On-line Stores & Sellers

Started by Expresso, July 02, 2007, 09:09:12 AM

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Que

Quote from: DavidW on August 18, 2011, 02:30:44 PM
Well you can think about that again when you're placing another jpc order with free shipping! :D

I know, I know. ;D The efficiency of the custom services does mean that I hardly ever order outside of the EU, except for a single disc that wll stay below the threshold.

But frankly, practically anything is available in the EU and most hard-to-find tiny-tiny labels are European. So yes, I'm more than good. 8)
Of course apart from the fact that what you guys pay in dollars for a CD what Europeans pay in euros.... 8) (At least as long the euro is still worth anything - we might soon be forced to pay in Swiss franks or gold... ;D)

Q

karlhenning

Quote from: ~ Que ~ on August 18, 2011, 11:08:37 PM
I know, I know. ;D The efficiency of the custom services does mean that I hardly ever order outside of the EU, except for a single disc that wll stay below the threshold.

Ah, prohibitive tarriffs, eh?  Free Trade not to the liking of our European brethren, wot? ; )

Que

Quote from: k a rl h e nn i ng on August 19, 2011, 04:53:51 AM
Ah, prohibitive tarriffs, eh?  Free Trade not to the liking of our European brethren, wot? ; )

Well, I guess it's not anything crazy or anything but it adds up: a tariff of 19% to compensate for the VAT they missed out on, a customs handling fee and then of course the difference in shipping costs. No way that could compensate lower US prices in most cases... :-\

But at least we can buy Cuban cigars! ;D

Q

Coopmv

Quote from: Jeffrey Smith on August 18, 2011, 06:48:33 AM
Which reminds of a question I should have asked some time ago.  How is US Customs handled on foreign purchases.  Are there thresholds and limits?  Do I just get a bill in the mail.  (So far, the couple of overseas purchases I've made seem to have fallen under whatever radar Customs uses.  Or maybe I'll get some gigantic bill three months from now.)

Try to place a single order that is over $400.  I believe the first $400 of  foreign goods you bring back to the States as a tourist is tax exempt.  At least that was the old number I remember.     

TheGSMoeller

Quick (and possibly dumb) question... :-\

Are the MP3s purchased through Amazon.com the same file size as the MP3s purchased through iTunes?

TheGSMoeller

Quote from: George on August 19, 2011, 07:12:14 PM
No, itunes uses AAC and amazon uses MP3, so the files are definitely going to be different sizes.

And there are no stupid questions, only stupid Flanders.

So for example, could the Amazon.com MP3 of a recording be a better quality sound than the AAC file of the same recording on iTunes?


TheGSMoeller

Quote from: George on August 19, 2011, 07:43:38 PM

amazon:


itunes:


So, it looks they are both 256 kbit/s, but AAC is supposed to have better sound quality at the same bitrate as MP3. However, I suspect that differences at this level will be very, very minimal, if even audible at all.

The best thing to do is get a CD you are familiar with and rip a track you know well at 256 AAC and then again at 256 MP3 (variable bit rate, or VBR) and compare the two tracks on the source you will be using to listen to the music on.

When I rip my own CDs to listen on my Blackberry, I use VBR MP3, at approximately 245 kbit/sec (V0, lame encoding) and it always sounds great, whether classical, rock, pop, etc.  :)


Very cool, thanks a bunch for the info, George.

DavidW

Just wanted to add that I buy music from both and they sound the same.  And even though initially aac was a better codec than mp3 (at 128k and below), the amount of work that has gone into improving the mp3 codec has made it as efficient as aac. 

TheGSMoeller

#548
Quote from: DavidW on August 19, 2011, 09:02:31 PM
Just wanted to add that I buy music from both and they sound the same.  And even though initially aac was a better codec than mp3 (at 128k and below), the amount of work that has gone into improving the mp3 codec has made it as efficient as aac.

Thanks, David.
I buy from both depending on the cheaper price. Biggest downside to iTunes...A few months ago I pulled out my older external hardrive to upload some of my iTunes purchases from about 5 years ago. Forgot that I had bought them under my ex-wife's account and couldn't access them anymore without her iTunes account/password, even after moving them from my old laptop, to external hardrive to my new iMac and it still asks for that account info because my iMac is not authorized for those purchases.
She always finds a way to haunt me  >:D

DavidW

Oh well they're not protected anymore, everything I've bought is in m4a format.  It is a drag for those that purchased music before then. :-\

Brian


The new erato

Quote from: Brian on September 14, 2011, 04:27:00 PM
Is MDT's website down?
I did my usual dozen orders last night, and it worked like a charm each time. Unfortunately.  ;D

Brian

Oooh, nobody tell the Classicsonline webmaster...

eyeresist

^ Wow, fascinating view "backstage"!

Reminds me of a cheapo DVD I bought once, with a back blurb which was essentially a cut-and-pasted less-than-favourable review of the movie.

Lethevich

Toccata Classics' releases are looking more and more interesting each new update. They make Naxos look downright uncreative in their repertoire choices ;)

http://www.toccataclassics.com/inpreparation.php
Peanut butter, flour and sugar do not make cookies. They make FIRE.

J.Z. Herrenberg

Quote from: Lethe Dmitriyevich Pettersson on September 21, 2011, 12:04:59 PM
Toccata Classics' releases are looking more and more interesting each new update. They make Naxos look downright uncreative in their repertoire choices ;)

http://www.toccataclassics.com/inpreparation.php


Indeed! And Martin Anderson knows what he's about. He knows the music and he knows intelligent people who know the music, too. He is doing us music-lovers a great service.
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything. -- Plato

Opus106

Via a Gramophone newsletter:

QuoteTo celebrate 10 years of The Sixteen's lively and successful record label, CORO, and to mark the launch of our new downloads site www.thesixteendigital.com we are delighted to offer you a FREE download of one of our most popular CDs - Venetian Treasures - featuring glorious Italian choral music.

http://the-sixteen.org.uk/page/3230
Regards,
Navneeth

kishnevi

Does PrestoClassical have a wishlist function of any sort.

And, while I'm at it, any sort of order tracking on their website?

I'm not able to find those, and I don't know if my limited web-fu is to blame, or their site simply don't offer those.

Opus106

Quote from: Jeffrey Smith on October 11, 2011, 07:29:32 PM
Does PrestoClassical have a wishlist function of any sort.

It's all cookie-based. You can add items to your basket and and as long as you don't delete the pertinent cookies from that browser, the stuff in the basket stays until you check them out (again, as viewed from the browser from which they were added).

Quote
And, while I'm at it, any sort of order tracking on their website?

I'm not able to find those, and I don't know if my limited web-fu is to blame, or their site simply don't offer those.

You can't create an account with them, so how do you expect them to let you track your orders at their website? For convenience, I archive my order confirmation and dispatch e-mails at my end.
Regards,
Navneeth

SonicMan46

Thought that a quote from an email message I just received would be of interest - I ordered the 8-CD box of Sequentia doing the music of Hildegard von Bingen - came w/ no booklet(s) at all which is difficult w/ this type of music (already owned 3 of these recordings w/ booklets - indispensable to understanding the music); now this group has a website HERE, and I contacted them out of curiosity; actually my contact there wrote Sony and got the response below - I guess that to supply the customer written information whether in a booklet and/or online as PDF files revolves around the expected contenders!  No great surprise, I guess -  :-\

QuoteDear Dave,

here is the answer I received from SONY 'strategic marketing' in response to my question:

...
The boxed sets within the MASTERS series are special offers in limited editions.
The music lover gets the chance to buy a repertoire cycle for the price of 1-2 high price CDs.
I think it wouldn't be wise to distribute comprehensive booklets (and only the booklets)
online as they represent the one and only selling point of all high and mid price CD albums which are on sale.
Furthermore digital booklets are very sought after to complete illegal downloads.

I think we should investigate if we can set up deluxe editions comprising music + pdf on iTunes.
Then the consumers can download their book with the music they have purchased.
This makes not always economically sense, especially when physical product is still available on amazon for example.
In many cases it is cheaper for a consumer to buy a real CD with booklet than downloading it on iTunes.
...

That's how it will remain, I think. If they can think up a way to make money out of booklets, they'll do something about it.
Best wishes,