freeTunes 5 — Help

freeTunes runs on Windows 10 and Windows 11 as well as on macOS from Monterey (12). On Windows, 64-bit Intel/AMD and ARM 64-bit are natively supported, on macOS Apple Silicon and Intel — the installer automatically detects your architecture. For CD functions, you need a drive that your system recognizes; a USB drive is sufficient.

15 days with full functionality — without registration and without payment data. You can see how many days are left at any time in the top right of the program window. After this period, the view and settings remain usable; a license key is then required for conversion, ripping, burning, and recording.

freeTunes is signed with an EV code signing certificate. For the first installations, Microsoft SmartScreen may still display a precautionary warning because the reputation for a new program version still needs to be built up. Click "More information" in the warning and then "Run anyway". After several thousand installations, this warning will disappear on its own.

This is normal for programs downloaded from the internet. freeTunes is notarized by Apple — confirm the notice once, after that the program will start without further prompting.

For recording, macOS additionally asks for permission to record audio. Without this permission, the recording will be silent. You can find the setting under System Settings → Privacy & Security.

On Windows in %AppData%\com.engelmann.freetunes\, on macOS in ~/Library/Application Support/com.engelmann.freetunes/. The log file freetunes.log is also located there, provided you have enabled logging.

No — and that's by design. If you start freeTunes a second time, the already open window will come to the front. This prevents two copies from simultaneously writing to the same settings or accessing the same drive.

Nine formats are available as targets: MP3, AAC, FLAC, ALAC, Opus, OGG, WAV, AIFF and M4B (audiobook with chapter markers).

All common audio and video files serve as sources. freeTunes automatically extracts the audio track from videos — practical if you only want to keep the music.

Drag any number of files or an entire folder into the window. freeTunes processes the list and can handle multiple tracks simultaneously — you can adjust the number of parallel operations in the settings. On computers with many processor cores, this significantly reduces waiting time.

Using the naming scheme. The placeholders {artist}, {album}, {title} and {track} are available. A preview below the field immediately shows what the result will look like. Without a custom scheme, freeTunes retains the original file name.

Enable loudness normalization according to the broadcast standard EBU R128. The audio track itself remains unchanged: the normalization is stored as additional information in the file and is respected by most playback programs. This means there is no loss of quality, and you can remove the normalization at any time.

Insert the CD and select Rip CD. freeTunes reads the table of contents and automatically retrieves album, artist, and track names from the music databases MusicBrainz and gnudb. Then, you select the format and destination folder as usual.

Multiple drives are supported: you can rip from one drive while the next CD is already waiting in another.

In this operating mode, freeTunes reads each track multiple times and compares the passes using a checksum. If a pass deviates, it is reported instead of silently accepting the read error. The process therefore takes about twice as long — it's worth it for scratched or older CDs.

Not every CD is registered in the music databases — this primarily applies to self-produced and very rare releases. In this case, you can manually enter the album, artist, and title before you begin ripping.

Audio CD: plays in any CD player, including in the car. Your tracks are automatically converted to the appropriate format (16 bit, 44.1 kHz, stereo). Depending on the type, approximately 74 to 80 minutes fit on a blank disc.

MP3 CD: holds many times more music. The tracks are numbered sequentially so that car radios play them in the correct order. This requires a device that supports MP3 CDs.

Select the desired tracks, click Burn, and choose Audio or MP3 CD. Select your drive from the list — for multiple burners, the respective device name will be displayed there. The occupancy display will show you in advance whether the selection fits on the blank disc. You will then see the progress as a percentage.

Tip: Insert the blank disc before opening the burn window, or wait a moment — freeTunes continuously checks the drive and indicates as soon as it has recognized the disc.

In most cases, the blank disc is already written to or finalized. An audio CD requires an empty blank disc; rewritable CD-RWs must be erased beforehand.

Also, close all windows where the CD is open. As long as another program is accessing the disc, writing is not possible — freeTunes will notify you with a plain text message in this case.

In a simulation, the drive goes through the entire process without turning on the laser — the blank disc remains unwritten. This is suitable for checking if your selection fits. Not every drive supports this mode of operation; it is not available on Windows, where freeTunes will inform you accordingly.

freeTunes records what is playing on your computer — including audio from streaming services, media libraries, internet radio, or video portals. You select the audio source, start the recording, and play your music.

If desired, recording can start automatically as soon as audio is present and stop after an extended period of silence — so you don't have to sit there.

Yes. If freeTunes detects a track change, it splits the recording at that point and takes the title and artist from the information that the playback program reports to the operating system. Additionally, tracks can be determined later via an acoustic fingerprint — helpful for internet radio without clean title information.

For a fixed order and clean folder structure, use the Playlist Template.

Recording your own playback is permitted in Germany as a private copy according to § 53 UrhG. freeTunes exclusively records the audio that is already playing through your speakers, and does not circumvent any copy protection.

Please use the recordings exclusively for private purposes and do not share them. The terms of use of some streaming services may contain their own regulations, and the legal situation may differ in other countries.

So that your recordings don't end up as "Part 01, Part 02". freeTunes matches each recording with your list and automatically assigns a number, clean file name, and a separate folder with the playlist name — regardless of the order in which you actually played the tracks.

In the recording bar, click Template. Three options are available:

• Deezer Link: Paste the address of a public playlist, click Load, done.
• Paste track list: one line per track in the format "Artist - Title". Leading numbers are recognized.
• Load file: CSV, M3U or a simple text file.

In the template window, you can always see which tracks have already been assigned. The button also shows the counter.

Yes — by exporting to a file. Export your playlist using an export tool of your choice as a CSV file and load it into freeTunes. This works regardless of which service you use, as freeTunes only reads your own file.

freeTunes compares loosely and ignores additions such as "(Live)" or "feat.". If no match is found, the recording retains its original name — so nothing is lost. You can then rename the track manually.

Through the cover search. freeTunes searches MusicBrainz, the Cover Art Archive, iTunes, and Deezer and shows you the results to choose from. Alternatively, you can select an image from your hard drive.

Yes, with Automatic. freeTunes groups the selected tracks by album, searches once for each album, and applies the appropriate image to all associated tracks. At the end, you'll see how many tracks were successfully covered.

freeTunes combines the files into a continuous audiobook in M4B format and creates chapter markers. This way, your playback device remembers where you left off. Very long recordings can also be automatically divided into chapters at speech pauses.

It writes your music to a USB stick in the desired order — with short file names and a flat folder structure. This allows even older car devices, which have problems with long names or nested folders, to handle them. If desired, the volume is adjusted at the same time.

After purchase, you will receive an email with your license key in the format FTU-STD-DIR-XXXXX-XXXXX-CC. In the program, click Activate in the top right, copy the key from the email into the input field, and confirm. Activation is done online via app.engelmann.com.

That depends on the purchased version: there is freeTunes for one device and for three devices. If you switch devices, you can release old devices in your customer account at engelmann.com/account — your license will not be lost.

With your purchase, you receive all new program versions for free for 12 months. After this period, the version you last installed will remain fully functional indefinitely — only newer versions will no longer be delivered.

Common causes:

• Typo: Copy the key directly from the purchase confirmation if possible. Confusion between 0 and O is the most common cause.
• Check internet connection: Activation requires an active connection to app.engelmann.com.
• Device limit reached: Release an old device in your customer account.
• Firewall: Some corporate firewalls block app.engelmann.com. If necessary, your administrator can unblock this domain.

If this does not help, please enable the log in the settings, repeat the process, and send us the file.

freeTunes checks for a newer version in the background at most once a day. If one is available, a subtle notification appears in the program. Before each installation, the checksum and code signature are verified to ensure that no manipulated package can be installed.

The authenticity check cannot be disabled — it is part of the security architecture. However, you can temporarily postpone a notification for a new version. Security-related updates cannot be skipped.

We follow the scheme 5.YY.MMDD.HH. Example: 5.26.0723.14 corresponds to a release from July 23, 2026. You can find the exact version in the program under About freeTunes.

None by default. Your music files never leave your computer — all conversion, recording, and burning processes run exclusively locally.

Data transfers only occur in clearly defined cases: during activation (key, a randomly generated device ID, operating system version), during update checks, and when retrieving title information and cover images, if you use these functions.

These are disabled by default. If you enable them in the settings, only technical information is transmitted: program version, language, and which functions are used — never file names, file contents, license keys, or personal data. You can change your decision at any time.

At engelmann.com/policies/privacy-policy — also linked directly from the program.

Allow the drive a few seconds to spin up. Blank discs are not mounted by the operating system as data carriers — this is normal and not an error. If the display remains empty, check whether the drive appears in the system and whether another program is accessing it.

Copy-protected tracks from online stores cannot be converted — freeTunes does not bypass copy protection. In this case, use the recording of the playback.

Conversion also aborts with damaged files. Check if the file can be opened in a playback program.

First, check if the correct audio source is selected. On macOS, additional authorization under System Preferences → Privacy & Security is required. Also, make sure that playback is actually running and not muted.

Enable logging in the settings, repeat the process, and open the file via the button in the settings. It is located at %AppData%\com.engelmann.freetunes\freetunes.log (Windows) or ~/Library/Application Support/com.engelmann.freetunes/freetunes.log (macOS).

The log does not contain any personal data and can be safely sent to our support.

Since freeTunes accesses audio devices and optical drives, some antivirus programs flag it heuristically. Our signed setup is gradually learned by reputation filters. You can safely add freeTunes to the exception list. If you have a specific suspicion, please send us the name of the antivirus software manufacturer and the exact warning message.