Gadgetell Review: Bowers and Wilkins Music Club

Bowers and Wilkins, best known as the manufacturer of high quality speakers, has launched their subscription-based Music Club this summer. The service allows subscribers to download high quality music, recorded in (former lead singer of Genesis) Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studio, in Bath, Great Britain. Each month, a new album, from a selected artist, is released. Some of the past featured artists include, Gwyneth Herbert, Little Axe, and Brett Anderson. Subscriptions can be purchased in 6- or 12-month varieties, for $39.95 and $59.95, respectively. After using the service for a few weeks, I have some mixed feelings.

The Good

• High quality music available for download in Apple Lossless or FLAC formats
• Songs have no DRM
• Inexpensive; albums for $5-7, depending on length of subscription
• Digital cover art and CD inserts included, in PDF and JPEG format
• Site is fairly simple and easy to navigate

The Bad

• Only one album a month
• Albums only available for a month, meaning no back catalog
• Almost no choice — either you like the month’s album, or lose money
• Subscription only — no a la carte purchasing
• No desktop application for organizing music
• Downloads managed by site’s own pop up window — no support for browser download manager

Conclusion

Honestly, I personally did not have too much fun with this service, because of the lack of music choice. Other than that, it is honestly quite a bargain, for those interested in a subscription based service. This month’s album, by Gwyneth Herbert, was not exactly my cup of tea, but was still quite a complete and decent album. What really blew me away was the music quality, which is almost better than CDs I’ve ripped to Apple Lossless, let alone to the regular slew of 128/192kbps files. In all, it is definitely a great value for those who love all types of music, especially high quality that is exclusive to the club. I give it a 3 out of 5.

Check it out [Bowers & Wilkins Music Club]