How to Transfer Music from iPod to Computer

Since Apple is still one of the most powerful and profitable tech titans in the world despite several blows the company took over the past couple of years, many people seem to have issues with a number of the company’s products. One of the most common such issues is how to transfer music from iPod to computer.
However, most of these issues could be easily fixed by simply making the user interface a little bit more user-friendly. One of the biggest reasons for which Apple shares are dropping is because people are dreading inevitably stumbling upon an error or a problem they won’t know how to fix themselves.
Still, while learning how to transfer music from iPod to computer might seem challenging, it can be done in a number of ways. Stick with us for this article and you’ll also learn how to transfer music from iPod to iTunes and even how to transfer music from iPod to computer without iTunes.

How to Transfer Music from iPod to Computer

We’ve all been in a situation where something happens to our computer and we’re then forced to once more collect all of the music that was stored on there. With most Android phones it’s very simple, as all that needs to be done is for the phone to be connected to the computer and all the audio files transferred back.
With Apple devices, it’s somewhat more difficult. Apple devices were made to have files transferred onto them, and not the other way around. However, even if there is no official way to transfer your music, there are several computer apps and programs which allow you to do just that. So let’s go over some them.

How to Transfer Music from iPod to Computer – Windows Edition

We are going to start with our Windows users since the steps they need are far easier to follow and require no extra software installed on their computers. Well, no other software other than iTunes, but that is a prerequisite for any Apple device user if they want to transfer their content from one device to the other.

1. Find a partition with enough space
2. Create a new folder where you will store your music
3. Connect your iPod, be it a Touch, Shuffle, Nano, Onto, or even Classic to your computer
4. Launch iTunes
5. Go to the iPod management screen
6. Scroll all the way down to Options
7. Check the Enable Disk Use box
8. Select Ok after reading the warning pop-up
9. Go to My Computer
10. Go to your iPod drive
11. Select Tools
12. Go to Folder Options
13. Click on the View tab
14. Check the Show hidden files and folders box
15. Go to the iPod folder
16. Go to iPod_Controls
17. Go to Music
18. Select all of the folders
19. Drag them to the folder on your hard drive you created earlier
20. Wait for the files to copy
21. Select all of the folders once again
22. Right-click on them
23. Select Properties
24. Uncheck the Hidden box

And you’re done. You now know how to how to transfer music from iPod to computer on Windows. There are a few observations over which I should go first. First of all, the songs will have randomized four-letter names and will be scattered throughout a number of folders. The only way to fix this is to import the folders into iTunes, and the song names will be displayed properly.
Last but not least, you might get an error message when connecting the device. If the error message asks you to reformat your device, it means that the iPod was formatted for Mac and cannot be used with Windows. If that’s the case, either use your Mac or come back at a later date for a different lesson on how to transfer music from iPod to computer by using programs such as MacDrive.

How to Transfer Music from iPod to Computer – Mac Edition

While there are no direct ways or tutorials on how to transfer music from iPod to computer, there are several computer programs which allow for exactly this. Some of there are new and expensive, others are old and free, but most of them work.
I will present two such programs here and hope that they are enough to answer our readers’ questions for now. Other questions we might answer at a later date using similar, if not the same programs are how to transfer music from iPhone to computer, how to transfer music from iPad to computer, and even how to transfer music from computer to iPod without iTunes.
The first of these computer programs is called Houdini, while the second is called iExplorer. Both can be found and downloaded by clicking on their names in the previous sentence. Next, we’ll show you how to transfer music from iPod to computer using both of them.

Houdini

1. Create a new folder on a partition where you have enough space
2. Install Houdini on your Mac device
3. Connect your iPod to your computer
4. Scroll down through the list
5. Check the Enable Disk Use box
6. Click OK for the iTunes warning
7. Open Houdini
8. Go to Folders
9. Click on Reveal
10. Find your iPod device
11. Open iPod_controls
12. Select Music
13. Click on Choose
14. Go to your iPod Folder
15. Go to Music
16. Select all of the folders you want to be transferred
17. Drag them to the folder you in initially created
18. Wait for the transfer to finish

And you’re done. You now know how to transfer music from iPod to computer using Houdini. All that’s left is for you to import the folders into iTunes. Otherwise, their names and folders will be all jumbled up. Using iTunes as the media player will allow you to normally use your music files.

iExplorer

1. Create a new folder on your computer
2. Install iExplorer
3. Open the program
4. Connect the device to your computer
5. Select No when prompted to synchronize the device
6. Go to the iExplorer Device Overview screen
7. Click on the Music button (located in the middle panel)
8. Select all the tracks and playlists you want to be transferred to your computer
9. Hold the Command key for multiple selections
10. Go to the bottom of the media library
11. Click the Transfer from button
12. Click either Transfer Selected to Folder or Transfer Entire Playlist to Folder (depending on your selection)
13. Choose the folder you initially created in the box that pops up
14. Wait for the transfer to finish

And that’s pretty much all of it. You now know how to transfer music from iPod to computer. There are a few final observations I must make regarding iExplorer, however. First of all, the software works for iPods, iPads, and even iPhones, as well as for most versions of Windows, including 7, 8, and even 10.
But even more importantly, you have to make absolutely sure that you don’t synchronize your files. If you do that, you will almost certainly end up having your files deleted from your mobile device as well. If your music is missing from iTunes, as well as from your computer, your iPod files will also be lost if you attempt synchronization.
And that pretty much cover all the space we have for today’s article. We hope we’ve managed to help you learn how to transfer music from iPod to computer and that you’ll come back here for more of your technology needs. And please don’t forget to leave a comment below, as only you can help make this website as suited to your needs as possible.