Downloading Music...

[YNOT]

Okay, I just got high speed DSL over the holiday (I know, I know, I'm years behind everyone) and I'm having a blast with it. I can't believe I didn't try to afford it long before now.

Anyway, I've been downloading some iTunes and I love it. I'm just wondering, what other sites are great for downloading music? Are there any sites with more choices than iTunes...or are they pretty much the biggest selection? For 99¢ a song it's reasonable as there are several groups that I would only want a few songs from and hate to buy the whole CD's.

Also...anywhere where you can find bonus tracks to download for free?...I'm guessing maybe some bands websites offer a few free tracks? I'm not opposed to paying for my music, I just want to know where all I can get them so I can build up my collection.

Thanks to everyone in advance for the help.

[Booger]

check pm's...

[Rocketpig]

There are several others.. Napster, Connect, MSN or whatever it's called, etc...

But iTunes has the biggest selection and all must bow before Lord Jobs and kiss his black-turtleneck-and-jeans feet.

[rockem]

google....band name...mp3

[D-Frag]

*cough*

Soulseek

*cough*

but you didn't hear it from me ;)

[John G]

But I can't convert copy protected iTunes .mp4's to .mp3's for use with my Sony NW...
Any legal websites to buy and not have copy protections to try and find work arounds for?

[Jason Fraker]

itunes has a free single every week (but they often suck). If you have a birthday or anniversary or whatever coming up, you can always ask for itunes gift cards. I have used Limewire in the past (mainly for old TV show eppys), but now I stick with good ol' itunes. To be honest, I've never tried any other legit service.

[PersonasBinar]

But I can't convert copy protected iTunes .mp4's to .mp3's for use with my Sony NW...



Don't tell me the Sony wares don't convert this format.....
I'm on the verge of buying a Sony MP3 player....we're an Ipod and Sony house.

[reuber1]

http://www.boingboing.net/2006/01/01/coldplays_new_cd_has.html

Online music services may be the only way to get music onto your mp3 players anymore. This is asinine.

[Ryan8720]

There are bunches of site with free music of up and coming artists as well as some older ones.

www.purevolume.com
www.garageband.com

For pay downloads, www.mp3.com links to iTunes, MusicMatch, Napster, RealPlayer, and RealRhapsody.

[Ryan8720]

http://www.boingboing.net/2006/01/01/coldplays_new_cd_has.html

Online music services may be the only way to get music onto your mp3 players anymore. This is asinine.
That kind of stuff pisses me off. The Velvet Revolver CD has some annoying DRM on it too. If I bought the CD I'm going to do whatever I damn well please with it. There is always a way around the DRM.

[MD]

But I can't convert copy protected iTunes .mp4's to .mp3's for use with my Sony NW...
Any legal websites to buy and not have copy protections to try and find work arounds for?
As far as I know there is no legal website that still sells MP3's - all of them are in some way copy protected (mp4, WMA, or RAX) An easy itunes workaround is to burn them to a cd and reimport them as MP3's.

Does your Sony NW play WMA's?

[Rocketpig]

But I can't convert copy protected iTunes .mp4's to .mp3's for use with my Sony NW...
Any legal websites to buy and not have copy protections to try and find work arounds for?

It's easy... Rip the songs to CD format and then re-import them into a format that the Sony will accept.

[Rocketpig]

http://www.boingboing.net/2006/01/01/coldplays_new_cd_has.html

Online music services may be the only way to get music onto your mp3 players anymore. This is asinine.

They can go ahead and try to stop me.

I don't normally condone pirating music but if the record label slaps DRM on their CDs like that, it's free game.

If they try to stop me from LEGALLY using my purchased music, to hell with them. I'll just steal it instead.

[John G]

^^ I'll have to check, I think Sony does WMA's just not the MSN protected ones. I dunno, I started using Limewire to redownload the ones I've bought. Am I a terrible person (not buying from sony with their Atrac, can't convert to anthing else/play in anything else file format)?

I think I did read somewhere Sony is canning Sonic Stage and going over to something like iTunes and being able to import mp4's and the rest. I can only hope.

[Navian]

You can still copy those music files, even on a protected cd.

Its called 'analog recording', the biggest loophole for them trying to stop people.

[reuber1]

Anyone with Sound Forge (though expensive, I'm sure someone has it) can just use the extract audio from CD option, and since it costs an extra $200 for the mp3 plug-in, just save them as WAVs and burn to a CD, and like MD said reimport them through iTunes. Screw your copyright protection.

[DeleteYourself]

Keep in mind, if you've bought music legally from iTunes, Napster, etc. but the music format has some sort of anti-piracy protection or you can't convert...it's legal to download from peer to peer progs (soulseek, limewire, etc).

Same thing if you've previously bought the CD, cassette or record in the past and have either worn it out or lost it. Just as long as you have the jewel case to prove it (not that anyone's going to check).

Hell, that's what peer to peer is technically for.

[Rocketpig]

Yep. It's called "Fair Use" and was upheld by the Supreme Court in the 80s when the movie industry was crying that it was going to go bankrupt because of VHS tapes.

But if a record label tries to make it difficult for me to copy my completely legal CD according to the laws upheld by the highest court, I'll just steal the music instead.

And I don't mind saying it.

I hate the RIAA.

[D-Frag]

I was just talking to a majore record label last nite over some poker, and let me tell you, they ARE NOT LOSING MONEY, in fact, if you look at how many artist have been signed and the amount of music coming out and compare it to 10 years ago (when we did have CD ripping software) and you can easily tell they are making waaaaay more money per artist then they ever did.

the whole thing is one big media outcry, its blasphemy, its stupid, and I hope to god it stops soon before the entire industry collapses. im on a manhunt now to find that site I saw all the statistics on.

Oh yeah, and for those of you having problems ripping your favorite CD's to mp3, download (CDex) off of download.com its free, and works wonders.

Also, if you are looking to use Soundforge capabilities but don't want to pay the money, download a program called "Audacity" its free, and in my book blows soundforge out of the water as far as usability.

wooooord

[Booger]

sounds like a pita to get the protected files then convert, then reconvert.
screw the bullshit, just kazaa for it.
or limewire/torrents/etc.

[colonel5]

i do believe in paying for the music i download, but I have downloaded a lot of stuff from Kazaa/Limewire because of lost/stolen/dirty cd's...

[Rocketpig]

I like to pay for music when the record labels aren't trying to screw me over through DRM or hassling me when I copy something (for my own use).

Which is why I won't be buying a Sony CD any time soon after their DRM/malware debacle... They deserve everything they have coming to them (namely several lawsuits).

[reuber1]

What if the CD is out of print? You know how damn long I looked for the first Queens of the Stone Age CD before I just said "F'ck it, I'll take my friends copy from iTunes". I like having the packaging and what have you (especially on that CD). I looked everywhere for that bastard, and when Amazon said they had it they cancelled my order (without e-mailing me) and Sears of all places was the only other place I could find it online and after placing my order a month later THEY cancelled my order (without e-mailing me).

I've heard of Audacity but have never checked it out, which I am going to do when I have some time.

[Silence04]

i typically buy from itunes... so easy, has the most artists, super fast downloads, plus it has "the office!"

but, you really shouldn't be downloading songs if you don't pay for them one way or another. even if you do download songs via peer to peer, at least go buy the album if you like it.

remember, Bands usually only get a few cents for every 99 cent song that get downloaded and under $1 for CDs (and they still have to pay for commissions and split the remaining between the members). every cent counts to them... especially when you look at someone like Trent Reznor who's really famous and makes great music but is struggling with a 20 million dollar debt because of these scum bag record labels. (support NIN) :)

[Ryan8720]

What bands make a lot off of is ring tones. Bands get 30 cents for every ring tone downloaded.

[TheBluePanda]

Ringtone prices are an absolute joke. On T-Mobile, they're $2.00 a peice. For a 10-15 second clip. Even the holiday ringtones they introduced were $2.00. For a ringtone that is useless 11 months of the year. Thanks T-Mobile for trying to drain every possible dollar out of us.

As for paying for music.. I really don't have much to say, since I havent bought a cd in years.

[reuber1]

especially when you look at someone like Trent Reznor who's really famous and makes great music but is struggling with a 20 million dollar debt because of these scum bag record labels. (support NIN) :)Damn straight. Going to the show in the quad cities on Feb 12 and I just watched Man on Fire (anyone else know he was a "music consultant" for that movie? Makes sense since it has like 5 of his songs thrown in intermittently...damn fine movie by the way), I'm all about supporting the T man.

[TheBluePanda]

Reznors $20 million in debt? Last I heard he won the $3 million lawsuit against his former manager.

[reuber1]

His manager f'cked him over hard, which is what that 3 million lawsuit was about. I think though he is still indebted to TVT records, who also screwed him over pretty hard; at least I hear they still own some rights to NIN material, so anytime a NIN CD sells, TVT makes a profit even though he jumped to Interscope and then his own label. I don' t know, that's how I interpreted it; I don't know sh!t about the music industry though.

[Jimeda Fork]

As with everything in technology, there will always be a work around.

If you can play the music, it can be recorded.

For instance, I can put my cd into my standalone cd player and plug a cable from the cd player into my computer and press record. Its annoying, but it can be done. This is only one of many ways around "difficulties"

If I pay for music, I will listen to it where I want, on any device I want. If bands like Coldplay don't like it, I don't want to hear them bitch about it when no one is buying their cds.

When was the last time you saw someone walking on the treadmill with an actual cd player?

[PersonasBinar]

Well if Trent jumped labels before finishing his contract then yes he does owe the label a shitload. As for owing a label.....that can only happen if you bolt. 5 albums - 10 million dollars kinda thing. Like a book deal, except you need a separate deal in every country you are going to be distributed in unless the label is one of the huge ones and can handle int'l distribution.

The only way I could see him being that deep in the can despite his success is bad management.

[Booger]

$2 for a ringtone?
I'll just take what Nokia gives me on my pile of crap $350, 6620, crash every week, make a backup if you enter a new number or you'll loose it, phone.

Not to mention I get overly anoyed by hearing songs on ringtones.... How can you like a song so much that you want ot hear it every time your phone rings? I'd go crazy.

[Navian]

That is why I have my phone with the normal telephone ring, and besides i have it always on silent for classes, I find it rude to have a phone going off in class.

But, I'd rather have it buzz, than hear the stupid ring tones.

[TheBluePanda]

I keep my phone on buzz all the time. Many people in the office have theirs super loud and its quite obnoxious. Especially since they never change it and I'm stuck hearing the same ones over and over.

[Navian]

I keep my phone on buzz all the time. Many people in the office have theirs super loud and its quite obnoxious. Especially since they never change it and I'm stuck hearing the same ones over and over.

That happens here too, someone has a harry potter intro ring tone, terminator ring tone, animaniacs ring tone, the list goes on. oy!

This guy in my class his name is Frank, his phone does this: frank, Frank, FRANK! ANSWER THE PHONE!

Then repeats itself. he has it up pretty damn loud too, your sitting working on your project and BLAM!

[reuber1]

Normal ring for me. I can't stand the music ones. It irritates the living hell out of me.

[Rocketpig]

I have five different ringtones on my phone. One for family, one for friends, one for my GF, one for people I don't want to talk to, and then a default ring.

I like knowing who is calling me just by the noise my phone is making.

[Neballer]

my phone vibrates, and I keep it in my pocket. :D

[Navian]

You would (lol pun!).

[Neballer]

[rimshot] :eek:

[Jimeda Fork]

You people are disgusting. I like it.