starting a digital music library discussion
- Thread starter jefferiestubes8
- Start date
It's all about the way you play back the music: if you only play it on portable devices with in-ear headphones while out an' about a lossy format probably is fully functional, but if you want the whole spectrum of your music to be present when you play it 'at home' on a 'hi-fi'-system you'd actually be able to hear the difference! - Not entirely unlike how you actually were able to hear the difference between type I and type II -or indeed: type IV- cassettes (only with greater difference between the qualities) back in the days of compact cassettes...
I doubt I'll ever have a stereo system that good.
I weep for you.
Actually, it's not that important to have a good system; as long as it's 'decent' you will be able to pull out an extremely high sound quality with a set of good loudspeakers!
Get a decent mid-range system at an affordable price -but never try to save on the speakers! (yes, it's that simple
)
That's one of the few things I do know.
I'm definitely not an audio-geek myself but that was also one of the very first things I learned
It sounds like you have the right idea... that is to say you're doing what I'm doing.
Over the last year I have started phasing MP3 out of my main music collection but I maintain a segregated folder of MP3s for my Zune. For CD ripping I use Exact Audio Copy which is widely regarded as one of the best programs for the task.
As for buying music online, it doesn't interest me. In the future I might be okay with buying drm-free lossless files, but I prefer spending my money on tangible things.
There is no antidote for the mid-70s.
Well, actually, I was the antidote for the mid-70s. Once I was born, things started getting better.
I really need to stop power-accepting spell check suggestions without reading them.
Yes. I don't have that many PJ bootlegs so far, but given unlimited funds, I'd collect all of them I could, without reservation, because those guys know how to put on a great show, and really care about their fans. I mean, haven't they been making 'official' bootlegs of every single show since the 2000 tour? Or earlier maybe? And such great shows, too! As I said, I don't have that many of the audio bootlegs yet..but I've seen about every piece of concert footage that has ever been pressed to DVD, aired on MTV, or posted on YouTube, and you are right - it is not like seeing the same show over and over. Plus...hey...you never know what is gonna come out of Eddie Vedder's mouth on any given night - sometimes that makes it worth it, all on it's own.
And yeah...I have never joined the Ten Club (are you a member?) so have never received those Christmas singles (although didn't one or two of them get released later or something - maybe on Lost Dogs or some such???)...but I should really do that. I guess I never wanted to admit to myself that I was that much of a PJ groupie...but what the hell! I want those Christmas singles!
Do you have many of them?
And do you have many of the official boots? If so, what do you do with them, in terms of putting them on an MP3 player or whatever? I don't normally put my boots on iTunes or my iPod...they are just on my computer and I play them with WinAmp or VCL....
Question: I am by no means even moderately well-versed in sound systems and file formats...but I was somehow under the impression that a) you couldn't even put FLAC files on an iPod (I don't have a Zune or anything - can you put them on a Zune?) and b) even if you could, they would take up so much space that it would be space-prohibitive to do so.
Have I been misinformed on this issue? Entirely possible, mind you...and you sound like you know what you are talking about...while I KNOW that I don't have the dimmest clue when it comes to this stuff.
I use iTunes for all music. I have not a single disc, I get everything from the iTunes Store. It's all at 256Kbps AAC, and it sounds just fine to me. As for listening to it: I just use my iMac. It has fine speakers. I have no need for a fancy-pants hifi system.
For backup: My iPod and iPad work fine for that.
Video, on the other hand...I get DVDs and Blu-Rays for video. The only video of any kind that I bought via iTunes is a couple of TV series (Disorderly Conduct: Video on Patrol, plus the fifth season of MXC) that aren't yet available on DVD.
For backup: My iPod and iPad work fine for that.
Video, on the other hand...I get DVDs and Blu-Rays for video. The only video of any kind that I bought via iTunes is a couple of TV series (Disorderly Conduct: Video on Patrol, plus the fifth season of MXC) that aren't yet available on DVD.
I highly suggest not tossing the physical CD's. I have around the same number of discs as you. I tossed the cases and put the discs on some spindles. They all fit in a small box that takes up very little room. When you are completely done ripping I suggest backing everything up to an external Hard Drive as well. If possible keep the physical CDs and external hard drive in separate locations. (The box of CD's is in my parent's basement. The external HD is in it's original box on a shelf at a friends house.) I also use Carbonite to immediately backup any new music purchases as well as for my photos and other critical files. It can be a bit of a hassle. However I have spent many years and thousands of dollars amassing my music and photos. I am willing to spend a bit and take the time to make sure I am not going to lose it all in one fell swoop.
However you decide to organize your collection I would make sure each album is fully completed before moving on to the next rip. Nothing is worse than having to go back through dozens or hundreds of albums to edit tags or add artwork.
As for the actual organization itself, I let iTunes manage my library. The music is organized into separate folders for each artist, with subfolders for every album.
However you decide to organize your collection I would make sure each album is fully completed before moving on to the next rip. Nothing is worse than having to go back through dozens or hundreds of albums to edit tags or add artwork.
As for the actual organization itself, I let iTunes manage my library. The music is organized into separate folders for each artist, with subfolders for every album.
a) For Apple's and Microsoft's players, I believe you have to install 'third party software' on the devices to make them play FLAC files. My portable is a Nokia (N900) and I had to install an app for it. My 'other' portable is a Sansa Clip and came out of the box with FLAC support (which was an important part in my decision to buy that particular player back then).
b) Yeah, FLAC-files do take somewhat more space than mp3-files of the same music.. it's up to you what format you are most comfortable with
I, personally, have however decided for quality over quantity; being able to insert µSD-cards for added memory in the player(s) (I don't actually have a large collection of cards) of course makes it possible to carry around multiple µSD's with your entire music library on them (they do come with a USB adapter which makes it possible to load them without having any special software or cable to do so though).
It sounds as if you are relatively well informed; as I said, it is a question of personal preference...Have I been misinformed on this issue? Entirely possible, mind you...and you sound like you know what you are talking about...while I KNOW that I don't have the dimmest clue when it comes to this stuff.
I've been listening to a lot of mp3's (and AAC's) over the years but decided against the format for most music (but it's great for most podcasts and audio books -where the actual loss of 'high fidelity' doesn't matter so much).
Of course: if you're using the (usually quite crappy) in-ear plugs (that come with most portables) to listen to your music while you're in a noisy environment you probably won't be able to discern any difference in quality - I don't; I use a pair of (quite 'ginormous' ) headphones (that actually cost me more than the SansaClip itself (it's all about the speakers
)) and rarely feel a need to actually overpower ambient noise when I listen to music 'on the go'. 
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^ Thanks very much for your response. I really appreciate the education.
I think you sort of hit the nail on the head when you talked about the headphone issue. That is one of the two main reasons (in addition to space) that I will probably leave my iPod alone with the MP3 level of sound quality - the ear buds I have are better than the ones that come with the iPod...but they are still not great. And most of the time when I use my iPod, it is either when I'm running outdoors or when I'm at work in an office full of people.
In both situations, pristine sound is not really essential because there is enough background noise to where I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference....and portability (especially in the case of running) is a more essential element of an ear bud than is generated sound quality.
Nevertheless, I do keep a lot of files on my computer in FLAC format (outside of iTunes, of course). But then...I'm sort of limited by my computer speakers...and right now I am down to a single laptop, so for the time being it's sort of moot. When I get another desktop, I will be paying closer attention to the speakers because so much of my music is on my computer these days and I rarely use my CD players anymore. I still have all of my CDs...and will continue to purchase CDs as the main source material for my library. But after loading the CDs into my computer, I rarely use them...they just sit in the rack, waiting for the next time I have to reinstall iTunes...and thus need to reinstall all music NOT purchased from their fakkin' STORE from scratch via the source material (don't get me started! ).
I looked at your links, by the way - that SanDisk in particular looks pretty cool. What is the interface like (the iTunes equivalent)? Is it pretty user-friendly and intuitive? The reason I ask is because when the Zune first came out, my nephew got one...and despite the fact that I am reasonably competent, technically, I had a tough time getting the software to work on his computer and 'see' the Zune. Might have been the computer because it was an old computer...and it might have been that the early Zunes were not that intuitive...don't know. But as much as a PITA as iTunes can be...at least it's fairly difficult to fuck it up.
I think you sort of hit the nail on the head when you talked about the headphone issue. That is one of the two main reasons (in addition to space) that I will probably leave my iPod alone with the MP3 level of sound quality - the ear buds I have are better than the ones that come with the iPod...but they are still not great. And most of the time when I use my iPod, it is either when I'm running outdoors or when I'm at work in an office full of people.
In both situations, pristine sound is not really essential because there is enough background noise to where I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference....and portability (especially in the case of running) is a more essential element of an ear bud than is generated sound quality.
Nevertheless, I do keep a lot of files on my computer in FLAC format (outside of iTunes, of course). But then...I'm sort of limited by my computer speakers...and right now I am down to a single laptop, so for the time being it's sort of moot. When I get another desktop, I will be paying closer attention to the speakers because so much of my music is on my computer these days and I rarely use my CD players anymore. I still have all of my CDs...and will continue to purchase CDs as the main source material for my library. But after loading the CDs into my computer, I rarely use them...they just sit in the rack, waiting for the next time I have to reinstall iTunes...and thus need to reinstall all music NOT purchased from their fakkin' STORE from scratch via the source material (don't get me started!
).I looked at your links, by the way - that SanDisk in particular looks pretty cool. What is the interface like (the iTunes equivalent)? Is it pretty user-friendly and intuitive? The reason I ask is because when the Zune first came out, my nephew got one...and despite the fact that I am reasonably competent, technically, I had a tough time getting the software to work on his computer and 'see' the Zune. Might have been the computer because it was an old computer...and it might have been that the early Zunes were not that intuitive...don't know. But as much as a PITA as iTunes can be...at least it's fairly difficult to fuck it up.
^Glad I could be of help
Re: the user-interface of the SanDisk device. I'd recommend you google it! -I have yet to find a review that has anything bad to say about it...
And:
Those were just the first two items marked review I found.
Putting music on the device is done by (Connecting the device by the standard USB to mini-USB cable and dragging and dropping your files (in Windows -or if you prefer: copying and pasting of course) and during playback I've rarely had to have it out of the pocket to use it; But then I am one of those that use folders rather than playlists and I've never had trouble finding my music -even with 20 GB (4 on my device and 16 on a card).
Re: the user-interface of the SanDisk device. I'd recommend you google it! -I have yet to find a review that has anything bad to say about it...
And:
Those were just the first two items marked review I found.
Putting music on the device is done by (Connecting the device by the standard USB to mini-USB cable and dragging and dropping your files (in Windows -or if you prefer: copying and pasting of course) and during playback I've rarely had to have it out of the pocket to use it; But then I am one of those that use folders rather than playlists and I've never had trouble finding my music -even with 20 GB (4 on my device and 16 on a card).
when the Zune first came out, my nephew got one...and despite the fact that I am reasonably competent, technically, I had a tough time getting the software to work on his computer and 'see' the Zune. Might have been the computer because it was an old computer...and it might have been that the early Zunes were not that intuitive...don't know. But as much as a PITA as iTunes can be...at least it's fairly difficult to fuck it up.
IIRC It was a problem with the drivers that Microsoft had released for the Zune. When I first bought my Zune I had a hell of a time with it. It would find the Zune when you first installed it. The next time you connected it though it wouldn't find anything. I had to uninstall and then reinstall the drivers every single time I wanted to sync the damn thing. It was eventually fixed with an update, but I must have spent hours researching the problem and trying to find a fix or workaround.
Yes. I don't have that many PJ bootlegs so far, but given unlimited funds, I'd collect all of them I could, without reservation, because those guys know how to put on a great show, and really care about their fans. I mean, haven't they been making 'official' bootlegs of every single show since the 2000 tour? Or earlier maybe? And such great shows, too! As I said, I don't have that many of the audio bootlegs yet..but I've seen about every piece of concert footage that has ever been pressed to DVD, aired on MTV, or posted on YouTube, and you are right - it is not like seeing the same show over and over. Plus...hey...you never know what is gonna come out of Eddie Vedder's mouth on any given night - sometimes that makes it worth it, all on it's own.
And yeah...I have never joined the Ten Club (are you a member?) so have never received those Christmas singles (although didn't one or two of them get released later or something - maybe on Lost Dogs or some such???)...but I should really do that. I guess I never wanted to admit to myself that I was that much of a PJ groupie...but what the hell! I want those Christmas singles!
Do you have many of them?
No, i'm not a member, but i've picked up a couple off ebay. I'll probably join next time they announce an album so I can get some decent tickets for once. I suspect that won't be for a couple of years now though, they seem to be taking a break so Matt Cameron can do whatever Soundgarden are going to do when they eventually get round to something other than one off shows and rereleasing material.
I found a download pack of all of the xmas singles though, so i've got them all in mp3 format. Other than that i've got a ton of 7" & 12" singles that I bought back in the day, some cool picture discs and coloured vinyls.
I've bought about 7 or 8 of the official bootlegs, the gigs i've been to and a select few others. I don't really convert my CDs to anything else though because I've got a really nice stereo, it would be a bit of a waste to convert them and play them off my computer, I tend only to get mp3s when it something you can't buy, like the xmas singles and rare things.
I generally just keep an mp3 player full of stuff just for running, and walking, otherwise I don't use them much. I'd be far too worried about losing my music collection to give up the discs anyway.
file format organization
Ongoing with the ripping of Audio CDs to FLAC files. about 20% done.
What I'm wondering about is organizing the FLAC & MP3 files. I will be keeping my FLAC files for archival and possibly playback at home.
For the PC-using people :
when I do start to convert FLAC to MP3 files should I keep the MP3 files within the FLAC folder or how do you guys organize them within Windows Explorer first before you use media player software?
Ongoing with the ripping of Audio CDs to FLAC files. about 20% done.
What I'm wondering about is organizing the FLAC & MP3 files. I will be keeping my FLAC files for archival and possibly playback at home.
For the PC-using people :
when I do start to convert FLAC to MP3 files should I keep the MP3 files within the FLAC folder or how do you guys organize them within Windows Explorer first before you use media player software?
Re: file format organization
In those instances where I have saved both FLAC and mp3 files I put them in "FLAC" and "mp3" folders inside the album folder -but usually I'll just encode the mp3's I need when I need them.
My mediaplayer is Winamp and it doesn't really matter how my files are stored; Winamp finds them whenever I search for them...
In those instances where I have saved both FLAC and mp3 files I put them in "FLAC" and "mp3" folders inside the album folder -but usually I'll just encode the mp3's I need when I need them.
My mediaplayer is Winamp and it doesn't really matter how my files are stored; Winamp finds them whenever I search for them...