Q: How do I purchase music from the AAJ Download Store?
A: Simply register online, fill in your payment details and you're ready to go! We save your details on file so you can buy comfortably, without having to fill out unnecessary forms each time.
Q: How much does it cost?
A: A single file download can range anywhere from $0.69 to $1.49. The price for a full album will vary if the album is a single or double, studio or live, previously released or unreleased, etc. Although AAJ does not actually determine prices, we advise labels and artists selling with us to keep prices within a competitive price range.
You will never be charged for having an account with us. We do not charge our customers monthly fees. You will only get billed for the music you purchase, nothing else. There are no hidden charges, catches, etc.
Q: What payment methods are available?
A: You can pay with a credit or debit card (VISA/MasterCard). Unfortunately we cannot accept checks, cash or any other forms of payment at this time.
Q: Is it safe to use my credit card to pay over the internet?
A: Some people are naturally hesitant about giving out their credit card number over the internet. AAJ's technology partners, Klicktrack, use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology, which encrypts your data, making theft impossible.
Q: Are my account details really private?
A: Your account is 100% private. We do not share your personal information with third parties, and you will not receive promotional mailouts from All About Jazz unless you wish to subscribe to our newsletters.
Q: Why should I buy MP3s from AAJ and not use P2P networks?
A: When you purchase music from the AAJ Download Store, you are actively supporting your favorite labels and artists, which in turn enables them to produce more great songs for you to enjoy. We offer labels and artists the unparalleled freedom to sell the music they want at the price they want. All the tracks in the AAJ Download Store are encoded at a high bit rate using VBR (Variable Bit Rate) to give you the best sound quality available. Our MP3s are encoded at 320kbps (most people can't tell the difference from a CD), while the majority MP3s found on illegal P2P networks are encoded at the vastly-inferior rate of 128kbps or less.
Q: How do I search for a song?
A: If you know what you are looking for, simply key in your search criteria into the appropriate fields and any songs that contain your criteria will be returned. You can conduct a search here. Alternately, you can browse by label, artists, genre and other criteria and discover new music!
Q: Can I preview tracks before I buy?
A: Yes. By clicking on the "play" button next to a track, a 30-second preview version of the track is automatically loaded. You can click any part of the track timeline to listen to a particular segment. This way you can listen to the whole track if you wish. The preview player plays a low-quality (quick-loading) 48kbps version of the final MP3 in mono. The sound quality of the paid version is far superior (320kbps).
Q: What is "MP3"? Do I need special software to play the songs I purchase?
A: A: An MP3 is a compressed audio file format that is popular for downloading across the internet and for use with memory-based audio players. Files may be recorded on CD-R or CD-RW media for playback in compatible DVD players, audio CD players, and CD-ROM drives. MP3 is the most flexible file format and is platform independent. You can listen to the MP3s you buy on a whole host of media players (including iPods), which almost all modern computers will support. Files are usually named as "*.MP3". Sound quality varies as a function of the recording/encoding bit rate. For a high fidelity home audio system, we would recommend MP3s encoded at no less than 320 kbps data rate. Anything less would mean too much compression was used at the cost of sound fidelity.
Q: What is "DRM"?
A: "DRM" is short for Digital Rights Management, a system which aims to protect copyrighted data from being circulated freely via the internet or other digital media. By using DRM technology, companies automatically assume that the listeners will copy and illegally distribute their music and prevent further sales. There are many arguments surrounding the use of DRM technology. Consumers prefer the MP3 format and the industry is moving away from DRM. As a result, MP3 is the file format of choice at the AAJ Download Store.
Q: What is the end-user agreement?
A: The End User Agreement is an agreement stating what you are buying and what you can and can not do with the tracks you purchase. You only need to read and agree it the first time you buy from the AAJ Download Store.
Q: What is AAJ's privacy policy?
A: Our privacy policy can be found here.
Q: What happens if I download a track with an error or glitch?
A: Please let us know immediately if you encounter an error or glitch. It could indicate there is a problem with that particular file and that it may need to be replaced. Please e-mail our technology partner at support@klicktrack.com, mention the album and/or track title, and explain what went wrong. They will send you a replacement file.
Q: What happens if a download fails halfway through?
A: Your order will remain on the download page so if you have not closed your browser just try and download again. If you need to retry a download after you've left the download page you can visit the "Account" page. If you have any other problems please e-mail our technology partner: support@klicktrack.com
Q: Where is my download? I can't find the file.
A: Some browsers (for example Safari) will automatically unzip your download. Look for a folder named after the artist.
Q: I download an MP3 and my computer thinks it is an excel/text/word/bin file. Why is that?
A: Some operating systems can't handle long file names. When the MP3 is downloaded, it shortens the filename and loses the ".MP3" extension. This leaves your computer unable to know how to handle the file, so it often makes a guess (hence thinking it's an Excel or Word file). If you rename the file, adding the extension .MP3 it should work fine. If you have any other problems please e-mail our technology partner: support@klicktrack.com
Q: If the site is very busy will this slow downloading?
A: At busy times downloading may take a little longer, but our technology partner has sufficient bandwidth, and will scale this up according to an increase in demand.
Q: What happens if I accidentally delete a song from my hard drive?
A: Once you have successfully downloaded a track from the AAJ Download Store, the transaction is completed and the file becomes your responsibility. Make sure you backup your purchases. There is no restriction on how many personal backups you can make.
