How I'm consuming media differently in 2024

[@alistermccallum]

If buying isn’t owning. Piracy isn’t stealing.

[@kevinwong_2016]

Fr💀

[@methamphetamememcmeth3422]

Piracy never is stealing anyway. Well, you wouldn't steal a car. Well duh, of course not. But what if I could copy it and then we both have a car each?

[@carlmercado2474]

Maybe thats why its called a subscription in the first place? Spotify, Apple Music, Netflix, etc. Never mentioned anything about owning, actually streaming services don't claim that. This is more applicable to PC gaming like steam. Where digital licenses can get revoked.

[@Untilitpases]

​@@carlmercado2474google movies specifically state "Buy it now for x$"

[@CuriosityQueue]

@@methamphetamememcmeth3422piracy IS stealing. Some may justify it, claiming that the film studios, actors, actresses, developers, etc make enough off of the content already. But when people pirate media, they’re failing to pay for the production value of the content that they’re enjoying. People can decide for themselves whether they’re going to partake, but much of the practice is illegal. In some instances backing up owned/purchased content can be within the confines of the law, but in limited use case.

[@bitterbuffalo8997]

The goated setup is to use streaming to find new artists and albums you like. Then buy it in physical media.

[@reibarata]

yeah, spotify's recommended music is the main reason keeping me there

[@ANiCKiN]

That's what i am doing. Too bad CD is treated so badly

[@ILoveJahangeer]

The only downside to that is some artists only release on digital, which is so frustrating! I hate it.

[@lyricsassam]

​@@reibaratawhy not simply use a mod apk😂 I am using Spotify premium mod for like, 5 years now

[@BornIntoChaosBand]

​@ILoveJahangeer this is true, and it sucks, however their music is usually still sold somewhere. Bandcamp, iTunes, etc. And surprisingly even iTunes let's you copy, backup, convert, etc all the songs you buy there.

[@joharakiri]

Having fun isn't hard when you've got a library card!

[@denish-themenace]

Master Oogway?? MASTER OOGWAYY!!!!!

[@Starmast3rmusic]

*aggressively leans side to side and throws hands up in the air*

[@bnsyphotography2104]

Are you gay? What weirdo says that?@@denish-themenace

[@thelthrythquezada8397]

broooo yes! I got mine a few weeks ago and I just been checking out DVDs like mad!

[@joharakiri]

@@thelthrythquezada8397 That's the way! Plus some libraries actually have streaming services you can use. And if you really like a movie you can always just rip it with makemkv. Perfectly legal to do that ☺️

[@DaFuzZ7]

A lot of underground music groups make most of their money through merchandise such as CDs and even cassette tapes are making a huge comeback in those underground communities. People just need to start buying physical media and ripping it to their own servers like this. Great idea, especially considering these companies could take the streaming rights away from you at any moment and there isnt a single thing you can do about it!

[@PercyPanleo]

Absolutely I listen to a lot of Japanese music and for quite a while most of the music I listen to was region locked on Spotify. I now have a collection of ~30 CDs as a result. Probably won't be cancelling Spotify though since it's still useful for discovering music that I want to buy a physical copy of later. (Discovered TM Network, globe, ZIGGY, Boøwy, and Tak Matsumoto's solo music through Spotify)

[@slarbiter]

The internet won’t last forever, it’s scary how much we’ve come to depend on something so fragile and new. My prediction is that spatial computing/augmented reality and AI will be the beginning of the end. We will reach crazy high bandwidth and start ditching it as we know it at the same time.

[@joshuajohnson3296]

@@slarbitercurious to hear more thoughts about this? Why would be ditch at a higher bandwidth? Or do you mean the systems won’t be able to handle it? It seems that the tech companies keep upping the ante (e.g., 5G, which is completely unnecessary)

[@slarbiter]

@@joshuajohnson3296 I’m thinking less people will be online when you have spatial computing and AI mixed together with the usual info farming for “security and advertising”. Not necessarily because of the bandwidth itself but because of the amount/kind of stuff being exchanged. What kind of privacy will you have when your room and surroundings are your new desktop and powered by AI? If they integrate it into society as the new normal like smart phones, ‘they’ will have much more control and deep fakes will have a whole new level. Look at the apple vision and where Windows 12 is going, things might get weird soon. We’re coming pretty close to the reality of Her and Wall E

[@lakerfan2874]

​@joshuajohnson3296 For me, everything digital, like smartphones, the internet, GPS, server based media, and phones in general, depend on satellites to work. If one good solar storm actually happens or if Yellowstone erupts, say goodbye to the modern age. We'll go back to the 60s or so with analog equipment like, ham radios, walkie talkies, CB radios for communication, vinly, cassette, and CDs for music since MP3s were a more modern thing where if you have a CD and a computer that still has the disc drive still installed, sure you can use an iPod, but file sharing is not going to be a useful option. We'll still have the radio for everything else like the news with newspaper also. Basically, everything before the digital age is going to be back in form like CRTs and older plasma and LED display TVs, the way we used to do stuff is going to be everywhere in entertainment. We'll have to document everything on paper, cameras, and tape. The digital age is going to be very hard to even turn back to because we'll have to get all of the satellites back on one at a time, or they'll start crashing into the atmosphere unless we can turn them back on. The way we'll call people will be landline once more with operator stations to make the call travel to another state and so on. Everything that is considered old will be considered the new way because of all the digital comversions that has happened since the 00s with cable and entertainment saying goodbye to analog TV and saying hello to digital TV.

[@Vilecultist]

I ended up canceling all my subscriptions this year and started buying dvds, blurays, cassettes and cds. Feels good to see my collection slowly add up.

[@Leonard_Washington76]

I’m thinking of doing this myself..

[@thiscorrosion3843]

​@@Leonard_Washington76you should. It's enjoyable.

[@briangradysyndrome]

I am a digital hoarder. I have ripped every dvd I have ever bought and I am a music hoarder as well (because I am am musician). In 2005 I spent a week of my vacation ripping a couple hundred cds so that I could save them on hard drives (yes plural). I have over 18000 songs in my library saved in multiple places. This year I bought a 1tb Iphone 15 so I could have all my music and movies on my phone. I only want 1 device. I do miss ipods immensely though. Apple had an ipod not too long ago that was like a phone but wasn't a phone. Interesting to finally find someone like I am.

[@raksh9]

There are any number of dedicated audio players by companies like Fiio, iBasso, Astell and Kern, and Hiby.The discontinued Fiio X3 II and X5 II even had an iPod-like scroll wheel. Nothing beats a dedicated audio player for sound quality.

[@marianneworks]

Adding to raksh9's reply... Sony still makes Walkmans too! I have a non-streaming NW-A55 that supports micro SD cards up to 1TB AND it can play hi-res files.

[@raksh9]

@@marianneworks I've been tempted to get a Sony Walkman audio player for a while. I grew up with the old cassette versions, then moved on to minidisc and Hi-MD, I just haven't found a Sony that seems to fit budget and performance. I have the Fiio X3 II and apart from passive battery drain when off, it is a super little unit, machined from metal and protected by the included silicone case.

[@yoloni]

Wow that’s a lot of dedication and many songs 😮 I don’t own that much content but have ripped 100 dvd movies onto a 8tb hard drive

[@jerbear7952]

That's just hoarding. You can't physically listen to all of that.

[@horstrj]

I was on an arctic cruise last June where we had very intermittent satelite internet and I was in the gym working out to my music and pretty much everyone was simultaniously boggled around "Is the internet working?" and "Why in the world do you still carry around mp3s?" I was amazed at how ubiquitous it has become to pay a monthly fee to listen to 40 year old music.

[@komred64]

Lifting iron in the arctic sounds pretty metal

[@ambiarock590]

I've been carrying around iPods for quite a while now. My current music player is a 4th gen iPod with the click wheel. I got a 3rd gen classic some time ago but that thing is cumbersome to use because it relies on firewire. The 4th gen I bought recently is amazing and I've been using that as my daily. I love the old style of the monochrome screen and the click wheel but the ability to use USB for charging and syncing so I could use it in my car and keep it juiced up, and it can charge while it syncs so the battery isn't draining as it writes to the hard drive, and I also have an iPod dock for it that that can charge the 4th gen and play music which I keep in my room. I'd have to say that of the click wheel ipods that I have, the 4th gen is my favorite, then the 6th/7th gen, and then the 3rd gen. The 3rd gen looks really cool, but it's a hassle to use due it its reliance on firewire.

[@gcanaday1]

​@@komred64While the OP didn't mention the genre he was listening to, I'm betting it was indeed black metal.

[@-whackd]

I use Spotify at the gym because it's the best thing for finding good electronic and house music. I just block ads on it. All gyms in my chain have free WiFi.

[@timotheusn.h.nakashona1001]

I've been saying this for years that nothing beats physical media, and i was considered old. Finally, someone who gets it. Awesome video!

[@lemaitrethemonk]

I have been purchasing most of my music through vinyl, which 90% have a digital download. I guess us Gen Xers are old school media addicts.

[@aymekay]

You just helped me realize I’ve been paying for Spotify to only listen to the same self created playlists over and over. Thank you!

[@alanlee2751]

Just when I was beginning to fear that everyone was sleepwalking into following the herd……you make a video that is refreshingly candid about what you actually NEED - and what you intend to do about it. 😂😂😂 Bravo bud !!

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks man! You’re not alone, there is a resistance to this techtopia vision growing for sure!

[@gcanaday1]

​@@spencers-adventuresHell yes, and I've been saying this for years. I want my CDs, but when I knew I wasn't going to be able to move the collection .. to FLAC they all went. Took me two weeks at 8 hours a day to back them up

[@ignaciodicecco4917]

Nice to find more people that think and try to find a workaround to the "rent only-not own anything" type of model. I started buying CDs again, mostly second hand, and ripped them to my plex server. And buying some LPs as well, only those that have not been edited on any other format. In same cases I rip them so I can listen them on the go. Love your content, keep them coming :)

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks buddy - glad you enjoyed the video! The plex server is something quite a few commenters have mentioned, and I'm definitely going to be investigating it further for my own use-case. I am definitely very anti the whole subscription economy and am always trying to find ways around it. Keep buying physical media!

[@iwatchforknowledge2766]

I started build my on library on an Emby server a couple of years ago. Best decision.

[@tropic5264]

I just pirate everything, w/ cracked spotify, game piracy, and free streaming sites + ublock origin. I havent gotten into torrenting as 1080p works for me. If buying something digital doesn't mean i own it, piracy isnt stealing.

[@Antinomi-Oh]

I love my dad sm for uploading our family collection of DVDs to his plex server. Over 1000 of my favorite movies and no ads, no more netflix.

[@humanbean7884]

​@@tropic5264I agree with your method and think intellectual property rights are mostly bs, but what do you mean with not owning a file if you buy it?

[@twitchster77]

My dad an iPod Nano (different from the one in this video) and he absolutely loved it. I loaded it up with all his favorite songs and spent a bunch of time putting names to all the songs (a lot of them were displaying as something like 'Track 01, Track 02...etc', adding album art, and I even adjusted the equalizer on each and every song. He had it for years, and it wasn't until he passed away last year that I realized how well he took care of that little thing. He used it every day...but it was still in perfect condition...not a single scratch or scuff anywhere. I have no use for it, but it's honestly pretty charming to have something 100% dedicated to just playing music. I use it with my car and it's fun.

[@SunnyGoesIn1D]

That’s acts of love and of appreciation right there.

[@milyypink]

Been going down this route since the pandemic and it's been a breath of fresh air being more intentional with my choices of media consumption. I don't have a particularly big collection of anything, but I've been utilizing the library a lot for dvds, and thrift shops for CD hunting. If I really love something I'll buy it, but more often than not I find myself gravitating to hobbies I enjoyed before the internet revolution like reading/drawing/painting..which can be done relatively cheap or even free. I don't miss the choice paralysis at all from have everything available to me all the time and when I do reach out for a piece of media I tend to appreciate it more.

[@NamelessOne27]

Coming from an audio geek like me. What I also like about using iPods is the physical audio driver. That direct connection to your headphones really makes a huge difference. Really cleans up the sound. Keep rocking the iPod dude. I’ve been using mine for the past 6 months and it’s been great.

[@TheUnitedMarshmallowFederation]

IS it worth modding it?

[@LemonLabLemons]

Definitely worth upgrading the battery, I went from 5~ hours to 8~ hours of listening time

[@SirJeanLucAsec]

It’s the same with any phone having a jack by the way

[@ambiarock590]

I got my first iPod in the summer of 2022. I got it off of Elite Obsolete Electronics, this dude is great. Since then I have quite the collection of iPods and Ive been daily driving a 4th gen classic. I love this thing

[@ambiarock590]

@@SirJeanLucAsec "Bring back the headphone jack!" -Some Australian dude who yells at a green iPad

[@Mithilan01]

This is actually a really valid point. We've lost intentionality with media consumption these days. The selling point is well we have the world's library at your fingertips but do we in reality actually listen to all of what's offered?

[@darnarxz]

No, but I listen to a lot more of music I wouldn't have listened to otherwise.

[@Mattened]

The paradox of choice

[@LaddFPF]

This is great, I’ve seen more people talking about this same concept. Getting so tired of $10 here, $15 there, $24… seeping from my bank account monthly. Tired of constant reliance on internet. I need to do this as well. Having all the choices in the world of music and movies just leaves us with the paradox of choice. Searching and searching forever to find something to watch. Good on you

[@nicolas19975]

I love my iPod classic. Always sync my iTunes to it, holds more songs than I will ever think of having, the battery lasts so long, it’s ideal for long airplane rides, trips etc. Just so convenient to have without the hassle of needing to connect to wifi or consume too much data on KZbin when you’re outside, not as distracting as a phone with so many apps to drain out the battery quicker. Not to mention it’s got a super slick design. Not paying a monthly plan and also no ads at all.

[@chandlerbing7570]

Excellent take. Started my journey almost 3 years ago. Originally started with my old Blackberry curve as it was all I had, then bought and modified an ipod classic 7th gen which I still use to this day. I've went from less than 100 songs in 2021 to over 2700 songs in 2024.

[@spencers-adventures]

Wow that’s awesome! The BlackBerry Curve is sick, I used to have one of those way back in the day. Keep fighting the good fight!

[@lexdegyn]

Totally agree with you, few months ago I had this urge to simply download all my music from spotify to mp3 because I was keeping a really big music library and I was also scarred of loosing it. Downloaded all the music and now I'm really considering getting a bigger ipod like you and also selling my iphone for a older one. My friends say I'm crazy for it but it's just who I am and I enjoy having full control of my stuff. Thanks a lot for the content, you got yourself a new subscriber!

[@richeyrich2203]

Houw did you download your Spotify library out and off of the Spotify app, onto the iTunes?

[@Fyre0]

Details on the Spotify to MP3 thing?

[@lexdegyn]

I used my computer to install this program in github called spotdl, I copied the songs in my liked song playlist then paste them all on a new playlist. From there, I copied the new playlist url and pasted on the python script that downloaded the tracks from the internet (youtube music mainly), hope it helps!

[@lexdegyn]

for those asking, I installed python and used a program called spotdl that downloaded the songs from youtube. After that I just dragged those to itunes and it's how I'm rocking

[@tylerdarling6895]

I applaud you! I still collect Media for movies, TV, music and video games. I am not as intentional on video streaming services. I have kids. We love Disney+ and going back and watching older stuff that is harder to get or expensive to get. I feel pretty confident with disks that I have physical copies of and I should be able to get a display for many years to come and I have several DVD and Blu-ray players that I like. I have never went through and made additional backups of those. When it comes to music, I have never subscribed to streaming service, and I never will. I support new artists I like by buying their vinyl record that usually comes with a download code to get it on the iPod or phone. I still have a huge CD collection and I have it backed up on my computer and hard drive. I have a pretty big vinyl collection too. I see pros and cons to both. However, it’s definitely frustrating when you feel like you don’t own anything and can be gone just like that

[@fagnells732]

Love this channel, you really have your finger on the pulse of the issues we're all facing together. Also love the low-key, calm style of the videos, makes for much better watching in the evenings to wind-down to (compared to the majority of overly-bubbly, over-caffeinated personalities!)

[@spencers-adventures]

Thanks very much, really appreciate the kind words! I definitely feel the need to push back against the all-flash hype heavy KZbin style, I’m glad you feel the same. Glad to hear you’ve been enjoying the videos!

[@miosz5808]

I really appreciate artists who give their music for free in mp3 format, e.g. death grips

[@spencers-adventures]

I know the first 3 numbers!

[@miosz5808]

the best artist is a hungry one, an artist art for art's sake@@phillipbanes5484

[@miosz5808]

@@phillipbanes5484 that's true, but the people who perceive art are not artists, but normal people

[@Moonlite.88]

I recently bought a synology diskstation that can hold up to 8 Sata SSDs. I’m an archivist so I’ll be using it to store all my downloaded media that’s not available on DVD yet as well home videos for personal memories and youtube. Great way to back up all your digital data and not lose anything. It’s a bit expensive but I think it’s worth the investment if you care about preserving your media.

[@Diecastinator]

That cool I have been thinking about getting a NAS too how big are the hard drives?

[@spencers-adventures]

Very cool! A few different commenters have mentioned their media storage solutions but I've not heard of this one yet, so I'll definitely take a look. Thanks for sharing your setup!

[@Moonlite.88]

@@Diecastinator I've seen some as big as 20TB. I'm starting with 3 satas that are about 11TB. You'll also want to make sure to format them before using them and that they're all the same model disk.

[@jackedup447]

Adding onto this, may I suggest a bit of Jellyfin in your life for video and a selfhosted music service for your library?

[@Moonlite.88]

@jackedup447 I got most of my stuff through bittorrent and screen recorded shows with Camtasia that weren't available for download. Just gotta know where to look.

[@EremittV]

Welcome back to the iPod club! It’s such a great deal buying and refurbishing one. Especially with all the accessories that are sold for cheap as well.

[@ambiarock590]

I love using my iPod classics. I've modified my 7th gen classic with a rainbow front case. At some point I plan to do a flash mod for it, replace the back case, and put a massive battery in it. I might also put a really bit battery in my 4th gen classic that I'm currently using

[@i_used_adblock_to_watch_this]

I've always been proud to be the 0.1% of people. I hate streaming and any reliance on an active internet connection in general. I've always downloaded and stored my media for offline consumption. I will never pay for streaming services. Waste of money and I'm honestly shocked at how many people still willingly choose to subscribe to them

[@bobbuilder3687]

People are fat. People are lazy

[@bobbuilder3687]

People are fat. People are lazy

[@bobbuilder3687]

People are fat. People are lazy

[@bobbuilder3687]

People are fat. People are lazy

[@bobbuilder3687]

People are fat. People are lazy

[@advokatie]

Great video! I want to give my perspective, as I do very much enjoy physical media and old devices, but I primarily use Spotify for my music consumption. I think that despite the problems, it can be very valuable to have an artist's catalogue at the ready whenever I feel like discovering new music and delving deeper into a specific artist or letting Spotify Discover do its thing. That being said, I totally understand the disdain for not feeling like you own your media. I find that, at least for now, keeping Spotify around does enrich my life because when I'm in a lull and other forms of media are difficult to consume (video games, TV shows), music is really valuable. That being said, I think that this will have me considering finding other ways to consume my music and media, especially for improved sound quality and feeling like I own my music more.

[@spencers-adventures]

I really appreciate all you’ve said here. I want to say, I’ve gotten a lot of value from Spotify, I’ve had it since maybe 2015/2016, and it’s been really helpful to discover new music in that time. I just can’t handle the amount of subscription services we have nowadays, and I have it as a goal to cut every single one lol. But there’s a reason Spotify was last to go, because it was the most important to me. Tomorrows video is pretty relevant to this topic, so keep your eyes peeled for that!

[@advokatie]

@@spencers-adventures Certainly! And the subscriptions can be overwhelming. I think I find that I'm more okay with the subscriptions when looking at them as a natural evolution of cable and Video On Demand, especially since I find myself rotating them due to me generally only watching maybe 1-2 shows at a given time. I've found that in my life, first and foremost with anything is simply having the ability of being able to just pull up what it is I'm looking for. I don't think any one approach is necessarily the wrong one, as long as we're all enjoying the media we like. It's all totally different for all of us. I will be keeping my eyes peeled for your video tomorrow, and look forward to anything else you may have to say!

[@joshuajohnson3296]

Libraries are great resources for getting shows or DVDs you want to watch

[@aidandpolonsky]

Dude, the way you share your simplicity to life is charming as hell. I’ve been hoppin back on the single device train since the end of last year and your post is pushin me to get there faster.

[@zibberebbiz]

it's kind of blowing my mind that there is an Apple device from like 17 years ago that A) still works and B) is still compatible with an online service I'm also 100% physical media - mainly my still growing VHS/LP collection, but for new media just straight up p1racy, just having video files without any kind of DRM nonsense on my hard drives for me to keep and enjoy whenever I feel like it

[@atomicsmith]

I have an Apple laptop that’s 18 yrs old and still boots just fine. Their old products were tanks.

[@spencers-adventures]

I agree with you, I was blown away too! Apples recent vibe has been push the next and cripple the last, so I was really surprised they still had compatibility for iPods. I like your approach to physical media too. Im trying to be minimalist and intentional in my collecting, because I definitely tend toward the opposite lol. Im VHS/LP as well, but I keep it really small, and I try to cull a few every once in a while so it doesn’t get too cluttered

[@stevemuzak8526]

We need to avoid subscription services lika a plague. I already cancelled all of my streaming services and focus on my movie and music collection. Support physical media! You'll own it and you'll be happy.

[@Diecastinator]

Yes I DVD over streams

[@spencers-adventures]

Exactly! They not only bleed our wallets dry one drip at a time, but they take away any autonomy over our consumption. Physical media is very important!

[@stevemuzak8526]

@@spencers-adventures it’s even worse than people think. Remember what happen to The French Connection movie? They censored it. They can edit movies without our permission.

[@G_Ozare]

Joo vill eat zeh bugz- Klaud Schwuab

[@BandrewScott]

Loved the video. The sandisc clip jam is incredible for the price. Durable, decent interface, easy to use, podcast playback and features, and audible integration. The one drawback is a lackluster headphone amp.

[@iwatchforknowledge2766]

I use a straight talk prepaid phone (inactivated) to listen to audiobooks. And have a few movies on it as well. Just in case I get stuck somewhere and need entertainment.

[@morningstarr4340]

I’ll always remember this guy I traveled from Texas to California with via Craigslist rideshare. His name is Justin and he told me a story about how he spent a lot of time traveling and spending time at libraries. He said he would bring his beat up laptop with him (the kind that had a built in CD/Reader/Writer) and started going through the music cds alphabetically and burning every single cd he could find. He said the music he listened to on the road was all from the music and cds he burnt from the libraries among his travels. Thanks again for the fond memories and brilliant ideas Justin!

[@spencers-adventures]

That’s such a cool story, I love the idea of ripping albums across the country as you go. Thanks for sharing!

[@supersock3726]

i love how mindful it can be to consume media differently. I've already been trying to buy vhs tapes and a new tv that is compatible with a vhs player. this video definitely helped strengthen my willingness to go through with saying goodbye to more modern technology, and the subscriptions that go alongside it. I've gotten rid of almost all subscriptions other than Netflix and Spotify. And those I'm working towards getting rid of. It is really refreshing to hear I'm not the only one going through with these changes and you've definitely have inspired me some more. So thank you!!

[@8080pc]

I listen to a lot of vintage big band and jazz and a little rock. Found a lot of used and a few new CD's. Some download sites had some you could purchase and own. Back it all up on FLAC. Glad to see others that feel the same way!

[@covencvlt]

Bro! it's good to see this video and see more people doing this, myself included, I've been using iPods for years, I buy DVDs, I still buy records, and listening to the intense quality that each piece of equipment we bought gave us. So, "the experience" simply because I need to disconnect and if we don't divide we can't do it, and honestly, I give each thing the value and is good for me, i enjoy it more. I'm an illustrator and designer and before going to technology (ipad, macbook, whatever) I first do everything by hand, I consider that everything is more human and I want to stay that way, and as I always say, - offline it's the new luxury - just stay real, thnks for the vid! and have a nice life!

[@ceebee1461]

Love this approach. I was recently considering getting an old iPod but decided to use my dumbed down iPhone like an iPod for the time being to see if it’s necessary for me. Decided I can only listen to music offline, so if I haven’t intentionally downloaded the tracks on Apple Music when connected to my home wifi, in my mind it doesn’t exist to me.

[@spencers-adventures]

This is a great approach! If I didn't already have access to the iPod I would have done exactly what you have done

[@shophet125]

I use an android phone that can take a 256gb sdxc. I have 8456 songs on it and will be loading up some more later on. The music app I use can also cast music via airplay or UPnP. Having a dedicated player for music is the way to go.

[@lilPopper]

I don't blame you. I don't want to rely on data and the Internet for every time I want to see or listen to digital media. Also, the upside of digitizing your dvd/blu ray collection is that streaming platforms don't put bonus content up that DVDs and BluRay offer. I don't even think you can stream a movie with audio commentary for instance.

[@EricHouserecho1284]

I love my own media but I still use my streaming service for discovering new music. Also, audio players aren’t dead look into the new Sony Walkmans, Astell and Kern, Shangling and Hiby to name a few. They’re very impressive. Great video btw.

[@killeraven]

It's very good to hear other people wants to run away from the "own nothing " scheme. For my case I have a personal cloud server made with an old computer, installed casa os and that's it. I can stream music from it, stream video from it, upload my photos I take from my cell phone, etc. The server is very cheap to maintain and because of the personal cloud I ALWAYS OWN everything I store in it.

[@VladimirKostek]

Great video Spencer, I have always tried to be intentional with my media consumption too. I never had Spotify, only buy vinyl/cd and then either digitize or download the free CD's directly from the label/artist (sometimes come free in the vinyl). I have some hard drives from 2004/2005 when I used to convert my DVD's I owned to .AVI files (remember DIVX!? lol) they broke inevitable but this inspired me to try and repair or take those to a shop. I miss them dearly, and almost forgot some of my favorite films on there, since I eventually got rid of the physical DVDs. I'm gonna work on digitizing my VHS collection I still own! My audio player of choice rn is the Shanling Q1, I did a review of it on my channel if you wanna see (It evokes a lot of nostalgia with the retro design)

[@rudolfrainer]

Interesting development that this is coming back. Imo it‘s a very good thing as more people start to question their habits and the practices of big companies. To me it‘s very appealing to own a rather small but well maintained collection of different media instead of the endless possibilities which some streaming services offer which I often times find overwhelming and distracting. I like owning things, having them offline, it‘s a great thing that should not be forgotten.

[@YungStinkyWinky]

Oh yo!!!! When you said you had a "Canadian Sea Shanties" album my mind jumped to Newfoundland Drinking Songs, but I did not expect you to actually have it too! I picked it up at a Salvation Army yeeeeears ago, I never expected to see anyone else mention it! Awesome! Also, welcome to the iPod club! I've been daily driving iPods for years now, it feels so great having an intentional music library that is all my own and I can enjoy no matter where I go. I also had a Punkt MP02 but had to change back to an iPhone for work, sadly. It's right here in my office drawer beside me, because I can't work up the nerve to get rid of it.I just love what it represents too much. It seems we're on a similar journey, dude. Very cool. Cheers from Van

[@spencers-adventures]

I am so glad to hear you have the album too! Rocky Road to Dublin RIPS! Right there with you too on the intentional music collecting over streaming. Thanks for commenting buddy!

[@Netizen56]

So happy I found this channel.

[@TheRetroStuffGuy]

I still use my old ipod classic. Battery life is still reasonably good. And people think I'm daft for using it still. But like you say, it does exactly what it's supposed to do.

[@kevinwong_2016]

If buying isn't owning, pirating isn't stealing💀

[@HokgwaiXbirdmaN]

it is crazy how identical we are with our off the grid "weird" tech. when you uttered the sandisk clip it was too much and I laughed haha I have one new in case sitting on my desk for when I decide to venture down that route. Get the mono color ipod mini, super easy to swap the harddrive and have a giant 1TB drive with a beautiful classic bright screen and compact player.

[@NerdsWorldNYC]

The last two months I would listen to my music (while taking the express bus into Manhattan), I would listen on my second cellphone Spotify. Commercial breaks was getting out of hand,before the music would finish four ads back to back. I'm back to listening to music on my Ipod Touch Generation 1 👋🏾

[@mrbarkan]

As a long time iPod collector, single use device advocate, it's quite refreshing to see more and more people go this route. Also: the 160gb drive usually doesn't last as long as one would like. But swapping with a memory card solution is easy and quite amazing really!

[@MattFitzgerald]

Intentionality and Single Use devices are underrated man. I love the thoughts you're putting out in this video.

[@jomiran1000]

I don't know about Apple but a retired Android phone with a 1TB microsd card and an Android Auto compatible player is likely the best option. It fully integrates into modern car stereos and is likely water resistant.

[@spencers-adventures]

I give you smart android owners a shoutout in my next video! Us phone owners with fixed storage silently weep lol. Sounds like you have a great setup!

[@gopro2027]

I've been rocking an ipod nano 3g for a few years now. I illegally download my spotify playlists and the ipod is pretty great. My only gripe is that when it dies completely, the random number algorithm gets reset, and then the shuffle plays the same order and you start to catch on if you don't update it often lmao

[@javianjohnson8746]

That black iPod classic just unlocked A BUNCH of core nostalgic memories man, sheesh man lol

[@ParthChauhanMusic]

Bro in India, CDs died almost a decade ago, and vinyls was much long ago before that. For quite some time I have been trying to do what you are doing right now but it seems it is almost impossible here to get your hands on physical media. I am just holding on to my collection of my cassettes, CDs and a bunch of vinyls that I had from the bygone days, and that's it. Here, no new musician or label publishes music on CDs and Vinyl anymore sadly :(

[@dasenase]

Being able to transfer digital files to an audio device is such a normal thing outside of Apple products. You mentioned transferring from itunes to the iPod like it was a miracle lol

[@DarkShroud24]

In the summer of 2022 I decided to fill in the holes in my physical media collection, both movies and music. So I hit up the thrift shops. I was already ripping everything to flac or wma. I own several hundred CDs and I'm just getting into SACDs and Blu-ray audio discs. Now I'm looking at buying a new digital Walkman for listening to music without having to mess with my phone.

[@MegaDrainProductions]

I've been using a 4th gen ipod touch as my dedicated bluetooth player in my car for 4 years now. Then whenever I go for walks or longboard, I use a 4th gen ipod shuffle; just clip to my pants and go. It's really nice having a media player solely for music and nothing else. No distractions from random notifications be it texts, calls, or the countless ads apps like throw at us even though we turned off notifications for it. The nice part about 4th gen shuffles is that they use an ssd instead of flash storage so they just last forever.

[@spencers-adventures]

I didn’t know that about the 4th gen shuffle! Sounds like a great setup with the Bluetooth on the touch too 👍

[@DangerAmbrose]

I've been backing up my media since the early 2000's. Get a network area storage hard drive. Backup your media on your own home cloud so you can stream it to any device on your network. I have wifi connected tvs for my movies and I use my phone to stream music to Bluetooth speakers that run into my stereos. I've also got a nvidia shield running retroarch for my retro video game collection.

[@polaris911]

I've been using a Fiio X1 (similar to an ipod) for a few years and it's a great way to listen to music. Really nice sound and has an equalizer for tinkerers. You can plug it into Windows and just drag and drop files without any special software, or just take out the SD card.

[@spencers-adventures]

That sounds like a great setup! It definitely doesn’t need to be an iPod - so many good music players out there

[@weok-doing-things]

Bandcamp and personal music archive. As well as the same solution for videos. And 3-2-1 backup strategy. Feels great.

[@spencers-adventures]

That’s perfect, I love the 3-2-1 mention!

[@EwanJP2001]

Spotify is the real kicker for me. I never wanted to pay for subscriptions, but Spotify's recommendations are exactly what I'm looking for and I enjoy "Spotify Wrapped Season" when everyone is talking about and comparing their favourite music. I don't pay for Netflix, Disney, Amazon or any other platform for that matter, yet I still feel like I can't fully commit the way I intend to 😅

[@martinb3483]

Great idea. I am doing something similar - trying to get more single use devices (again): I already own nice a camera for some time, an audio recorder with good microphones and good sound quality for recording voice or audio samples and an ebook reader. Recently I bought an audio player with SD card slot, support for lossless audio formats, and a useful bookmarking feature (important for audio books!), and a cheap Nokia dumbphone last month. 🙂 I believe it helps to control consumption , defend privacy, and also focus much better on what I do than being interrupted or distracted and tracked all the time by a smartphone. The only streaming platform I use for music is bandcamp which allows me to download my audio files while I can always decide which album or artist I want to buy. It is a little bit like in the 1980ies or 90ies, but feels better... lighter... more relaxed than being a smartphone user during the past 15 years or so ;-)

[@zenniszarkov2271]

You sir have given me the answer i was looking for. I am currently in the process of reshaping my media consumption too and one thing i got stuck on was music, now i know. Thank you friend.

[@donkeytits1]

I made a terabyte iPod classic, like you 160GB gen7. Sounds dumb, but it allows a 20,000+ lossless music collection + some movies that you can play over USB (or even on the ipod if you encode it properly). Love my music not being interrupted by messages or GPS navigation, not having having phone reception drop out and not being overwhelmed with choice every time I go to listen to something, which normally makes me revert to the same playlist

[@-RachelN-]

Love this!!! been using physical media this whole time... still own an ipod and buy cds to put onto it, collect dvds, still got my video collection from and got all my old ds games and stuff too. never used a streaming service (only free version of spotify on the odd occasion). hate how they are trying to put everything to be digital and us not owning anything it really really sucks and i hope they stop though i doubt they will.

[@colettem.7064]

👏 A breath of fresh air! New subscriber here.😃

[@velavideoentertainment]

Hands down. Spencer is the wisest most interesting man I’ve ever seen.

[@spencers-adventures]

Printing this and putting it on the fridge lol

[@dynamiketiger]

This was super helpful, dude! Thanks!

[@JessicaNeidingHaverly]

I agree with so much of this. Single use devices and limiting subscriptions. One of my favorite things is getting an ebook on Libby with my library card. Downloading that ebook to my kindle. My highlights live forever on my amazon account for me to refer back to but the book goes back to the library. No need for audible or to immediately buy the book. Request your library to buy the book!

[@isaacsamuel6035]

I love AMC A List as a subscription. I get to watch all the new movies as they come out and they are always showing older movies throughout the year. Love it during Oscars time too, I get to watch all the movies that are up for awards in theater! And nothing beats having a theater all to yourself.

[@BrothaNeo]

Great video. I was thinking years ago about because we don't have much control of the future of technology, even when we consider backup devices, we still have to consider what type of technology will be available for use to use those backup devices. What if USB becomes too out dated and there aren't any ports for us to use those physical devices? What if cloud storage becomes unavailable for us for whatever reason? Years ago I realized that at some point, a person needs to just relax and go with the flow of society to SOME degree and avoid resistance. That's why many people for years FINALLY caved in and got a "smartphone" and let go of their "dumb phone" lol. My mother and Uncle are those people.

[@spencers-adventures]

You’re right, it is important to relax and go with the flow to a degree! I just enjoy stuff while I have it, don’t try to look for a tech solution that will last a lifetime, because it moves too fast and I’m not able to repair such complicated devices beyond simple things. The good thing is some small companies exist to create niche adapters and such to keep these products working and compatible for as long as possible, so there’s always hope for a good long use from our favourite tech tools. Thanks for the comments

[@BrothaNeo]

@@spencers-adventures Oh ok. That's great to know! Thank you.

[@minibixxx]

Good job KZbin algorithm, you did something right today

[@DisastrousCake]

My only issue or gripe with cancelling all streaming services especially when it comes to music is that it's hard to find new music outside of those services. Also there are a lot of TV shows that straight up don't have physical media that you can buy, and as someone who doesn't want to pirate everything I'm just kinda locked out of viewing this cool thing. Sure it's not the end of the world, but it seems like an arbitrary barrier to add. More power to you though. I think the part of single use devices is super important.

[@illuminatiCorgi]

I was moving house, and during it, I ended up in a hotel for 3 days. I didn’t have my iPad, my laptop, or anything. Just regular TV, and I must say, it was oddly satisfying. Just settling down and watching what was on, and not having to fuss over a poppy field of content was less hassle, more practical, and overall just really nice.

[@JasonEvangelho]

I've taken a very similar path during the last few months. I cancelled Spotify, set up a Plex server, and bought a modded iPod Classic. When I'm not using the iPod to listen to my music library, I use PlexAmp on my PC or my phone, and cannot stress enough how awesome a listening experience it is, especially with its "Sonic" features. But I still need to scale back on streaming video services, and explore getting a dumb/flip phone. Really enjoying your videos btw. They're refreshing.

[@LoreleiBeatrix]

I have considered giving up the subscription-based consumption--or going to more of a moderation model when it comes to new shows I want to watch--subscribing only for a month or so, then ending it. The only thing I won't do it with is Spotify. I am a music-lover, and I am constantly buying albums or the music I want to own. Spotify is a great source for me to find new albums and music I want to explore. I love that it gives me artists that are relevant to the artists I love. I love listening to other playlists, too. And I like that it gives me audiobooks now along with the podcasts I frequently listen to--and now I can get rid of my audible subscription, too.

[@Bobalicious]

I've never been to Spotify. Goodwill or any thrift store is my favorite music venue. I scan through their CD shelves and pick out anything that looks interesting. Sometimes, luck smiles on me and I find a rare or quirky treasure. Anything dull or just horrible goes into my Goodwill box for the next adventurer.

[@FullHarbor]

I would be really curious to see a financial breakdown. I know the reason isn’t specifically to save money. Not paying all the subscriptions will reduce the regular monthly bill, but you’re then buying individual media. Then there’s the money saved from not having a smart phone/data plan. But the new cost of buying single use devices. I’m sure I could crunch the numbers on a best guess. But if you track that kind of thing, I’d watch that video! It’s all quite intriguing to me.

[@kaito82030]

Riping your files to a flash drive or hard drive is a good idea but I have a few tips from some of my bad experiences. First tip is to remember to make an extra copy or two. Flash drives can get corrupted very easily. One day I was listening to my music like usual and then suddenly it stopped playing and when I plugged it in my computer the drive was corrupted and I had to reformat. I lost my whole music library but good thing I had a copy. A second tip is use the copy function not the cut function when moving files from drives. I accidentally hit control x instead of control c. I lost all my pictures because there was a problem with the transfer. I didn't have those pictures backed up and they were old photos of me and my family. It was one of the worst feelings ever and I can never get them back. I hope this helps 😁

[@khaledtribes]

Owning what you buy is truly underrated

[@BrothaNeo]

The last song in this video used to be on the radio quite a bit here in America and it brought back memories when I heard it lol! Whats the name of that song? Just that snippet felt good lol! For years I realized that older classic music, a large portion of it, those artist remained true to themselves, wrote and sang from their heart and weren't trying to be something they aren't. Unlike many artists today. That's what makes music feel so good and real to me! When the artist remains real to themselves!

[@spencers-adventures]

I love that song! It’s Lyin’ Eyes by Eagles

[@BrothaNeo]

@@spencers-adventures Ok thank you! I'm gonna look it up now!

[@BrothaNeo]

@@spencers-adventures I have it playing now and now I know where I heard it playing most! In stores lol! Certain department stores play it and that was my 1st exposure of the song. It feels and sounds good! I like it.

[@victorlgcarvalho]

You can also get an older smartphone like a Moto G2, and put a 64gb or more SD drive on it, and use it exclusively as a media player... I used to do this with an old Samsung phone I had, and on airplane mode, battery lasts about 8 to 12 hours playing music... And with software like Poweramp, it works fine with lossless audio (FLAC).

[@ddoucette]

I was moving overseas in 1999 and ripped my CD collection to mp3. Best decision I could’ve made. When you do rip your stuff just make sure you keep your data backed up. 25 years and my data has been on maybe a half dozen or so drives to keep them going.

[@jamesloesch3504]

Love how intentional this approach is

[@milaliah]

i think i’ll do some form of this since you’re right about companies having full control to do whatever they want with their content, i like that idea

[@georgeogden1277]

Christopher Barnatt of Explaining Computers just released a KZbin video about how long different digital storage media retain data. The short answer is not forever. In fact, it's probably shorter than you think. If you store your music and videos on digital media, then I highly recommend watching his video. Spencer, just found your channel recently and I'm enjoying your insights. Thanks for your hard work on our behalf!

[@JuanCAraujoS]

Next step could be building your own cloud server with an old PC, use Jellyfyn and stream your own media .

[@gofelriebenschmalz6687]

this! also navidrome is an awesome self hosted spotify alternative you can fill with your own music

[@ardisatria7791]

That’s inspiring! Thanks. I do have some library of PSVITA digital games, and about 1-2 years ago, Sony was announced that they’ll stop their sevice to PSVITA, so all digital games purchased can’t be downloaded anymore. This makes me think what you said, we don’t have control for what we have purchased. 🙁

[@emilymclean6541]

Love my Sandisk Clip! Got one a few weeks ago mainly so I wouldn't have to carry my phone on runs, but I'm switching to a dumb phone and will carry the MP3 player alongside it. I've made the decision to only download full albums (not divided into songs) to be more intentional about how I listen to music there. I still have and enjoy Spotify and definitely listen to single songs and playlists there, but it's cool to have an album-only device.

[@junaling]

I have 3 ipod classics that I revived recently, a video, 6th and 7th gen, upgraded the video to 500gb sd and 800mh battery and rockbox load with FLAC, the 6th upgraded to 128gb and 800mh battery gave this one to my wife, the 7th upgraded to 1TB sd and 3200mh battery, has 180GB of ALAC so far, I use this along with and old OPPO HA-2 !

[@spencers-adventures]

Wow you’ve got the mods dialled in! Nice work

[@foodini666]

pros and cons to everything. this is a cool idea. but whats the plan if your home burns down. someone steals your ipod. etc. your plan goes down the drain.

[@drlard_]

ROCKY ROAD TO DUBLIN! (this is MY FAVOURITE spring time track and after nearly a week of -40c temps, I could use that excitement of warmer weather again, lol) I've been digitizing everything, but then keeping everything. Went on a buying spree in our younger years and my partner and I have around 1000 DVD's and Bluray discs. I spent a year to rip them and created a Plex server. It's grown significantly and now I'm considering adding music to it as well. I save *EVERYTHING* I can digitally and now my collection seems to be "how many hard drives can I fit in this server?" hahaha edited to add: hilariously, mere minutes before I watched this clip I saw a headline from an Ubisoft exec to gamers about how they need to "get comfortable not owning your games". Well, jokes on him, I also save the game files (so I don't have to redownload them at a later date) and there always has and always will be methods to strip DRM out of their software. Particularly if I've paid for a game, I have zero moral qualms about using those methods.

[@spencers-adventures]

I’m so glad you know and love that song! It’s a perfect little heater for those cold days lol. That Plex setup sounds great - I’ve been looking into it a bit lately since some other commenters have mentioned it in their setups as well. Seems like the way to go for sure if you want to become your own streaming service, ultimate digital self sufficiency! Crazy about Ubisoft. However, that’s just the way everything is going. We need to push back and find loopholes wherever we can but the industry wants more control over consumer behaviour and owning their purchased content is the next frontier for them I guess. Keep fighting the good fight buddy!

[@julia__sana]

I love this video. Yesterday my 15 year old mp3 player gave up which I have literally been using several times every day for the past year. And I just ordered a new mp3 xD I am getting the AGPTEK 64GB Portable USB MP3 Player. I still use spotify but the mp3 is so gold for audio books, lectures, guided meditations or yin yoga classes. I have it all on there.

[@elchinoxl3034]

I’m so happy for soulseek

[@aumnipresence]

Heck yeahhh! I love everything about it.

[@simple_networks]

I'm in the same boat. I have a small but nice physical collection of the media I want for both music and movies, keep them backed up to a NAS, and still use a couple of iPods for portable entertainment. It's a great alternative to all the issues with subscription services but it also helps you fully enjoy your content. On top of that, it can be a fun hobby!

[@stevebills5716]

All makes good sense. As a sidebar, I love my iPod 3rd generation Nano. It's one of those perfect pieces of design (IMHO) that does exactly what you want of it. Still my default tech for audio content when going on long walks. It pains me that such perfect devices cease production.

[@foreignparticle1320]

Doing exactly the same. I kept all my CDs and recently repacked them all into pouches designed to accommodate all the artwork as well - so they take up a tenth of the space they used to. Then I ripped all of them as lossless files to play at my convenience. Oh, and re-bought a CD player for the feels... and ya know, in case my hard drive fails. I once again have the feeling of satisfaction that I own a music library that I actively use.

[@techwithmarco]

You just inspired me to get an iPod again :) Thanks for that! And great video btw!

[@adrianwerner1982]

Sandisk mp3 players are also great because they're rare case of this type of device that has a bookmarking feature, which is absolute must if you're going to be using it for podcasts/audiobooks.

[@steventechno]

I've gone back to local music Media like the old days. I switched back from iOS to Android because iOS is just a pain in the ass to manage offline music with. Android? I still have a Poweramp License from over 10 years ago that still works, so I'm back on that. I acquired most of the albums I had on Apple Music on MP3 now so my Offline media is larger than ever! Methods of acquisition shall not be mentioned. Sure, I have my iPod Touch from 2009 (original battery that somehow still works??), though I don't like carrying multiple devices when my pockets are already eaten up by my Samsung and my wallet, as well as earbuds case. It feels more rewarding grabbing and tagging media files and seeing my folder grow. I only had Apple music because my (then) lover shared the service, and I had an iPhone with media transfer woes.

[@LaLtheGaL]

Nice. I wanted to add… the library is an awesome option. I love down the street from mine and it still feels like going to blockbuster when I want to grab a movie for a Friday night.

[@spencers-adventures]

Agreed! I wanted to make a library video at some point because I think many people have forgotten about them!

[@BlumChoi]

I just love the random heavily edited music playlists that random KZbinrs make…