Can't play ripped CD library of 5000+ songs on iPhone after Apple Music app rollout?

Can my ripped cd library of music of 5000+ songs no longer be played on my iPhone with the rollout of the Apple Music app in place of iTunes?


A big attraction when iTunes was rolled out with the iPhone was that you could burn CD's inti iTunes and have that as well as purchased music through iTunes on your phone. I just upgraded my phone and it would appear that:


1) Everyone is being forced to subscribe to Apple Music to do anything (playlists, listen to any music not previously paid for in iTunes)

2) Anyone who is older then Gen Z and may have purchased a few (or hundreds of) CDs, downloaded them into iTunes, has had all that music access taken away. Only iTunes purchases and an iTunes subscription are allows. It's Apple Music or bring out the CD players again.

3) Without an Apple Music subscription, you cannot sync your library between an iTunes library and an iPhone


True?


iPhone 14 Pro, iOS 18

Posted on Aug 23, 2025 12:42 PM

Reply
3 replies

Aug 23, 2025 04:56 PM in response to 98oneohthree


1) Everyone is being forced to subscribe to Apple Music to do anything (playlists, listen to any music not previously paid for in iTunes)

Nope. You can continue to listen to your music.


2) Anyone who is older then Gen Z and may have purchased a few (or hundreds of) CDs, downloaded them into iTunes, has had all that music access taken away. Only iTunes purchases and an iTunes subscription are allows. It's Apple Music or bring out the CD players again.

Nope. Your music is still accessible. And, if you misplace it, you can always rip the CD again.


3) Without an Apple Music subscription, you cannot sync your library between an iTunes library and an iPhone

You can continue to sync your music library to your iPhone without a subscription.


Aug 23, 2025 06:07 PM in response to muguy

I'm sorry, but these answers don't match what I'm seeing. How about some screen shots or an explanation of steps to make these things happen.


For Instance:

1) I built a playlist from my library on my Apple Music library on Windows; 2) On the PC, the library includes both burned music and music bought through iTunes; 3) I then connected my iPhone using Apple Devices, checked the "Automatically sync when this iPhone is connected" box since that is the only area where there was a reference to the word "sync" 4) Synced the phone; 5) After syncing, opened Apple Music on the phone, went to "Playlists" and nothing is there, except a message saying "Subscribe to Apple Music to save music. So, how can you answer #3 above if this is what it looks like to the user?


Further to the point, none of my burned music shows up on the Apple Music on the phone...only music purchased from iTunes. Which would tend to reinforce that syncing is not happening. Please explain where and how that happens.

Can't play ripped CD library of 5000+ songs on iPhone after Apple Music app rollout?

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