The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    SonicStage and OpenMG: useful or dangerous?

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by toronto, Jun 10, 2008.

  1. toronto

    toronto Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    128
    Messages:
    727
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    31
    SonicStage software enables you to rip audio into digital files and manage those files, and OpenMG is Sony's Digital Rights Management which works with SonicStage. I've been trying to determine if I need OpenMG, and have read some worrying things. Some examples:

    http://forum.dbpoweramp.com/showthread.php?t=7532
    http://forum.dbpoweramp.com/showpost.php?p=43611&postcount=22
    I'm now wondering if SonicStage and OpenMG should be uninstalled and avoided. I don't want to do a lot of work with audio files, if I'm going to discover later that I can't move them to another computer or play them on a different player.

    I'd appreciate comments from people here who know more about SonicStage and OpenMG.
     
    toronto, Jun 10, 2008
    #1
  2. Moidock

    Moidock Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    527
    Messages:
    228
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    You're going to rip your music from your own CD's?

    Just try Freerip.

    If you wish to purchase your music online use one that sells DRM-free tracks like Amazon.

    Those are the options that pop up in my mind right now.

    (busy @ work)
     
    Moidock, Jun 10, 2008
    #2
  3. fabarati

    fabarati Frorum Obfuscator

    Reputations:
    1,904
    Messages:
    3,374
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    105
    Do you have an older Sony DAP? Those require Sonicstage/OpenMG.

    If you do not, there are much better programs. iTunes, Winamp, Windows media player are all better Music players (and they rip). Or you can get a seperate ripper, like Freerip of DBpoweramp.
     
    fabarati, Jun 10, 2008
    #3
  4. toronto

    toronto Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    128
    Messages:
    727
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    31
    So are you saying that you guys avoid SonicStage and OpenMG?

    I didn't know anything about them, and just thought that SonicStage might be a useful tool until I read the negative comments.
     
    toronto, Jun 10, 2008
    #4
  5. coolguy

    coolguy Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    805
    Messages:
    4,679
    Likes Received:
    12
    Trophy Points:
    106
    Both are useless. I use wmp 11 to rip audio cd's.
     
    coolguy, Jun 10, 2008
    #5
  6. toronto

    toronto Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    128
    Messages:
    727
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    31
    Thanks for the recommendations. I will uninstall and avoid SonicStage and OpenMG: I don't want my files to get limited to playback just on this VAIO. I'll get better tools.

    Thanks.
     
    toronto, Jun 10, 2008
    #6
  7. imagine

    imagine Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    3
    Messages:
    123
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Sonicstage is a program used to transfer music onto Sony's atrac3 compatible mp3 players (which have now been phased out). You can use it as a music library manager like itunes, just don't rip your files into atrac3 since you can only use them on Sonicstage and sony's (old) audio players. As long as you rip your files in mp3, you should be fine, but there are much better programs out there.
     
    imagine, Jun 11, 2008
    #7