Using our ZIP download files

When you download files from Pristine Classical you will either receive a single MP3 file, or a compressed ZIP archive. ZIP files allow us to offer you a group of files bundled together in a single download, as well as saving download time and file space.

Note that ZIP compression is lossless - the files within the ZIP can be un-Zipped back to their exact original state.

Normally our ZIP files will contain the following:

1. FLAC files - a series of tracks which make up the recording
2. 2 playlist files - for computer media players

Most users will have no difficulty handling ZIP archives - support is built into Windows, for example. To extract the files from a ZIP archive, simply right-click on the downloaded file in My Computer or Explorer and select 'Extract all...' and follow the instructions. Mac OS 10.3 and later has built into it the ability to open any ZIP file as well as create it own - to open a ZIP file, double-click on the file.

Our ZIP files were created with one of the most popular ZIP utilities, WinZip, which we are happy to recommend to PC users should you require greater flexibility in handling these archives. Mac users may wish to try StuffIt Expander - there's a free download here, or you can also now get WinZip for Mac.

For technical information and more background notes on ZIP files, there's a good Wikipedia article here.