Music transfer from iMac to iPhone

[jaoneill]

How can I get playlists from my iMac 2020 to my iPhone 12?

 

[Rod]

From what I see, bearing in mind I don’t use Apple Music I use Spotify, the only way to sync your Playlists is to subscribe to Apple Music.
As said I don’t, all my artists and tracks are listed on my iPhone but My Playlists is empty stating, Subscribe to Apple Music to save music.


Maybe someone else knows more about this but given I can access my Apple Music Library in Spotify and the cost is about the same I prefer that and make my playlists in that.

 

[jaoneill]

From what I see, bearing in mind I don’t use Apple Music I use Spotify, the only way to sync your Playlists is to subscribe to Apple Music.
As said I don’t, all my artists and tracks are listed on my iPhone but My Playlists is empty stating, Subscribe to Apple Music to save music.

View attachment 39769
Maybe someone else knows more about this but given I can access my Apple Music Library in Spotify and the cost is about the same I prefer that and make my playlists in that.

I have absolutely no interest in Apple music; very little that I listen to is less than 40-50 years old, my music library has evolved from vinyl, cassette tapes and CD's. Other than some CD's I picked up on overseas visits I haven't bought any music to speak of in 50 years. I created playlists of different genres mostly to listen to on road trips. There are a few that show up on my phone but I have no idea how they got there.

 

[Rod]

Well, as far as I can see, assuming your devices are signed into the same Apple ID your Music Libraries will be the same but not your playlists.

In the past you could do what you want manually with iTunes;
Connect your iPhone to your Mac via USB cable.
On the sync window choose the Music Tab at the top.
Select iTunes as the Source. This would produce a scrollable menu with all the music in iTunes listed including Playlists, Artists, Genres ect created in iTunes on your Mac.
Tick the boxes you want and Sync.

Just trying that now in the Finder the menu looks pretty much the same as it used to in olden times. See below.



So, certainly worth a shot. It sounds like you dont have all of your music in the Apple Music app so you would have to import it all from wherever you have it now.
Without a doubt using Apple's Music app is the easiest way to manage music on your iPhone and it looks (from the above) like this can be done without subscription.

How do you currently have your music stored eg. CD, Vinyl, Tape?

 

[Slydude]

@jaoneill Which version of iTunes/Apple Music app do you have installed? I've got an idea but I won't be able to test it till tomorrow. I'm using the Apple Music system but I want to test whether what I was doing before that still works.

 

[Rod]

@jaoneill Which version of iTunes/Apple Music app do you have installed? I've got an idea but I won't be able to test it till tomorrow. I'm using the Apple Music system but I want to test whether what I was doing before that still works.

Me too. I was also unable to test it out in macOS Sequoia but it looks the same.

 

[ferrarr]

How do you transfer the music to your iPhone? In Finder, with the iPhone connected, on the Music tab, select "Sync music onto iPhone". Then there is an option for the items you want to sync. Artists, Albums, Genres, and Playlists.

 

[RadDave]

How can I get playlists from my iMac 2020 to my iPhone 12?

Hi - you've already received plenty of recommendations but let me offer another option - checkout iMazing including the pricing and whether free trials are offered (may have restrictions).

Let me show you a music transfer from my MBAir laptop to my iPhone. Below, the first pic is the app opened on my laptop and my iPhone connected via Wi-Fi (a cable can also be used); I've selected 'Quick Transfer' (in the bottom right corner of the blue box). The second pic permits me to pick an app on my iPhone for the transfer - Music was chosen. The third pic lists a portion of my music files on my laptop and I've selected the Diana Krall folder (contains 3 albums) - the transfer took 3-4 minutes and the final pic shows the 3 Krall albums now on my phone with the cover art - I could easily make a playlist now on the phone if desired.

This app does MUCH more including iDevice backups - I'm now on version 3.0.4 but have used this app since the first version - this newest offering is an excellent upgrade and I like the Wi-Fi option. Dave

.

 

[Slydude]

Here's what I was planning to test just in case someone gets to this before I can:
1. Launch Music. Although it is going to be encourage you to use the online Apple Music System you don't have to in order to play your music IIRC.
2. In Preferences go to the Advanced tab and see where it thinks your music library is located. If the location is wrong click there and give it the right location. You might have to wait a bit for it to read the music.
3. Connect your phone to the computer and look for your phone. If your phone is present you should be able to use the same methods used in iTunes.

Recent versions of Music leave some syncing function to the Finder. because of that I tend to use iMazing as RadDave mentioned. That program is well worth the money IMHO because if the many things it can do.

 

[Rod]

Maybe we should wait until jaoneil has a chance to absorb all of the above and gets back to us with some replies.
Secondary to all of the above the new iPhone Mirroring app may well turn out to be an alternative to iMazing in this instance when we get the next macOS update. Supposedly we should be able to transfer files to and from both iPhone and Mac by Drag & Drop.

 

[RadDave]

Maybe we should wait until jaoneil has a chance to absorb all of the above and gets back to us with some replies.
Secondary to all of the above the new iPhone Mirroring app may well turn out to be an alternative to iMazing in this instance when we get the next macOS update. Supposedly we should be able to transfer files to and from both iPhone and Mac by Drag & Drop.

Hi Rod - w/ the new upgrades/updates, i've been mirroring my iPhone to my M2 MAir - I transferred an album from my Music App on the laptop to my iPhone which ended up in 'Files' - cannot figure out how to put it into my phone's Music app - just maybe missing something or Apple needs further development? BUT, if this eventually works, then eliminates a need for other apps. Dave

 

[MacInWin]

I transferred an album from my Music App on the laptop to my iPhone which ended up in 'Files'

Yep, that is exactly how it is designed. To get music tracks from one to another you have to sync the two through Finder. There is more to getting a track into Music than just copying the file. There is a database of what Music knows about the various music track files. The file transfer is not intended to move things which need to be synced.

 

[Rod]

You can play the song directly from the files app on iPhone, but you cannot import into the Music app/iTunes without using a computer. What I do is just go to finder (on your computer) and find the song/s in your iCloud Drive/files -> double click it -> it should automatically open in Music/iTunes which will subsequently add it to your library, sync with iCloud, and add it to your music app without having to physically connect your phone.

 

[hirejobless]

I recommend checking out Tracklist.pro—it’s a great tool for organizing, discovering, and optimizing your playlists effortlessly!