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Regarding music in streaming, convenience is often king. This is why most people are satisfied to listen to music via online platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. However, streaming music is delivered with its limits. On the one hand, you do not have music that you listen to, which means that it can be removed in a second if the licensee of the license wishes. If you are someone who wants more freedom regarding music and that to really have the music you love, we suggest you go further and cancel your subscription to these streaming platforms and make Something different. You can buy physical copies of your music or via a digital music store.
Now you could be confused to explain why we mention a digital music store. First, the purchase of digital music, such as MP3 or Flac files, has more advantages than you think. Once you have bought these files, they can be stored on any device, which means that it is up to you to keep forever. Digital music stores also offer instant downloads after your purchase, and there is often a choice between different formats, such as MP3 or AAC to save space and money. But if space constraints are not a concern, most sites also offer FLAC or ALAC versions without loss for a significant increase in quality. (They usually cost the same as the MP3s.) Of course, if you prefer physical media and you don’t care too much storage, you can buy CDs and tear the music old -fashioned.
Whether you want to store a single album or a variety of music through the ages, we have gathered the best digital music stores. Some of these names that you recognize, such as iTunes and Amazon, but there are also some of our personal favorites who do not get the love we think they deserve, like Bandcamp and Qobuz. No matter what you choose, many of these stores offer applications for Android and iOS, allowing you to easily listen to the music you buy. You can also use preinstalled musical applications on your phone.
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Average cost per album: $ 10
Maximum binary flow: 256 kbps (AAC)
Itunes may no longer be the star of the Apple range, since Apple Music is the objective of the company at the moment, but it is always one of the largest digital markets. Itunes always establishes the standard for music downloads with loss, and its catalog should provide all the most obscure needs. Technically, iTunes does not sell MP3. Instead, he sells songs in his own AAC format, which can be read by almost all modern players.
If you use MacOS Catalina or above, you can access the market from Music> iTunes blind. If you want to download files without loss, keep in mind that you will need music membership, but you will not be able to keep the music if your subscription ends.
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Average cost per album: $ 10
Maximum binary flow: 320 kbps, without loss (up to 24 kHz)
With the support of numerous independent music labels, Bandcamp (now part of the Epic games) is perhaps the best alternative to iTunes or Amazon, especially if your tastes take place towards the most esoteric. The site allows you to download in the format you like (MP3, Flac, Apple Lossless) and apparently as many times as you wish, without paying more. In addition, the site works regularly Bandcamp Friday Events, which give 100% of the profits to the artist.
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Average cost per album: $ 10
Maximum binary flow: 256 kbps
If you are an Amazon Prime member, Amazon Music makes a lot of sense. You get one (limited) streaming service And a music store to buy mp3s, in addition to streaming and automatic tears of physical disks that you buy. The home page of digital music is quite dull – just a bunch of blocks in blocks instead of the cover – and includes prominent links to the unlimited streaming of Amazon Music.
Note that although Amazon has scuttled its “Digital Locker” service that stores your MP3s, the MP3s that you buy on Amazon will always be available for streaming and download.
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Average cost per album: $ 10 (CD quality), $ 15 (24 bits)
Maximum binary flow: Without loss (up to 24/192)
If you are only interested in high quality downloads – and by that, I mean specifically 24 -bit high resolution – The Qobuz download store is the cheapest. Like the Qobuz music streaming service, it is aimed at a wide variety of musical genres, from jazz to death metal to everything you can think. The site also offers sales on new versions, including a recent metallica promotion. If you are an ultra-keen audiophile, you can register for the sublime streaming package of $ 180 per year, which also gives you discounts of up to 60% on high resolution downloads.
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Average cost per album: $ 10
Maximum binary flow: 320 kbps, without loss (up to 24 kHz)
If your tastes run to dance music with a pinch of indie, then you will find a lot to love Beep. The site also offers a good selection of 16 -bit and 24 -bit FLAC which are not subject to the price increases of certain competitive suppliers.
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Previously, I recommended Digital 7 For its wide selection of MP3 (and also FLAC files), but the site has not been updated for some time. While the company was acquired by Songradr music license companyThe first page of the store has not changed in three years and a search for new versions (Bad Bunny, Lizzo, Gorillaz, etc.) is empty. It remains to be seen what the acquisition will bring, because 7digital was once an excellent resource for musical discovery and cheaper downloads. The representatives of 7digital did not respond to my request for more information.
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Despite the rise in streaming, millions of MP3s are still available for sale and the number of tracks increases all the time. All the stores listed here allow you to download songs legally on a computer or directly on your phone, and most of them offer applications dedicated to Android. Note that due to Apple restrictions, iOS users may not be able to buy music from sources other than iTunes on their phone.
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Google Play Music stopped selling MP3s at the end of 2020 while the company moved to Youtube music in streaming only. All the above services offer an excellent alternative to Google Play Music, and some like Bandcamp offer a loss of more quality higher than the same price. The Music Locker, which allows you to download your own music library.
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MP3 is known as a “loss” format because it deletes audio information to reduce file sizes, even at the maximum rate of 320 kbps. In comparison, Flac is a “lossless” format because it does not delete information and rather compresses music in the same way as a zip file. Consequently, a FLAC sounds better than a MP3, in particular the one that was torn at a low level low of 128 kbps.
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