How do you typically get your media these days?

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nesman
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Things have changed a lot over the years. I miss WinMX where if a search didn't have what you wanted, you could search again tomorrow when different peers were online.

These days, when I want to watch something, I first check justwatch.com to see if it's on any of the streaming services that I pay for. If not, my next step is the Cinema HD app, which does fairly well with recent things. The downside is that the downloader is terrible. (FDM helps with that.)

Now that I'm using Plex to stream things instead of my phone, my process is: Find download link in Cinema HD, copy it to a private Discord server that I use as a clipboard, grab the url from my PC and paste it into FDM, wait a few minutes and have Plex refresh the library files.

What's your procedure?
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battye
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If WinMX was still a thing I'd probably download more music because I like to have MP3s in my iTunes library which I sync to my iPhone (and listen on bluetooth in my car mainly) - I still buy CDs and rip them in if it's an artist/album I really like.

But the importance has lessened with the advent of streaming. If I don't have the MP3 version it doesn't matter so much now, I've got a Spotify account and 99.9% of what I would normally listen to is on there anyway. It's hard to see how music streaming could become any easier or user friendly, which is pretty amazing when we think of the RIAA digital pushback in the early 2000s.

I still use BT a bit, maybe every few months just to get a bunch of things that I need to catch up on and aren't on TV/streaming/on-demand. Reality shows like Survivor are tough to find legitimately. Video is a bit different now because the market is so fragmented. When Netflix had pretty much everything, it was great. Now that there's a thousand different services I think it'll push people back to BT.

Speaking of which, I can't believe it's been 20 years and no P2P protocol has replaced BT. Surely with the advances in technology there must be something better. Not that there was anything wrong with the tracker/torrent model, but I am surprised there hasn't been something.
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I mostly use streaming now. Netflix, HBO, Amazon, and Spotify. Like Battye, I still buy and rip discs. I also went back to buying vinyl records. In the car I either use Spotify or, more likely, a 64 GB pen drive that has mostly rock and metal on it.
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Layzie Bone
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Love vinyl. I did have to tell myself to only buy things I love on vinyl.

I still do torrents. Use Plex as well.
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battye
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Layzie Bone wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 8:58 pm Love vinyl. I did have to tell myself to only buy things I love on vinyl.

I still do torrents. Use Plex as well.
Do you buy new or used vinyl?

The vinyl resurgence is a funny thing (who would have predicted records would make a comeback in the WinMX days?) but I guess the ubiquitousness of digital means that if you want an alternative, it has to be analogue - because a CD does nothing that a stream/download can't do except take up more space. Whereas for the collectors, I suppose the warmer sound of vinyl is a point of difference. I will miss the days when CDs are no longer sold though. The next generation of music lovers won't be collectors, they'll just have playlists in the cloud somewhere.

The price gouging on new vinyl is shocking though... $50, $60+ for a new release is highway robbery. But the second hand market is very reasonable for older releases. Even here in Perth, which would be a small market compared to cities in the US or Europe, there are record fairs each year where thousands of pre-owned records are sold for just a few dollars each.
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Layzie Bone
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I typically will prefer new vinyl simply because it is going to not have all the scratches and pops generally speaking. Used vinyl can be perfectly fine though. I just avoid places like thrift stores because they like to gouge as well and I find they typically sell stuff that is in poor condition.

Vinyl doesn't actually sound better* but it is a tangible piece of media that is large with extras sometimes. It's a very intimate format, the ritual of playing a record can be what makes it worth all the expense and trouble. Yeah a lot of new releases, especially if it is a double LP and one that's 180g or heavier can get mightly expensive, then I find ***** like The Offspring on colored vinyl for $17.97 (US) and free shipping all brand new. So there are deals to be had.

One place I do frequent is discogs.com I have bought from sellers on there and had good experience and people tend to take the record grading a bit more serious. I'd rather have someone feel they got something better than they expected rather than hype up the condition to try to sell something faster...and these are subjective gradings as well.

The thing about digital is unless it is lossless audio (and it usually is far from that) analog can often sound better. Here in the US we this thing called HD radio, and the idea is that stations can broadcast their signals in digital and analog and have extra channels like TV. The pitch is supposed to be better sound quality but what I notice is that stations will try to broadcast 3 digital stations (one being their main broadcast) and the sound quality sounds worse than the analog signal on some stations. Of course if you're in a car it isn't as obvious, but if you have a proper Hi-Fi it's going to sound like *****, not that I know many people here in the US who primarily use FM radio for listening to music.


Off subject, sort of... But speaking of Plex I just found out that Plex will support you having multiple editions of a movie and multiple versions.

Let's say I have a movie and i have the theatrical cut, and I also have the extended version, so you would name the files as such:

Some Old Movie (1991) {edition-Theatrical Cut}.mkv
Some Old Movie (1991) {edition-Extended}.mkv

When it comes to versions, and for me that would be like 1080p vs 4k...

Some Old Movie (1991).1080p.h64 {edition-Extended}.mkv
Some Old Movie (1991).4k.x265 {edition-Theatrical Cut}.mkv

One of the problems I encounter is that my server, not really fast enough to be transcoding 4k down to 720p or whatever, so it makes sense to either have multiple libraries keeping things separate or trying this method. Likewise it is much better for the server to transcode 1080 down to 720.

I know that has probably been out for a while now but I was delighted when I found that lil nugget of info.
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Layzie Bone wrote: Vinyl doesn't actually sound better
I have to disagree.... If you have good kit, and a good ear, vinyl actually does sound better. Digital media lacks "life" because it lacks harmonics that we don't consciously hear, but which modify the sound in ever-so-subtle ways. I know it sounds like rubbish, but if you have good kit, you only have to play the same album from CD or streaming and then from vinyl to hear the difference. (For best results, use headphones or an otherwise quiet room and good speakers). The difference isn't always spectacular but other times it's as if you'd always been listening under water.

I buy the things I feel will benefit from analogue on vinyl and everything else stays digital. For example, Muse have a very demanding style with lots of detail and their vinyl is well worth a spin but, on the other hand, Kreator is just seriously heavy and only needs a few watts to sound good.... a CD is enough. Metallica have evolved far enough to deserve vinyl but Megadeth haven't ... and so on. There are some acts that just don't lend themselves to vinyl at all. For example, Dead Can Dance use a lot of synths and effect loops which were digital to begin with and don't lend themselves to vinyl. Others are perfect for analogue, such as multi-instrumentalist Agnes Obel.
Layzie Bone wrote:I typically will prefer new vinyl simply because it is going to not have all the scratches and pops generally speaking.
I buy new vinyl and I buy used vinyl. Record fairs have become a thing and I'm a regular visitor of them along with my now all-grown-up son (remember screamer?). The best thing about these fairs is that the sellers are all reasonable folk who know the limitations of the format. They put sensible prices on their stuff based not only on popularity, but also condition. Many of them are happy for you to examine the record itself or even to play it (they have turntables right there at their stall).

There's something very magical, almost spiritual, about the ritual of needle drop and it's something I learned from my dad at a very young age. My vinyl collection isn't as large as my CD collection, but it's growing faster. I thoroughly recommend it.
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