Cambridge Audio NP30

[GRP]

I'm hoping someone can help.

My music files were created in itunes - having a combination of MP3 and WAV files. I want to wirelessly stream this content to my Cambridge Audio NP30, using Asset UPnP, and controlled by the CA Connect app on my iphone.

However, when I access the content through the CA Connect app, only the MP3 files show. No WAV files are available.

In the Asset UPnP configuration, in the 'audio format streaming' box, I have selected WAV "as MP3" but this hasn't solved the problem.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks.

[mville]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

Do the wav files contain any tags? Asset needs to be able to read the wav metadata tags in order to add songs to your audio library. Wav file tagging is notoriously troublesome and as you say, iTunes is involved here, which IMO, is not at all reliable.

If you choose Advanced Search >> Folders and Filename Browsing, can you see the wav files, as this method does not require tags?

[GRP]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

Yes this works ! ! Thanks mville.

Do you recommend I simply access the files through Advanced Search >> Folders and Filename Browsing. Or is there an easy way to restore the metadata tags?

Thanks again. I can't tell you how much time I wasted trying to work this out.

[mville]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

Do you recommend I simply access the files through Advanced Search >> Folders and Filename Browsing.

No, however, if the wav files contain no tags then this is your only option.

Or is there an easy way to restore the metadata tags?

You can use a tagging application e.g. dBpoweramp Music Converter or MP3Tag, to manually add the tags.

[schmidj]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

Unfortunately, unless they updated it recently, MP3Tag won't tag wave files. If you have dBPoweramp converter installed (on a PC at least), you can, however, right click on a file (or set of files) in Windows Explorer, then click on "edit ID tag" and add tags. The dBPoweramp software adds that feature to Windows Explorer. With wave files, you may have to run the music converter with the DSP utility codec "ID tag update" (available in Codec Central at the top of this page) to put the necessary "chunk" in your wave file to allow the tags.

If your filenames have title and artist info logically arranged, you may be able to use the utility codec "Tag from filename" to add the tags.

You should strongly consider using the music converter to convert the wave files to FLAC files unless you have good reason to leave them as wave files. Tagging works much better with FLAC files, particularly with some renderers (players). Also, MP3Tag works well with FLAC files. The only reason I still use wave files is because my music editing and CD burning software all works with them. BTW, MP3Tag works with many file formats beyond MP3, just not .WAV.

[GRP]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

I have converted the WAV files to M4A files (I can't convert to FLAC thanks to iTunes). I have installed MP3Tag. Can you tell me how to restore the metadata using MP3Tag? Thanks in advance.

[Spoon]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

You have to manually tag each album, as the metadata has been lost.

[garym]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

You have to manually tag each album, as the metadata has been lost.

Unless, as mentioned earlier, your file organization (directories and names) has info that can be used to create the tags. e.g., if you have something like the following:

c:\music\The Beatles\Abbey Road\01 - Come Together.wav

Then you can use a batch process to automatically pull out the ARTIST, ALBUM, TRACK, TITLE. You can do this in mp3tag (but not with wav files) or with dbpa.

EDIT: if these were ripped with itunes and managed by itunes, you should have something that looks like the above organization. Also, I don't understand your comment that you can't convert to FLAC because of ITUNES. Itunes is not necessary. You can convert your WAV files to FLAC with dbpa converter. Itunes is not involved.

[mville]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

Unfortunately, unless they updated it recently, MP3Tag won't tag wave files.

Thanks for the feedback/correction.

You should strongly consider using the music converter to convert the wave files to FLAC files unless you have good reason to leave them as wave files. Tagging works much better with FLAC files, particularly with some renderers (players). Also, MP3Tag works well with FLAC files. The only reason I still use wave files is because my music editing and CD burning software all works with them. BTW, MP3Tag works with many file formats beyond MP3, just not .WAV.

Agreed. GRP, it is well worth purchasing dBpoweramp Music Converter, converting the wav files to flac, then, using either dBpoweramp Music Converter or MP3Tag, manually tag the flac files as advised in this thread.

You'll also be able to rip future CDs with dBpoweramp Music Converter instead of iTunes, using all the benefits dBpoweramp Music Converter has over iTunes.

[GRP]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

I wish I found this forum when I first got the music streamer. You've solved 3 years of frustration.

In answer to mville's question - I have to use itunes as I use my iphone for music on the go. So I need a file format that satisfies itunes, the music streamer (NP30) and the DLNA server (asset upnp).

In response to garym's comment - yes my files are organised by artist\album\track format. Any chance you could spell out how to do a 'batch process' in mp3tag (noting the files have now been converted to M4A)?

Manually tagging isn't really an option. It would take me an eternity. Alternatively I might re-rip my cds using dBpoweramp.

Thanks all.

[garym]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

1. select files in mp3tag
2. from menu click CONVERT, then "filename to tag"
3. in the format string popup box enter:
\%artist%\%album%\%track%-%title%

note that the items in %__% are tag names. Everything else is literal. So if the filename for a track is: 01-trackname, then the above will work. But if it is "01. trackname" you would use:
\%artist%\%album%\%track%. %title%
(note space after period after track).

So you might need to play around a bit. You might want to fix compilations separately. For example, maybe your compilations are named as:

\Compilations\album\track-title-artist
if so, you'd use"

\%album%\%track%-%title%-%artist%

Bottom line, just play around a bit. Test with a few albums first until you get the right settings. And one should always have a backup in case something gets messed up.

[mville]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

In answer to mville's question - I have to use itunes as I use my iphone for music on the go. So I need a file format that satisfies itunes, the music streamer (NP30) and the DLNA server (asset upnp).

So, I would suggest ripping CDs to FLAC using dBpoweramp's CDRipper (plus convert your WAV files to FLAC, also using dBpoweramp). This master audio library would give you a lossless format with equivalent audio quality to CD, which Asset could stream to the Cambridge Audio NP30.

Then, using dBpoweramp you could create another separate sub-library in MP3 format from the FLAC library, which you'd import into iTunes and sync to the iPhone, exactly as I do (and others on this forum do), except I have an iPod and not an iPhone.

[GRP]

Re: Cambridge Audio NP30

It's all sorted and working perfectly. Can't thank you all enough. Cheers.