compress for storage, create ringtones, add to a presentation, listen on your portable device and much more. In fact, the possibilities are endless using this powerful audio converter. -Developer

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Switch has the ability to take .MID file as an input and output it as MP3. However I found this converter to be more slow and produces less quality output files as compared to MIDI to MP3 Converter.

WavePad

WavePad is an audacity like program, allowing you to edit sound files. However, it has Switch built into it, so if you are considering getting Switch, may as well go with WavePad since it has more features.

jetAudio

JetAudio is integrated multimedia software made up of a single compact rack. Not only does it play various music and video files, it also has features such as CD burning, recording, and conversion to other file formats. You can create your own Internet broadcast by using JetCast, provided with JetAudio, and you can play all major file formats, including WAV, MP3, MP3Pro, OGG, WMA, MPEG, AVI, WMV, MIDI, RM, and video and audio CD tracks. Convert among audio file formats, and record analog audio to various formats tag editing for MP3, OGG, and WMA files; sound effects including wide, reverb, and x-bass; multichannel sound output; speed control of audio playback; cross-fading for a smooth transition between two songs; a skinnable user interface; and synchronized lyrics display (karaoke) for MIDI and MP3 files.supports for video conversion for iAUDIO U3, supports ts,tp file extension, and includes video format converter to AVI. -Download.com

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This program looked promising until I found out the MIDI input files can’t be converted to MP3 output; however you can convert to other formats such as WAV, etc.

Spesoft Free Audio Converter

Spesoft Free Audio Converter is fast, stable, easy yet powerful software that allows you to convert between a large collection of audio file formats. You can convert from MP1, MP2, MP3, OGG, WMA, M4A/MP4/AAC/ALAC, FLAC, WAV, APE, WAVPACK, MUSEPACK, AIF/AIFF, MIDI/RMI, MO3/IT/XM/S3M,/MTM/MOD/UMX, CDA/Audio CD to MP3, MP4, OGG, FLAC, WAVPACK, APE, WMA, WAV AMR, MMF, AIFF, AU. Utilizes the best and latest audio libraries along with the .NET Framework. Handles corrupt and invalid files with ease, keeping track of failed files and notifying you only when the process is complete. Convert between a wide variety of formats, with options to change sample rate and channels. Convert MOD and MIDI files to any output format. Apply replay gain to all files. Also includes fast CD ripping with automatic tag look up.

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This is another program that looked promising until I found out that the MP3 files I made by converting MP3 files did not work. Maybe someone else can get them to work for them

{/rw_freea} –>

{rw_verdict2}MediaVigor still needs to work on their programming and address basic issues with not just MIDI to MP3 Converter but also their other programs. However, being aimed at more of a niche audience, there is not as much competition to this program as there would be if it was a general audio converting program and MIDI to MP3 Converter outperformed all the free alternatives I tried. Also, the pros of fast file conversion, batch processing and good output quality out weigh the cons. Therefore, I give MIDI to MP3 Converter a thumbs up and recommend it; MIDI to MP3 Converter is a keeper.
{/rw_verdict2} –>