What are the best ways to add song samples to my blog?

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  kamertunesblog · Member · Jul 8, 2012 at 3:34 am

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  I would like to add song samples to my blog. I know that I can include YouTube clips, but sometimes those are slow to load and take up a large amount of screen space. I signed up for a free SoundCloud account, but they only allow for 120 minutes of uploads, and with 60+ posts already (which I’d like to go back and add song samples to before moving on to other artists) and more on the way, I need a lot more storage than that…but don’t necessarily want to pay for it (since my blog is a labor of love and not a commercial endeavor).

  I’ve been revisiting the complete catalogs of numerous artists in my collection, and that entire collection has been ripped to a hard drive as WMA’s and MP3’s. Does WordPress provide an easy way to embed these files in my posts, in the same manner that I attach jpegs? If not, does anyone have any suggestions other than YouTube and a premium SoundCloud account? Perhaps Spotify (which I haven’t signed up for)?

  Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
  Rich
  Blog url: http://kamertunesblog.wordpress.com/

  The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)

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  raincoaster · Member · Jul 8, 2012 at 3:38 am

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  You could pay for a Storage Upgrade and upload the MP3’s and use the Audio Player for them, but you can also use a free host like Fileden and simply hotlink the MP3, either as an embedded downloadable link or in the audio player.

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  kamertunesblog · Member · Jul 8, 2012 at 3:45 am

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  Thanks for the quick reply, raincoaster. I didn’t realize that there’s an audio player here at WordPress. Do I definitely need to pay for a storage upgrade if I upload my files directly to the player? As I mentioned in my question, I want to avoid paying if possible. Also, I don’t want my readers to have to download any files. Instead, I want them to be able to stream the songs immediately. If you think something like Fileden will allow me to create a hotlink and embed it in the audio player, that could work.

  I will still need to look into the WordPress audio player. Hopefully it’s easy to set up. I assume there’s a widget for it, right?

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  raincoaster · Member · Jul 8, 2012 at 4:28 am

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  If you try uploading your mp3 files without the storage upgrade, they will fail to upload.

  If you want to avoid paying, get another host for the files like Fileden and just hotlink.

  Instructions for the audio player are here: http://en.support.wordpress.com/shortcodes/#audio

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  kamertunesblog · Member · Jul 9, 2012 at 6:43 pm

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  Thanks again, Raincoaster. I signed up for FileDen today and I’ll start uploading songs from home tonight. Based on the instructions for the audio player, it seems pretty easy. Is there a button for adding audio files on the screen when entering a new post, or do I have to use shortcode?

  I can’t thank you enough for your assistance.
  Rich