iTunes alternative for OSX?

July 6, 2005 2:35 PM

Are there any other sites from which I can download music to my iTunes library on Mac OSX.3.8? The iTunes Music Store is missing a few of my favorites.
posted by clh to computers & internet (10 comments total)

You would want to look for online shops that sell mp3s, which will play just fine in iTunes or on an iPod.

emusic is one of the most prominent, which should get you started if you're interested in more indie stuff.

The songs that you purchase (or download as part of your subscription) will be copied into your iTunes Library automatically if you are using the Safari browser and have left on the "Open safe files after downloading" setting and have set the preference in iTunes for "Copy files to iTunes music folder when adding to Library."

What you'll want to avoid is shops that sell files in the Windows Media format. While they can be played on Macs, they don't integrate well with iTunes and they can't be played on iPods at all.

I'm sure others will come along to recommend many, many other music stores and download sites... MP3s are all over the place. It might help if you were to mention artists or genres that you're into.
posted by bcwinters at 2:53 PM on July 6, 2005

i dont know what your favorites are but you can try emusic.com. it's all music from independent labels and they're just plain ol' mp3s. it's a subscription service. the cheapest plan is 40 songs for $10/month. but there is a free 50 song/2week trial which is a pretty sweet deal if you cancel before the 2 weeks are up.
posted by sammich at 2:55 PM on July 6, 2005

AllofMP3.com, I've been using it for months, I haven't had any issues. Its legality is... questionable, but their prices are unbeatable.
posted by exhilaration at 2:58 PM on July 6, 2005

Audio Lunchbox has a wide range of stuff but most of it indie (though they do have a few popular artists that are technically still considered indie). FWIW, I usually just hit up amazon and wait for the CD to show up.. usually with cdnow club pricing and/or third-party sellers I can get the CD just as cheap (if not cheaper) and then I have the CD and don't have to worry about my hard drive crashing. doesn't help your downloading problem, though.
posted by mrg at 3:22 PM on July 6, 2005

My label's got about 2/3 of its catalog up on iTunes now. The reasons for something not being there are many and varied. License deals, territory, publishing...

This page on CDBaby lists a slew of online retailers. For world music in particular, check out Calabash.

exhilaration, as far as I know, the download files on AllOfMp3.com are all illegal - the artists and labels are not getting paid. Better IMHO to download music for free off P2P or torrents (i.e. no money attached at all) than to download from there (funding Russian mafiosi.)
posted by omnidrew at 3:30 PM on July 6, 2005

My favorites aren't so much indie as they are one-hit wonders from the 80s. AllOfMp3 has at at least one that I've been searching for, but I don't like the thought of giving my cc# to the Russian mafia.
posted by clh at 4:06 PM on July 6, 2005

You can use PayPal with AllOfMP3, which at least protects your credit card number.
posted by cillit bang at 4:18 PM on July 6, 2005

emusic. It's legality is not questionable.

Allofmp3.com DOES NOT pay the artists, just FYI.
posted by dobbs at 5:07 PM on July 6, 2005

Allofmp3.com pays an artist as much he would be paid if his song were licensed for a year of play on Russian radio. (I have no idea how much this is).

They allow you to encode in any audio format, including AAC.
posted by null terminated at 7:05 AM on July 7, 2005

Way to rationalize, null.

emusic is approx 22 cents per track if you buy 90 a month ($20).
posted by dobbs at 2:21 PM on July 7, 2005