Best music player / desktop sync setup?

**gordol** · 06-26-2011, 10:36 PM

I just found and ordered from Amazon a universal BT adapter for car radios, so I can finally "retire" my iPod and move my music to the Droid. I hadn't done that yet because the headphone jack on the X is noisy.

Using Gingerbread on my DX and a Windows PC, what is the best method? On the desktop, I have both iTunes and Winamp. What I want is to set up a full two-way sync with smart playlists that update what's been listened to and ratings so that I can change the rating on the device and have it reflected back to the desktop (and thus added to / removed from playlists automatically based on those data points.

**skatenaked911** · 06-27-2011, 08:53 AM

heard of google music? that is the best i know of, besides your acutal ipod

you can continue to use iTunes including the playlists and google music will keeped it update

play count im unsure of -> i *think* it will keep that up to date, not completely sure

i'd say just stick with the new google music and rock out with that so you dont even need to save music on your sd card

**renegademoose** · 06-27-2011, 09:33 AM

I found DoubleTwist to be the best after trying a few different options. Though, now I'm using Google Music and think that is the best.

DoubleTwist will check your iTunes library and sync everything over. I had my computer crash in the middle of syncing my 22 gb library and still didn't have issues. It picked up right where it left off.

Google Music is taking forever to upload, but I am able to have my whole library available without having everything stored on my SD card. I just cache my playlists since those would be the songs I play the most anyway. Unfortunately you need an invite since it is in Beta.

**gordol** · 06-27-2011, 09:47 AM

Originally Posted by Renegade Moose

I found DoubleTwist to be the best after trying a few different options. Though, now I'm using Google Music and think that is the best.

DoubleTwist will check your iTunes library and sync everything over. I had my computer crash in the middle of syncing my 22 gb library and still didn't have issues. It picked up right where it left off.

Google Music is taking forever to upload, but I am able to have my whole library available without having everything stored on my SD card. I just cache my playlists since those would be the songs I play the most anyway. Unfortunately you need an invite since it is in Beta.

Google Music (or Amazon Cloud, or whatever other online) is not an option. Those require a constantly available data connection, and for what can be told to stay on the device appears to be static choices. What music is on the device is dynamic, constantly changing as I listen to it, and seeing as this is a CDMA device, if I'm streaming music, there is no phone connection. Plus I am often enough in areas of low to no data connectivity.

My music library is ~47GB in total, of which about 25GB is in constant rotation and another 2 in seasonal rotation, plus podcasts. There is about 30GB of formatted space total on my SD card, of which there is currently about 12GB available (most of the used space is photos, I may be able to shrink that down).

**LANAtron** · 06-27-2011, 09:55 AM

I just installed uber music. Very slick and like it much better than Doubletwist.

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**gordol** · 06-27-2011, 09:57 AM

What and where is Uber Music? I cannot locate it in the Market.

**LANAtron** · 06-27-2011, 10:04 AM

PM me your email and I'll send you the .apk.

Flash it via clockwork.

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk

**gordol** · 06-27-2011, 10:48 AM

What is "Clockwork"? The only thing by that name I found is an app to schedule settings changes.

**LANAtron** · 06-27-2011, 11:21 AM

My apologies, I assumed you were rooted. I'll look for a non rooted way of installing.

Edit.
Looks like you can drag it to your sd card and do an install using you r stock file explorer.

Try here.
http://ubermusic.com/

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**gordol** · 06-27-2011, 10:57 PM

So, I should continue to use iTunes and not switch to Winamp?

**renegademoose** · 06-27-2011, 11:25 PM

Originally Posted by gordol

Google Music (or Amazon Cloud, or whatever other online) is not an option. Those require a constantly available data connection, and for what can be told to stay on the device appears to be static choices. What music is on the device is dynamic, constantly changing as I listen to it, and seeing as this is a CDMA device, if I'm streaming music, there is no phone connection. Plus I am often enough in areas of low to no data connectivity.

Yes and no. You can easily set a playlist to be downloaded to your SD card for offlime play. It is automatically kept up to date. You can also set individal songs or albums to cache.

But it looks like you may have found a solution.

**gordol** · 06-28-2011, 12:14 AM

Originally Posted by Renegade Moose

Yes and no. You can easily set a playlist to be downloaded to your SD card for offlime play. It is automatically kept up to date. You can also set individal songs or albums to cache.

But it looks like you may have found a solution.

I have not (yet) settled on a solution. I'm still ignoring any cloud-based "solution" and sticking to a local PC/Device solution.

Just tried Doubletwist, and it's a fail. It failed to see my X was connected two out of three tries. I took a look at Winamp on their site, but Winamp for Android apparently does not (yet?) support podcasts so that's a fail. So next up is iSyncr. The trial version only allows one playlist and only up to 20 tracks. It does support podcasts, but as a playlist. I'll have to make time tomorrow to really give it a try.

Honestly, I was really hoping I could stop using iTunes and go back to Winamp, but I guess that isn't going to happen.

(Now, if only I could find a way to sync my photo albums to my Droid the way iTunes does to an iTouch...)

**bphudson93** · 06-28-2011, 12:29 AM

Maybe Songbird?...
I can't vouch for it, as my phone is in the mail, and I have thus never used it before, but it's something I've looked at, being a Mozilla fan and all.

Take a look if you'd like:

**jimsearle** · 06-28-2011, 12:38 AM

If you want to keep itunes then iSyncr is by far the best. Especially with the wifi addon.

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**gordol** · 06-28-2011, 01:10 AM

Originally Posted by bphudson93

Maybe Songbird?...
I can't vouch for it, as my phone is in the mail, and I have thus never used it before, but it's something I've looked at, being a Mozilla fan and all.

Take a look if you'd like:

I'll give it a shot, thanks. And compare it against iSyncr.

**gordol** · 06-28-2011, 05:01 PM

Originally Posted by gordol

I'll give it a shot, thanks. And compare it against iSyncr.

For me, Songbird is a fail. MP3 ripping is not included, at least not by default. IMO, that is a basic function and should be included in the base program. Looks like I'm staying with iTunes, and I just bought iSyncr. I already had PlayerPro on my Droid from when I initially tried to do this a few months ago.

(Now we get into Google Market's idiotic 15 minute refund policy... iSyncr Lite worked as far as that trial app goes, but to see how well the paid version works, I need to use it as I would normally. And it's going to take longer than 15 minutes to copy ~20GB of music onto the MicroSD card.)