Customer Support
Frequently Asked Questions
Having troubles? Please review our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) to see if your question has already been answered If not, we'd be glad to assist you via email. Write to us at support@1320records.com. Please be sure to include your user name.
Q: What file formats do you offer?
Q: Will this work on my computer?
Q: How long do I have to download my purchases?
Q: Can I use a dial-up modem or do I need a high speed connection?
Q: May I make copies of the downloads I purchase?
Q: Can I get a refund?
Q: What is "Zip and Download" ?
Q: What does
mean?
Q: What are FLAC files?
Q: What is the difference between FLAC and MP3 formats?
Q: Why are FLAC files more expensive?
Q: What is the quality of the MP3's you offer?
Q: If I've purchased a show on MP3, can I "upgrade" to FLAC?
Q: How can I listen to FLAC files?
Q: Where I can I learn more about FLAC?
Q: Why won't Mac Flac open my FLAC files?
Q: Why does my browser keep asking me to login?
Q: I clicked on the download link but I don't see the file. Where did it go?
Q: How long will my download take?
Q: If I burn my downloads to disk, should I include 2 second gaps between tracks?
Q: Are the FLAC files I download sector aligned?
Q: How many compact discs will I need for each show?
Q: How do I know how many tracks to put on a compact disc?
Q: How do I preserve my FLAC files for future use?
General
Q: What file formats do you offer?
A: We currently offer audio in MP3 and FLAC formats.
MP3 files are supported by virtually all digital music players.
The files are small and tnal destinhe audio quality is great. If you are particular about your
audio, you may want to get lossless FLAC files. You choose the format that suits you best.
Q: Will this work on my computer?
A: All you need is a modern web browser and a good internet connection. All files
offered for download are compatible with Windows, Mac and Unix.
After the files are downloaded onto your computer, they can be
burned to disc, transferred to your portable music player, or
played directly from your computer.
Q: How long do I have to download my purchases?
A: You have 48 hours
to complete your downloads. During that time, we allow you to download each purchase a maximum of 3
times. Note that partial or incomplete downloads do not count against you. You can see the status of your active downloads at My Account. The display there
indicates when your download began, the number of hours remaining, and the number of downloads remaining.
Q: Can I use a dial-up modem or do I need a high speed connection?
A: High speed internet is strongly recommended -- the faster the better.
That said, you may still download using dial-up. Be aware that a single track
in MP3 format may take an hour or more to download via modem; a single track in FLAC format
can take 10 hours or more to download. .
If you are using a dial-up modem, we strongly recommend sticking with MP3.
Q: May I make copies of the downloads I purchase?
A: You are free to make copies for your own personal use and convenience. We grant very generous
terms for personal use. In exchange, we ask that you respect the site's Terms of Service agreement
and refrain from making copies for others. Please support the band through honesty in your actions.
Q: Can I get a refund?
A: Sorry, but all sales are final.
If the download you purchased expires before you are able to download it, contact customer
support and we will help you out.
Q: What is "Zip and Download" ?
A: When you purchase a complete show or album, a "Zip and Download" button will appear below the
selection's title in your download queue. Clicking that button will create and begin downloading a single
zip file containing all the tracks for that selection. Be aware that this may be a very large file - up to
a gigabyte or more. Some browsers (notably Internet Explorer) download files first to your temp directory,
then move it to the final destination upon completion. To avoid problems, please verify that you have
sufficient space in both your temp directory and your download directory.
Q: What does
mean?
A:
is the "listen" icon. When you see it next to a track, it means that there is an audio
preview of that track available. Click the icon to hear a short sample of the track. Flash plugin is required.
File Formats
Q: What are FLAC files?
A: FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec. Grossly oversimplified, FLAC is
similar to MP3, but lossless, meaning that audio is compressed in FLAC without any loss in
quality. FLAC is not as widely supported as MP3, so we recommend it only for those
already familiar with the format and software to use it.
Q: Why are FLAC files more expensive?
A: FLAC files are higher quality files, but that higher quality comes at the expense of larger files.
FLAC files are larger and sound better than MP3. While the MP3
algorithm discards audio information to achieve high compression ratios,
FLAC does not discard any information, so it achieves much more modest compression ratios.
Audio encoded in FLAC takes roughly five times as much space as the same audio in MP3 format,
so they are more expensive to deliver to you.
Q: What is the difference between FLAC and MP3 formats?
A: MP3 is the most popular and universal format for digital music; we
recommend it for most people. It is
also a "lossy" compression format, meaning that some of the data is discarded
during compression, degrading the audio quality. FLAC compression achieves
superior fidelity at the expense of larger file sizes. FLAC files use about 6MB of space
for every minute of audio; our MP3 files use about 1.25 MB per minute.
FLAC files are 5 times as large as our MP3 files.
Q: What is the quality of the MP3's you offer?
A: We encode using a variable bit rate algorithm that uses more bits when you need them, less when you don't.
Average bitrates are around 170 kbps.
If you'd like to hear the quality, click the "listen" icon
when you see it to sample a track.
Q: If I've purchased a show on MP3, can I "upgrade" to FLAC?
A: All sales are final. If you would like a different format than what you have already purchased,
you will need to go through the purchase process again.
Q: How can I listen to FLAC files?
A: For Windows computers, we suggest Foobar2000. WinAmp can also play FLAC files with the proper plugin.
For Macs, a few FLAC players are starting to show up -- Cog in particular seems the best bet. XMMS can also play FLAC when the proper plugins are installed.
See the Software Links section for more details.
If your player does not support FLAC natively, you can always decode FLAC files to WAV or AIFF and them play those files
directly, or burn them to CD. See our Software Links to download these programs.
Q: Where I can I learn more about FLAC?
A: More information can be found at http://FLAC.sourceforge.net
Common Software Problems
Q: Why won't Mac Flac open my FLAC files?
A: Sometimes the ".flac" file extension is sometimes not preserved by the web browser when downloading.
Make sure your flac file names end in ".flac"; rename them if they do not.
Q: Why does my browser keep asking me to login?
A: Early versions of Safari often display a page from its cache rather than loading the page from the server as it should.
If you experience this problem, we recommend upgrading to the latest version of OSX; there are several other workarounds as well:
you may disable Safari's cache using these instructions.
An alternative is to hit the refresh button to force a page load any time Safari seems to be showing you something odd. The third solution
is to switch web browsers. We recommend the free Firefox browser from Mozilla.org.
Downloading
Q: I clicked on the download link but I don't see the file. Where did it go?
A: The answer depends on which browser you are using, and setting you may have adjusted. Here are some tips for some popular browsers:
- Mozilla: open the download manager from the "Tools" menu. Find your download in the list, and click "Show File Location".
- Safari: open the "Downloads" window to see the status of each download. You can set the folder files are saved to in Preferences > General.
- IE: Check your temp directory.
Q: How long will the download take?
A: The time to download depends on the speed of your internet connection,
which format you have selected, and the actual length of the show or album you have selected.
The following table shows download times you can expect for a few common scenarios:
| MP3 | FLAC | |
| Live show - typical size | 175 MB | 850 MB |
| Internet Speed: | ||
| Basic DSL - 48KB/s | 1 hour | 5 hours |
| T1 - 197 KB/s | 15 minutes | 1.25 hours |
| Deluxe Cable Modem - 350KB/s | 9 minutes | 45 minutes |
Burning Music To CD
Q: If I burn my downloads to disk, should I include 2 second gaps between tracks?
A: We recommend burning in Disk At Once (DAO) mode without gaps. Especially on live material,
this will preserve the continuity of the recording for your listening pleasure.
Q: Are the FLAC files I download sector aligned?
A: We take great care to ensure that are downloadable tracks are sized to match CD sector sizes,
so if you burn DAO without gaps between tracks, the resulting CD will not have any gaps or breaks
in the signal during playback.
Q: How many compact discs will I need for each show?
A: Depending on the length of the show, you will need one, two, or three discs per show.
Q: How do I know how many tracks to put on a compact disc?
A: The number of tracks per disc will depend on what size compact disc you are using. The most common sizes are 74 and 80 minutes. In general, most shows fit nicely on two 80 minute compact discs, with the set one on disc one and set two on disc two. On some occasions, it may be necessary to put the encore at the end of disc one (or on a third disc).
Q: How do I preserve my FLAC files for future use?
A: If you would like to archive your FLAC files, you should do so by burning them to compact disc as data files. In general, your Compressed Zip Folder file downloaded from 1320records.com will be too large to fit onto a single compact disc. By archiving your FLAC files, you will ensure you can burn an additional copy if your music compact disc becomes damaged in any way.