What are some CD Ripping Programs you can use on Ubuntu?

Ubuntu Default CD Ripping Software :

To rip a CD, you will require a suitable CD-ripping application. One is installed by default on Ubuntu, and there are others available through Ubuntu's software channels, as reported in the Ubuntu Documentation.

Sound Juicer

Sound Juicer is Ubuntu's default CD-ripping application, and also has the ability to play your CDs and download track data from the Internet.

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To rip a CD using Sound Juicer, simply insert an audio CD; Sound Juicer should start automatically. Alternatively, you can select Sound Juicer from Applications -> Sound & Video -> Audio CD Extractor. By default, the CD will be encoded into the OggVorbis format, a Free Format. If you wish to rip a CD to a non-free format such as MP3 or AAC, you will need to install some additional software.

Kubuntu Default CD Ripping Software :

There are two methods of ripping an Audio CD in a default installation of Kubuntu. One is using Konqueror's audiocd:/ KIO-slave and the other is KaudioCreator (KMenu->Multimedia->KaudioCreator). On inserting the Audio CD, you should be presented with the KDE Audio CD Daemon asking you what you wish to do. To use the KIO-slave method (which is relatively easier), select the 'Open in a new Window' option. Or, if you prefer using KAudioCreator, select the Extract and Encode Audio tracks option.

Using audiocd:/ to rip a CD

In Konqueror's location bar, type audiocd:/ and press enter. You should now see the tracks in the CD along with folders named Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, MP3 etc. Click on the folder which corresponds to the format in which you wish to encode, eg. Ogg Vorbis.

Now, copy the tracks that you need from that folder and paste it in the desired location (/home/kubuntu in the example). The tracks are automagically ripped, encoded and copied to the location you specified!

Note: Copying speeds might not be as fast as those achieved when copying a file directly from the CD as the files are also being ripped and encoded. If you wish to modify some of the settings (like editing the tagging sytax or modifying the encoding settings), you can access it either through System Settings (KMenu->System Settings->Sound and Multimedia->Audio CD) or through KDE Control Center (kcontrol).

Using KAudioCreator

Launch KaudioCreator (Kmenu->Multimedia->KaudioCreator). It should automatically display the tracks in the disc. You can modify the settings to suit your needs (Settings->Configure KaudioCreator), and also choose an encoder. Click on the Rip Selection icon to start the Ripping and encoding process.

Other CD Ripping Software : In alphabetical order.

ABCDE

Those who want a no-nosense, fast, customizable ripping solution should try ABCDE.

And example conversion from CD to AAC/MP4:

abcde -a cddb,read,encode,tag,move,playlist,clean -d /dev/cdrom -o m4a -V -x

Asunder

Asunder is an easy-to-use, plain CD ripper that converts into MP3, OGG, FLAC, WAV, and the new open codec WavPack. Asunder is in the Ubuntu repository and can be installed with Synaptic or Software Center.

Grip

I have been using Grip until Edgy. It's very easy to use but still very configurable.

Note: Grip is no longer supported by its developers, or by Debian or Ubuntu. It has been removed from the repositories in Ubuntu 9.10.

Ripper X

To install:

sudo apt-get install ripperx

RubyRipper

RubyRipper has been recommended in many forum threads and seems to be one of Linux's best ripping solutions. Also, many feel the closest to EAC in quality of rips.

RubyRipper is not included in the default Ubuntu install and is not included in any of the repositories. Fortunately there is a DEB package available.

To install:

1.Install dependencies by typing in the terminal:

sudo apt-get install cd-discid cdparanoia flac lame mp3gain normalize-audio ruby-gnome2 ruby vorbisgain

2.Download the DEB package from here and follow the instructions.

Alternate install:

Open a terminal window and type:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:aheck/ppa
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install rubyripper
sudo apt-get install rubyripper-gtk

Well, rhythmbox itself is able to rip CDs and get album data from the MusicBrainz database.

If you insert a CD, a CD icon appears in the Rhythmbox's side bar at the left. Right click it and choose "Extract to library". Make sure to have the format set to the one you want (probably MP3): Edit -> Preferences -> Music -> Preferred Format.

In the current version, 3.3 (on Ubuntu 16.10), rather than right-clicking the CD icon, you click the "Extract" button in the main window.


The current CD rippers in Ubuntu are terrible. The least worst CD Ripper for Linux is the venerable k3b

Why it is the best:

  • you can set a high paranoia level to correct scratch errors reading your CD. Set to 3 for the best correction (as good as Exact Audio Copy)
  • it queries MusicBrainz and FreeDB and CDTEXT
  • you have the most sophisticated options of path and filename configurationn
  • You can easily configure a variable bitrate and it will obey what you configured (I'm looking at you SoundJuicer and RhythmBox)
  • Accents are correctly saved in file names and metadata (Take that RubyRipper!)

Why it is not good:

  • If your CD isn't in MusicBrainz or FreeDB, there's no easy way to submit it. SoundJuicer is better in this point.
  • it won't record the track number in your MP3 metadata, so won't be able to listen the CD as the artist intended. You must go to "MP3 (lame)" configuration and add --tn %n option. Since you are there, also add the option --tv TPE2=%r to get Album Artist metadata recorded.
  • you can't freely write in the genre field, you are subjected to FreeDB limited and American centric selection
  • It is inefficient to edit track and artists names, you have to go to the field and click F2 to edit each field
  • every time you start to rip you must remember to click "load saved configurations", or you will have your ripped files in an undesired format. K3b has a weird config option. In Misc → Default action dialog setting, you must select "saved setting". It doesn't display the last one used by default.
  • no cover art (Clementine usually takes care of that)

Remember that you'll need to install KDE libs to use it.