media playback in OSX - iTunes copying to local

[GeX]

Hi all.

I have my vast music library on a central file server, on my Windows machine I used to just browse around it, find an album I wanted to listen to and then right clicked to queue it up in Winamp.

I've just tried to do the same in OSX, and iTunes started copying the music to it's local library and converting the file formats.

I don't want it to do this. How can I stop it. What music players do you lot use?

 

[TriedandTested]

VLC for me. Just set the default app to open your music files to it.

 

[steveo]

might work, worth a try at least

itunes>preferences>advanced>uncheck copy files to itunes media folder

 

[Freakitchen]

I get why you would want your music centrally, but surely browsing music by way of traditional files and folders - particularly on a windows share on a mac - is not very pleasant?

Would definitely try steveo's suggestion - this will reference the file on the network in iTunes but don't know how responsive it will be. I've always had my music library locally until iTunes Match appeared (which I think is brilliant).

 

[Frost]

might work, worth a try at least

itunes>preferences>advanced>uncheck copy files to itunes media folder

This would work, but why don't you change the Library location to point to your file server instead, this way itunes will build a library based on your already structured file server and you wont have to manually browse your folders.

if your worried about it messing it up, simply uncheck 'Keep iTunes media folder organised' and 'copy files to iTunes media folder' as Steveo said above?

 

[PardonTheWait]

Would definitely try steveo's suggestion - this will reference the file on the network in iTunes but don't know how responsive it will be.

It'll be spot on, as long as the drive where the music is is connected it'll all be lovely. Because the library file is local there won't be any lagging while browsing. Do what he said about unchecking the copy box and it'll just add the file to the library, not copy the file over.

GeX, seriously it's 2012, browsing through folders of music? Let it go man!

 

[GeX]

I'll try messing around with the settings in iTunes.

The reason I still browse to files and folders is because it works, and it works on any platform - I don't need to be abstracted from the file system with meta data. It's all sorted by genre > artist > album, and doesn't require a meta database on each and every client I browse it with

I'll change iTunes to point at the current file server. Does OSX prefer any other type of sharing to SMB? The file server is an Ubuntu box and is already running nettalk for a Time Capsule share, so should be trivial to add more.

 

[PardonTheWait]

I'll try messing around with the settings in iTunes.

The reason I still browse to files and folders is because it works, and it works on any platform - I don't need to be abstracted from the file system with meta data. It's all sorted by genre > artist > album, and doesn't require a meta database on each and every client I browse it with

I'll change iTunes to point at the current file server. Does OSX prefer any other type of sharing to SMB? The file server is an Ubuntu box and is already running nettalk for a Time Capsule share, so should be trivial to add more.

iTunes just uses standard metadata, all it'll do if you take off the 'copy files to itunes media folder' option is add them to its own library file and work from there - it won't do anything irreversible

Shouldn't be any problem with SMB, OSX works happily with it from what I gather. Everything here is through AFP but that's just because I've got a couple of Macs and an Airport Extreme. I've never heard of anyone having issues with SMB sharing.

 

[whiskycycle]

Shouldn't be any problem with SMB, OSX works happily with it from what I gather. Everything here is through AFP but that's just because I've got a couple of Macs and an Airport Extreme. I've never heard of anyone having issues with SMB sharing.

It'll be fine with SMB sharing.... used to use it that way on the Microserver and WHS2011 before I shifted to a Synology DS211j late last year.

Only gotcha I've found is that first start of iTunes following a start/restart of the machine can be a little sluggish as it scans the library, but it's not a massive killer.

Gex: I'd go stir crazy leafing through folders to play things rather than having a nice, sorted, indexed pile of music.

 

[GeX]

Gex: I'd go stir crazy leafing through folders to play things rather than having a nice, sorted, indexed pile of music.

I'm not seeing the massive difference tbh. I don't tend to play a single song, how is clicking music > artist > album any different to what you'd d in iTunes? Genuine question, I've not used iTunes all that much but never saw the point of the library/indexing in Windows Media Player.

 

[whiskycycle]

I used to have things working that way, ages before WMP became half-decent (never used iTunes on Windows).... indexed everything and it just became more comfortable to work with and play. I find it easier to be honest, although I realise it's a "YMMV" thing for yourself.