You should encode 2 copies of each song/track: a SAMPLE (low quality) and a PRODUCT (high quality) copy. To sell your music through XYZmp3 you will need to upload 2 copies of each song/track you plan to sell. One copy is a SAMPLE version that your fans will listen to in the player and the other copy is a PRODUCT version that they purchase and download to their computer.

• SAMPLE version: Your fans will listen to this one via the player you embed in your webpage/website and anywhere you may be featured on www.XYZmp3.com or one of its affiliates. The sample version should be encoded at a lower bit rate (56k is a popular sample rate of encoding).
• PRODUCT version: This is the copy your fans will actually download to their computer after purchasing. The product version should be encoded at a high quality bit rate (192k is popular).

To convert your music to mp3 format you will need a software application to do this. These applications are referred to as encoders or rippers. There are several encoders on the web as well as tutorials. You may want to do a little research first and you will want to make sure you can encode at different bit rates (at least as low as 56k and as high as 192k). CDex available from SourceForge is a popular encoder that you could use in creating mp3s for sale and sampling. Click here to visit their site.

The basic steps of encoding:
(This generally applies to most encoding software)

1. You install the encoding software on the computer you will use to encode.
2. Put your music CD containing your tracks you want to sell in the CDROM drive of the computer you are encoding on. Remember, you are going to encode the CD twice: once as a low quality mp3 and again as a high quality mp3.
3. Use the software to encode the tracks you want from the CD at a low bit rate (such as 56k for your SAMPLE quality mp3s).
4. Make sure the track data (artist name, album, track info, etc.) is entered into the mp3s created.
5. Repeat the process with the encoding rate set at a high quality (such as 192k for your PRODUCT MP3s) for download.
   
   

There are file size limits on mp3s uploaded to XYZmp3.

• PRODUCT mp3s should not be larger than 10 mbs in size.
• SAMPLE mp3s should not be larger than 4 mbs in size.
  
  

If you wish to have your music encoded, we can do that for you. At $10.00 per CD/Album we can professionally encode your 5 PRODUCT and 5 SAMPLE mp3s. Mail us a CD with the 5 audio tracks that you wish to sell. If you send us a complete album CD, please indicate which 5 tracks you want encoded and uploaded to XYZmp3.com. Please indicate your email address and artist name that you registered with us so we can upload to your account. We will email you when encoding and uploading is complete. You can then log in to BAMS to see your added products.

Please include a money order with the CD. Any CDs mailed to XYZmp3 will not be returned. Turn-around time for encoding and uploading may be up to 2 weeks from the date the CD(s) arrive at our office.

Mail your CD(s) to:
Artist Encoding
XYZMP3.com
3800 S. Congress, Ste. C
Austin, TX 78704

Don’t forget to list 5 tracks for upload, and include your money order, registered email address, and artist name. If we do not receive a money order payment with the CD, then we cannot upload or encode your music until payment is made.

Once you have your PRODUCT and SAMPLE mp3s encoded and ready as stated in Step 1, you can now upload them. You are ready for the next step and closer to selling your music online!