J&P
Sverige / USA
J&P

Syncing music

 

Three (and more) ways to sync

Method What Cost ∑$/yr Own
Music		 mp3 –
other players
 Syncing/
Sharing
Ecosystem
(Apple) ‘#1’ Computer-Based $0 (own time) $0 ✅ Yes ✅ Yes ‘Vertical’; Syncing, from Computer, downwards
(Apple) ‘#2’ Apple’s iTunes Match service $25/yr/person
❌ No family		 $25 ✅ Yes ✅ Yes ‘Horizontal’, Syncing, across individual’s devices, but one’s computer is central,
via Apple cloud services
(Apple) ‘#3’ Apple’s Apple Music service $11/mo/person
$17/mo/family		 $132
$204		 ✅ Yes
*		 ❌ No ‘Horizontal’, Streaming from Apple cloud,
including owns music,
to any devices configured to use one’s account
(Spotify) Spotify streaming services $0/free ads-plan
$13/mo/person
$22/mo/family		 $0
$156
$264		 ❌ No ❌ No ‘Horizontal’ Streaming from Spotify cloud,
to any devices configured to use one’s account

*) DO read up on how handled, implications. (E.g. Apple Music DO use/have DRM (Digital Rights Management) on media whereas iTunes Match does NOT.)

 

(Apple) Computer-Based (Method ‘#1’)

To get
music onto		 ‘Top, in food chain’
‘Level 1’		 Next
‘Level 2’		 Next
‘Level 3’		 Comments
‘1’) Apple iPod, iPhone Computer
where music (files) reside		 iPhone,
synced from computer, connected by cable to computer.		 (N/A) iPhone/device shows up as a device in Finder and Music App, use those to sync media onto phone/device
‘2’) Apple Watch -“- -“- Apple Watch,
synced from iPhone, wirelessly, via app on iPhone
‘3’ Other players, e.g. Shokz
Often mp3 is good, even possibly only, format.		 -“- The device connected (e.g.) via cable to computer. (N/A) Details depend on device, if shows up as device in computer’s file system or require special software.

 

‘1’ Apple iPhone

  1. Connect phone to computer using cable.
    WARNING: Use as clean and straight setup as possible. ONE cable (e.g.)

    1. USB-C to USB-C for newer iPhones to modern Apple computer (with USB-C ports)
    2. Lightning to USB-C for older iPhones to modern Apple computer (with USB-C ports)
    3. AVOID ANY USB-C splitters/adapters in between as have had problems getting phone recognized by computer.
  2. In Finder, look for your iPhone in left-side navigation area, shall show up under Locations. Click on this to on right side see:
  3. -“-: now shall see buttons for managing content on the phone, buttons like:
    General, Music, Movies, TV Shows, Photos, Files, Info
  4. Make your selections to synchronize information.
  5. When done, make sure to eject the phone from the computer.

‘2’ Apple Watch

Syncing data, media, … is done from your iPhone to your Apple Watch.

More notes to come here as get into any specific problems.

‘3’ Other players, e.g. OpenSwim Shokz

(search.brave.com/search?q=OpenSwim+Shokz)

Steps:

  1. Insert Shokz device into it’s adapter-thingy to comptuter
    1. Shokz device into it’s adapter-thingy
    2. Adapter-thing with its USB-A connector into some USB-A to USB-C adapter
    3. The some USB-A to USB-C adapter into computer
  2. On computer
    1. Finder: Shokz device shall show up in Finder windows, left side, under Locations, like a small hard drives as OpenSwim
    2. Music App: open
    3. Rearrange windows so that you can see both Music app’s window and Finder window with OpenSwim drive contents
    4. Simply drag music from Music app window to OpenSwim window to get music onto OpenSwim device.
    5. When finished copying music, in Finder click on small arrow on the right of OpenSwim to eject device/drive.
  3. Done!

 

(Apple) Cloud-Based (Methods ‘#2’ and ‘#3’)

Product Introduced What
iTunes 2001 Application to handle primarily music with iPod hardware
iPod 2001 The first iPods were introduced by Apple
iTunes Store 2003 Can start easily buy music from Apple, files
iTunes Match 2011 Can start easily synchronize music across ones devices; on same AppleID
Apple Music 2015 Start of Apple’s streaming service, Spotify-competitor

So your “large family collection managed locally” workflow is actually very much from the 2001 → 2011 Apple era, whereas Apple Music belongs to the post-2015 streaming era.

 

From search.brave.com/search?q=apple+music+v+itunes+match:

iTunes Match is a cloud storage service for personal music libraries, distinct from the Apple Music streaming subscription.  It costs $24.99 per year and allows users to sync up to 100,000 songs from their local collection to iCloud, making them accessible across all devices. 

Subscribe to iTunes Match – support.apple.com/en-us/108935

apple.com/apple-music/

iTunes Match vs. Apple Music

Key Differences

For your kind of use case (large personally owned collection, family use, long history, likely CD rips/imported music, wanting preservation and cloud sync), this comparison is actually very important.

Apple itself describes iTunes Match as a service that makes your own music library available across devices, including imported tracks, while Apple Music adds the streaming catalog and includes most matching/sync functionality.

Feature iTunes Match (released 2011) Apple Music (released 2015)
Main purpose Sync your own collection
Syncing/Backing up your personal music library
 Stream Apple catalog
Streaming new music from Apple’s catalog
Music Access Only your personal library (matched or uploaded) Entire Apple Music library + personal uploads
Ownership You retain ownership of matched/uploaded files No ownership; access ends with subscription
Your CD rips / MP3s Yes Yes
Cloud upload/matching Yes Yes
Apple catalog access No Yes (100M+ songs)
Catalog Size Up to 100,000 personal songs 100+ million songs
Subscription type Annual
US$24.99/year		 Monthly
US$10.99/month (Individual)
Offline playback Yes
Files remain playable after cancellation		 Yes
Available only while subscribed
Family plan No Yes
Discovery / recommendations No Yes
Radio / curated playlists No Yes
Works for collectors Excellent Mixed
DRM concerns Lower Higher
DRM Protection No (DRM-free 256 kbps AAC or original uploads) Yes (DRM-protected M4P files)
If subscription ends Your library remains Streaming content disappears

 

Which Should You Choose?

  • Choose Apple Music if you want to discover new music, listen to curated playlists and radio stations, and do not mind paying a monthly fee for streaming access.  It includes the features of iTunes Match but adds DRM to your personal uploads, meaning you lose access to them if you cancel.

  • Choose iTunes Match if you primarily want to access your own music collection (from CDs or other sources) across multiple devices without managing local files.  It allows you to keep your music files permanently and DRM-free, even after you cancel the subscription. 

You do not need both services unless you want the convenience of Apple’s streaming catalog alongside permanent ownership of your personal library backups. Apple Music effectively includes iTunes Match functionality, but the trade-off is the loss of permanent ownership for the music you add from your own library. 

 

[J personal research link: chatgpt.com/c/6a032f85-f6c4-83ea-b986-215990193c76]