Apples new online music store

I have a feeling the new format has less to do with sound quality, and more to do with copy protection

-Dan

Dan,

Yes, I agree. I tried it today and all I can say is it sounds like a bunch of MP3's on a cd, just like any other. It certainly won't be replacing conventional cd buying! Sound quality is the same as any other MP3 as far as I can tell.

Service also not availbale outside of USA (canada?). I think this has a lot to do with the RIAA.

Selection is also pretty weak, but it is a new service so maybe it will improve.

A nice idea, but I find Limewire is much better!

Colin

Colin I found this set of articals on SlashDot comparing AAC vs. OGG vs. MP3, have a look and see what you think of the many comments. Sometimes the servers get a bit slow due to the rush of people airing their opinions so keep trying if things are slow at first.

Roy T

Hi Roy,

Thanks for the link. I like this quote from Slashdot:
[ I've got a nice pair of Bose headphones, and I listened to an Apple Store AAC file and an OGG version of the same song. I don't consider myself a real audiophile, but it's damn near impossible to tell the difference between the two; though I can definitely hear the improvement from MP3 to AAC or OGG.

Reply:
One, your headphones suck. Bose sells overpriced junk. People think it is good because it is well marketed. If you compare Bose speakers with equally priced speakers from any quality manufacturer, the difference is amazing.

Bose is a scam, and the fact that they are so popular shows how easy it is to run a massive deception against the American people. ]

Very good! The consensus seems to be that any 128KBS compressed file sounds crap. 192KB is listenable and at 320, when ripped to CD, the sound is 'close' to the original.

I think Naim will sell a few more cd players for a few more years yet!

Colin

Colin,

Any idea how Apple will implement copy protection? What stops you writing an audio cd (ACC->WAV) from itunes and then sharing that?

Dan

I might be way off the mark but was under the impression you paid for the music you then download it and have a couple of attempts to record it before it blows.

Bot that iot matters, its not available in the UK, and if apple are true to form (ala sherlock and iphoto picture prints) never will be.

The update on itunes is nice though, you can stick your own artwork in and its quicker too, worth the download.

Wasn't AAC a compression technology & codec that Fraunhofer were working on as the successor to MP3 but they abandonded in favour of MP3PRO about 3 years ago as it wasn't working out? Is this the same thing or just a naming coincidence?

That notwithstanding its all abit misleading or unnecessary becuase if you want a quality codec that is a signifcant improvement and.or offers space savings over MP3 then you already have WMA 9 and the royalty free OGC so I'm not sure why Apple would do this. (Unless they are actually just as evil as Microsoft albeit in translucent cases)

Matthew

Discussed further.....

Here with links

Mat

It's frustrating to read, as in the above link, statements like "Certainly, the audio quality is good enough that few would complain -- or even miss their CDs". CD replay has now become the de facto standard of high performance. (That one might not miss CDs because they suck isn't even on the map. The article even refers to audio CDs as "uncompressed", even though in most cases they are significantly compressed compared to the original analog or 20/24 bit digital studio recording).

What's frustrating in all of this is that the massive improvements in digital storage and processing would make it easy and cheap for companies to offer much higher audio standards than CD, such as 24 bit audio. Even if 24 bit didn't become standard, it shouldn't be hard to offer it to those who were willing to wait a bit longer to download higher quality recordings, given that many studio recordings are 24 bit, and that 24 bit soundcards are easily available. But instead of exploring this possibility, the issue has become "how close to the [paltry] ideal of CD replay can we get?" In effect a new, lower standard of audio is on the verge of becoming the norm, based on short-sightedness and questionaable marketing factors, just like with CD.

Dollar Songs: Bargain or Rip-Off?

One of the first articals Dollar Songs: Bargain or Rip-Off? I have seen questioning the price of $1 for downloading music. They make ans argument for 18 cents a go and at that price every one gets paid and most punters wouldn't mind paying that price.

What price do you think people will pay for this service and what would you pay? I don't do this sort of thing as I just stick to lps .

Roy T

Moby on ipod, etc.

Slightly OT here but in the current issue of Rolling Stone magazine Moby talks about the iPod & mp3:

quote:

---

I have a fifteen-year-old cousin who has never purchased a CD, and he has a huge music collection. The iPod makes the days of portable CD players seem like a bad, distant memory. I love the novelty of having all of my favorite CDs in one tiny little box, all just waiting to be heard. Having 5,000 songs on something like a cigarette pack.[...]Now you can't imagine music any other way. I can be sitting on an airplane and think to myself: "Self, wouldn't you like to listen to the first Roxy Music record?" And there it is. I would have burned out the first four Roxy Music albums on vinyl by now.

---

article

Someone is buying the tunes The Register Apple Music Store sells four songs every second - report

Interesting 275k in 18 hours

Regarding the AAC format:

There are discussions on slashdot (see link provided earlier in thread) regarding AAC and OGC and the differences. From what I can gather, AAC was adopted by Apple as it was easier to implement the copy protection features which I think the record companies have pushed apple to implement. You can copy the downloaded file and play it on 3 different PC's, but no more. You are not limited to the number of ipods you copy it to, but can only burn 10 cd's from a playlist that contains the AAC file (however, you could make any number of different playlists in iTunes).

Regarding the downlod number (275k in 18 hours!). I think that the rabid mad dogs that Mac users are (yes, I am one) are flocking to test the service. I'm not sure that this number will be sustainable until the service is opened to the masses (windows users) via iTunes for windows. I would also think that the service will be availbale later to the rest of the world, unlike iPhoto prints and some sherlock plugins.

This could be a real money spinner for Apple.

I had a little play around on there today.

I like the 30 second intros etc but would guess that broadband is required to get anything from this service.

It all sounds a bit crap to me. See http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/30521.html

Matthew

.... but then The Register has it in for DRM in any form whatsoever, which I think is a little unrealistic.

Apple's DRM restrictions seem quite reasonable, I think. A more serious stumbling block is still the price. 99c still isn't cheap enough, given the absence of physical product. 50c [or around 50p] would tempt me more. Less would be even better, but this would mean companies having to rethink their business model, which so far they don't seem inclined to do. If the situation is as bad as they keep bleating on about [which I doubt], they'll have little option, won't they?

I don't trust peer-to-peer stuff anymore, so I suppose I'm the ideal customer. A step in the right direction, anyway.

However, I'm pleased to see Apple have taken my advice, and are going to produce a version of i-Tunes for windows!

throb

According to wired:
[The labels' Byzantine licensing process is preventing Apple from offering more songs from more artists, and from bringing the store to international users. Most tracks have to be cleared by a different licensing authority for each country.]

... but the good news is that according to the article, international licensing authorities are contacting Apple to get on board.

Thanks a million

According to the Apple iTunes Music Store Sells Over One Million Songs in First Week.

Will anyone admit to purchasing music from Itunes?

Roy

MacWorld UK reports of the imminent.

Oh dear, and this is from the Mac end of the playground......

http://macnet2.com/more.php?id=338_0_1_0

throb