VinylStudio AAC Files and iTunes 12.9.4

[Paul Sanders (AlpineSoft)]

It has come to our attention that iTunes 12.9.4 (as supplied with Mojave 10.14.4 and on Windows) cannot read AAC files created by VinylStudio.  We know why this is and will update our software as soon as possible but as it affects tracks already in your iTunes music library that may not be sufficient.

We therefore plan to:

• provide a utility to fix tracks saved by VinylStudio that are already in your music library
• log a bug report with Apple (there's nothing actually wrong with the files)

In the short term, please save your tracks in Apple Lossless format and convert them to AAC in iTunes.  Sorry for any inconvenience.

Update, 14-May-2019:

Apple have fixed this in Mac OS Mojave 10.14.5 / iTunes 12.9.5.  We will therefore not be releasing this utility after all.

[ve4jhj]

The developers of Audacity are also dealing  with this problem. Are you able to share details with them on what the specific problem is, so they can also fix the issue, since Apple seems unwilling to do so?

[Paul Sanders (AlpineSoft)]

Hi,

The problem arises when the stts atom contains more that 1 entry.  Please feel free to pass this information on.

[ve4jhj]

Thanks, I will pass it on.

[Paul Sanders (AlpineSoft)]

I have reported this to Apple via Apple's bugreporter, ID 49673283, along with a sample file which will not play.

[karltaylor]

Thanks for promising to help us make our Vinyl Studio recordings accessible again by itunes.  Two questions:
1) any estimate on when your utility might become available?
2) What's the link at Apple where we might be most effective in filing a complaint about the OS and itunes updates that created this problem?

[Paul Sanders (AlpineSoft)]

1.  It should be out next week.

2.  There is some discussion in this thread:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250269935

Although this is about iTunes for Windows, iTunes on the Mac suffers from the same problem.

[karltaylor]

With a cursory test just now, it appears that a Mac OS Mojave 10.14.5 update and itunes 12.9.5.5 update has corrected the problem.  Thanks for your own efforts to address the problem.

[Perry A]

I just downloaded the Mojave/iTunes update (iTunes 12.9.5.5) and am very happy to report that the several thousand songs that stopped playing (encoded with vinylstudio) are now playing once again. It's been about two months of wondering if I'd lost all those songs - but tonight I am relieved. Life in the virtual world is not without its risks. Thanks karitaylor for the timley information.

[seanmcd]

I just updated to Mojave 10.14.5 and iTunes 12.9.5.5. Everything is back to normal.