The new (legal) music download sites. Which is best?

[Diceman]

iTunes also comes with a few hundred radio stations from which you can stream music for absolutely free. It also has a cd burner (I don’t believe napster has one)

You believe incorrectly. Napster will let you burn any song that you’ve purchased.

[rjung]

*Originally posted by YellowTail *
I guess the services still aren’t at the point where I think they’re worth the money.

Depends on what you’re after. IMO, the biggest appeal of these stores is that they allow you to buy only the stuff you want, and to ignore the stuff you don’t. If I only enjoy two tracks on a new album, I only have to fork out $2, not $10 or $15.

[YellowTail]

*Originally posted by rjung *
**IMO, the biggest appeal of these stores is that they allow you to buy only the stuff you want, and to ignore the stuff you don’t. If I only enjoy two tracks on a new album, I only have to fork out $2, not $10 or $15. **

But my problem is how to know I’d only like one or two tracks when I haven’t heard the whole album. Maybe the one song you hear on the radio is good but there are several other songs on the same album you’d like better.

[Mr2001]

Originally posted by Anamorphic
If you purchase a physical CD from a music store, and scratch it to the point where it’s unplayable, or lose the CD, do you get to go to the store and get another one? Not any music store I know. So why do people expect to be able to get an unlimited number of copies from the source using this system?

Because people realize that online music distribution doesn’t need to be limited in the same ways as CDs. If Sam Goody were to give you a free copy of a CD you lost, that would be one copy they couldn’t sell to anyone else. But unlike a real music store, a site like iTunes can give you another copy of your purchased music for (essentially) free.

In fact, that’s a common model for software that’s sold online. You can download a piece of software as many times as you want, since it isn’t full featured until you enter a registration code. When you register it, you get a code, which the company keeps on file. If you lose your code, you can ask them to send it to you again.

It’d be simple for Apple to do the same thing, since the files you download don’t work without your Apple ID and password.

*Originally posted by moriah *
Then you use your CD as your personal hard copy. From the CD you can rip the songs (create MP3s) and use them (legally) any way you want without restrictions.

Are you sure that’s allowed by Rhapsody? Napster’s license specifically says you can’t transfer the burned tracks to any other device or medium.

IMO, iTunes isn’t worth using unless 1) you only listen to music at your computer, or 2) you own an iPod. Over the years, I’ve spent close to a thousand bucks on devices that play MP3s (but not any of those crazy DRM formats), and while Apple’s license doesn’t prohibit ripping the tracks–as far as I can tell–it’s still a pointless hassle.

[Hey_It_s_That_Guy]

http://www.epitonic.com has a limited selection overall, but a great array of indie rock, folk, hip hop, and more. The mp3s are free and legal and downloadable in the “old-fashioned” way–you can download them straight off the site onto your hard drive and do whatever you want with them. You will not have heard of the majority of artists they have, but it is a great site for introducing yourself to new bands.

Each band listed has one or two free mp3s, a description, and the ever-valuable “If you like them, you’ll love all these other guys!” lists. This site won’t help you if you want the latest Britney/Madonna single, or that insipid “Milkshake” taunting song, but if you want to get exposed to wonderful indie-rock, Epitonic is worth a try.

[rjung]

*Originally posted by YellowTail *
Maybe the one song you hear on the radio is good but there are several other songs on the same album you’d like better.

That’s what those free 30-second previews are for.

[Mr2001]

Yup… better hope those 30 scratchy seconds tell you everything you need to know about the song!

[Diceman]

That’s why I like the premium service. I can download any song that strikes my fancy for $10 a month. I only buy the really good ones that I’m planning to burn to a CD.

You do occasionally run into “Buy Only” songs that you can’t download for free. These are pretty rare, however.

[slu]

epitonic.com is really cool. I second that as a place to discover new music. These guys get it. A couple songs for free will get you to buy a CD or go to a show, which is what I thought the point was anyway.

[Mr2001]

This GQ thread was recently closed and further comment was directed here. bnorton asked the following question about Napster’s premium service, which lets you download as many songs as you want for $10/mo, but charges $1 to burn a song to CD or copy it to a portable device:

Huh? How do they know what someone will do with it once it’s downloaded? Are the subscribers on the honor system?

The trick is, Napster doesn’t really let you download MP3s. Neither do iTunes or Rhapsody. You get files in a proprietary format that only Napster will play, so the only way to burn them (or convert them to a format you can use on a portable player) is to use Napster’s software and pay a buck.

[shelbo]

*Originally posted by YellowTail *
**But my problem is how to know I’d only like one or two tracks when I haven’t heard the whole album. Maybe the one song you hear on the radio is good but there are several other songs on the same album you’d like better. **

I’ve heard this “complaint” before, and I don’t get it. Nothing is stopping you from buying the whole album to ensure that you don’t miss out on some undiscovered gem of a song. Of course, many people have found the “risk-reward” ratio (between undiscovered gems and crap filler) to be unsatisfactory, so for them, the ability to buy only a couple of songs off an album is helpful. But again, if YMV, then by all means, buy the whole thing!