Amazon's DRM-free MP3 beta
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- benheck
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It's live and I have already tested it. Good selection, great prices, no DRM and plain-jane MP3's.
Unlike their Unbox service, this could really be something, Check it out when you get a chance! Just think - no iTunes, no Media player, just legit downloads and whatever player/portable unit you want!
www.amazon.com
-Ben
PS: I smell podcast topic
Unlike their Unbox service, this could really be something, Check it out when you get a chance! Just think - no iTunes, no Media player, just legit downloads and whatever player/portable unit you want!
www.amazon.com
-Ben
PS: I smell podcast topic
Nice. Multiplatform is great, I guess - I won't have to worry about DRM BS with Linux and on other Windows computers I didn't download the song onto (unless it grabs the license or whatever, but lets say your not on the Internet).
Piracy is inevitable, but for all the people who still want to pay for stuff and not want to have to cling onto rights management, this is perfect.
Piracy is inevitable, but for all the people who still want to pay for stuff and not want to have to cling onto rights management, this is perfect.
- Negative_Creep
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Yeah I have to say good question, 'cause I was thinking "What quality are they"? If they're 128k, there is something wrong, but knowing Amazon, they should be at least 220k.Negative_Creep wrote:Are the MP3's 320kbps?
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- bicostp
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The only real problem I see is selling the DRM-free idea to the labels. They seem fixated on the belief that MP3 = piracy.
Too bad there aren't any prepaid Amazon cards at the store; I don't like credit cards, so iTunes gift cards were a major selling point. iTunes purchases do come with DRM, but it's easy enough to burn and rip a CD-RW. (The way I see it, you would do it if you bought the CD at the store anyway so what's the harm?)
Other than that, I think it's a great idea. 256k/sec is an acceptable compromise between file size and audio quality, and it's nice to do whatever you want with what you purchased. Now they need to think about selling movies in DiVX/XviD format...
Too bad there aren't any prepaid Amazon cards at the store; I don't like credit cards, so iTunes gift cards were a major selling point. iTunes purchases do come with DRM, but it's easy enough to burn and rip a CD-RW. (The way I see it, you would do it if you bought the CD at the store anyway so what's the harm?)
Other than that, I think it's a great idea. 256k/sec is an acceptable compromise between file size and audio quality, and it's nice to do whatever you want with what you purchased. Now they need to think about selling movies in DiVX/XviD format...
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- SpongeBuell
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Have you ever looked into getting a check card? Rather than getting bills, interest, etc. it withdraws from a checking account. You can use it wherever credit cards are taken. I have a Visa check card through Wells Fargo, and use it almost exclusively.bicostp wrote:Too bad there aren't any prepaid Amazon cards at the store; I don't like credit cards, so iTunes gift cards were a major selling point.
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- nightwheel
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Curious, how much more "live" is this than before? Amazon has had this available for months now, and I've been cashing in Pepsi points for MP3s since the first of this month. (Yeah! My Pepsi addiction finally comes in handy!)
Not as hard a sell as it used to be. The labels have recognized that Apple's dominance of the portable player market leaves them in a bad position for negotiation of prices.bicostp wrote:The only real problem I see is selling the DRM-free idea to the labels. They seem fixated on the belief that MP3 = piracy.
Actually, I think I saw some at Wal Greens. Not specific to the MP3 downloads, but all of Amazon.Too bad there aren't any prepaid Amazon cards at the store; I don't like credit cards, so iTunes gift cards were a major selling point.
256K is OK, but I'd rather see LAME v0 (which is like 192VBR or 224VBR, I forget). Less bits where they're not needed (=smaller file size) and more bits where they are needed (= better sound quality) anywhere from 32K to 320K based on the needs of each small fragment of the song.
The encoder is AT LEAST as important as how many bits are used to encode. And the EAC/LAME combo is probably the most well-known PROPER way to rip a CD, for good reason.
But people see 256K and say 'That's way better than 192K!'
The encoder is AT LEAST as important as how many bits are used to encode. And the EAC/LAME combo is probably the most well-known PROPER way to rip a CD, for good reason.
But people see 256K and say 'That's way better than 192K!'
Because taking an already-compressed copy of a song, burning it as audio and then compressing it again makes it sound like poo. If you're starting with a lossless file, it's not as big a deal.bicostp wrote: iTunes purchases do come with DRM, but it's easy enough to burn and rip a CD-RW. (The way I see it, you would do it if you bought the CD at the store anyway so what's the harm?)
- bicostp
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Well, iTunes uses AAC VBR files, most likely around 256k, which would put it at about the same level as the OGG files you mentioned, right? Sure it's not lossless but it's better than a flat bitrate MP3...jperryss wrote:Because taking an already-compressed copy of a song, burning it as audio and then compressing it again makes it sound like poo. If you're starting with a lossless file, it's not as big a deal.
And apparently they're selling iTunes Plus songs (same format, no DRM) for $0.99 now.
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I think 256VBR is generally good. VBR in general is fantastic IMO, because you get the best of both worlds.bicostp wrote:Well, iTunes uses AAC VBR files, most likely around 256k, which would put it at about the same level as the OGG files you mentioned, right? Sure it's not lossless but it's better than a flat bitrate MP3...
But everything encodes differently. Rip a track with EAC/LAME, then do it again with MusicMatch, and then again with iTunes, and those three files will be different, even if the same bitrate is used.
The reason I mentioned lossless is because you mentioned burning MP3 to CD and ripping back to MP3, which is a no-no. Compressing a track twice, or converting from one compressed format to another (MP3 to WMA, etc.) will usually make a track sound terrible, even if higher bitrates and a good encoder are used. But if you're starting out with a lossless file (FLAC, SHTN, lossless AAC or lossless WMA) then it's mostly a non-issue, since theoretically that CD you burn should be near-identical to the original it was ripped from, since it was never compressed and therefore 'no data was removed' from it.
A lot of people keep all their stuff stored, lossless, on their PCs. But while the cost-per-GB of HDDs nowadays makes it easier than ever (320GB for $80!!!) I don't do it because A) My portable player and the CD player in my car both play MP3s, but not any of the lossless formats; B) The difference in sound quality between my original CDs and my own rips done using the EAC/LAME cocktail is indistinguishable to me, except (occasionally) during critical listening on my Sennheisers. Once I get out to the car, where I do 90% of my music listening, it's completely a non-issue.
And C) I like having 10 albums on one disc.
Good for them. Seriously. I'm not much of an Apple fan, but kudos to Steve Jobs for stepping up. Now others (Amazon, etc) are following suit.And apparently they're selling iTunes Plus songs (same format, no DRM) for $0.99 now.
- benheck
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Right. Competition will help end DRM. Apple has always said the studios, not them, wanted the DRM but I'm sure as a monopoly market leader Apple hasn't always been the most cordial to work with.
All in all it's a good thing. Now I just need a PMP. I'm leaning Zune, except I guess it doesn't sync with Winamp which I swear by. But Winamp doesn't seem to work all that great with iPods either, from what I've seen.
-Ben
All in all it's a good thing. Now I just need a PMP. I'm leaning Zune, except I guess it doesn't sync with Winamp which I swear by. But Winamp doesn't seem to work all that great with iPods either, from what I've seen.
-Ben
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Go for the Zune, but beware that many Zunes are screwed up. I just recently had to replace my Zune 30 because it had a severe hardware malfunction. The Zune 80's Zune Pad commonly malfunctions also.benheck wrote:All in all it's a good thing. Now I just need a PMP. I'm leaning Zune, except I guess it doesn't sync with Winamp which I swear by. But Winamp doesn't seem to work all that great with iPods either, from what I've seen.
-Ben