How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

[xley]

My music collection is mainly classical.

Where an opera is recorded on say a 2CD set I would like to save this as a single entry in my album library, e.g. La Boheme is recorded as a 2CD set. I do not wish to have this appear in my library as La Boheme disc1 and La Boheme disc 2, rather I want it to appear as La Boheme with tracks numbered 1 to n, where n is the last numbered track on disc 2.

I have tried ripping sets using a track offset on the second disc and so the tracks are numbered consecutively 1 to n but when dBpoweramp reads the files it groups them into disc 1 and disc 2 so that I end up with two entries in my album library rather than one.

So my question is how do I rip multi CD sets to produce a single entry in my album library?

[Spoon]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

You can change the album title so they are the same for each disc, set the disc number as 1/1 then when about to rip disc 2, right click on track 1 and apply a track number offset.

[Michael Sargent]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

However, you may want to use a naming scheme that preserves the original track numbers, like 101 to 10m then 201 to 20n, etc. It makes it easier to find the right track when someone says "the third track on disc two".

[IFCOMP][IFVALUE]album artist,[album artist],Various Artists[]\[album]\[IFMULTI][disc][][track] [artist][][IF!COMP][IFVALUE]album artist,[album artist],[artist][]\[album]\[IFMULTI][disc][][track][] [title]

[BrodyBoy]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

My music collection is mainly classical.

Where an opera is recorded on say a 2CD set I would like to save this as a single entry in my album library, e.g. La Boheme is recorded as a 2CD set. I do not wish to have this appear in my library as La Boheme disc1 and La Boheme disc 2, rather I want it to appear as La Boheme with tracks numbered 1 to n, where n is the last numbered track on disc 2.

I have tried ripping sets using a track offset on the second disc and so the tracks are numbered consecutively 1 to n but when dBpoweramp reads the files it groups them into disc 1 and disc 2 so that I end up with two entries in my album library rather than one.

So my question is how do I rip multi CD sets to produce a single entry in my album library?

As Spoon described, the two important steps are ensuring the same album title for both CDs, and applying a track number offset to the tracks on subsequent discs. (Select them all, right-click for the context menu, and add the appropriate offset number. Sometimes you have to do that a couple times to get the exact offset you need.)

Because the online databases are so inconsistent, you'll need to review other tags as well, to make sure that they are the same across all discs in the set. Most playback devices exhibit unwanted display or navigation behavior if ALBUM ARTIST, for example, is not identical. I'd also check the date for consistency.


But I'd humbly suggest another approach. :D


While you can do all of this during ripping, I find it easier to get the required accuracy and consistency by using a dedicated tag editor. (mp3tag, in my case.) I've ripped tons of classical recordings, including lots of operas, and (as you may have already found) the online metadata in much messier than with pop. So rather than trying to clean it all up in dBp, I simply rip the set and then load the whole batch into my tag editor. There, I can quickly re-number the tracks, set all the other pertinent tags, and ensure the accuracy I need. The databases frequently report inconsistent naming schemes, even across discs within a set. (For example, one disc may include act/scene info in the track titles, the other doesn't. And track "titles" in general are awful for operas....since they're just some random chunk of dialogue.) Using an external editor, you can decide on the naming scheme you want and quickly ensure consistency not only within a disc set, but across all your operas. This will give your library a much more consistent look and make it a lot easier to navigate.

(While you could choose to preserve the original track numbers on disc 2,3, etc., I've honestly never had a need for that. When people....on the radio or whatever....talk about opera, they refer to act, scene, character, aria, etc. Recording layouts are so random that I've never heard anybody say something like "track 2 on disc 3." It's different on every recording of every production.)

[jfo]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

But I'd humbly suggest another approach. :D


While you can do all of this during ripping, I find it easier to get the required accuracy and consistency by using a dedicated tag editor. (mp3tag, in my case.) I've ripped tons of classical recordings, including lots of operas, and (as you may have already found) the online metadata in much messier than with pop. So rather than trying to clean it all up in dBp, I simply rip the set and then load the whole batch into my tag editor. There, I can quickly re-number the tracks, set all the other pertinent tags, and ensure the accuracy I need. The databases frequently report inconsistent naming schemes, even across discs within a set. (For example, one disc may include act/scene info in the track titles, the other doesn't. And track "titles" in general are awful for operas....since they're just some random chunk of dialogue.) Using an external editor, you can decide on the naming scheme you want and quickly ensure consistency not only within a disc set, but across all your operas. This will give your library a much more consistent look and make it a lot easier to navigate.

(While you could choose to preserve the original track numbers on disc 2,3, etc., I've honestly never had a need for that. When people....on the radio or whatever....talk about opera, they refer to act, scene, character, aria, etc. Recording layouts are so random that I've never heard anybody say something like "track 2 on disc 3." It's different on every recording of every production.)

Do you leave the ripped tracks from each disc in their original folders, or do you copy the tracks into a single album folder? I assume that LMS for example, would sort the tracks based on the tags.

[BrodyBoy]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

I used to leave the disc folders intact, but over time, I realized that that served no function. In fact, I've really not found disc distinctions (in multi-disc sets) to ever have any utility....in the vast majority of cases, disc layout was just a function of how the record company chose to accommodate the limitations of the physical media. That space limitation isn't relevant in a digital music library.

So no, I don't leave the original folders intact. On really long operas, I'll put the tracks into subfolders by act, but even that isn't necessary. As you say, players will organize and allow you to navigate based on tags.....the subfolder organization will be invisible in use.

[jfo]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Thanks for the info. I suppose leaving the original folders intact allows you to check the original layout, should that ever be necessary. Also, I assume any reference in the tags to disc number should be removed?

[BrodyBoy]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Some players balk at disc numbers and it messes with track order, some don't. I remove them to avoid any of that.

[jfo]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

I used to leave the disc folders intact, but over time, I realized that that served no function. In fact, I've really not found disc distinctions (in multi-disc sets) to ever have any utility....in the vast majority of cases, disc layout was just a function of how the record company chose to accommodate the limitations of the physical media. That space limitation isn't relevant in a digital music library.

So no, I don't leave the original folders intact. On really long operas, I'll put the tracks into subfolders by act, but even that isn't necessary. As you say, players will organize and allow you to navigate based on tags.....the subfolder organization will be invisible in use.

I just consolidated 2 cd's into 1 by re-numbering, ensuring the album name and artist tags were the same, removing any disc number tags and then a full LMS rescan. The tracks still appeared as two separate albums in LMS, with identical names and the proper new track numbering. I couldn't see any differences in the tags other than track names. I moved the 2nd album tracks into the same folder as the 1st album, rescanned, and they now appear as one album. I thought LMS would consolidate the tracks based only on the tag info. I double checked all the tags in both albums to ensure there was no difference and did a full rescan.
Comments??

Edit: I tried another 2cd set and this time added a 1/1 discnumber to all tracks, leaving the tracks in their original folders. This worked and the tracks are now in 1 album on LMS

[BrodyBoy]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

I just consolidated 2 cd's into 1 by re-numbering, ensuring the album name and artist tags were the same, removing any disc number tags and then a full LMS rescan. The tracks still appeared as two separate albums in LMS, with identical names and the proper new track numbering. I couldn't see any differences in the tags other than track names. I moved the 2nd album tracks into the same folder as the 1st album, rescanned, and they now appear as one album. I thought LMS would consolidate the tracks based only on the tag info. I double checked all the tags in both albums to ensure there was no difference and did a full rescan.
Comments??

Edit: I tried another 2cd set and this time added a 1/1 discnumber to all tracks, leaving the tracks in their original folders. This worked and the tracks are now in 1 album on LMS

Despite your thoroughness, I suspect there was still indeed some overlooked difference, or perhaps a rescan/caching snafu, in your first effort. Your 2nd CD set experiment illustrates that album folders are not determinant.

You may recall, in my first post, I suggested doing all this tag manipulation post-rip in a dedicated tag editor. This is one of the many reasons to do so. It's a much more efficient way to absolutely ensure all pertinent tags are the same (by simply selecting all and applying the desired edits), and to look for "hidden" tags that could be causing issues. In my editor, for example, an "Extended Tags" button opens a pop-up that shows all the tags associated with a file or groups of files. This can be invaluable, because most tag-display functions in players, dBp, etc., have a "selective view" that shows only those tags the program is set to show. (There can be all kinds of stuff you don't even know is there!) Seeing an album's tags laid out in spreadsheet form, and checking the extended tags, helps ensure better accuracy and consistency, and makes quick work of this kind of troubleshooting.

[garym]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Despite your thoroughness, I suspect there was still indeed some overlooked difference, or perhaps a rescan/caching snafu, in your first effort. Your 2nd CD set experiment illustrates that album folders are not determinant.

You may recall, in my first post, I suggested doing all this tag manipulation post-rip in a dedicated tag editor. This is one of the many reasons to do so. It's a much more efficient way to absolutely ensure all pertinent tags are the same (by simply selecting all and applying the desired edits), and to look for "hidden" tags that could be causing issues. In my editor, for example, an "Extended Tags" button opens a pop-up that shows all the tags associated with a file or groups of files. This can be invaluable, because most tag-display functions in players, dBp, etc., have a "selective view" that shows only those tags the program is set to show. (There can be all kinds of stuff you don't even know is there!) Seeing an album's tags laid out in spreadsheet form, and checking the extended tags, helps ensure better accuracy and consistency, and makes quick work of this kind of troubleshooting.

all excellent points. I too use mp3tag for a bit of tag cleanup just after ripping anything. And with regard to LMS (which I personally use), this entire task of trying to change track numbers to deal with multidisk is not necessary. I rip my multidisk CDs in dbpa and allow them to be ripped as multiple disks, with the album name exactly the same and the disc number field capturing 1/3, 2/3, 3/3, etc. Each disk ends up in a separate disk subdirectory under the parent "album name" directory. And within each disk, the track numbers are 1 to N, starting over at 1 to N for the next disk, etc.

Then in LMS I have the settings option set to show multidisk albums as a single disk. And in browsing, playback, etc. the multidisk albums are shown as a single album, but are listed when adding to playlist in correct play order (disk1, 1 to N, disk 2, 1 to N, etc.). So I guess I'm not really sure why you're going through all these extra steps to try to get LMS to treat it the way you want, when it will do what you seem to want very easily without special numbering.

Only 3 things you have to do: (1) make sure album name is exactly the same for all the disks, (2) add disk numbering field in tags when you rip (1/3, 2/3, 3/3, etc.), and (3) tick the box in LMS settings that says treat multidisk albums as one album.

[BrodyBoy]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Then in LMS I have the settings option set to show multidisk albums as a single disk.

Excellent! What a great feature.....I wish my Sonos had that option! (I still, for the life of me, can't fathom why Logitech abandoned this whole product category. They were one of the most experienced players...no pun intended...and still outpace many of the current offerings. :()

[garym]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Excellent! What a great feature.....I wish my Sonos had that option! (I still, for the life of me, can't fathom why Logitech abandoned this whole product category. They were one of the most experienced players...no pun intended...and still outpace many of the current offerings. :()

yep, a real shame. I've got lots of backup players so hopefully I've got a few years left with the system. I did recently buy a little sonos to play with (and to have as a backup for music services if mysqueezebox.com bites the dust...that way my wife can still get her sirusXM stuff....it will be like the old days...with FM tuner and Record Player....set preamp to input1 for the SB stuff (local music) and input2 for the sonos (music streaming services). The sonos is easy to setup, works nicely, but has waaaaay fewer options and flexibility. Of course, this is what makes is simpler to use. I can see why it is popular and I'd probably be just fine with a Sonos system but for the track number limits. I've got 80,000 tracks and I'm only 1/2 way through ripping my CDs. And I hate to deal with all the work-around hacks for this when it simply works with all these tracks in my squeezebox setup.

[jfo]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Despite your thoroughness, I suspect there was still indeed some overlooked difference, or perhaps a rescan/caching snafu, in your first effort. Your 2nd CD set experiment illustrates that album folders are not determinant.

You may recall, in my first post, I suggested doing all this tag manipulation post-rip in a dedicated tag editor. This is one of the many reasons to do so. It's a much more efficient way to absolutely ensure all pertinent tags are the same (by simply selecting all and applying the desired edits), and to look for "hidden" tags that could be causing issues. In my editor, for example, an "Extended Tags" button opens a pop-up that shows all the tags associated with a file or groups of files. This can be invaluable, because most tag-display functions in players, dBp, etc., have a "selective view" that shows only those tags the program is set to show. (There can be all kinds of stuff you don't even know is there!) Seeing an album's tags laid out in spreadsheet form, and checking the extended tags, helps ensure better accuracy and consistency, and makes quick work of this kind of troubleshooting.

I do use MP3Tag and thoroughly reviewed the extended tags looking for a tag that was getting in the way. I found none and both discs appeared identical except for track names and numbers. Only when I added Discnumber 1 to all the tracks did they appear as a single album in LMS. I tried this on several sets with the same result.

all excellent points. I too use mp3tag for a bit of tag cleanup just after ripping anything. And with regard to LMS (which I personally use), this entire task of trying to change track numbers to deal with multidisk is not necessary. I rip my multidisk CDs in dbpa and allow them to be ripped as multiple disks, with the album name exactly the same and the disc number field capturing 1/3, 2/3, 3/3, etc. Each disk ends up in a separate disk subdirectory under the parent "album name" directory. And within each disk, the track numbers are 1 to N, starting over at 1 to N for the next disk, etc.

Then in LMS I have the settings option set to show multidisk albums as a single disk. And in browsing, playback, etc. the multidisk albums are shown as a single album, but are listed when adding to playlist in correct play order (disk1, 1 to N, disk 2, 1 to N, etc.). So I guess I'm not really sure why you're going through all these extra steps to try to get LMS to treat it the way you want, when it will do what you seem to want very easily without special numbering.

Only 3 things you have to do: (1) make sure album name is exactly the same for all the disks, (2) add disk numbering field in tags when you rip (1/3, 2/3, 3/3, etc.), and (3) tick the box in LMS settings that says treat multidisk albums as one album.

Gary, I understand your logic but I have ripped my multi disc sets as multiple albums for years and I'm happy with this approach. I only have a limited number where I'd like to go back and rearrange them as a single album, so I do not wish to change the global setting in LMS. The renumbering achieves this and as far as I can determine, Discnumber 1 is needed to make it work. The original folder/file structure is unchanged but the selected tracks now appear as one album in LMS. AS you know from your own experience, it's very easy to load up the CD's, and make the changes in MP3Tag.

[garym]

Re: How to rip multi CD sets to produce a single album

Discnumber 1 is needed to make it work. The original folder/file structure is unchanged but the selected tracks now appear as one album in LMS.

Yes, I think this is a bit of a "bug" in LMS where the album tracks are not all in the exact same subdirectory. But using the album name and Discnumber =1 is enough to override the LMS behavior and have it treat the album as a single album.