6 ms·

Ask HN: Is there a Calibre equivalent for Audio books?

36 points by gtsnexp 4y ago

Hi All, I'm looking for a way to self-host and organise my collection of audio books. Any thoughts/suggestions?

filipecgarcia 4y ago
Prologue - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/prologue/id1459223267?ls=1 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/prologue/id1459223267?ls=1 for iOS works with plex and is my go to tool for the past 2 years
- cridenour 4y ago
  This needs to be reiterated. Prologue is so good I will buy a book on Audible and take the extra steps to pull it on to Plex so I can use Prologue.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
Tepix 4y ago
Having a trivial, reliable way to strip audiobooks of their DRM might tempt me to get Audible. Maybe it's better if i stay away from DRM.
- throwanem 4y ago
  I've had success with a tool called inAudible, but that's been years ago now and I've no idea whether it still works. I do quite like https://libro.fm https://libro.fm as a DRM-free audiobook store. They provide zipfile downloads, and also profit-share with a lot of local bookstores if you have one you'd like to support.
- Macha 4y ago
  https://audible-converter.ml/ https://audible-converter.ml/ Spits out the command to use ffmpeg locally or can transcode with a wasm compiled version. Note you need to use mp4 to preserve chapters, flac output doesn't seem to include them
  - ycombinete 4y ago
    The problem with a bunch of these systems is that they don't specify quality, and FFMPEG appears to default to 64kbps when a quality is not specified.
- captn3m0 4y ago
  My one-line bash script works well: https://github.com/captn3m0/Scripts/blob/master/audible-strip-drm https://github.com/captn3m0/Scripts/blob/master/audible-stri...
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - ycombinete 4y ago
    thank you I've been playing around with this idea today. Is there a reason that you use M4a instead of converting to something like mp3? Does m4a preserve the chapters or something? Also why do you use m4a instead of m4b?
    - captn3m0 4y ago
      * m4a because it doesn't need a re-encode. * it does preserve chapters and metadata, but audible doesn't do a good job of using them, except for chapter timestamps and even they are dicey often using m4a and splitting into separate files has some advantages * I can download and share single chapters, helpful for sending single chapters to friends. This is also way better for large books over slow internet connections. * songs are indexed better in my media server (Emby, Navidrome) m4b feels better for archival (1 file = 1 book), but I've found splitting into several files a better option for actual listening.
      - deleted 4y ago
        [deleted]
      - ycombinete 4y ago
        Do you have another script for separating out the chapters?
        captn3m0 4y ago
        I have 3, listed here: https://github.com/captn3m0/scripts https://github.com/captn3m0/scripts * split-audio-by-chapters (Based on metadata inside the AAX file) * split-by-audible (If audible doesn't provide splits in the m4a, but chapters are marked in the web/mobile player - you can copy the chapter listing and use this). See source for format. * split-by-silence (In some cases audible doesn't provide any chapters at all, and this is my last-ditch effort).
boolemancer 4y ago
There's audiobookshelf. https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf
zevon 4y ago
https://openaudible.org https://openaudible.org could be considered somewhat Calibre-like. If it's more about self-hosting, media servers like https://jellyfin.org https://jellyfin.org may be more interesting (although I wouldn't call those similar to Calibre).
- ycombinete 4y ago
  I found their confusing information about being open source quite irritating
- octopoc 4y ago
  I use them for downloading my Audible books. Then I decrypt them with ffmpeg: ffmpeg -activation_bytes XXXX -i audiobook.aax audiobook.mp3 It also supports decrypting but you have to pay for that.
yewenjie 4y ago
I have recently found Audiobookshelf which is pretty impressive. It still lacks some features (like Upload progress bar) and polish but is totally usable. https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf
mindracer 4y ago
I’ve been using Plex to host audiobooks works well enough https://github.com/seanap/Plex-Audiobook-Guide https://github.com/seanap/Plex-Audiobook-Guide
sniglom 4y ago
Maybe I will burn in hell for this, but I think iTunes does quite a good job with organizing audiobooks.
- sandreas 4y ago
  You at least have company on your journey... I also use iTunes as "backup" alternative for offline organisation (non-selfhosted) with a good old iPod classic, modified to carry 768GB of storage on a 2200mah battery. This is the best device I ever had in terms of Audio Quality, storage per size and user interface.
olvy0 4y ago
This isn't what you wanted, but I've been using the Podcast Republic app as a way to organize and listen to my (usually free) audiobooks. It's android only, so only on-device and not on PC. Its audiobook support is a bit obscure, it relies on creating what they call a "virtual podcast" based on the filesystem. But once you find it it's pretty simple and fits into their UI, and you can tag / catalog your audiobooks as much as you want. I also like its listening UI. It remembers where I last stopped and starts playing a configurable number of seconds before, remembers playback speed per book/podcast, remembers audio settings per book/podcast, has a car mode. I like it much better than Audible's UI. Like I said its organizing UI is also nice, although I use it less, I don't collect audiobooks on my mobile, due to the limited internal capacity.
sandreas 4y ago
I use m4b-tool[1], tone[2] and audiobookshelf[3] together with an LG G5 H850 smartphone[8] with Bang & Olufsen Hifi-Plus Module for Audio Only and I am pretty happy with this config. For Music I use Navidrome[5] and Substreamer App[7]. Maybe I'll try out Jellyfin[4] or maybe Plex[6], but I really don't wanna go closed source. I also thought about writing something self hosted in C# to have ONE solution for audiobooks, podcasts and music and started a small private project, but this will take a while until it is ready to release something... You may ask: Why an LG G5 H850? Well, its relatively small and cheap (about 50 - 80 bucks used) it has an audio Jack, USB-C, you can change the battery, it can hold up to 2TB microSD storage, has an HiFi Plus module for audio enthusiasts and a descent screen. Besides that it can run lineage os... Note: I'm the author of the first two projects :-) [1]: https://github.com/sandreas/m4b-tool https://github.com/sandreas/m4b-tool [2]: https://github.com/sandreas/tone https://github.com/sandreas/tone [3]: https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf [4]: https://jellyfin.org/ https://jellyfin.org/ [5]: https://www.navidrome.org/ https://www.navidrome.org/ [6]: https://www.plex.tv https://www.plex.tv [7]: https://substreamerapp.com/ https://substreamerapp.com/ [8]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_G5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_G5
- cridenour 4y ago
  Just wanted to say thank you for m4b-tool.
  - sandreas 4y ago
    You're welcome, glad you like it.
- JZL003 4y ago
  Cool that phone is a nice find. I also find having a separate audiobook phone nice (smaller, better battery life,no notifications when I'm 'reading'). But I went for the Samsung Galaxy S3 mini. It's really underpowered but super tiny so can fit in a pocket with my other phone, has a great battery life, and expandable sd card. I haven't paid for a 2tb sd card but a 512 gb works fine and is almost full now The Android app 'smart audiobook player' is a godsend, really thoughtful app. And you can use an equalizer to reduce high pitch tones which I find easier to listen to
Macha 4y ago
I just stick them in Jellyfin. It's not particularly well optimised for audiobooks, but it is nice having all my media in the same place (it also has my movies and music).

36 points by gtsnexp 4y ago

Hi All, I'm looking for a way to self-host and organise my collection of audio books. Any thoughts/suggestions?

Prologue - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/prologue/id1459223267?ls=1 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/prologue/id1459223267?ls=1 for iOS works with plex and is my go to tool for the past 2 years

cridenour 4y ago
This needs to be reiterated. Prologue is so good I will buy a book on Audible and take the extra steps to pull it on to Plex so I can use Prologue.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

Tepix 4y ago

Having a trivial, reliable way to strip audiobooks of their DRM might tempt me to get Audible. Maybe it's better if i stay away from DRM.

throwanem 4y ago
I've had success with a tool called inAudible, but that's been years ago now and I've no idea whether it still works. I do quite like https://libro.fm https://libro.fm as a DRM-free audiobook store. They provide zipfile downloads, and also profit-share with a lot of local bookstores if you have one you'd like to support.
Macha 4y ago
https://audible-converter.ml/ https://audible-converter.ml/ Spits out the command to use ffmpeg locally or can transcode with a wasm compiled version. Note you need to use mp4 to preserve chapters, flac output doesn't seem to include them
- ycombinete 4y ago
  The problem with a bunch of these systems is that they don't specify quality, and FFMPEG appears to default to 64kbps when a quality is not specified.
captn3m0 4y ago
My one-line bash script works well: https://github.com/captn3m0/Scripts/blob/master/audible-strip-drm https://github.com/captn3m0/Scripts/blob/master/audible-stri...
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- ycombinete 4y ago
  thank you I've been playing around with this idea today. Is there a reason that you use M4a instead of converting to something like mp3? Does m4a preserve the chapters or something? Also why do you use m4a instead of m4b?
  - captn3m0 4y ago
    * m4a because it doesn't need a re-encode. * it does preserve chapters and metadata, but audible doesn't do a good job of using them, except for chapter timestamps and even they are dicey often using m4a and splitting into separate files has some advantages * I can download and share single chapters, helpful for sending single chapters to friends. This is also way better for large books over slow internet connections. * songs are indexed better in my media server (Emby, Navidrome) m4b feels better for archival (1 file = 1 book), but I've found splitting into several files a better option for actual listening.
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
    - ycombinete 4y ago
      Do you have another script for separating out the chapters?
      - captn3m0 4y ago
        I have 3, listed here: https://github.com/captn3m0/scripts https://github.com/captn3m0/scripts * split-audio-by-chapters (Based on metadata inside the AAX file) * split-by-audible (If audible doesn't provide splits in the m4a, but chapters are marked in the web/mobile player - you can copy the chapter listing and use this). See source for format. * split-by-silence (In some cases audible doesn't provide any chapters at all, and this is my last-ditch effort).

boolemancer 4y ago

There's audiobookshelf. https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf

zevon 4y ago

https://openaudible.org https://openaudible.org could be considered somewhat Calibre-like. If it's more about self-hosting, media servers like https://jellyfin.org https://jellyfin.org may be more interesting (although I wouldn't call those similar to Calibre).

ycombinete 4y ago
I found their confusing information about being open source quite irritating
octopoc 4y ago
I use them for downloading my Audible books. Then I decrypt them with ffmpeg: ffmpeg -activation_bytes XXXX -i audiobook.aax audiobook.mp3 It also supports decrypting but you have to pay for that.

yewenjie 4y ago

I have recently found Audiobookshelf which is pretty impressive. It still lacks some features (like Upload progress bar) and polish but is totally usable. https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf

mindracer 4y ago

I’ve been using Plex to host audiobooks works well enough https://github.com/seanap/Plex-Audiobook-Guide https://github.com/seanap/Plex-Audiobook-Guide

sniglom 4y ago

Maybe I will burn in hell for this, but I think iTunes does quite a good job with organizing audiobooks.

sandreas 4y ago
You at least have company on your journey... I also use iTunes as "backup" alternative for offline organisation (non-selfhosted) with a good old iPod classic, modified to carry 768GB of storage on a 2200mah battery. This is the best device I ever had in terms of Audio Quality, storage per size and user interface.

olvy0 4y ago

This isn't what you wanted, but I've been using the Podcast Republic app as a way to organize and listen to my (usually free) audiobooks. It's android only, so only on-device and not on PC. Its audiobook support is a bit obscure, it relies on creating what they call a "virtual podcast" based on the filesystem. But once you find it it's pretty simple and fits into their UI, and you can tag / catalog your audiobooks as much as you want. I also like its listening UI. It remembers where I last stopped and starts playing a configurable number of seconds before, remembers playback speed per book/podcast, remembers audio settings per book/podcast, has a car mode. I like it much better than Audible's UI. Like I said its organizing UI is also nice, although I use it less, I don't collect audiobooks on my mobile, due to the limited internal capacity.

sandreas 4y ago

I use m4b-tool[1], tone[2] and audiobookshelf[3] together with an LG G5 H850 smartphone[8] with Bang & Olufsen Hifi-Plus Module for Audio Only and I am pretty happy with this config. For Music I use Navidrome[5] and Substreamer App[7]. Maybe I'll try out Jellyfin[4] or maybe Plex[6], but I really don't wanna go closed source. I also thought about writing something self hosted in C# to have ONE solution for audiobooks, podcasts and music and started a small private project, but this will take a while until it is ready to release something... You may ask: Why an LG G5 H850? Well, its relatively small and cheap (about 50 - 80 bucks used) it has an audio Jack, USB-C, you can change the battery, it can hold up to 2TB microSD storage, has an HiFi Plus module for audio enthusiasts and a descent screen. Besides that it can run lineage os... Note: I'm the author of the first two projects :-) [1]: https://github.com/sandreas/m4b-tool https://github.com/sandreas/m4b-tool [2]: https://github.com/sandreas/tone https://github.com/sandreas/tone [3]: https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf https://github.com/advplyr/audiobookshelf [4]: https://jellyfin.org/ https://jellyfin.org/ [5]: https://www.navidrome.org/ https://www.navidrome.org/ [6]: https://www.plex.tv https://www.plex.tv [7]: https://substreamerapp.com/ https://substreamerapp.com/ [8]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_G5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LG_G5

cridenour 4y ago
Just wanted to say thank you for m4b-tool.
- sandreas 4y ago
  You're welcome, glad you like it.
JZL003 4y ago
Cool that phone is a nice find. I also find having a separate audiobook phone nice (smaller, better battery life,no notifications when I'm 'reading'). But I went for the Samsung Galaxy S3 mini. It's really underpowered but super tiny so can fit in a pocket with my other phone, has a great battery life, and expandable sd card. I haven't paid for a 2tb sd card but a 512 gb works fine and is almost full now The Android app 'smart audiobook player' is a godsend, really thoughtful app. And you can use an equalizer to reduce high pitch tones which I find easier to listen to

Macha 4y ago

I just stick them in Jellyfin. It's not particularly well optimised for audiobooks, but it is nice having all my media in the same place (it also has my movies and music).