The last time we rounded up the scene's NZB sites was way back in July 2009 and despite the fact we said we'd update with a new round up monthly, we clearly lied as that never happened! The NZB site list has changed over the past 6 months; we've seen sites drop off due to Ukrainian raids and the rest of the sites we mentioned grow even larger and indeed better than they were before, so now seems a good as time as ever to update that list and perhaps make a few more fake promises about us updating it more often in the future (joke, we shall....want to help?).
One comment we did receive a few times about the article was that it could be more detailed and perhaps split up into better categories so we've invested a bit more time into doing that this time. Anyway:
NZB Sites
No Registration Required
- NZBClub - Nice interface, raw and grouped header searches, lots of information provided, watch list, history, hot searches. We like.
- Binsearch.info - Very good clutter-free interface. Allows browsing raw headers but also groups headers into posts, lacks the manual editing Newzbin has though.
- TVNZB - Exceptional for TV, obviously useless for anything else. Lists all shows known to mankind and their associated NZB files in an easy to read manner.
- MegaNZB - Similar to Binsearch but with more clutter. Groups headers automatically into posts.
- NewzBox - Search individual files or collections. If you register you can get watch-list functionality and create bookmarks.
- NZBIndex - Groups posts nicely and works well with the nzbdStatus Firefox plugin we wrote about for SabNZBd+.
- Yabsearch - Clean like Google but lacking information; simple to use but doesn't list which newsgroup the posts are in (not that that matters with NZBs).
- BinTube - very similar again, also offers a client and Usenet access.
- NZBTvSeeker - Honestly, we don't rate this highly, it's very messy. TVNZB is better for the TV niche.
Registration Required
While the non-registration required scene is mostly based around raw search and automatic grouping of headers into posts, sites which require registration usually have more of community feel and often have NZBs posted by users themselves, which allows them to use real names and extra detail rather than just relying on the post headers or file names.
- Merlins Portal [Posts]
- Nzbmatrix [Posts]
- Nzbsrus [Posts]
- NzbNation [Posts]
- FileSharingTalkNZBs [Posts]
Currently closed registration or Invite Required
- NZBs(dot)ORG - Bot based indexer, groups by headers. Registration was free but it currently closed.
- Newzbin - Currently going through court as we speak. Newzbin has both raw header search and manually added reports but has recently suffered from MPA requests to delete posts. There was no doubting that Newzbin used to be the most comprehensive index of Usenet, hopefully it will return to its former glory if they win their trial (ending in the next week..).
We don't quite have time at the moment to sign up to all of these so please post your comments about them below, however short. We're looking at coding up a top site list (a non-shit non-spammy one I might add) with user reviews so that should help in the future.
RIP?
Backup, backup, backup again.
If there's a lesson to be learnt, it's above. The last six months have seen us lose Newzleech to a Ukrainian raid (which wasn't their fault); they lost a lot of data due to not having backups and despite saying they'd be back in the new year we're guessing the rewriting of the scripts didn't go as well as planned. On top of that we've also seen NZBMovieSeeker.com disappear for a while:
We had to suffer a major crash caused by a virus which deleted our hosting account and database. We will be back. First we are going to implend a simple version of nzbmovieseeker , which will show the newest releases only.(whitin a week). When we have some free time , we will continu working on nzbmovieseeker v2. ( within a couple of months). nzbmovieseeker will survive !
via the current frontpage of nzbmovieseeker
Both of these would have been prevented with off-site backups; or time travel with a bit of hindsight.
New to NZBs?
You'll need a provider first these days..try out a free trial with one of these:
- Giganews - Top of the range, you're paying a premium ($30/mon for an encrypted SSL line) but well worth it. 14 days free trial.
- Newshosting - Our first choice when it comes to value, quality connection. $15/mon for unlimited bandwidth and free encryption? Bargain. 14 days free trial.
- Binverse - Comes with a free client to get you going with ease. 14 days free trial.
- Easynews - One of the oldest commercial Usenet providers still around. Provides web access to Usenet via a browser interface (optional). 14 days free trial.
Enjoy your downloading and please don't hesitate to leave a comment telling us we've a) forgotten a site or b) that we're wrong! Cheers.
Update
Added BinTube which we forgot and FileSharingTalk thanks to sassanix from reddit. Also added a section for sites which currently have invite-only or closed registration.
Update 2
Newzleech returns! Apr.2010
Newzleech.com has returned after its 5 month outage.
25 Comments
NZBTV is awesome! My order for finding what I want usually goes Newzbin, Nzbmatrix then binsearch. Nzbmatrix has actually been far better recently with finding niche stuff.
I meant TVNZB.com
Yup, Newzbin has been lacking on the report front lately to the currently ongoing court case; if they win however, hopefully things should return to normal - there was no questioning before that Newzbin was the most comprehensive index.
(It's not included above however as it's not free or indeed even open to registration. Follow us on twitter to get a chance of getting an invite in)
Yes, Nzbmatrix is very good. Registration is free and simple. It has categories and easy filters and searches. I think it's the best non-invite site out there, although sometimes it doesn't have what I need. Then I go to binsearch.
Thanks for the other sites, I didn't know about TVNZB
If you use the Newsleecher client, it has a build in usenet search engine.
Yup, and it's very good for what it does but it's still only a raw header search - there is no "posts" as such and so finding all the files from one post is sometimes quite awkward and may involve searching for specific filenames to filter out the crap.
It also costs $30/yr with the client, if you just buy the client alone it's only $20/yr.
it's very handy for picking up small files that other sites wouldn't bother indexing however..
NZB sites' biggest shortcoming these days is retention. What's the point of paying for 500+ days retention (which most usenet providers now have) if few NZB indexing sites and binary search engines go back that far. Let's face it: users are paying for this retention - and not getting their money's worth if they can't utilize it.
Binsearch is one of the oldest and most widely used search engines, but it only has 285 days retention. Indexers such as Newzbin and integrated 'newsreader' search engines such as Newsleecher's and Newsbin's have even less retention. Any service that even comes close to matching the 500+ day (and growing) retention of Giganews, Astraweb, or Highwinds is currently very rare.
Amid all the laggards, a few that deserve gold medals:
Search engines: Bintube.com - 500 days (my estimation) NZBclub.com - 700 days (currently claimed by site)
Newsreaders: Usenet Explorer - 500 days (claimed by site as of 4Dec2009)
Also NZBs.org should be about 500 or more days, but I can't log in to verify.
Cheers for that, really helpful, I'll add that in to the article in a bit.
BinTube is not free open anymore
Look at:
Cheers Menca. Those two will make it into the next version of this post. I think I'll have to start splitting it up into languages also :)
Newzleech is back up !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cheers, posted about it here.
A new application called NewZFinders is available. NewZFinders is a usenet search engine, NewZFinders is very good to make search with many parameters . NewZFinders have many features This Is free and you can download at http://eng.newzfinders.com
NZBMovieseeker is back up ! It looks a lot better now
A friend convinced me to try usenet in place of torrents and I did and wow my first download has a virus (Lara Croft Guardian of Light SKIDROW sr-lcgol.iso)! Where are the comments ( as you see on torrent sites) to inform you of the quality of the nzb? I've only seen a few on 1 site nzbmatrix.
Wait a minute, are you trying to say it is the fault of Usenet that you got a virus? You know how wrong that notion is right? right? .. Besides, who warez games these days anyway? It's not like they cost a fortune, and certainly not worth the hassle (like you're having).
This is an index/search site exclusively for porn: http://pornnzbs.com
geams
Hello everybody, how do you do
My big cheese's Pigeon Johnny
LA symph's the troupe
I know what you're philosophical
Who is this fool
My hero's Pigeon Johnny
I shape the ladies drool
Not indeed but it sounds cool allowing
None so deaf as those that won't hear.
A friend's frown is better than a foe's smile.
just wanted to add www.nzb7.com to the list. Fully automated nzb harvester. Check it out. All free.
altbins.com (http://altbins.com) "nzbs.org like" nzb indexer
Newzbin2 is closed. F*ck you MPA!