Various Artists Compilation album display artist name with Heos

[Spoon]

Re: Various Artists Compilation album display artist name with Heos

No, DLNA is a standard of upnp, basically the denon is picking album artist over artist always, when it should not.

[Michael Bishop]

Re: Various Artists Compilation album display artist name with Heos

Greetings. I've just upgraded my home theater to a Denon AVR-X8500HA. I'm running Asset version 2023-05-15, and in the Heos App I see that on compilation albums, where the compilation tag is set, and the Album Artist is set to "Various Artists" the Heos displays the Album Artist text, instead of the Artist text when playing tracks from albums or playlists from Asset. I also use BubbleUpnP as a control point, and it does not do this, but instead shows the Artist info on compilation albums, and on playlists that contain tracks from compilation albums. Also, the Pioneer receiver I replaced (Pioneer SC-68) with the new Denon, did not do this, when using the Pioneer MediaServer input to access my Asset music server. I contacted Denon about this issue, and, for what it's worth, here is an excerpt of their reply. I'm convinced that my tag settings are all correct, and that it is the Denon/Heos interpretation of how this information should be displayed that is wrong. But it appears that I did not convince anyone at Denon - because they say they are not issuing any updates to fix this problem. The only way out of this mess that I know of is to delete the "Album Artist" tag on tracks that are in a compilation, where the Album Artist tag was set as "Various Artists." Thoughts? Here is the excerpt of Denon's reply (Note: I don't use WAV files in Asset, I suspect this Denon reply is part of a form letter that they have sent out before):

Hello Michael,

Thank you for contacting Denon Customer Care. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you.

I’m glad to hear that you love your Denon AVR-X8500HA! It’s indeed a fantastic AVR receiver. However, I understand the frustration you’re experiencing with the Heos / DLNA issue related to album and artist tags.

When playing music from your music server, the Heos app displays the “Album Artist” tag instead of the correct “Artist” tag for compilation albums or playlists. Let’s explore some possible solutions:

Check Your ID3 Tags:
• Ensure that your music files have properly filled ID3v2.3 TAG information, including both the “Album Artist” and “Artist” fields.
• Some media players, including Heos, use these tags to display album and artist information. If the tags are missing or incorrect, it can lead to issues with album art display.
Album Artist vs. Artist:
• In general, the album artist (sometimes referred to as “ALBUMARTIST” or “ALBUM ARTIST”) is used as the superior grouping criterion over the individual artist field.
• For compilation albums, the album artist often becomes “Various Artists”, while the artist field shows the actual performer.
File Format Consideration:
• You mentioned using WAV files ripped from your CDs. WAV files do not support attached metadata tagging, including album art.
• Consider converting your music to FLAC files, which work well on all devices and support metadata tags.
Denon HEOS Album Art Rules:
• Denon HEOS has specific rules for displaying album art. Make sure your artwork adheres to these rules to ensure proper display in the app.
Regretfully, there isn't any firmware that can be provided in regards to your issues. However, we hope this helps!

Best Regards,
Cxxxxxxx