# Blu-ray/DVD ripper for OS X Catalina? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 2, 2019, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258 "2019-12-02T01:05:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/1 "2019-12-02T01:05:47Z")
Question in the title. šŸ™‚ Currently using Handbrake, but after an upgrade from a much older version it stopped unencrypting. Does not have to be free- would just like something that works. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/2 "2019-12-02T01:24:17Z")
DVDFab has a free trial: [https://www.dvdfab.cn/blu-ray-ripper-for-mac.htm?trackID=productpage](https://www.dvdfab.cn/blu-ray-ripper-for-mac.htm?trackID=productpage) and is required for some of the new copy protection schemes. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/3 "2019-12-02T01:31:49Z")
BTW, AFAIK Handbrake doesnā€™t just rip which by definition is an exact bit for bit copy of the video contents of the DVD/Blu-Ray. It rips and encodes, losing quality. A rip can only be to an .iso container or individual files identical to the DVD/Blu-Ray structure or remuxed (i.e. ripped and placed without encoding) into a container like .mkv or .mp4. MakeMKV can do that on a PC, but is not available for Mac OS. I recommend heading over to [videohelp.com](http://videohelp.com) and posting in the Mac forum for better advice on ripping software for Mac (of which there are very few). ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/4 "2019-12-02T01:49:07Z")
You probably need to upgrade [libdvdcss](https://www.macxdvd.com/mac-dvd-video-converter-how-to/handbrake-libdvdcss-error-fixed-windows-mac.htm) to 64-bit. If you donā€™t want to go through that, you can try a commercial program - I use this program: [https://www.macdvdripperpro.com](https://www.macdvdripperpro.com) ---
**Author:** ![sweepkick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@sweepkick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweepkick)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/5 "2019-12-02T07:48:26Z")
MakeMKV is available for OSX. I use it exclusively to rip my BDs (and DVDs, for that matter) to lossless MKV format. > **[MakeMKV - Download](https://www.makemkv.com/download/)** > > MakeMKV - software to convert blu-ray and dvd to mkv ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/6 "2019-12-02T13:16:31Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > BTW, AFAIK Handbrake doesnā€™t just rip which by definition is an exact bit for bit copy of the video contents of the DVD/Blu-Ray. It rips and encodes, losing quality. Possibly a hijack, but Iā€™ve always understood [ripping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripping) to include re-encoding or format shifting. For example, when ripping a CD, the result is often a collection of MP3 files. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/7 "2019-12-02T17:24:56Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Possibly a hijack, but Iā€™ve always understood [ripping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripping) to include re-encoding or format shifting. For example, when ripping a CD, the result is often a collection of MP3 files. Itā€™s confusing especially with programs like those that as you say will ā€œripā€ to say .mp3. But if you think about it logically, to get a .cda (the format the data in a CD is stored in) to .mp3 requires encoding and is no longer an exact copy of the original. So the program is ripping AND encoding as a two step process. Same with programs that convert the contents of a DVD or Blu-Ray to another format. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/8 "2019-12-02T17:34:39Z")
If ripping is defined as ā€œre-encoding or format shiftingā€ then what would the process of creating an exact bit for bit copy of the contents of a DVD or Blu-Ray be called? Maybe cloning, but thatā€™s reserved for copying non-optical storage. ---
**Author:** ![MindsEye\_Watering](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindseye_watering/32/3619_2.png) [@MindsEye\_Watering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MindsEye_Watering)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/9 "2019-12-02T19:12:55Z")
> [@sweepkick](#): > > MakeMKV is available for OSX. I use it exclusively to rip my BDs (and DVDs, for that matter) to lossless MKV format. > > [MakeMKV - Download](https://www.makemkv.com/download/) This. Makemkv works well, and itā€™s free. When I want to reduce the resulting file size a bit, I use Handbrake, also free. Iā€™ve used both of those to rip/transfer several hundred blu-ray and DVDs to my network attached storage server. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/10 "2019-12-02T19:16:55Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Possibly a hijack, but Iā€™ve always understood [ripping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripping) to include re-encoding or format shifting. For example, when ripping a CD, the result is often a collection of MP3 files. Nah. ā€œRippingā€ is transferring from optical media to a file. If I copy a CD to my hard drive, itā€™s still ā€œrippingā€ it if the copies are MP3, AIFF or Apple Lossless. ---
**Author:** ![MindsEye\_Watering](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindseye_watering/32/3619_2.png) [@MindsEye\_Watering](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MindsEye_Watering)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/11 "2019-12-02T19:23:50Z")
ETA: Makemkv is free to use for 30 days, then costs $50 for a ā€œforeverā€ license. Worth every penny to me. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/12 "2019-12-02T19:54:03Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Nah. > ā€œRippingā€ is transferring from optical media to a file. > If I copy a CD to my hard drive, itā€™s still ā€œrippingā€ it if the copies are MP3, AIFF or Apple Lossless. Right. But if the ā€œcopiesā€ are MP3, or anything other than the original format of the optical disc, some encoding was involved. And I always understood any such encoding to be part of the ripping process. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/13 "2019-12-02T20:24:57Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > If ripping is defined as ā€œre-encoding or format shiftingā€ then what would the process of creating an exact bit for bit copy of the contents of a DVD or Blu-Ray be called? Copying. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/14 "2019-12-02T20:44:43Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > Copying. IMHO, only if itā€™s to the same medium. Otherwise itā€™s still ripping. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/15 "2019-12-02T21:18:27Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > IMHO, only if itā€™s to the same medium. > Otherwise itā€™s still ripping. Iā€™m cool with that. But if you are copying a DVD to another DVD, you consider that ā€œcopyingā€ but if you do the exact same process with your computer hard drive as the destination, you consider that ā€œrippingā€? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2019, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/16 "2019-12-02T21:37:02Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > Iā€™m cool with that. But if you are copying a DVD to another DVD, you consider that ā€œcopyingā€ but if you do the exact same process with your computer hard drive as the destination, you consider that ā€œrippingā€? Yep. ETA: But, itā€™s one of those terms that doesnā€™t have an exact definition. And, the distinction between creating an AIFF file and an exact bit-copy of a disc are pretty academic, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2019, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/17 "2019-12-03T05:38:49Z")
Iā€™m a dinosaur and remember the days before .mp3 and when copying a movie DVD could take days or weeks as each frame was copied and served to your hard drive (that is if you had the space!). I know and stand by the original definition of rip which is an exact bit for bit copy of the data from an optical disc. Ripping is required for CDs because the data is contained in a .cda container. There is a bit of truth that ripping a CD entails a format conversion from the data contained in the .cda to .wav, which is an exact bit for bit copy of the data contained in the .cda less the protection overhead. While the contents of a copy protected DVD and Blu-Ray can be copied, it canā€™t be played properly because of the protection. Ripping with a program designed to remove the copy protection, give you an exact bit for bit copy of the video/audio data contained in the .vob (DVD) or .ts (Blu-Ray) container less the copy protection. Rip and ripping have been bastardized from itā€™s original definition and Iā€™ll live you youngā€™uns to define it as you will. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2019, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/18 "2019-12-03T06:01:14Z")
Dinosaur history from a dinosaur. Read these articles about DeCSS (the hack that was need to rip DVDs) and Dod Dvd Speed Ripper (one of the first DVD rip programs) and note there is no mention of encoding to another format. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeCSS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeCSS) [http://dod-dvd-speed-ripper.wikiverse.org/](http://dod-dvd-speed-ripper.wikiverse.org/) Okay, going back to playing with rocks! šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![sweepkick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@sweepkick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweepkick)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2019, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/19 "2019-12-03T07:26:35Z")
> [@MindsEye\_Watering](#): > > ETA: > Makemkv is free to use for 30 days, then costs $50 for a ā€œforeverā€ license. Worth every penny to me. There may be a time when the author does start enforcing this, but for the forseeable future heā€™s been keeping license keys updated at the following link: [https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1053](https://www.makemkv.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1053) I purchased a permanent license last year because I had already been using it a couple of years and had gotten a great deal of value out of it in ripping my 800+ DVD and BD library to my media server. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2019, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258/20 "2019-12-04T04:28:21Z")
I always forget thatā€™s available for Mac now. Last two bullets on the front page: [ul] [li]Functionality to open DVD discs is free and will always stay free.[/li][li]All features (including Blu-ray decryption and processing) are free during BETA.[/li][/ul] [https://www.makemkv.com/forum/search.php?keywords=makemkv+free](https://www.makemkv.com/forum/search.php?keywords=makemkv+free) Itā€™s been in Beta since at least 2010 and there is no indication of it ever being out of Beta. I also purchased the license to support the author. The only advantage, other than the warm fuzzy wuzzies, is that your key is permanent. You never have to get a new one when thereā€™s an update. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blu-ray-dvd-ripper-for-os-x-catalina/844258.md?page=2)