Regular readers already know that I recently switched from using XMPlay to AIMP2 which provides the better total package. One of the interesting functions of AIMP2 is to record Internet radio (yes XMPlay can do that as well). It took a while to find out how this function could be enabled in the player and this article should act as a guideline to everyone who wants to use the music player to record Internet radio.
The first step is to find an Internet radio station. The Shoutcast directory should provide something for every music taste on the planet. A simple click on Tune In should load the stream in AIMP2 if it is configured to play the playlist files of Internet radio. Since we have to configure one setting in the music player’s option anyway I show you how to make AIMP2 the default player for the playlist files first. Once that is done we are going to configure the options to save Internet radio in a proper format and select a directory on the hard drive.
Pressing [CTRL P] after starting AIMP2 will open the player’s options. Selecting the Associations entry under System will bring up the various compatible file types the player can play. If AIMP2 is your default player you can simple click on the Enable All button to associate all file types with AIMP2. The important file type for Internet radio is .pls which you find at the bottom.
AIMP2 should now start playing the Internet radio whenever you click on a link that leads to an Internet radio playlist. Now head over to the Streaming menu under Player.
You have to pick a folder where the music from the Internet radio station will be saved in. A directory of the data will automatically be added in the root directory. The second option is about the format of the recorded music. The default is wave which takes up lots of space on the hard drive. A better option would be to select mp3 as the format. Either 192 or 256 Kbit should be good choices. Other choices are ogg or flac.
Now that the settings have been made it is time to start the recording. The recording option is only available in the main client and not in the minimal client. You can start the recording by clicking on Radio Cap on the left side of the player. A blinking text indicates that the player is recoding the music.
Users who would like to record more than one station at a time might want to take a look at Streamripper instead.
Related posts:
The best way to record Internet Radio streamsRecord more than 4000 internet radio stations
Record Multiple Internet Radio Stations
Record and Save more than 350 Internet Radio Stations
Record MP3 Streams with Screamer Radio
I like recording directly off of Screamer Radio program.
Thanks for this review Martin. I agree, AIMP2 is an exceptional player, I’ve made it as well my default audio “renderer”, because it does render audio so nicely ! And associated utilities, just to mention the Audio Library, are just so convenient. A great job.
Been using StationRipper for record internet radio – has the advantage that it records both Shoutcast + Web 2.0 stuff (like Pandora.com and Last.fm)
=L=
Thanks for the heads up,Martin.
I’ve ben looking for a replacement of WMP.Wayyyyyyy to long.AIMP2 along with your help has made this a kick ass program!