Legal MP3 Downloads (Where do you get yours?)

Where are the best places to purchase mp3 downloads for a player? I know some songs are licensed for CD players, or just on one computer... What kind of things should one look for when buying mp3's? Are there any subscription sites where you can pay a fee, and download a bundle of songs? Any help would be great. :cool

 

http://www.ocremix.org/
that website is delicious

 

My apologies for starting a similar thread. Though I've heard both not to do that, nor resurrect things from too far in the past. Anything helps Laura, thanks. I was helping my aunt a while ago and she bought and downloaded a few songs she wanted to put on an mp3 player, but they wouldn't play on it. Something about the licensing.

I suppose the licensing is what I'm most curious about, where you can go and get music that you can be confident in, that's going to work on any media you stick it on.

 

I buy the CD then use Winamp to burn the music to mp3.

That way I totally skirt all licensing laws and what not.

Hey, RIAA. I have something in my pocket for you. It's right here http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v79/Burning_Monkey/fu.gif. Choke on it for a while. :-D

 

Amazon

 

Amazon as well

 

Amazon

 

But you're a creature of habit.. Where are we going to look for guidance Sensei?

Nah, sounds promising. When I was helping my aunt, I think we were at FYE and Walmart.com

 

You are.... LOL

 

Amazon and eMusic are DRM free. Amazon charges per song, eMusic a monthly fee varying by how many downloads per month you want.

Yahoo and Rhapsody offer subscription services; I am not familiar with their license agreements, though I do know Rhapsody works only on mp3-players whose manufacturers made a license deal with them. Your player's manufacturer website can tell you if they're an option.

Lastly, Magnatune has an awesome business idea, and nearly all unknown music and artists. They're also DRM free, and it's a great place if you're the inquisitive type who likes exploring new genres and artists. Also, they are not evil.

 

I don't use any, but I know 2 people who like amazon for the reasons stated above, and they have a huge selection.

 

I'm curious to hear someone define legal. (Well, on second thought...how big is this lounge ?) What about legalsounds, mp3sale, shake, etc..? Personally, if it's an album, it must be vinyl. I couldn't imagine listening to the Moody Blues' On the Threshold of A Dream or Days... via CD. On a portable mp3... forget It. Maybe with an equalizer and some headphones (Bose), but c'mon. Single track music collecting is everything wrong with the music scene today. In my humblest of opinions.

 

That depends entirely on which part of the scene you're on, and why. And no offense, but I completely and totally disagree with you. There are several worse things than single-track music collection... The Jonas Brothers is only one example.

 

iTunes - it works so well on a Mac, it automatically adds to my library as well as my iPod & iPhone, the store is integrated into the application and there's so much content on offer. It's a win all round really

 

The port to Windows is pretty horrible though... uke

 

I love the Amazon mp3 store, especially because all their files are DRM free. I have three DAPs, three computers and a PS3, and I want to be able to access my music on all of them. DRM interferes severely with that... so I go with Amazon.

And LauraR, price is an important factor as well of course. Overall, I find the Amazon store to be among the better ones out there for online music.

 

I know... but I don't see why I need to pay extra for something that a large number of other stores have been offering for free for a couple of years already

 

Why would I care about that though, lol???

 

So I'm a little confused...(again) Are Legalsounds, mp3sale, & like legal? If they are, at 9 cents a pop, a Jonas Bros. track would be a steal. And I have nothing against them personally. In fact, if that encourages my 11 and 13 year old nieces to begin collecting music, that's O.k. by me. But I do feel that by buying single tracks we're collectively digging the rock album's grave in a way. An album tells a story, the tracks are it's chapters. Does this allow artists to focus more on producing just a few good tracks to make their mark on Youtube? I appreciate the help the exposure (of a hot single over the net) can have for artists who otherwise might never see the light of day. But I think that by selecting choice cuts to fill our portables, we're being kind of lazy as listeners. I'm not saying you have to listen to an entire album every time you want to hear your favorite song, but at least own it. There have always been B-sides. Inherently with a reason, whether we've been conscious of it or not. Great songs should be listened to along with the "not so good" songs. I've always bought "bad" albums of my favorite artists. As a fan, that's what you do.
As for the sound quality of vinyl vs. digital, the issue for me is more than one of clarity. For some, I'll venture that the scratches, pops, and skips of an old record can add to its overall character and feel. But what I really like about listening to records (in their entirety) is the tactile part: The physical act of selecting, cleaning, playing, changing sides etc.., not to mention the album covers and all. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but getting together to listen to an Ipod just doesn't seem as exciting as listening to an album, or CD for that matter. And lastly, it always seems there's a little ego brought to the fore, when at someone's house, they have to decide who's Pod to listen to.

 

Exactly! There are albums where the whole thing is good enough to warranty spending the money, not just two or three tracks, but they tend to be albums that were made to be listened to gapless (again, Pink Floyd), or live albums. Iron Maiden's "Bruce Dickinson farewell tour" is a good example. Beethoven's Fifth is as well.

I guess my point is that while I admire and greatly respect any talented musician almost regardless of genre, if I don't like some of their work it should be up to me whether I spend money on it or not. Not them.

No reason. But since I am in Windows, it matters quite a bit to me...

 

And I don't think they even have a linux version

 

Isn't iTunes the direct opposite of the Linux philosophy?

 

If I do, I buy from iTunes or Amazon they are both great, have not tried much else to be honest, I think those two are definitely amongst the best. Anyone checked out what happened to napster? or what about rhapsody, which is real player related I think..

 

Rhapsody is very much alive and well as a subscription based service. Napster... no idea.

 

Which is why I gave the iPod to the Mrs and bought a Sansa!

Then added Rockbox to it. :cool