# How do you access your music



## RMinNJ (Apr 3, 2021)

Hi all-first post here  I have most of my favorite and cherished classical music on my iPhone (purchased through iTunes or downloaded from CDs), the rest in my iTunes library, and I also listen to music on YouTube on my phone or computer. I don't use any streaming service and can't wrap my borderline Boomer/GenX brain around them. How do you store and listen to your music? I like having my music, CDs on my phone, downloaded, so I can access them at any time and on the go. The thought of not having easy/permanent access to the pieces that enrich my life on a daily basis is terrifying. However, my phone is constantly out of storage and when I'm on the go, connection to YouTube is sometimes spotty. Do you recommend a streaming service, why, and which one? Help!


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

Three sources for me: the many thousands of cd's I own, Youtube, and Naxos Music Library. Also, I don't feel a need for immediate access to any particular works; I'm a patient guy. When I want to listen to music, I usually grab a random group of cd's and pick what appeals to me at that moment. 

I don't own a cell phone, so I don't have to concern myself with it. However, my wife wants me to own one; I think she likes the idea of calling me to buy certain things at the supermarket, but the last thing I want is to take calls when I'm buying groceries.


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

Welcome to TC, RMinNJ. I listen in several ways. I sometimes listen to youtube if I want to quickly evaluate a work. I mostly use the Naxos Music Library streaming service. I'm lucky in that I get that free through the university where I work. When I decide I truly want some music, I almost always purchase CDs and copy them to my computer hard drive for listening. I also listen to those CDs in my car. I love the Naxos service, but I think it may be a bit expensive.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

I only listen to music at home, via the old media of CDs and LPs, plus an occasional you-tube video out of interest, and, very rarely, at a live concert. Old-fashioned indeed; it's almost only about streaming now here.


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## 59540 (May 16, 2021)

At one time it was only through vinyl and the radio; now it's everything except vinyl and the radio.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

CD (or DVD) almost exclusively. Even downloads (like the Naxos freebies) I burn to CD's.


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## RMinNJ (Apr 3, 2021)

Thank you! I didn't even know about the Naxos service, I will have to look into it!


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## SONNET CLV (May 31, 2014)

Count me with the dinosaurs.









Vinyl discs and CDs/SACDs, mostly. With an occasional cassette and/or reel-to-reel tape. (My nearly all vacuum tubes system is set up for all of these, for which I have media -- thousands of LPs and CDs, fewer SACDs, and tapes.) With FM radio broadcasts available via my Cambridge Audio T500 or, even more vintage, my Technics ST/SU-8600 set-up (which is how I remember radio from my youth) and a pair of rabbit ears.

Music via on-line sourcing is still the future for me, but I'll be happy (very happy) to be able to look into that more in, say, 40 or 50 years -- maybe after my discs wear out. (If my ears haven't worn out first.)

And this is where I give a dinosaur roar.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

RMinNJ said:


> Thank you! I didn't even know about the Naxos service, I will have to look into it!


NML is the best, almost exclusively classical. It does tend to cost more than other streaming services.


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## SanAntone (May 10, 2020)

Bulldog said:


> Three sources for me: the many thousands of cd's I own, Youtube, and Naxos Music Library. Also, I don't feel a need for immediate access to any particular works; I'm a patient guy. When I want to listen to music, I usually grab a random group of cd's and pick what appeals to me at that moment.
> 
> I don't own a cell phone, so I don't have to concern myself with it. However, my wife wants me to own one; I think she likes the idea of calling me to buy certain things at the supermarket, but the last thing I want is to take calls when I'm buying groceries.


I agree that NML is great, and I have access to it through a subscription to the magazine _Early Music America_, for a fraction of what a premium subscription would cost. But since I listen to a much wider group of genres besides Classical, I prefer Spotify.

I also use YouTube quite a bit, and of course my own also large CD collection.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

On the go, my access is exclusively Hi-Res files on a Fiio X3 Mark III player. The Hi-Res files either downloaded from the likes of HDTracks and Presto Classical, or recorded from my vinyl collection. I have a low cost, limited bandwidth phone plan. Streaming would eat through my data faster than I'm typing this post.


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## Forster (Apr 22, 2021)

My smartphone mem card on which I put most of what I already have on CD
CDs
A small amount of vinyl - I used to have more but sold it off over the years
Spotify - the only streaming service I use
Youtube
BBC Radio 3 and podcasts
One or two download sites such as Apple, Prestoclassical


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

Mainly CDs and radio, occasionally youtube. I've been thinking of putting my CDs onto a device for easy retrieval, although its not such a high priority (it would be convenient because on youtube, I often listen to the same recordings I own when working on my computer). For a few years now my purchasing has been reduced to (at most) a handful per year. Streaming might interest me in future, but at present I'm happy as things are (no time or inclination for more music). 

I realise that to most people nowadays, the concept of a physical collection is obsolete. A few friends of mine have transferred their CDs and vinyl to digital format and gotten rid of them. I've gone through a few periods of culling, most of what I own was collected since 2008. Even back then, friends where saying I shouldn't bother with CDs and go for downloads. I don't see much of a need to collect physical format any longer.


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## AaronSF (Sep 5, 2021)

I transferred my hundreds of CDs to digital a long time ago, and I use Spotify extensively to listen to pieces not in my collection. Spotify seems to have almost everything, and the sound fidelity is pretty darn good. I do occasionally watch/listen to YouTube videos, especially if I want to see the performers, but the sound quality is often sub-par. So mostly I listen to music streamed from my laptop through a Shiit DAC and Shiit pre-amp/amp to my Grado 325x headphones, which yields a great sound experience.


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

CDs mainly. The Berlin Philharmonic Digital Concert Hall sometimes. FM radio only when I'm out driving.


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## musicrom (Dec 29, 2013)

Nowadays, pretty much solely on Spotify.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Mostly off of a MP3 player with a single earbud that combines the channels. I have everything on my computer and occasionally will play something from the computer. Will also spin CDs in the car when I am by myself. CDs spun are home burned. My original CDs are all stored in many boxes.


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## gnail (Jan 5, 2021)

CD/SACDs mainly and supplemented by streaming from tidal when I am out.


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## Kreisler jr (Apr 21, 2021)

Usually, go to shelves, pull out CD, put in drive, start listening. Or occasionally on youtube and less frequently some downloads on a harddrive. Never did any commercial streaming.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

SixFootScowl said:


> Mostly off of a MP3 player with a single earbud that combines the channels. I have everything on my computer and occasionally will play something from the computer. Will also spin CDs in the car when I am by myself. CDs spun are home burned. My original CDs are all stored in many boxes.


Reminds me of back in the day when an earphone plugged into a transistor radio was leading edge technology.


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

Mostly CD's. For my ears they still have the best sound quality.

I use the following streaming services:

Apple Music
Naxos
Met On Demand
Digital Concert Hall (Berlin Philharmonic. Just watched a great concert with John Williams conducting. It was really interesting in hearing how many members of the orchestra think he is a great conductor.)
Marque

I do not use YouTube for music as much as I use to.

I frequently discover a recording that I then acquire a CD or DVD for.


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

CDs which I play on a 25 year old sony CD player with amp plus speakers. Or I listen to CDs in my car. Sometimes youtube. I have an LP player and about 300 LPs but I never play them. Though I still think LP is a better sound - frankly the convenience and overall excellent quality of CD is good for me. I DO NOT waste time with lossless streaming services.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

RMinNJ said:


> Hi all-first post here  I have most of my favorite and cherished classical music on my iPhone (purchased through iTunes or downloaded from CDs), the rest in my iTunes library, and I also listen to music on YouTube on my phone or computer. I don't use any streaming service and can't wrap my borderline Boomer/GenX brain around them. How do you store and listen to your music? I like having my music, CDs on my phone, downloaded, so I can access them at any time and on the go. The thought of not having easy/permanent access to the pieces that enrich my life on a daily basis is terrifying. However, my phone is constantly out of storage and when I'm on the go, connection to YouTube is sometimes spotty. Do you recommend a streaming service, why, and which one? Help!


Welcome to TC!

I have downloaded much of my music to a dedicated audio laptop. I maintain hard copies of everything downloaded so I have walls of CD's. All my downloads are Flac or better quality. From the audio laptop I stream my music to the various systems I have in my home. 
I do not use a phone for music, only for a controler. If I take music with me, which is almost never as I can't listen critically in a car, I have a Pono player. It plays Flac or better quality.

All that said, I hardly ever listen to the CD's or downloads. I use several streaming services.

I have abundant storage on my audio PC, which is backed up automatically nightly. My portable devise, the Pono, has ample room to be away a week and not have to hear the same piece twice.

No streaming service is great. They all have different pluses and minuses. Spotify is best for connectivity. For me this is important as I have 9 rooms with music, many rooms with 2 systems.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

musicrom said:


> Nowadays, pretty much solely on Spotify.


Have you noticed, the last few days, that Spotify populates your "Next FRom" list no matter what your settings? It will not play one song or one album and then stop as it has before??
After it plays what you selected it plays whatever it wants from the "Next FRom."

Seems I recall an update this week and ever since...

What a nightmare.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

AaronSF said:


> I use Spotify extensively to listen to pieces not in my collection. Spotify seems to have almost everything,.


LOL, I resource my collection for all the holes in Spotify's collection! Spotify seems to be missing much. :lol:


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

progmatist said:


> Reminds me of back in the day when an earphone plugged into a transistor radio was leading edge technology.


oh yes those white earphones for private listening - buzzed a bit though and made the ears ache


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

eljr said:


> Welcome to TC!
> 
> I have downloaded much of my music to a dedicated audio laptop. I maintain hard copies of everything downloaded so I have walls of CD's. All my downloads are Flac or better quality. From the audio laptop I stream my music to the various systems I have in my home.
> I do not use a phone for music, only for a controler. If I take music with me, which is almost never as I can't listen critically in a car, I have a Pono player. It plays Flac or better quality.
> ...


why? You should get in touch with a hifi magazine as this does sound quite amazing.

I always had one room for music - and a portable player to carry around the house


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## musicrom (Dec 29, 2013)

My queue is usually long enough that I never even reach the "Next from" list (currently have 227 tracks in my queue). 

But personally, I don't really mind it, because I'd rather be listening to something than nothing. I guess it depends on how you like to listen to your music.


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## Krummhorn (Feb 18, 2007)

Believe it or not, I still have a LP player as part of my audio setup at home. I have many organ recordings from the 60's and 70's, many now never being pressed again or converted to CD's. 

For live music I prefer going to a concert in person ... for recordings I use IMSLP for listening to commercial recordings (requires membership in order to listen). When at my PC I'll open up Pandora, mainly for the wife who loves listening to The Carpenters, etc.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

I’ve ripped my entire library down CDs and SACDs to my hard drive. I also have a small but growing number of downloads and a few DVD-As (ripped). My only unzipped discs are Blu-Rays (less than 10). I stream via Tidal look forward to Spotify Hi-Rez (or at least CD quality).


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## Dorsetmike (Sep 26, 2018)

CDs and Vinyl ripped to hard drive plus numerous free downloads from Baroque music library and Internet Archive, all organised into playlists, played through a Technics system, sufficient playlists to take about 12 days before a repeat. Also use Youtube and any other free resource.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

progmatist said:


> Reminds me of back in the day when an earphone plugged into a transistor radio was leading edge technology.


Yes, but *the one I use* has much better sound. Also a better material for the cord as it does not harden and crack like so many cheaper set cords do.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

musicrom said:


> My queue is usually long enough that I never even reach the "Next from" list (currently have 227 tracks in my queue).
> 
> But personally, I don't really mind it, because I'd rather be listening to something than nothing. I guess it depends on how you like to listen to your music.


There is a problem when one does not have a lot of music lined up. Sometimes I can't decide what to listen to next, so just hit replay.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

PlaySalieri said:


> why? You should get in touch with a hifi magazine as this does sound quite amazing.
> 
> I always had one room for music - and a portable player to carry around the house


Don't be mislead, I only have 3 "good systems." The others are more about convenience. Wireless speaks of differing quality and configuration.

I was/am pleasantly surprised at the quality of sub $500 wireless speakers today. It makes it nice for a party in the summer or at the holidays to have the same music throughout the house, on the porch upon entry to the home and little speaks in the bathrooms just for background and consistency.

But for critical listening, as I said, only 3 systems.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

musicrom said:


> My queue is usually long enough that I never even reach the "Next from" list (currently have 227 tracks in my queue).
> 
> But personally, I don't really mind it, because I'd rather be listening to something than nothing. I guess it depends on how you like to listen to your music.


my music is only off for definition, I do not like choosing my music for the day up front as I spend the day reading about music and as the day wanes my direction changes.

To complete an album and just jump straight into something else, similar no less, is insufferable. Like a good wine, I need a moment between selections to let the music settle. Cleanse the musical palette briefly.

That the "Up Next" is littered with similar sounds, with no pause, makes it so much worse. It makes mud of the piece I selected.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

progmatist said:


> Reminds me of back in the day when an earphone plugged into a transistor radio was leading edge technology.


My first earphone. Circa 1961:


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

SixFootScowl said:


> Yes, but *the one I use* has much better sound. Also a better material for the cord as it does not harden and crack like so many cheaper set cords do.


What? You don't like the sound of music on AM radio?


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

progmatist said:


> What? You don't like the sound of music on AM radio?


Oh I did listen to all the big MoTown hits on the transistor radio in the 60s. We would get these lists of the top songs too. This was one of the stations I listened to:


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## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

CD, vinyl and hi-res files stored locally on a NAS.

As of now, I do not stream. But that will probably change in the near future.

The only thing I use YouTube for, and other poor quality files, is for research to discover new: composers, artists, bands.


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

eljr said:


> Don't be mislead, I only have 3 "good systems." The others are more about convenience. Wireless speaks of differing quality and configuration.
> 
> I was/am pleasantly surprised at the quality of sub $500 wireless speakers today. It makes it nice for a party in the summer or at the holidays to have the same music throughout the house, on the porch upon entry to the home and little speaks in the bathrooms just for background and consistency.
> 
> But for critical listening, as I said, only 3 systems.


Well - 3 quality systems is still 1 or 2 more than most of us. Wireless speakers I never really considered - but when I think about listening in the shower room with my mobile I can hardly hear anything so I might try it out.
You read about music most of the day? Are you a scholar? Private research?


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## premont (May 7, 2015)

Art Rock said:


> CD (or DVD) almost exclusively. Even downloads (like the Naxos freebies) I burn to CD's.


This is precisely similar as to me. All downloads are burnt to CDR and listened to over my HIFI system. Well, I sometimes listen to new CDs at youtube and particularly Presto's clips through headphones, but as well as always only to find out whether I want to purchase the CD in question or not. I own an I-phone but find the handling troublesome and never use it for music.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

PlaySalieri said:


> Well - 3 quality systems is still 1 or 2 more than most of us. Wireless speakers I never really considered - but when I think about listening in the shower room with my mobile I can hardly hear anything so I might try it out.
> You read about music most of the day? Are you a scholar? Private research?


I am not of academia. I am but a hobbyist. As I am retired I can indulge my interests. As classical music is a recent interest of mine, 7 years now, I am woefully in need of edification hence my submersion.


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## Roger Knox (Jul 19, 2017)

SixFootScowl said:


>


Re WKNR Music Guide: I was in Vancouver then. Quite a few of the hooks are still in my brain -- nos. 4, 8, 12, 15, 18, 26. Mr. Gordy knew what hits are made of.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

premont said:


> This is precisely similar as to me. All downloads are burnt to CDR and listened to over my HIFI system. Well, I sometimes listen to new CDs at youtube and particularly Presto's clips through headphones, but as well as always only to find out whether I want to purchase the CD in question or not. I own an I-phone but find the handling troublesome and never use it for music.


I used to burn everything to CD, but now can't remember the last time I've burned one. All my CD-Rs, with jewel cases and self-printed case inserts and booklets are now packed in a box, in the spare bedroom upstairs. The last time I used them was to rip the ones burned from pre-2009, DRM locked iTunes downloads to FLAC. For some reason, iTunes still only allows pre-2009 purchases to be re-downloaded with DRM.


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## Helgi (Dec 27, 2019)

I have a CD collection that I listen to at home, in the living room. And then I have a lossless digital collection (not much overlap) on my computer that I listen to mostly on headphones at my desk, or in a chair next to the desk. I also have the digital files on a portable SSD that connects to my living room system via USB, so I can listen to everything there if I choose to.

I carry a few albums on my iPhone for listening on the move, using the Onkyo HF Player.

Streaming services I use are Spotify and the BPO Digital Concert Hall.

Occasionally I have the thought that I could just as well stream everything — but once you have a collection going it's not easy to make the switch, is it 

Plus I enjoy having a curated collection of music that I own.


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## Luchesi (Mar 15, 2013)

Down through the years my complaints;

78s - bad sound, very fragile (breakable)

LPs - scratches and pops and skips- but less fragile

reel to reel - high capacity, some hiss, some degradation over time, not easy to search through

8tracks - I sprung for a discreet 4 channel receiver and high-end eight track player, less hiss, easy to search tracks. That regime was gone very quickly. heh heh

then cassettes - hiss and degradation, the tape would break

CDs solved the above problems, except that unlike on a hard drive there's usually some problems finding things.

hard drives - my choice since the late 80s when burning from CDs came in.

I don't sign up for any online services (except Evernote) - recurring monthly charges, no thanks. I could look into services which are pay as you go, I guess. But I want the music in my possession. I don't know much about online services, but will obscure recordings remain available far into the future?

I did deal with the Apple services when they first came out, long ago, but all the copy protection restrictions turned me off (transferring files that I had bought among my devices), and I’ve never looked back into it.


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

Streaming - the convenience can not be denied, and unlike with other forms of music there isn't the moral aspect of artists being ripped off for the most part.

LPs - when I'm feeling in the mood. Mostly for the enjoyability factor of actually dusting an LP off and playing it on a turntable.


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## Luchesi (Mar 15, 2013)

I remember that about 10 years before CDs came out my friends and I were speculating about the future of recorded music. We were dreaming of the day when you would buy a small box that would fit into a larger device and that box with contain all of Bach’s music and all of his scores, for example. You could carry around the little box if everybody had the player or you might have to carry around the player also. heh heh I don't think any of us ever thought it would come true.
Nowadays you can put all of many composers and other music on a small hard drive and much more — and it's a searchable and compatible and retrievable.

All of Bach’s music and scores would fit on less than 1% of a modern hard drive. We probably don't think about it much.


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## Ravn (Jan 6, 2020)

Idagio. Love it. The search function is nothing short of wwonderful. 

Used to use Apple Music (and even earlier Spotify).


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Ravn said:


> Idagio.


Speak to it's connectivity if you can please. I am currently shopping for an additional music service.

What is this service compatible with? How can you control it.

Spotify is fantastic in this regard but Spotify wants to take change of your music and tell you what to play. Plus, the quality is less. .


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## Azol (Jan 25, 2015)

All of my CDs I convert into FLAC and store on my PC and network drive as backup (network drive I can also access from my smartphone while at home). FLAC I further convert into mp4 AAC for the sake of space and keep them on a microSD card in my smartphone for offline access "in the fields". Grado GW100 + Sony Xperia 5 II is my mobile music solution. But at home I listen to CDs most exclusively.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

Luchesi said:


> reel to reel - high capacity, some hiss, some degradation over time, not easy to search through


And the tape would occasionally fall off the reel. There was a trade-off between high capacity and high sound quality, depending on the tape speed. Most consumer level machines of course could run at 7 1/2, 3 3/4 and 1 7/8 IPS. At the top speed with best sound, a 7" reel would hold around 45 minutes total, including both sides. Or 1 average vinyl record.



Luchesi said:


> 8tracks - I sprung for a discreet 4 channel receiver and high-end eight track player, less hiss, easy to search tracks. That regime was gone very quickly. heh heh


In the mid 70s, my parents gave me a portable cassette recorder for Christmas. One day my Mom and I were shopping at K-Mart for cassette albums. She said they should've given me an 8-Track player, because everything was available on 8-Track. Prerecorded cassettes were more limited at the time.



Luchesi said:


> then cassettes - hiss and degradation, the tape would break


I've rarely experienced cassette tape breakage. Far more common was the tape being wrinkled, due to being chewed by a machine. The wrinkles would cause the high-end to constantly fade in and out.



Luchesi said:


> I remember that about 10 years before CDs came out my friends and I were speculating about the future of recorded music. We were dreaming of the day when you would buy a small box that would fit into a larger device and that box with contain all of Bach's music and all of his scores, for example. You could carry around the little box if everybody had the player or you might have to carry around the player also. heh heh I don't think any of us ever thought it would come true.
> Nowadays you can put all of many composers and other music on a small hard drive and much more - and it's a searchable and compatible and retrievable.
> 
> All of Bach's music and scores would fit on less than 1% of a modern hard drive. We probably don't think about it much.


I carry a credit card size Micro-SD card holder in my wallet. I can carry literally thousands of Hi-Res albums with me at all times. My Fiio X3 never runs out of music to play.


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## MatthewWeflen (Jan 24, 2019)

90% of my listening is done on my Sony MDR-Z1R headphones, fed my my WM1A Walkman. 10% is done while cooking in the kitchen on a Bose SoundTouch 20 stereo speaker, fed by a NW-A45 Walkman.

All of my music collection is locally stored on SD cards (backed up on hard drive). It consists of FLAC rips from CDs and downloads from Presto Classical.

I have not tried streaming yet. Occasionally I will listen to a bit of music on YouTube, but mainly in order to preview it before purchase.


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## KevinJS (Sep 24, 2021)

Depends where I am:

Streaming: What's streaming?

At home: CD or vinyl (and occasionally, cassette or reel to reel)

In my truck: CDs ripped to iTunes and transferred to an old iPhone with a vast amount of storage (10,000+ songs and still going strong), played over the truck's sound system via BlueTooth. 

I don't do much classical in the truck, because the noise level is too much. Luckily, my prog collection fills the void.


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## saboteur (Nov 6, 2021)

I know people who can't listen to compressed files. The quality for them means more than music itself.
Happy that I'm not one of them. Using mp3 player and listening everywhere I go.


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## DLOinQUEENS (Nov 22, 2018)

I alternate between CDs and streaming from Qobuz or Idagio (kind of redundant to pay for both, I guess, but Idagio’s classical-specific search function is unreal, and Qobuz covers my popular music fix). 

For CDs, I troll Ebay for used lots - people are just giving them away now - get ‘em while they’re hot. I like having a physical collection so I can fully disconnect from computers and the internet at times. I also collect CPO albums because of the rarity of these recordings. I like knowing that I own the only recording of a rare work I like in the event that they one day pull their rights from streaming services.

I use a 6 CD Onkyo changer and whatever device is handy to stream. 

I do find I enjoy the music more, and concentrate better, when I have the physical copy in my possession. It’s purely psychological since I hear no difference in sound quality, but it’s enough that I will never part with my physical collection and will never stop buying CDs (within reason).


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## Luchesi (Mar 15, 2013)

I admire Chopin’s solo works, but I never thought I would learn to appreciate his chamber works. They sounded very different and some critics have said that they're not very good. He was out of his element, or some other snap judgement..
When I still had a car with a CD player I put in the CD and left it. It would come on every time I drove anywhere (short trips). Needless to say I now appreciate these large works. I play a little game while I’m driving, looking out the window at the scenery and the traffic I try to see how this music fits the scenery and some of the related concepts I think about, flashing by. And often there are some perfect moments!


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## Neo Romanza (May 7, 2013)

I've ripped recordings from my classical CD collection --- 4,164 recordings to be exact to the Music app via my Apple Macbook. I mainly listen through the Music app nowadays, but I used to listen to the stereo a lot more. I recently acquired a soundbar for my computer, which sounds pretty darn good, so I go from listening to the soundbar to listening on headphones through the computer. I haven't got into the whole streaming thing because I have such a large collection (a lot of which I haven't even ripped and probably won't), but I imagine I own over 7,000 classical CDs at this juncture.

From what I understand, Apple will be tossing their hat into the classical music streaming arena next year as they acquired Primephonic:

Apple acquires classical music streaming service Primephonic

Special edit: That CD count on the Music app on my Macbook is now 4,611, which is 668.78 GB and comes to a playing time of 205 days if played continuously.


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## Malx (Jun 18, 2017)

saboteur said:


> I know people who can't listen to compressed files. The quality for them means more than music itself.
> Happy that I'm not one of them. Using mp3 player and listening everywhere I go.


I would rather listen to as high a quality source as I can access or afford - does that mean I prefer the delivery medium rather than the music? I think not - I prefer to think the music which is already great just moves on to another level if the source is not compressed.

Neither would I condemn someone who is happy listening to MP3 files - each to their own.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

KevinJS said:


> I don't do much classical in the truck, because the noise level is too much. Luckily, my prog collection fills the void.


Even some prog has too much dynamic range for road noise.



saboteur said:


> I know people who can't listen to compressed files. The quality for them means more than music itself.
> Happy that I'm not one of them. Using mp3 player and listening everywhere I go.


Some people should know AAC+ is far superior to MP3. Whether ripped into iTunes, or purchased. It's superior in the same way an MPEG 4 video is superior to an old VHS quality Video CD. AAC+ is the audio layer of the former, MP3 the latter.


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## Malx (Jun 18, 2017)

I guess I have been lucky over the years, I still have a cassette deck that can be used (although it seldom is) and have rarely had issues perhaps having a dual capstan drive system has helped and I recall being given a bit of advice along the lines of - if a tape hasn't been played for a while spool from end to end before playing to free up the mechanism.


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## Calliope1 (Apr 16, 2020)

Interesting thread! I mainly listen to CDs and radio (local and streamed from overseas, such as BBC3). Also find YouTube useful to check things out. I have a good CD collection (but not necessarily a collection of good CDs!) and fairly high-end hifi to play them on. I also have them all losslessly copied to Apple Music both as a backup and to listen to while working on my computer. If I'm going to out and about and think I might want some accompanying music, I'll compile a playlist and send MP3 versions to my iPhone.


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## Bkeske (Feb 27, 2019)

90% of the time my music comes from here…

View attachment 161024


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

Bkeske said:


> 90% of the time my music comes from here…
> 
> View attachment 161024


I have a similar room, only the carpenter has made a theorem of iron under is.
I do not have to bow the old back so much .


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## 89Koechel (Nov 25, 2017)

Nice, Malx, that you have a WORKING cassette deck! I have one, also, and it's nice to have it, to replay (or dub, onto blank CDs) old FM programs of Don Tait and/or Jim Svejda ... and there are certain, commercial cassettes that one will NOT find in old LPs, or CDs, the "cloud", or otherwise (the International Piano Archives of Music, in Maryland, for example). Nice, also, to have two, WORKING open-reel decks, for much the same reasons. Yes, also, you "gotta" keep those cassette deck heads CLEAN, as much as you can ... and make sure that the ol' deck can continue to function, in the future - eh?


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## 89Koechel (Nov 25, 2017)

Bkeske & Rogerx - Yes, those old LPs still "work fine", don't they? Geez, even the best-engineered, classical LPs of ALL, still might be those ol' RCA issues (shaded-dog, white dog, etc.) from the halcyon days of the Reiners, Monteux, Munch, Morton Gould and others ... one can be sure. Great discipline and results in those days. Thanks!


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## hvannes (Jul 14, 2021)

I listen to music at work (I do stupid routine work where I can listen and still do my job properly), on my commute and while walking the dog. I never have the time to sit down and just listen.

At work I have two DAPs, a Hiby R8 and a Cayin N8. I have a fairly large rotation of IEMs and headphones, also at work. I pick IEM based on what music I listen to. 

My music collection is mostly high-res downloads. I almost never buy CDs, only when a download is not available. 

When I come home I go for long walks in the woods with my dog, listening to music from one of my two Cowon players.


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## Bkeske (Feb 27, 2019)

Rogerx said:


> I have a similar room, only the carpenter has made a theorem of iron under is.
> I do not have to bow the old back so much .


Ha! Yes, coming up on 64, so have been thinking about that.


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## Bkeske (Feb 27, 2019)

89Koechel said:


> Bkeske & Rogerx - Yes, those old LPs still "work fine", don't they?


Yes indeed. I have some selections which I have on vinyl and CD, and yes, have streaming available as well, but many or most of those selections sound best on vinyl, even with the occasional pop and/or click. There was a time that we never even gave that a second thought. Just happened to me yesterday, was testing some equipment, and decided to stream Szell's Sibelius 2nd, didn't sound quite right, at all, so pulled the vinyl from 1965, and it sounded incredible in comparison, as always.

The RCA Victor is pretty good, as are the venerable Columbia Masterworks, Philips, Angel, Epic, DECCA/London, EMI, Мелодия, although DG can be inconsistent, the older with the 'big flowers' on the label can be glorious. Some of the new releases can sound amazing on vinyl as well.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

Bkeske said:


> Yes indeed. I have some selections which I have on vinyl and CD, and yes, have streaming available as well, but many or most of those selections sound best on vinyl, even with the occasional pop and/or click. There was a time that we never even gave that a second thought. Just happened to me yesterday, was testing some equipment, and decided to stream Szell's Sibelius 2nd, didn't sound quite right, at all, so pulled the vinyl from 1965, and it sounded incredible in comparison, as always.
> 
> The RCA Victor is pretty good, as are the venerable Columbia Masterworks, Philips, Angel, Epic, EMI, Мелодия, although DG can be inconsistent, the older with the 'big flowers' on the label can be glorious. Some of the new releases can sound amazing on vinyl as well.


I have some vinyl records which never made it to CD transfer. Vinyl is still the only way they exist.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Bkeske said:


> 90% of the time my music comes from here…
> 
> View attachment 161024


Oh yes, I had a room like that. Then I converted to CD's and was able to reclaim much of the space. My records are now in storage.


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## Bkeske (Feb 27, 2019)

eljr said:


> Oh yes, I had a room like that. Then I converted to CD's and was able to reclaim much of the space. My records are now in storage.


Did the same thing backs in the mid-80's, and have many boxes of CD's, then went back to vinyl after a 30+ year absence. Shocked at the difference, in a positive way. Now I wish I had never given up on it over that span. Of course, my LP collection might be 3-4 times larger right now


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## golfer72 (Jan 27, 2018)

CD's for me. I like the physical package and having them organized by composer in my racks. I sample some works on Youtube on my laptop and will get the CD if i like it. Dont understand the whole LP thing. The noise bothers me. I still marvel at how quiet CD's are. I aint going back


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## Malx (Jun 18, 2017)

89Koechel said:


> Bkeske & Rogerx - Yes, those old LPs still "work fine", don't they? Geez, even the best-engineered, classical LPs of ALL, still might be those ol' RCA issues (shaded-dog, white dog, etc.) from the halcyon days of the Reiners, Monteux, Munch, Morton Gould and others ... one can be sure. Great discipline and results in those days. Thanks!


Never had the space for reel to reel, nor the need to be honest but a childhood friend's father had a Revox and he recorded Radio 3 evening concerts frequently. I do recall being impressed by thesound it produced through his Quad 33/303 amps and B&W speakers.
Quick question - what do you use to keep your cassette deck heads clean?


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## Bkeske (Feb 27, 2019)

Malx said:


> Never had the space for reel to reel, nor the need to be honest but a childhood friend's father had a Revox and he recorded Radio 3 evening concerts frequently. I do recall being impressed by thesound it produced through his Quad 33/303 amps and B&W speakers.
> Quick question - what do you use to keep your cassette deck heads clean?


I have a Nakamichi cassette deck I still use occasionally. I have an Allsop 3 cassette head cleaner (you can still find them on places like eBay) and use American Recorder S-721H cleaning fluid with it by applying to the Allsop cleaning pads.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

Bkeske said:


> I have a Nakamichi cassette deck I still use occasionally. I have an Allsop 3 cassette head cleaner (you can still find them on places like eBay) and use American Recorder S-721H cleaning fluid with it by applying to the Allsop cleaning pads.


I recently discovered a way to make cassettes sound fantastic. There's a $15.99 app on the Windows and Apple app stores called DDi Codec. It accurately decodes Dolby B and C noise reduction, rather than the sledgehammer approach used by most cassette decks. Recording a cassette in 24/96 Hi-Res and using this app, it sounds virtually indistinguishable from a vinyl record recorded in 24/96.


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## Luchesi (Mar 15, 2013)

progmatist said:


> I recently discovered a way to make cassettes sound fantastic. There's a $15.99 app on the Windows and Apple app stores called DDi Codec. It accurately decodes Dolby B and C noise reduction, rather than the sledgehammer approach used by most cassette decks. Recording a cassette in 24/96 Hi-Res and using this app, it sounds virtually indistinguishable from a vinyl record recorded in 24/96.


Does vinyl still sound better than digital? I remember about that in the 1980s. The difference wasn't obvious to me. How are the LPs kept free of pops?


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

Luchesi said:


> Does vinyl still sound better than digital? I remember about that in the 1980s. The difference wasn't obvious to me. How are the LPs kept free of pops?


If you're getting into classical vinyl, you basically need a cleaning machine. Noise ruins classical in a way it does with few other genres because classical tends to have more emphasis on musically important quiet sections. People on trading sites like discogs also know to grade classical LPs more conservatively than they would a rock LP.

Classical was one of the first genres where listeners switched to CDs for a reason.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

Luchesi said:


> Does vinyl still sound better than digital? I remember about that in the 1980s. The difference wasn't obvious to me. How are the LPs kept free of pops?


After recording vinyl in 24/96 Hi-Res, I clean up the pops and clicks with the Izotope RX8 Declick module. What makes analog and Hi-Res sound better to me than CD quality is they have a more open, transparent sound. Most people describe this as "more dynamic range." Of course, it's technically impossible for vinyl to have more "dynamic range" than a CD. That's like "seeing more color" in an old SD CRT television. They simply use the old fallback description "dynamic range," for lack of better words to articulate what they're actually hearing.


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## Ralf Hutter (Mar 21, 2018)

I was originally a die-hard LP guy that reluctantly started adding CDs to my collection back in the '80's. After the turn of the century I got married and I had to abandon 2-channel stereo in a dedicated listening room for headphone-only listening (translation, my wife always has the damn TV on in the other room and I can't hear the music!). 

With the headphones came digitizing of my massive LP collection (some redbook, some hi-res) and sourcing the music from a dedicated music-server. Currently have around 8TB of files, probably half from my earlier LP collection, with the newer stuff ripped from CD using EAC on a Plextor CD-rom drive, or downloaded in hi-res from Qobuz, Presto, eclassical or some of the other usual suspects. I also buy the occasional LP and have a friend do a hi-res needle-drop for me.

Listening is via the headless server. Player is Foobar directly out to MHDT Pagoda DAC, then to Quicksilver headphone amp. Phones are Focal Clear. This is a wonderful set-up and damn near as satisfying as my dedicated listening room environment was back 20+ years ago. The headphones actually make listening to classical music more enjoyable, due to all the extra inner-detail that I can hear.


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## golfer72 (Jan 27, 2018)

Luchesi said:


> Does vinyl still sound better than digital? I remember about that in the 1980s. The difference wasn't obvious to me. How are the LPs kept free of pops?


Stick to CD's. Why go back?


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

golfer72 said:


> Stick to CD's. Why go back?


Stick to streaming, why go back?


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Ralf Hutter said:


> ... I got married and I had to abandon 2-channel stereo in a dedicated listening room for headphone-only listening (translation, my wife always has the damn TV on in the other room and I can't hear the music!).


I hear stories like this all the time, I just don't get it.

Doesn't she own any headphones?

I mean this seriously. I would never give up my music like that. In fact, I never have. Married 3 times.

One must have priorities.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

eljr said:


> golfer72 said:
> 
> 
> > Stick to CD's. Why go back?
> ...


Let me tell you about the benefits of the Edison Wax Cylinder.


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

I use all of the obsolete technologies. From primitive to contemporary:

Paper: Stacks of scores within reach of my piano. Alas, the playback is unreliable and the performances generally poor.

Cassette tapes: The only player is in the billiard room, but I still play some — pool that is … and tapes occasionally. 

Vinyl: Lots of prog rock, jazz, and classical from my youth.

CDs: Along with the vinyl, these I play over speakers in my house's largest room. And CDs when traveling by car. Downloads I burn to CD. 

YouTube for research and accessing works I don't have on other media.


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## Shea82821 (Nov 19, 2021)

I use it all, but have favoured digital media as of late. I still get a bit on CD, vinyl, and occasionally cassette. Course, alongside the collection I already have. Most recent stuff, however, is all digital out of cost, availability, and space too. Perhaps when things in my sphere of life get better off again, that can change.


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## saboteur (Nov 6, 2021)

Malx said:


> I would rather listen to as high a quality source as I can access or afford - does that mean I prefer the delivery medium rather than the music? I think not - I prefer to think the music which is already great just moves on to another level if the source is not compressed.
> 
> Neither would I condemn someone who is happy listening to MP3 files - each to their own.


I can't answer for you, because I don't know you. Isn't that clear? I can only speak for people I know.
Answering a question: "Will they listen to the best music in the world they've never heard, if it could only be found compressed?" they said - never.
One of them buys only SACD or DVD-Audio, whatever it is. Even if it is total crap for him. Content means nothing, but quality.


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## progmatist (Apr 3, 2021)

saboteur said:


> I can't answer for you, because I don't know you. Isn't that clear? I can only speak for people I know.
> Answering a question: "Will they listen to the best music in the world they've never heard, if it could only be found compressed?" they said - never.
> One of them buys only SACD or DVD-Audio, whatever it is. Even if it is total crap for him. Content means nothing, but quality.


Most people who hate compressed music are stuck in an MP3 mindset. Yes, it does leave much to be desired. But as all other digital tech has improved and evolved, so has digital audio compression technology. AAC+ is light years ahead of MP3. Even the open source OGG sounds much better than MP3. Fraunhofer tried selling an updated version of MP3, called MP3 Pro. It sounded just as good as their original MP3, at half the bitrate. Because of convoluted MP3 Pro licensing, it didn't go over very well. Their efforts were understandable though. After MP3 became so ubiquitous its licensing became effectively unenforceable, Fraunhofer didn't want to make the same mistake twice.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

saboteur said:


> I can't answer for you, because I don't know you. Isn't that clear? I can only speak for people I know.
> Answering a question: "Will they listen to the best music in the world they've never heard, if it could only be found compressed?" they said - never.
> One of them buys only SACD or DVD-Audio, whatever it is. Even if it is total crap for him. Content means nothing, but quality.


I have never known or spoken to a single person who listens to a format not the music.

All the format can do is enhance the music.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

progmatist said:


> Most people who hate compressed music are stuck in an MP3 mindset. Yes, it does leave much to be desired. But as all other digital tech has improved and evolved, so has digital audio compression technology. AAC+ is light years ahead of MP3. Even the open source OGG sounds much better than MP3. Fraunhofer tried selling an updated version of MP3, called MP3 Pro. It sounded just as good as their original MP3, at half the bitrate. Because of convoluted MP3 Pro licensing, it didn't go over very well. Their efforts were understandable though. After MP3 became so ubiquitous its licensing became effectively unenforceable, Fraunhofer didn't want to make the same mistake twice.


At 64 kbps, AAC+ comes very close to MP3 at 128 kbps.

AAC+ is like mp3pro but just with aac instead of mp3

mp3 + sbc = mp3pro
AAC + sbc = AAC+

SBC is a tecnology where you by analyse of the mainstream (AAC or mp3) plus som small aditionel info tries to recreate the higher freqencies.
as this recreation is not perfect, the technology is used for low bitrates where lowpass filters are really low anyway.

you will need a sbc compatibel player otherwires only the main data will show
that
mp3pro/aac+ can be playded byan mp3/aac only player. but you will miss the SBC data (higher freqencies.)


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## advokat (Aug 16, 2020)

I've had the same problem as OP - what to do with the music when you are on the move - and I have to move a lot about Europe (and, pre-COVID, the US). At home, I listen to my CD library, medium-sized at about 4 000 discs, on a decent but not hugely overpriced system. My solution for travel - two A&K players and a lot of headphones, with some headphone amplifiers. I have placed headphone amplifiers with headphones strategically in the places that I visit and stay for two weeks or more and take only my A&Ks with me. One has 1 TB storage, and the other half that. The files are at least in flac, with many in hi-res flac and DSD, from Presto downloads. Flacs are rip-offs from my CDs. I listen to files on PC or phone very rarely. I use various streaming services only to find my next CD purchases. NML, though, provides an endless amount of fun well beyond trawling for new records to buy.


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