Q: iTunes cutting songs short

i have this same issue, it started out of the blue.

haven't tried them on my iphone yet but itunes 12.2.1.16 on my osx desktop is doing it.

"I can only assume Apple has added some sort of anti-piracy code to iTunes which affects any mp3 songs that are not purchased directly from the iTunes store."

I can't offer an immediate resolution to your problem, but that statement is definitely not true.  Like many others, I have a reasonably sized iTunes library (4000+ albums) of which only a tiny proportion are iTunes Store purchases - everything else is either imports from CD or purchases from other online sources, primarily Amazon.  I've never encountered any issues with playing non-Store content, or anything else suggesting any functionality within iTunes that restricts usage of non-Store content.

There are couple of things you could look at:

• Are you using iTunes Match, iCloud Library or Apple Music?  There have been many reports of issues with existing library content conflicting with Apple's cloud functionality in iTunes 12.2.  It may be worth temporarily disabling the cloud functions you have turned on to see if that makes a difference.
• It is possible that you're seeing (actually hearing, or not hearing!) the results of a conflict between iTunes and either components of Windows or other s/w on your computer.  I'd suggest backing up your library (simple method described here, more reliable one here), then work through the steps described in turingtest2's user tip on Troubleshooting issues with iTunes for Windows updates to completely remove all of iTunes' components before reinstalling.  If that doesn't work, repeat the steps to uninstall iTunes and then install the "for older video cards" version - the name is misleading, this is actually the 32-bit version of iTunes with a 64-bit installer, which may be more stable with some Windows setups.

for me this is happening most songs, both purchases and non-purchases.  if i skip from 1:01 remaining to 0:59 remaining the rest of the song plays out fine.

i've never had problems either until recently but i can't put my finger on when it started.  i'm using osx, he's using windows.

not using match or music.

Very strange ... am I right in stating that the OP was finding that songs were cutting off at 1:00 from the start of the song, where you're getting the same symptom 1:00 from the end of the song?  Does it always happen with specific songs and not with others, or can you play the same song repeatedly and only encounter the problem on some plays?

I'll confess to being mystified by this one, since the evidence doesn't fit with any of the common issues either with software installation/configuration or with media file problems

yeah mine cut off a minute from the end, i have no problems getting past the initial 1:00... not every song though.. otherwise i'd think i have corrupt media or the song's play time is adjusted in itunes.

i also tried playing the songs in vlc and it does not have any issues at -1:00

Check the options tab with Get Info on a problem track to see if the start or end times have been set. To systematically reset these try my script ResetStartEndTimes.

tt2

Thanks a lot I've been looking for a week to fix this ... problem ! 

To avoid losing the playlists in the future, prior to doing all of this, go to your last iTunes backup (the one just before the current problem started) and get that .itl file.  Copy it to the iTunes folder.  Rename the current one "iTunes Library-corrupt.itl" and then rename the one you copied into the folder to "iTunes Library.itl."  You don't have to rebuild.  You may have to update a few things, but you'll still have all your playlists.

One extra point - although iTunes does create backups of the library file (placed in the Previous iTunes Libraries) folder, this only happens on some updates.  The most recent backup copy may therefore be many months old.  You'll get increased flexibility by creating and maintaining an up to date backup of the complete iTunes library - I use this method and refresh my back at least once a week.

I agree...I was planning to back up my media files after getting it all cleaned up and then regularly backing up the library to prevent this problem.  It sure isn't fun to clean up several thousand files.  I'd be a heckuva lot happier if Apple would fix their quirky software problems (and not just in iTunes!).