[mresseguie]

I have a bunch of CDs saved on my aging Mac Mini's iTunes. I wish to move them into a thumb drive, but it's painfully slow the way I'm doing it. Is there a fast way to do this? Alternatively, can I transfer my music to my much newer MacBook Pro easily and swiftly?

I had thought it would be a simple operation to transfer my music from one Apple computer to another, but I'm stumped.

What am I doing wrong?

Another thought....Perhaps it's time to dump iTunes for a 3rd party program??

Thanks for any help.

Michael

[borism]

Hi Michael,

I went from a Mac Mini server to HAL MS-6 Windows based server about a year ago. I'm using Audirvana Studio on the HAL. All my music files were iTunes (AIFF). Basically, I got an external SS hard drive (Oyen) and copied my iTunes library. This took some time.

Now, I'm using the SS hard drive connected by USB with the HAL MS-6. Audirvana recognizes it and there is no issue with playback. You could do something similar and connect the external hard drive to your MacBook or any other computer.

Boris

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I have a bunch of CDs saved on my aging Mac Mini's iTunes. I wish to move them into a thumb drive, but it's painfully slow the way I'm doing it. Is there a fast way to do this? Alternatively, can I transfer my music to my much newer MacBook Pro easily and swiftly?

I had thought it would be a simple operation to transfer my music from one Apple computer to another, but I'm stumped.

What am I doing wrong?

Another thought....Perhaps it's time to dump iTunes for a 3rd party program??

Thanks for any help.

Michael

Copying music is a slow process.  I have copied 8TB's' of music several times and it takes 32 hours via usb 2.0.  I would use a SSD to copy to vs a thumb drive.  Most thumb drives are slow.

[mresseguie]

Fortunately, I do have a 1TB SSD that I'll connect in a few minutes. Fingers crossed. Edit:  I need a dongle to connect my ancient MacMini to the modern 1TB SSD.  ] @!#$%^&*(! Apple...

Thanks! 

[newzooreview]

I need a dongle to connect my ancient MacMini to the modern 1TB SSD.  ] @!#$%^&*(! Apple...

The MacMini has had USB 2.0 ports since the first model. The MacMini has had USB 3.0 ports since 2012 (more than a decade ago). The MacMini added USB-C ports in 2018.

Since the first MacMini was released, they have had industry-standard USB ports.

What is the dongle you need?

[mresseguie]

The MacMini has had USB 2.0 ports since the first model. The MacMini has had USB 3.0 ports since 2012 (more than a decade ago). The MacMini added USB-C ports in 2018.

Since the first MacMini was released, they have had industry-standard USB ports.

What is the dongle you need?

Ya gonna tell me my Mac Mini has this attachment? [I didn't think so.]

[newzooreview]

Any computer purchased before USB C became commonplace will need an adapter to plug in a USB C device. Your ranting about "[] @!#$%^&*(! Apple... " is misinformed and childish.

[borism]

My SSD came with a number of different cables. One of them was USB-C to USB-A. I would check if you have some of those put away someplace.

[mresseguie]

Any computer purchased before USB C became commonplace will need an adapter to plug in a USB C device. Your ranting about "[] @!#$%^&*(! Apple... " is misinformed and childish.

This smacks of a personal attack. 

Rant: speak or shout at length in a wild, impassioned way.

Certainly, I expressed my frustration at Apple for constantly changing adapters, but I don’t consider my single comment ‘ranting’. Nonetheless, I do appreciate your shaming me publicly. I’m certain this will be a learning experience for me. 

[mresseguie]

My SSD came with a number of different cables. One of them was USB-C to USB-A. I would check if you have some of those put away someplace.

Good suggestion. However, I have searched through my various cable boxes and my wife’s cables, and we don’t seem to have the correct dongle. We suspect it’s 5000 miles away in our Taiwan flat. I will head to Fred Meyer in a few minutes to see if I can buy it there.

[JohnR]

Might be fastest and easiest to do it over the network. I'd use rsync so you can restart it if it stops for some reason.

[Edit: over the network to the newer Mac, not to a thumb drive...]

[mresseguie]

Might be fastest and easiest to do it over the network. I'd use rsync so you can restart it if it stops for some reason.

[Edit: over the network to the newer Mac, not to a thumb drive...]

Good morning, John.

I've considered resorting to this, but it would be much faster if I had a direct connection. Heck, I even tried to attach my old Apple CD drive to my newer laptop using the multi-port dongle that we have on hand only to get a dialog box telling me I need to provide power to my drive....but this isn't an option. My CD drive is perfectly happy if plugged into my 2012 Mac Mini, but cranky if plugged into my multi-port dongle to my MacBook Pro. Sigh.

Aw, heck. I'll try it now in order to get an idea of how much time is needed, but I'll still head out to the store to see what I can find.

Michael

[mresseguie]

 

Problem solved temporarily anyway - and it has nothing to do with dongles or childish behavior.  My Mac Mini is portable, so I will relocate it to a spot beside my USB-connectable DAC. This doesn't fix the issue, but it frees me of the need to buy a dongle for now. I still want to transfer my iTunes CDs to my new computer because my old 2012 Mac Mini won't last forever, but it can wait until next week (or next month?).

Many thanks to all who tried to help. 

[kmmd]

Michael,  Amazon sells these adapters which may help.  Just another thought.

[mresseguie]

Michael,  Amazon sells these adapters which may help.  Just another thought.

That's even smaller than the one I had pictured in my mind. Impressive. Thank you. 

[mresseguie]

I accidently discovered another solution to my problem. While rooting around for a way to transfer the saved CDs from the Mac Mini, I tried something else that I hadn't tried before. I clicked on the 'sync' function in my Mac Mini, and instantly all my saved CDs appeared in my MacBook Pro's iTunes.  I hadn't known I could do this.  I feel so relieved.

What happens when my Mac Mini finally dies? Do my CDs remain in the cloud, or do all those titles in my MacBook Pro go poof? 

[newzooreview]

iTunes by default keeps a copy of your music in a folder that you can access, copy, and backup.

Here's a ChatGPT summary of relevant information.

"iTunes stores music files in different locations depending on the operating system of your device.

On a Windows PC, the default location for the iTunes music library is usually at: `C:\users$$username]\My Music\iTunes\iTunes Media`[4]. This path may vary slightly depending on the version of Windows you are using.

On a Mac, the default location for the iTunes music library is typically in the `~/Music/iTunes/` directory[6]. However, starting from macOS Catalina, Apple replaced iTunes with the Music app, and the music files are now stored in the `~/Music/Music/Media/Music` directory[3][5].

Please note that these are the default locations, and they can be changed based on user preferences. You can check the current location of your iTunes or Music app library by going to the app's preferences and clicking on the "Advanced" tab[1][4][5].

If you want to consolidate your music files in one location, both iTunes and the Music app offer an option to do so. In iTunes, you can go to File > Library > Organize Library and select "Consolidate files"[1]. In the Music app, you can choose File > Library > Organize Library and select "Consolidate files"[5]. This will leave the files in their original locations and place copies in the default folder.

Citations:
[1] https://support.apple.com/guide/itunes/change-where-files-are-stored-itns2999/windows
[2] https://discussions.apple.com/thread/254456271
[3] https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251721363
[4] https://www.ubackup.com/phone-backup/where-does-itunes-store-music.html
[5] https://support.apple.com/guide/music/change-where-music-files-are-stored-mus69248042d/mac
[6] http://ipodiphoneitunestutorials.com/iTunesTutorials/whereIsItunesMusicStoredItunesMediaFolderLocationOnMacWindows.php
[7] https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-move-your-itunes-library
[8] https://discussions.apple.com/thread/254076705"

[newzooreview]

So, the music is there, and it's easily portable.

The one thing to look out for is that iTunes typically files albums and tracks in folders for each artist. The exception is when an album is tagged as a compilation. In that case it files the album in the Compilations folder. However, if you rip a CD that is a compilation and it is not tagged as a compilation, iTunes will place the tracks in folders for the various artists. When migrating the music to a new application, this can sometimes result in several albums of the same name, each with just the tracks from a single artist. None of the music is lost, it's just a bit disorganized.