Mastered for iTunes / Apple Music

[kirkmc]

They do replace with later versions, and there have been complaints about this. If an older mastering, for example, is no longer available in Apple's database, then they match to the newer version. Or they upload if there's enough difference that the two cannot be matched. 

 

1) Do you pay for bandwidth to your computer? I know this is an issue for mobile devices, but generally not for desktops. 

2) You can download some or all of the music. In fact, when you match your library, it doesn't remove your tracks; you only download/stream when you don't have local copies. 

3) They're not guaranteeing anything. It's up to you to not delete your originals, and even back them up. 

4) Huh? If you use iTunes, it looks exactly the same when music is in the cloud as it does when it's local. 

[kirkmc]

I have unlimited bandwidth for my home internet; I have a limit on my mobile internet. I don't consider that I pay for bandwidth at  home; I consider I pay for access, and can upload and download as much as I want. 

[kirkmc]

No throttling where I live; no limits on bandwidth. I get the maximum that my line is rated for, which isn't very much (15 Mbps). 

 

Don't confuse bandwidth consumption with speed. You may not get the maximum speed that you may be able to get, but it's still not charging you for each megabyte, is it?

[kirkmc]

Oh, and you're probably using cable internet, which shares bandwidth in an area or neighborhood. You're more likely to see different speeds than if you're on ADSL. 

[kirkmc]

If you go for iTunes Match, then you'll be able to upgrade the tracks to 256 kbps DRM-free tracks. But they won't be Mastered for iTunes (they might, but if they are, you won't see any indication). If you use Apple Music, then you'll have access to those tracks, but they'll still have DRM. So you might want to spend the $25 to get the DRM free tracks, if there are enough of them that you think it's worthwhile (personally, I think it's always better to have DRM free music). 

[kirkmc]

Create a playlist in your iCloud Music Library, then download that playlist to your device. A playlist can contain any combination of those tracks. 

 

I honestly don't know if you can sync Apple Music tracks to an iOS device; I don't think you can. I think you can only use iCloud Music Library or Apple Music to access those tracks. (I don't sync to my iPhone any more; I use iCloud Music Library.)

[kirkmc]

First, it's not "Hi-Res;" it's the same 256 kbps AAC files. 

 

Second, they've been using Mastered for iTunes files on Apple Music for a long time; they just didn't say anything. Why would they have two different types of files?