The process of converting compact disc audio into the Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC) format involves specialized applications. These programs extract the digital audio data from a CD and encode it into a FLAC file. As an example, one might use such a program to archive a collection of CDs in a high-fidelity, space-efficient format.
This conversion process is important for preserving audio quality while reducing file size compared to uncompressed formats like WAV. Benefits include archival integrity, metadata support for tagging information such as artist and album, and the ability to restore the original audio CD quality from the FLAC file. Historically, this became prevalent as digital storage became more affordable and high-fidelity audio systems gained popularity.
