Help: MP3 Sample Rate Convertion (possible W/ X-Fi Elite tools?)

[Comattack]

OK, Here's my dilemma....

I bought a set of audiobooks in MP3 Format, in hopes that I could listen to them in my car stereo (Kenwood DDX8017) without swapping out so many CD's. (We're talking nearly 1000 files and over 72 hours of audio).

HOWEVER, the MP3s would not play on my stereo for some reason, and after some investigation, I found the MP3's were encoded with a sample rate of about 22kHz, and my stereo requires a sample rate of 32, 44.1, or 48 kHz.

What I need is some software (preferably free) to convert (upsample) them to a sample rate I can use (32, 44.1, or 48 kHz) without losing too much quality or shifting the pitch...

I've not done much audio creation or editing, so I'm not quite sure what is the best way too accomplish this. I can't convert these to WAV and burn all these to CD and re-rip them to MP3... that would take WAY to long. There's got to be an easier (cheap) way to do this.

I have the Creative X-Fi ELITE PRO (with the additional audio creation software). Anyone know if I can use any of these tools to to convert these MP3s?

Recommend another free (or cheap) program?

Any Help is appreciated. Thanks!

[Puffnstuff]

I use dbpoweramp to convert as it allows me to specify the rates. I can't use the creative software in vista so I pulled my x-fi fatal1ty out and went to onboard sound.

[Snakeii]

Do you have the Creative Recorder? If so you can use it to record whatever audio is going through. I just tried it on mine and it recorded some music I was listening to just fine. Although Id avoid using it to convert music, it should work fine just for a audio book.

I'd do a Google for other options. Its been a while since I had to convert one audio file to another so I dont recall anything except using one of the various output plugins for Winamp.

[rambrush]

I use free rip,Goldwave & audacity. goldwave I use for recording old cassettes into digital and reburning onto cd's.
I also have Soundblaster Audigy that has the ports out front so I can plug RCA cables and such right into the front of the puter.

[Comattack]

Sorry... recording audio would take WAAYY too long. Almost 75 hours straight of audio!!
I can't sit there and monitor it, and cut the tracks one by one for that long... That would be nutts!!

But it turns out, I already had audacity and didn't realize it. I guess I downloaded it a long time ago...
After playing with the settings a bit, I got it to upsample my MP3's without too much trouble, and still keep the files size reasonable. And since I can do batch conversions (many files at once) I don't have to go through each file one by one. It does take some time to import and export all those files though.

After several hours of conversion time (not face to computer time... probably only 1 hour there), I've goten through about 1/3 of the files.
I'll probably get through another 1/3 today and the rest tomorrow.
Then I'll just burn it all to one DVD, pop it in the stereo and call it good.


Thanks for the input guys!