[mrspeakers]

Quote:

iTunes Match backs up all your music to the cloud as 256 Kbps AACs. You can download these tracks to any iOS device. It won't help you as you have a shuffle which barely has an interface, let alone a means for connecting to the net.
 
iTunes does not allow you to change the "Convert higher..." setting. I've heard of people using third-party software to manage it or converting all their higher-bitrate tracks to something smaller and keeping both versions (lossless for desktop use, lossy for portable use). I wish iTunes would allow you to change it, or it was something you could change through a hidden preference but so far it seems we're SOL on this one.

 
 
Interesting on the 256 for Match.  Kind of a bummer as a cloud based backup when you have 1000+ discs of ALAC and FLAC.  Plan B again, unless there's a bulk storage option.  Guess I should RT*M.  
 
 
 

 

[blessingx]

Why a bummer? It's not like you're uploading and they're available whenever you want to download. I'm confused. 

 

[aangen]

I don't know if this is helpful to you but I rip all my music to FLAC using dbpoweramp Reference. It gets the artwork and all the tags and all that and it does a great job. I put the FLAC files in one directory structure on a hard drive and make a copy of them to another directory structure. Then I use dbpoweramp batch converter to convert the FLAC files to LAME encoded MP3. You can do 320K if you prefer but I choose to do V0 Extreme Mode VBR files. Then I just delete the FLAC files from that directory. I point iTunes at the folders that have the MP3 files, and I point foobar at the folders that have the FLAC files. So yeah, I have both FLAC and MP3, but it's not all that much work and hey, hard drives are cheap. So when I listen at home via foobar or my Squeezebox devices I listen to FLAC. But when I am mobile I listen to LAME MP3 files. I like this setup.
 
As for uploading music to clouds, to this I say bah. I backup all my music to external hard drives and keep copies on separate computers in both of my homes. If I want it, I don't need no stinking cloud, it's on a local machine or one of my portables. Clouds, bah. How much time does it take to transfer 1000 256k songs from your cloud? Too long. Moohahahaha.
 
Ooops, almost forgot, dbpoweramp Reference works swell with ALAC. Just so ya know.

 

[mark2410]

i think im just going to shift all the stuff for the shuffle to another computer, still its stuff like this that makes me unable to buy an iphone or ipad because i cant keep separate copys of everything because apple wont allow the user control over things like choosing the bit rate.  (and their refusal to play flac)
 
is there anyway to see what computers are registered to itunes?  it says i have 5 but i only count 4, anyway to check without doing the delete everything option?

 

[Koolpep]

@mark2410
 
Apple does not allow user control over bitrate? I mean, come on, Apple lets you convert your music into a gazillion different combinations of codecs and bitrates. Just not for the "on-the-fly" conversion for the small size iPods. Apple let's you have 100 versions of the same song to sync YOURSELF to the iPod.
 
This is a function for the 99.9% of people who want more songs on their iPods but want higher bitrate ones on their desktops (as purchased). Nobody stops you from doing the conversion yourself and sync as you please. Apple does not prevent that. They ADDED this functionality, nothing was taken away from you. That in your case this functionality does not suit your need only means you have to do it by hand, which Apple fully supports. 
 
That this is in your case not what you want is sad, but there are plenty of workarounds. You can for example create a complete new library, just start iTunes and hold the option key while it boots and you can choose your library to work with. You could use aangens example and create a mirror image of your library and convert it into you desired bitrate and sync your shuffle from there.
 
It's a bit like your car dealer gives you a sunroof for free and you complain that it's not a convertible. After all, itunes is a free software that you can use totally for free to organise, convert, rip, burn and and and your songs, even if you will never have an Apple ID or itunes account. And for a free software it's quite cool me thinks...
 
 
To your questions about authorized computers:
 
there is no way to check a list of you computers. However you have the possibility once in 12 months to de-authorize all and re-authorize the ones you really need. It is important to de-authorize a computer before you sell it etc. otherwise you have to use the once in 12 months option when you reach the 5er limit. Reminder: amount of iPods/iPhones/iPads to sync with is unlimited.
 
so long,
K
 
 

 

[blessingx]

Mark, keep in mind your worst case scenario - manually taking the three steps (transcode, copy, delete second copy from computer) - is the same as (nearly?) every other DAP situation (assuming the DAP maker even supplies supporting software), no? There may be an exception or two, and I share your frustration of some of Apples policies, but as Kool implied, does it really apply here? 

 

[mark2410]

yes i think frustration does apply, they have done the difficult bit in offering an on the fly down conversion but ruin it by only allowing one fixed bit rate.

 

[DougofTheAbaci]

I can see why they did it... It's very Apple of them. Give people a very simple, easy thing and don't make them have to fuss with it. However, the problem is I think more audiophiles than normal music listeners are going to be hit with this problem and for them no level of customization, even if it's through Terminal and a hidden preference, is just cruel.

 

[mark2410]

Quote:

I can see why they did it... It's very Apple of them. Give people a very simple, easy thing and don't make them have to fuss with it. However, the problem is I think more audiophiles than normal music listeners are going to be hit with this problem and for them no level of customization, even if it's through Terminal and a hidden preference, is just cruel.

couldnt agree more

 

[021311]

Does anyone know how they work? Is itunes downloading 128k from apple? because one of my album named xxxx vol 1, but after the conversion it became xxxx Volume 1, and some other album genre have changed from pop to other, folk ,etc. As if iTunes is fixing my tags....

 

[SMcCandlish]

I think that's stuff embedded in the files you've downloaded.  Stuff *I* did, my iTunes keeps, like  a category called "Idnutsrital" because I typed too fast and hit enter.  I'd probably have to break out a hex editor to get rid of that at this point. <sigh>  If you're using this cloud stuff, I guess all bets are off.

 

[SMcCandlish]

That's the whole thing. It's just not really plausible that there's NO way to alter this because, well, there's just no way to NOT alter Mac stuff, even if it's a terribly geeky Unix nerd tweak requiring a 3-foot-beard wizard way of doing it.  Even if it's hard coded, well, so what? That sort of thing has never stopped game hackers (even in *Windows*, fer frak's sake)) from breaking into the latest Resident Evil 83 or whatever we're up to now (I got bored with those games on the 2nd go-around... much better as a movie series).  Enough digging with a hex editor should actually be *trivial* given that we have known text. This is laughable child's play compared to hacking encrypted software registration codes.  Just knowing WHERE to dig is the issue.  We need a Mac programmer on this thread, who can figure out intuitively where the Kbps limit is coded.  Removing it should then take about 30 seconds.  I just don't have the chops or patience to spend 3 months looking for that entry point.  Someone already just KNOWS it.  Ask around.

 

[DougofTheAbaci]

Sneaky solution for those of use with iPhones: Use iCloud. Everything that is matched will come down as a 256 AAC instead of the local ALAC files. Freed up loads of space on my iPhone because of this.