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Review of Amazon's DRM-Less Music Download Store
fdmendez writes to tell us that he had a chance to check out Amazon's DRM-less music download store that was recently released as a beta trial. "Amazon one-ups the iTunes store in every way except for popularity. Never once did I find an album to be more expensive on the Amazon store in comparison to the iTunes store. The download experience was pleasant, and the lack of DRM truly makes it YOUR music. I don't know of any other download service that could top the Amazon MP3 store."
I tried the store out yesterday (bought 1 track) and was very impressed. No special software needed (making it Linux friendly). This might just get me back into buying music again instead of listening to all my old stuff.
God is imaginary
is amazing! Prokofiev symphony #2 revealed 156 hits! Now that is some obscure music (his least popular symphony), and the fact that they would have multiple recordings of it right there for 90c... wow.
A lot of the 95% complete torrents are seeded by the MAFIAA or their minions like MediaDefender.
They are watermarked, and you have to install their software.
No, that is not a comparison to iTunes, just some facts.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Now this, children, is what we call "elitist fuckery."
I'd bet ANYTHING that you cannot differentiate between 256kbps MP3 and FLAC.
"You can either have software quality or you can have pointer arithmetic, but you cannot have both at the same time."
Give them a fake address. A friend of mine in Brazil just told me that they're not checking.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Only download with lots of seeds then, follow the herd.
http://www.rense.com/general79/wdx1.htm
Just tried it. XP & VISTA or MAC OSX ONLY for Albums!!!
-------------------
You have selected to purchase:
GREATEST HITS by Elton John
(Amazon MP3 Purchases are limited to U.S. customers.)
You must install the Amazon MP3 Downloader to purchase albums. (learn more)
* It automatically adds your music downloads to iTunes or Windows Media Player
* It takes just a few clicks and less than 30 seconds to install
DOWNLOAD NOW -- WINDOWS XP & VISTA
I agree to the terms of use | Download Mac OS X version
There's no "vendor lock" for AAC either, just lots of crap vendors who haven't added support for it yet.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
They're not 256kbps CBR mp3s. They look like -V0 or -V1 files, based on the bitrate, but are definitely joint-stereo VBR files encoded using LAME 3.97. Run it through strings to see for yourself. There are a lot more devices that support MP3 than AAC (don't just think about pocket jukeboxes here -- think of stuff that plays MP3 CDs and DVDs). 89 cents for a high-bitrate LAME VBR MP3 is without doubt a better choice than an AAC at a slightly lower bitrate for $1.39.
(the two files I've inspected myself, by the way, averaged 279 kbps and 280kbps.)
Some of their MP3s are in fact watermarked, but by the label, not amazon (at least not yet).
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
That's funny! At one time I thought the same thing. Anecdote: I was going through the tedious task of ripping my CDs, and after going through my collection of Nine Inch Nails and Autechre discs, I got the bright idea that instead of ripping my Aphex Twin collection, I'd just download a torrent. Same end result, right? I figured Aphex Twin fans would be fairly careful about audio fidelity, so I grabbed a torrent of some giganto Aphex Twin collection.
The end result was all over the map. Sure, there were a number of albums that were alright, some of them were terrible, with skips and low bitrates and mistitled songs, not to mention whole albums of "rare and unreleased" mislabeled garbage that wasn't even by Aphex Twin. I would have better spent my time continuing to rip them myself.
Alternatively, if I didn't already own the CDs, I would have happily bought large chunks of the Aphex Twin catalog from Bleep.com, which has been doing the DRM-free $1 MP3 download thing for over three years now.
I am Leviathant and I approve this message.
Except, of course, that Apple's 256kb AACs -- which is what folks are discussing -- don't have DRM, and are playable without modification on a wide variety of non-Apple players.
OK it works for the UK too, unlike Apple...
Because the "cost of doing business in the UK is higher" songs from Apple are _twice_ as expensive than in the US.
All I have to do to use Amazon is get a Zip code that fits in a selected state and bob's your uncle! Half price music!
I bought the same song twice, with a different account, different credit card, different IP address. The files are identical!
Couldn't care less!
As many others have noted, Amazon uses LAME, which is the best MP3 encoder. At equal bitrates, LAME MP3 should be roughly equal in quality to iTunes AAC. At 192kbps MP3 vs 128kbps AAC, LAME should be clearly better. At 256kbps, there should be no difference to all but those with canine hearing and zillion-dollar stereo systems.
Roberto Amorim and Sebastian (who appears to be continuing Amorim's work) have done some interesting "public double-blind listening tests."
TO START
PRESS ANY KEY
Where's the 'ANY' key? I see Esk, Kitarl, and Pig-Up...
Actually, every time someone buys a 99 cents track from iTunes from my band, we get 63 cents. I guess amazon service is about the same.
:)
Maybe MAJOR artists dont get paid but cdbaby's (cdbaby.com) sure do
We've always been at war with Eurasia.