For this disappointed Music lover this is no Match!
Written: Mar 28 '04 (Updated Mar 29 '04)
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I downloaded and tried Musicmatch jukebox in hopes of a quicker and easier CD burning interface. I purchased their Jukebox Plus player for $19.99. On their web site they stated that with the Plus player, one can "Burn entire CDs in just a few minutes [and] Rip/record CDs up to 8 times Basic speeds". At the time of purchase it asked if I wanted to pay $39.99 extra for all future versions of Jukebox Plus. I decided against that. The upgrade was easy and went into effect right away.
*RADIO*
Before trying to burn a CD I listened to a few of the genre radio stations. The sound was impressive and quickly a voice stated that CD quality sound could be heard by anyone for 1 hour. After that 1 hour one must subscribe to the MX service to hear that quality. I listened to about 3 songs and then the CD quality cut off. Regardless, I was still intrigued because I read that MX subscribers not only get to hear the higher quality sound, but they can also listen to "Artist on Demand Radio" stations which play several songs by one artist. There were a few places to click for a free 7 day trial of the MX service so I decided to try it out. Without MX service you can basically listen to genre stations with low quality sound after anywhere between 3 songs and one hour.
There are two MX levels: Gold and Platinum. With Gold you can listen to "Artist Match Radio" which plays some of your selected artist's songs, but also related artists...you also get the CD quality sound. There really weren't many other worthwhile benefits to Gold that I saw. You cannot listen to the stations that just play the artist you choose. It is $2.95/month (billed annually & paid right away) or you can pay less up front and more over time. The platinum level allows you all of the Musicmatch radio features including the "Artist On Demand Radio". It is $4.95/month (billed annually & paid up front) or, again, you can pay a little less up front, but more over time. I chose the Platinum service because it boasted far more features like unlimited song skipping and the On Demand stations. I began to listen to a few "Artist on Demand Radio" stations and after I started to skip a few songs, they started to play related artists. I made sure to click and check that I was on the "Artist on Demand Radio" and not the "Artist Match Radio". That didn't work. I tried many different artists, ruling out glitches. I decided to cancel before my 7 day trial was over as not to get billed $59.40 for 12 months. After you cancel you're still an MX subscriber for the duration of your 7 day trial period. If you don't cancel within the 7 days you will be billed in full.
*CD Burning*
As a test I recorded a CD to my computer using the Musicmatch recorder. It was incredibly slow even after consulting the help files to ensure all of my settings were correct. Compared to the other interfaces I've tried, Musicmatch is definitely at the bottom speed-wise.
Then I burned a CD with the tracks I recorded. I was shocked at how slow it was. It was surprising mostly because of the claims on the web site. This was the entire reason I paid $19.99 for the Plus upgrade. It took 3 times as long as other applications I've used for free and certainly not "8 times Basic speeds".
I popped the burned CD back in to listen and make sure it came out ok. I opened the first track and it wasn't the first track I recorded. For some reason it switched some track ordering. I hadn't touched any order controls. I even then went to settings and made sure something like "random" wasn't on. I have no idea what happened in that regard.
*Extra Extra*
As I was browsing the Musicmatch interface I came across the View tab and a feature called "Sound Enhancement". When you click on this it takes you to a page for a plug in to enhance your sound...sort of like an equalizer. You can buy this for $19.99 or try the free version with limited capabilities.
It does seem a little like around every corner there are more add-ons and more money you can spend. So beware, even if you're buying a "Plus" version, that doesn't mean you're entitled to every feature or even close to every feature.
I did not try the song buying feature. It is 99 cents per song and you can also pay to download albums.
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I'm glad I was able to cancel the trial MX subscription without being charged, but otherwise I'm out $19.99 as I won't be burning CDs with Musicmatch again anytime soon.
**UPDATE**
I wrote Musicmatch and asked them to remove my info/credit card number from their files. They responded promptly and said I would not be charged the $19.99. Fwew! I uninstalled Musicmatch from my computer.
Recommended:
No
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Musicmatch Jukebox Plus and Musicmatch MX Platinum
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Epinions.com ID:
soulspin
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Location: Melbourne, Florida, USA
Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
Female. 28. Graphic Artist. Writer. Poet. Music lover. Cat lover. Old soul. Believes in karma.
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