[PATCH] Output AAC as M4A for iTunes with metadata tags (Shevek)

[bat guano]

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> Subject: [PATCH] Output AAC as M4A for iTunes with metadata tags (Shevek)
> From: richard at richsim900.plus.com
> To: get_iplayer at lists.infradead.org
> Date: Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:54:05 +0100
>
> On 28 March 2011 Jon Davies wrote:
>
> >
> > What if your marantz cd player doesn't understand the atom that
> > contains the thumbnail (which is added AtomicParsley in Shevek's
> > patch), and it spends 25s trying to play this as audio, failing to
> > decode and hence playing mute instead?
>
> My test showed that not to be the case. I commented out the line in
> Sheveks patch which adds the thumbnail:
>
> > push @cmd, "--artwork", $prog->{thumbfile} if -f $prog->{thumbfile};
>
> I think I've found what EasyTag does to change an m4a file to make it
> playable.
>
> In EasyTag the box headed MP4/AAC/File shows a default m4a file
> (get_iplayer m4a file) with a bitrate of ~0 kb/s (which is incorrect).
> If you save the default m4a file (without changing anything) EasyTag
> asks whether you want to write to the tag (although you have not made
> any changes). Click Yes. Exit EasyTag. Open EasyTag and go to the
> default m4a file and the bitrate changes to ~128 kb/s and the file size
> has changed (increased).
>

@ richard
Does your Marantz CD6003 play other (non BBC) m4a files that you create yourself without modifying the tags?
Using ffmpeg commands like this:-
ffmpeg <filename> -acodec libfaac output.m4a