Holy crap, syncing with WP8 is a trainwreck.

[vedichymn]

I thought 8 was to be magical?

So WP8 and W8 don't play nice together? Great.

WP8 and anything don't play nicely together if you want any kind of automated sync, the desktop tool is for both Windows 8 and Windows 7

A update is out for the tool today.

Microsoft updates Windows Phone 8 PC sync client with improvements | Windows Phone Central

Unfortunately doesn't look like they added any features, still missing most of the features of the Zune software with WP7.

Hopefully the desktop tool gets updated soon.

 

[runam0k]

Funny thing is, I am only using an Xbox Music Pass at the mo, and it's still a nightmare. I just want to be able to edit playlists on my phone as I listen to music, but no, impossible. I can't even heart/unheart tracks and deal with them later.

There's still no native podcast support outside the US and they took out wifi sync. WTF?

 

[Malcolm Clement]

My XBOX Music Issues:

No way to sync a playlist that has XBOX music Pass songs.
The cloud music is a complete mess. Can't get a newly created playlist to appear across devices. Playlists are all over the map.
Album art is spotty at best from music I copy to the device from the app. If I download straight to the phone via my music pass, album art is fine.
And did I mention playlists with XBOX music songs will not sync via WMP?

I hate how when it syncs or matches my personal library with their cloud library, it seemingly automatically goes for the "Edited" version. Try listening to some good old school Tupac where everything is edited out. And its a PITA to go through and manually match it to the "Explicit Content" version of the albums. MS needs to FIX this ASAP as well. This whole WP8 thing is becoming very exhausting. Don't get me wrong, I love the phone, just beginning to wish Nokia made this for Android. Google Music is too legit.

 

[Juliguli]

I am trying to give them grace as these are the first few versions of the desktop app and the touch app on W8, but it is very hard, because there really is no auto-syncing ability, and the length of time the desktop takes to refresh (because it doesn't cache the library) is really long. Even when syncing with WMP, because of the phone's rating system being like the Zune software (heart, no heart, broken heart), it doesn't sync ratings at all.

I think it can sync playlists to the phone, but cannot sync edited or added playlists back to WMP.

 

[Trocien]

I just updated the tool. I STILL get the DRM issue when syncing downloaded Xbox Music Pass songs.

It streams just fine, but when I play a downloaded song, it says "Cannot verify media rights to this content".

They seriously need to get this resolved asap....streaming works fine but if I am on an airplane...I am gonna get screwed!!

At least Customer Support are aware of the issue....hopefully next update...

 

[jwinch2]

I agree that this is a real pain in the rear. I have been dealing with this pretty much all afternoon and evening. WP store really needs an app like double twist that will do a wireless sync.

 

[garak0410]

I have to say that I downloaded the "Desktop" app and while no where near the Zune Player experience, I am able to sync my music to my phone...

 

[Loiselle]

Major beef with Xbox Music

I'm what I like to call, Hyper Organized, when it comes to my mp3 Collection.

This is just an example. Every artist, alphabetically, then into their discography, labeled in a manner that keeps them in chronological, not alphabetical. Then, in each album folder, every mp3 is tagged the exact same way. Track # in 2 digit form, a space, then the title of the track. It keep it neat, clean and simple.

But this stupid setting on my WP8 is pissing me off to no end. Changing album titles and pretty much re-organizing my collection on the phone. At one point, each of the Metallica albums I put on my phone were in 2 folders to make one album... because this setting allows Xbox Music to update song information on the device. So what I have as 1983 - Kill 'Em All, was also Kill 'Em All. The 10 tracks that make up the album were in 2 folders.

After re-syncing my selected music onto the device for a 3rd time and still seeing the problem, I started to look through the setting and saw that setting defaulted to on. Turning it off stopped the problem. Sanity returned.

I tag my music the way I like, and I hate when these services pretty much undo it. It's why I had to turn SmartDJ off of my Zune HD and the software itself.

I do hate, however, that when I turn the feature off, it no longers give the artist bio or pictures or anything like that. I can deal with it, but it kinda sucks.

/endrant.

 

[Verkunder]

I synced some albums by Silversun Pickups, and while the phone recognizes them as the artist, it doesn't show their picture in the background/on the tile. When I go to the Store and look them up there, it says that all of their albums are "in my collection."

The properties of the tracks show the artist as being correct, so I'm not sure why it isn't working. All of my other MP3s show their respective photos in the background. Blah!

 

[pjs37]

You sir are a gentleman and a scholar! Thank you very much for this valuable information. It was exactly what I am looking for.

 

[viachicago367]

Yeah, I keep getting an error message when I try to download the desktop sync app (beta? total side note wtf btw) and I keep getting an error message:

"Windows Phone requires .Net framework 4.0 Please install from 'http://go.microsft.com/?LinkID=186913/' and restart setup"

But when I try to go to that address it's a dead end. Best part now, as I read this blog, even if I were to download the sync a bunch of people are having problems with it. Was the windows 8 release a total surprise to microsoft or do they just expect people won't notice their ****s not working?

I also subscribed to the super expensive xbox music pass but I can't get it to work on my 920. Online it says music pass should appear under the "new" menu in the xbox video/music app but, NOPE!

I must say this has really got me thinking if windows 8 mobile is ready. I'm burnt out on iphone and its lack of innovation but at least their **** worked. I'm wondering now if I should return my 920 and xbox and get a galaxy with a sweet speaker system instead.

I would appreciate any suggestions on how to trouble shoot / thoughts about making a switch to a better functioning ecosystem.

-Thanks

 

[sketchy9]

Well I've solved my sync issues for now. I'm on Windows 7 and use the Zune pass and have a 920. The two devices basically are incompatible. It's as if they're made by two different companies...so, I've decided to continue to use my Lumia 900 to listen to music. 90% of what I listen to is in my car, so I'm just going to leave my 900 in the car and continue to use that. Thanks Microsoft, you really f'ed this up.

 

[martinmc78]

Theres a way round it. I had this issue as well and it was bugging the sh*t out of me. All my albums on zune pass and stored on my PC came up with the DRM error when i went to play it on my HTC 8x - easiest way to solve it is let the album play and come up with all the drm errors once its done hit the ... in the bottom corner and select "more from store" it should then come up with the same album from the marketplace and flick to already in collection - once its done this hit the back arrow and go back to your album and the DRM error disappears

 

[jwinch2]

Yeah, I keep getting an error message when I try to download the desktop sync app (beta? total side note wtf btw) and I keep getting an error message:

"Windows Phone requires .Net framework 4.0 Please install from 'http://go.microsft.com/?LinkID=186913/' and restart setup"

But when I try to go to that address it's a dead end. Best part now, as I read this blog, even if I were to download the sync a bunch of people are having problems with it. Was the windows 8 release a total surprise to microsoft or do they just expect people won't notice their ****s not working?

I also subscribed to the super expensive xbox music pass but I can't get it to work on my 920. Online it says music pass should appear under the "new" menu in the xbox video/music app but, NOPE!

I must say this has really got me thinking if windows 8 mobile is ready. I'm burnt out on iphone and its lack of innovation but at least their **** worked. I'm wondering now if I should return my 920 and xbox and get a galaxy with a sweet speaker system instead.

I would appreciate any suggestions on how to trouble shoot / thoughts about making a switch to a better functioning ecosystem.

-Thanks

I just searched for "Net framework 4.0" and found the file patch that way. I have installed it and can sync to some extent, but the WP desktop client is still buggy. I am just dragging and dropping everything right now. It works, but it takes forever.

 

[aalex]

I was looking for help with this. I am new to the whole Windows phone. Just got the 920 and can't sync with Windows 8. I can stream from xbox music but I think it's using a lot of data for that cause I don't think it caches the music.

I too am kind of blown away by this. Microsoft should have had this ready for the product. Or at least mentioned that it wasn't ready and prepared us. I hate it when something should work but doesn't and you wonder if they know it or not. How could they miss this? How does this go all way to release without being ready.

My playlists on XBOX Music do not sync to the Lumia 920. The songs appear to be on my phone, locally. But the playlist to play them is not. I can play a song or an album, but I can't create a playlist on the phone. So since I can't create a playlist on the phone and I can't sync a playlist from the Windows 8 app, I simply can't have a playlist at all unless I stream from XBOX music. Microsoft??? What the heck man? Are you stupid or something?

 

[Kazza99]

Thanks for the eloquent description. I've spent the afternoon struggling with the same problem.

The artist was renamed on some (but not all) of the tracks on an album I was trying to sync, confusion reigned!

I'm hoping that this is actually a bug and that it will get changed so that it only updates missing data.

 

[runam0k]

The inability to manage playlists on the phone itself is shocking.

The ONLY thing you can do on the phone is turn whatever is in the "Playing Now" list into a playlist. Actually seeing what is on the "Playing Now" list seems to be impossible and as far as I can tell, if you try and add one track, the whole album gets added.

It's broken, or not developed, I can't decide which. Either way, for a subscription service like Xbox Music, it's embarrassing.

 

[xyon01]

How are you syncing your music to the phone?

I'm also meticulous when it comes to tagging & disabled the xbox music option on the phone but everything I've tried to get music onto the phone has either not worked or creates duplicates of every track.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[filmboy6x6]

Theres a way round it. I had this issue as well and it was bugging the sh*t out of me. All my albums on zune pass and stored on my PC came up with the DRM error when i went to play it on my HTC 8x - easiest way to solve it is let the album play and come up with all the drm errors once its done hit the ... in the bottom corner and select "more from store" it should then come up with the same album from the marketplace and flick to already in collection - once its done this hit the back arrow and go back to your album and the DRM error disappears

I'm able to follow the first part of your post but I see no way to flick to already in collection. I see the list of songs that say "in collection, buy" below each track. flicking to the left shows a "review" of the album.

Any more possible insight?

M>

 

[dawindbag]

I think everyone is going to have to live with this. Xbox (and most other media companies, Google Play, iTunes, Spotify) is trying to allow you to stream all your music to all your devices using the Cloud Collection's matching function. In order to do this effectively you need to let Xbox Music own and manage your track information. I was anal like you back in the day and eventually I just gave up and let Zune handle the organization, it's an adjustment but I haven't really found myself bother by it since I used Zune/Zune HD and WP7 to play all my music in all cases. It basically forces you into the ecosystem, which of course is why they are doing it. I came willingly.

The fact that they've ditched any WiFi syncing ability makes me think they are pushing towards this model exclusively and it's always going to be very difficult to both use the Cloud services AND to manually drag your files onto your phone. Personally, I'd rather my music stay local and spare me my bandwidth but we shall see what the end result is when MS gets their **** together with Xbox music.