Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[marcerickson]

I'm trying the trial version on Ubuntu Server 18.04 LTS with an xfce (Xubuntu) GUI.  (I come from the Windows world - don't hate me.    )

I like the Volume Leveling feature. But the price for a Master Licence is over $112 CAD (despite the crappy exchange rate, our dollars have a similar purchasing power here to US dollars in the US).  That's a lot for me.  And it seems I have to repurchase it the next time a major version is released.  I'm not keen on that.

I don't want to learn about or think how the sound is processed - especially since I have some hearing loss.  I'm not an audio geek - I'm a music geek.  I was a musician in my youth and I want the most accurate reproduction of the music I play through my NAD amp (at least 25 years old now and still going strong) and a good pair of bookshelf speakers that my brother built (he's a speaker geek).  I have some movies and TV series on my server but it's mostly music - about 4 TB altogether including the movies and TV shows.

So what are some non-technical reasons to buy it?

[JimH]

You can skip upgrades, but they're discounted.

Here's why others have chosen JRiver:

https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,96468.0.html

[RoderickGI]

Do you need a Master Licence? That gives you installations on all your Mac, Linux, and Windows PCs. If you will only be installing on a Linux PC, then maybe you only need the Linux licence? US$20 cheaper.

BTW, a Master Licence for me would be $123.58 AUD. Our exchange rates are awful.

You don't have to upgrade every year. You are buying a perpetual licence, and can use the software forever. You only need to upgrade to major versions if you want new functionality, or something is fixed in later versions that effects you. If you mainly use MC for audio, that is less likely to be the case. Upgrade to new major versions are a lot cheaper than the original purchase (it was US$26.98 for MC26 https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php?topic=122405.0), and there are almost always "early bird" discounts.

There are lots of reasons for buying JRiver Media Center. Here is a long list of reasons: https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,96468.0.html

But really, the trial will be your best answer to that question. Just remember, MC does have a bit of a learning curve, so if you want to know something and can't work it out, or find it in the Wiki, ask on the forum.


Ah, Jim beat me. :waving: I'll post this anyway. 

[ixne]

I just bought it, for two main reasons.  First, I just bought a shiny new DAC.  Now I wasn't planning on changing my media player, but this DAC came with downloadable reference WAV files to test whether the signals I was sending were arriving intact (bit perfect).  After spending an hour trying to pass even one of these tests in my old (free) media player, I downloaded the trial version of JRiver.  It aced every single test, including the non-trivial 32-bit tests.  That for me was the sign that someone was taking the audio seriously.

I also needed a streaming device to connect to my stereo, and didn't want to buy an expensive proprietary streaming device and be stuck with whatever someone else's idea of a decent interface looks like.  Instead of spending hundreds of dollars I installed Linux on an old Mac Mini I bought for $20 and it's been running great as a headless server.  I can control it from my main computer, through VNC with a remote desktop, or from my iPad, and can use the Linux platform to get as crazy as I want with custom controls and scripts.  From this board the developers seem very involved and responsive to questions and comments, I've never seen anything close to that from free players.  Took a little bit to get used to the layout but that's true of changing from any application, while superficially similar to my old program the functionality is much more powerful and tweakable.  In a few months it's going to feel like that favorite recliner you can't get rid of, so I expect the real pain will be if I ever have to switch. The only way to prevent that is to support the work, and I'd prefer to own something rather than pay a subscription, pay hundreds of dollars into it and have nothing if I ever decide to stop.

[marcerickson]

BTW, a Master Licence for me would be $123.58 AUD. Our exchange rates are awful.

Agreed.

Well.  I'm almost sold.  I've barely used it - I'm finishing off a playlist I set up in Amarok.  I have to start digging into it.  [Another project - oh well... "Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp,. Or what's a heaven for?"]

The JRiver team sound great and I agree that paying for an important piece of software tends to insure that it will be around for many years.  I think I saw something that said the jukebox predecessor to Media Center existed in 1995?  That's an eternity in PCs.

Many thanks for the replies.