CD mastering help - dividing tracks

[tallman]

I'm looking for a good CD mastering program that will allow me to take a single 16 bit wav file containing an entire album (including track transitions and so forth) and simply place markers where the track count should advance. I'd also like to be able to place music before the "track 1" marker (for hidden tracks).

Does anyone know what software does this easily?

[Blue Bear Sound]

CD Architect is excellent..........

[Massive Master]

If the newer version of CD Architect doesn't write before the first track marker, WaveLab 4 or newer will. Keep in mind that you're playing fast and loose with RedBook standards by doing this - There are a lot of CD players out there that will argue with you by hiding a track inside the pre-gap, and many others that will argue if that pre-gap isn't precisely 150 frames.

[tallman]

I'm happy as long as most recent (post 1995) CD players can play the audio in track 1 and later.

I'm curious how many commercial albums have hidden secret tracks before track one. I only have first hand experience with one. Blind Melon "soup".

I will check out audio-architect first. their feature listed as "create live-albums" sounds promising for placing track markers.

[Massive Master]

1995 is going to be pushing it... There are still several modern players that won't play them also. Not just the hidden track - The whole disc. Other times, it'll just depend on "what mood" the player is in. I have a deck here that I test CD's that stretch the standards on - Sometimes it works, other times it fails - On the same disc.

[tallman]

My guitar player has been so annoyed with the recent mucking with the red-book standards. No CD's with those new "copy-protection" markings will play in his van CD played. Interestingly enough, it's done nothing to prevent me from copying them.

Perhaps the labels are being paid off by the CD player manufacturers. Well, that's an entirely different discussion.

Thanks for your help.