Artist & Album Artist

[Will99]

OK I have looked for this as I am sure it has been asked before but I couldn't find it.
This is my naming string :-
[IFVALUE]album artist,[album artist],[IFCOMP]Various Artists[][IF!COMP][artist][][]\[album]\[track] [IFCOMP][artist] -[] [title]

To ensure that tracks having different artists (on a particular cd) are grouped together in my music library view (eg. Sonos), I have configured Sonos to group by the [album artist] tag. (Manage - Settings - Music Library - Advanced - Group Albums Using : AlbumArtists)
So for example this sorted out issues with eg. the Rudimental album 'Home' which had different artists on each track but all tracks had the same Album Artist (= Rudimental). Great - problem solved.

However, take the compilation CD '50 Shades of Grey' (and possibly all compilation CDs ? - not sure as I am just ripping my collection and noticed this early on and wanted to sort it out before I proceed further).
In this case, the Album Artist tag is still blank, and although the above naming string will mean that the whole album is filed under Various Artists / 50 Shades of Grey /, when I browse my library using Sonos it lists each track under its track artist - i.e. so they are all split up all over the place.

I imagine that I can fix this issue by assigning the same Album Artist tag to all tracks, but how do I do this ?
(As I said, I believe the above naming string just deals with file path naming not the actual Album Artist tag itself).

[Will99]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

Obviously I can manually enter the Album Artist tag for each cd impacted, but is there a way to do this automatically ?

[Spoon]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

I do not think it is anything to do with filenames, more to do with ID Tags, the Sonos must need an album artist.

[Will99]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

I do not think it is anything to do with filenames, more to do with ID Tags, the Sonos must need an album artist.

I guess I am asking if it is possible to configure CD Ripper to set the [album artist] tag to 'Various Artists' (or anything else I want for that matter) when the cd is a compilation disc and does not already have an [album artist] tag populated.

[Spoon]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

It is not possible to auto populate this item so it appears in CD ripper, but if your naming string works around that, have a look at the DSP effect ID Tag Processing, specifically rule based manipulation, there are examples in the help for DSP effects.

[BrodyBoy]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

Obviously I can manually enter the Album Artist tag for each cd impacted, but is there a way to do this automatically ?

The best practice is to ensure that the ALBUM ARTIST tag is always populated, whether you consistently employ the default "Various Artists" or use something more album-specific, like your "Rudimental" tag.

As Spoon said, the ID Tag DSP is the solution for these kinds of tagging needs. If you rely on a single ripping profile that has to cover all album types and situations, you'd include a rule-based manipulation that sets ALBUM ARTIST=Various Artists whenever the compilation flag is set. I personally don't like the way that leaves room for error, in that it depends on appropriate, accurate use of the compilation flag. (I.e., errors compound when some tags depend on others and the first one is wrong.)

Instead, I'd recommend you create a Compilations ripping profile. Your name string would then leave out the conditional items (again leaving less room for error), and you would positively set all the tags you know you need....again with the ID Tag DSP, but not with rule-based conditions. This way, you decide what's a compilation and what's not, select the ripping profile accordingly, and the tags will be set up they way you need for proper display and navigation on your Sonos controllers.

While it's easy enough to ensure that ALBUM ARTIST=Various Artists for all compilations, more specific entries (like "Rudimental") will require manual intervention. Though you could probably get tricky and try to devise some rule-based manipulation that employs GENRE or whatever, it's easier (and most accurate) to just manually enter these occasional album-specific tags.

But again.....the bottom line is that Sonos needs that ALBUM ARTIST tag populated. How you approach doing that depends on your needs, but that's the end result you want.

[Will99]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

Hey thanks for the informative help.
Though I can't find any help for DSP Id Tag manipulation - all I can see is some mention of Replay Gain, Hidden Track Silence Removal and HDCD DSP options.
Actually I think this product is fantastic, but if I may be so bold I would say that it is not clear where the help is - either it is hidden away somewhere or it doesn't exist for every option eg. such as all the DSP effects. I can find a list of what each DSP does but not any help on how to configure the settings. I can't find any help on Id Tag processing for example.

[BrodyBoy]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

It's okay....this is kind of a common complaint about dBp: It doesn't have traditional documentation, so it can be a little difficult for new users to figure it all out on their own. Don't hesitate to ask your questions here....it's a helpful, knowledgeable community.

The ID Tag DSP can be downloaded from the Codec Central web page. As for help, that little red question mark (up in CD Ripper's menu bar) takes you to the included documentation. You have to hunt a little, but there's a link to brief descriptions of the DSP functions and how to use them.


CORRECTION: The help for the ID Tag DSP is accessed with the little red question mark on the ID Tag Processing pop-up window itself, not the question mark on the main CD Ripper window. Sorry for the confusion.....

[Will99]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

The ID Tag DSP can be downloaded from the Codec Central web page.

Thanks for the pointer.
If I have paid for the full registered version of dbpoweramp, do I not have everything already downloaded ?

[Spoon]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

The help is accessed from the DSP settings page, click the red 'H', you can do this from any of the DSP settings pages.

[BrodyBoy]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

Thanks for the pointer.
If I have paid for the full registered version of dbpoweramp, do I not have everything already downloaded ?

No, you don't automatically get all the various audio & utility codecs. This makes sense, as most people aren't apt to use them all. You can pick & choose what you want and just download them from Codec Central. (Download & save each installer, then double-click to install.)

[Kjrll]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

I have ripped my cd to flac and the album art was also included
When i copy this to my sony z1 only the album art is coming up and not the artist art.
What shall i do to include also the artist art?

Kjrll

[Spoon]

Re: Artist & Album Artist

CD Ripper embeds the art inside FLAC by default (using the flac art standard). I am thinking that the sony z1 does not support art embedded into flac files.