Apple Music Who uses iTunes Match still?

[davidg4781]

Is there any benefit to using iTunes Match now that I’ve been a subscriber of Apple Music for the last few years?

The only thing I can think of is being able to get music that I own and uploaded and is not available in Apple Music. I can only think of one album that I really don’t listen to anymore. And I can probably just buy that if that’s the case.

Is there anything else I’m missing? The $25/year isn’t really that important but I’m just trying to simplify and clean up my library.

 

[EedyBeedyBeeps]

Is there any benefit to using iTunes Match now that I’ve been a subscriber of Apple Music for the last few years?

The only thing I can think of is being able to get music that I own and uploaded and is not available in Apple Music. I can only think of one album that I really don’t listen to anymore. And I can probably just buy that if that’s the case.

Is there anything else I’m missing? The $25/year isn’t really that important but I’m just trying to simplify and clean up my library.

If I had been subscribed to Apple Music for the last few years, I think I'd personally stay with it.

I think Apple Music has iTunes Match already built into it? I think you should be able to add and upload a song to your cloud library with Apple Music in the same way that it can be done with an iTunes-Match-only subscription.

Personally, I think the choice is between owning your music (iTunes Match) and renting your music (Apple Music)--yet the renting comes with its own benefits:

- iTunes Match without Apple Music: for people who want to own and listen to their own library on all their devices seamlessly. No access to the larger Apple Music streaming library.

- Apple Music (which also includes iTunes Match): for people who want to be--or don't mind being--subscribed to their own library on all their devices. BUT it comes with seamless access to the larger Apple Music library, so it's better for discovering new music, IMO.

 

[Macbookey]

iTunes Match is included in Apple Music. You are overpaying for its benefits and should cancel your Match subscription. I transitioned from Match to Apple Music. I hope that Apple continues to offer the Match for those that might not want Apple Music or choose to discontinue their subscription to it. I love having playlists sync and knowing that multiple decades of purchased music have an additional backup. Makes transitioning to new devices a breeze. For people that have a long history of old school music collections, or were customers of the iTunes Store during the era of the iPod, these options are invaluable, and to my knowledge only Apple Music/iTunes Match offer this.

 

[AF_APPLETALK]

I'm still using it. I have a very large iTunes collection, but I also subscribe to YouTube Premium, which has YT Music bundled with it. There's no reason for me to buy Apple Music, but iTunes Match still allows me access to "the old world" from my iPhone.

The matching algorithm is better in iTunes Match - matches on audio waveforms/fingerprints. Apple Music match only operates on metadata, so sometimes it's matches are incorrect.

For you, you might as well chuck iTunes Match.

 

[kagharaht]

I still use iTunes Match. Yes I know I'm paying extra since I'm already subscribed to Apple One Premier Plan, but I don't care it's on $25 a year.

 

[davidg4781]

I wasn't aware iTunes Match is included with Apple Music. I'm not 100% sure this is correct, though.

If I search for The Mambo Kings soundtrack in Apple Music, only a few songs are available. If I search to My Library, I can get the whole album (I've imported it from the CD I own).

Looking through some of my Match'd audio, I see I have some in there from local recordings that I can't buy through Apple Music. I think I'll keep iTunes Match going forward and just clean up my library. I don't listen to these songs regularly but they are nice to have them in the cloud.

 

[Macbookey]

I wasn't aware iTunes Match is included with Apple Music. I'm not 100% sure this is correct, though.

If I search for The Mambo Kings soundtrack in Apple Music, only a few songs are available. If I search to My Library, I can get the whole album (I've imported it from the CD I own).

Looking through some of my Match'd audio, I see I have some in there from local recordings that I can't buy through Apple Music. I think I'll keep iTunes Match going forward and just clean up my library. I don't listen to these songs regularly but they are nice to have them in the cloud.

I am mistaken. What happens is that files matched by the Apple Music service are replaced with DRM copies on other devices. So theoretically you have to have a backup of all your music outside of the cloud to be safe, and keep the Apple Music subscription constant. iTunes Match provides that backup in a different way and is worthwhile still. However, Apple Music continues to upload songs it doesn’t recognize. Since I have all my music always available and keep a pdf of track listings to ensure I know what I own, and make external backups of everything, I haven’t seen stuff that is not available on the service not be available on my devices. My apologies for not recognizing the differences and misinterpreting it, because I personally haven’t had issues finding everything available on all devices. This Link explains it better. There is also this discussion that may be helpful. I do sync my library, which is important to seeing the full benefits of Apple Music. I also turn on “cloud status” in view options for Apple Music on my Mac, so I can see what is going on with my library.

 

[davidg4781]

I am mistaken. What happens is that files matched by the Apple Music service are replaced with DRM copies on other devices. So theoretically you have to have a backup of all your music outside of the cloud to be safe, and keep the Apple Music subscription constant. iTunes Match provides that backup in a different way and is worthwhile still. However, Apple Music continues to upload songs it doesn’t recognize. Since I have all my music always available and keep a pdf of track listings to ensure I know what I own, and make external backups of everything, I haven’t seen stuff that is not available on the service not be available on my devices. My apologies for not recognizing the differences and misinterpreting it, because I personally haven’t had issues finding everything available on all devices. This Link explains it better. There is also this discussion that may be helpful. I do sync my library, which is important to seeing the full benefits of Apple Music. I also turn on “cloud status” in view options for Apple Music on my Mac, so I can see what is going on with my library.

I think one of these days I'll just need to go through and clean up my personal library.

I haven't really looked through it since I started with Apple Music and just start a "radio" station when I get in the car. I'm not a big music listener and only use it for background noise.

I just skimmed through it now and saw Smashing Pumpkins (Alternative) and The Smashing Pumpkins (Hard Rock) for the same song, 1979. Stuff like that just annoys me because now I need to see which is correct so I can delete the other. I guess I can delete both, I'm not really a fan of that song.

 

[JamesMay82]

I think one of these days I'll just need to go through and clean up my personal library.

I haven't really looked through it since I started with Apple Music and just start a "radio" station when I get in the car. I'm not a big music listener and only use it for background noise.

I just skimmed through it now and saw Smashing Pumpkins (Alternative) and The Smashing Pumpkins (Hard Rock) for the same song, 1979. Stuff like that just annoys me because now I need to see which is correct so I can delete the other. I guess I can delete both, I'm not really a fan of that song.

what I did was start a new Apple Music library separate from my own and then for missing albums they didn't have id import my versions and it would then sync and upload to my Apple Music library.

when I tested this on my laptop the lossless rips I did were still lossless on the laptop so it works.

so my recommendation is start fresh and then import albums you need.. long process but you know its right.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

I still pay for iTunes Match even after a few years of subscribing to Apple Music (first personal, then family and more recently using Apple One).

Several times (usually in the fall when the yearly $25 are charged), I consider cancelling it, but a small, nagging voice in the back of my head saying "but what if that totally fudges up your library?" keeps me from doing it.

I just don't (totally) trust Apple Music to be as solid as iTunes Match has been (for over a decade), in keeping and matching all those +24.000 songs** I have from ripping CDs back in the day...some of which aren't available via Apple Music (fewer and fewer, but still quite a few). That "backbone" of ripped CDs is still about 80% of my total Apple Music Library (with just over 30.000 tracks), and any major disruptions would be quite bad...


** Edit: I have ~5500 songs the are "uploaded", ~800 that are "purchased" from iTunes (pre-Apple Music), and ~18.000 matched tracks in my library.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I don’t subscribe to Apple Music, and my library is all iTunes purchases, but Match allows me to manage/edit my workout playlists from either my Mac, iPad, or iPhone.

The playlists get synced to my Apple Watch from the iPhone, so I could just maintain them on the iPhone and save $25, but I like being able to open up the Mac or iPad for new music discovery.

And I like being able to delete a song I’m tired of while listening on the Watch and have it gone for good from the playlist.

 

[itzaferg]

This is all very informative.

I have two clusters of music - 1. Music I listen to, Like/Favorite/Add to my library from Apple Music, and 2. Music I listen to, Like/Favorite/Add to my library via iTunes Match.

I started with iTunes Match maybe 10-12 years ago. I uploaded my entire library, which was curated over the years, tagged, rated 5-1 stars, and eventually favorited 4- and 5-star songs.

As I listen to music now on Infinity Mode, I favorite songs and add them to playlists, once again curating my likes and modes. The problem is I now have many of the same songs in my playlist, one from Apple Music and one from iTunes Match.

1. Is there a way to combine them? So not to have duplicates
2. Is one better for feeding my algorithm to iTunes Music?
3. Am I crazy and not worry about it?

 

[davidg4781]

This is all very informative.

I have two clusters of music - 1. Music I listen to, Like/Favorite/Add to my library from Apple Music, and 2. Music I listen to, Like/Favorite/Add to my library via iTunes Match.

I started with iTunes Match maybe 10-12 years ago. I uploaded my entire library, which was curated over the years, tagged, rated 5-1 stars, and eventually favorited 4- and 5-star songs.

As I listen to music now on Infinity Mode, I favorite songs and add them to playlists, once again curating my likes and modes. The problem is I now have many of the same songs in my playlist, one from Apple Music and one from iTunes Match.

1. Is there a way to combine them? So not to have duplicates
2. Is one better for feeding my algorithm to iTunes Music?
3. Am I crazy and not worry about it?

I've thought of dropping it and just buying the couple of albums that aren't in Apple Music (Mambo Kings come to mind).

That would be cheaper in the long run. Especially since I don't listen to it that often now.

But it is only $25/year. And it adds album art. But I would have to re-rip all my CDs and I don't even know where they are now.

 

[MasterControlProgram]

I still use iTunes Match, I much prefer owning music to the subscription model, so Apple Music really isn't for me. I am surprised Apple haven't dumped Match by now though, there can't be many of us still on it and I could see them doing it to maybe force a few extra subscribers onto Apple Music.

I have also noticed playlists don't update properly in the Music app on my phone. If I add a song to a playlist that is on iTunes Music, it will try to add that version instead of my uploaded Match version and then it realises I don't have Apple Music and removes the song. I've reported the bug but again, I don't think they care much about Match anymore. 🙁

 

[WebHead]

Several times (usually in the fall when the yearly $25 are charged), I consider cancelling it, but a small, nagging voice in the back of my head saying "but what if that totally fudges up your library?" keeps me from doing it.

I've switched between iTunes Match and AM several times and my library still seems intact. I also use Music Tracker to monitor any changes (usually just upgrades to hi-res).

Plus I keep my personal library separate by not adding AM tracks. I just search AM when I want to play something.