Re: Set-Up for Ripping
2. I keep multi disk CDs separated by subfolders for each disk because this allows proper treatment by PerfectTunes if I want to check these later with AccurateRip (e.g., after I've copied the folders to a different harddrive for backup)
Turns out I was wrong about *2 above. One doesn't have to use separate disk folders for PerfectTunes to work. All tracks can be in one folder, with naming that includes disk and track number, such as 1.01, 1.02, 2.01, 2.02 etc. (But I still personally use the process that keeps each disk in separate subfolder, as Oggy referenced above.
Set-Up for Ripping
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Composer Gustav Mahler
Composer Sort Mahler, Gustav
If you want Gustav Mahler displayed under G, you would not need to use the corresponding sort tag,
If you want Gustav Mahler displayed under M, add the Composer Sort tag, and enter Mahler, Gustav.
For a naming string, garym's explanation of his, is very helpful:-
[IFCOMP]Compilations\[album] [IFMULTI] \Disc [disc][]\[track] - [title] - [artist][][IF!COMP][IFVALUE]album artist,[album artist],[artist][]\[album][IFMULTI] \Disc [disc][]\[track] - [title][]
This produces the following automatically without intervention from me:
For non-compilation (various artists)
x:\music\ARTIST (or Album Artist if it exists)\ALBUM\track number - track title.flac
example,
x:\music\The Beatles\Abbey Road\01 - Come Together.flac
If there are multi disks in the CD, it produces this:
x:\music\Artist (or Album Artist if it exists)\album\disk 1\track no. - track title
example,
x:\music\The Beatles\The Beatles\Disk 1\01 - Back in the U.S.S.R.flac
...
x:\music\The Beatles\The Beatles\Disk 2\01 - Birthday.flac
...
For Compilations (Various Artists):
x:\music\Compilations\album name\track no - track title - track artist name.flac
and if multi disk, I consider that similar to above
example,
x:\music\Compilations\This One's For Him - A Tribute to Guy Clark\01 - That Old Time Feeling - Rodney Crowell.flac
Notes:
1. I use "Compilations" rather than "various artists" as it seems more intuitive to me. But it doesn't matter.
2. I keep multi disk CDs separated by subfolders for each disk because this allows proper treatment by PerfectTunes if I want to check these later with AccurateRip (e.g., after I've copied the folders to a different harddrive for backup)
3. I don't use YEAR in my names, but I do have YEAR, COMPOSER, etc. in my TAGS themselves and my players/databases do display this info.
4. Related to 3 above, remember that the file naming is almost irrelevant (except for some logic when looking at the file structure in windows explorer, etc.). My players could care less about file name or folder location. They are all using the TAG information.
5. I do not embed the album art in my tracks. Rather I have it produce a single album cover artwork file named "cover.jpg" for each album folder.
You are correct, the folder tree does come from the naming string, but as garym explained in his previous post, you really don't want a second Artist and Composer directories, so simply don't use the last folders, in your revised naming suggestions.
If you did this, in garym's Beatles example, you would get a folder tree, thus:-
Rock
The Beatles
The Beatles
Disc 1 Disc 2
The string below will automatically achieve this, putting Disc 1 and Disc 2, in their own folder. Most, players / apps, will play this double CD as a continuous album.
It is your choice if you want Genre, as your first folder in the tree. As you can see, garym does not use it, but entered Rock, in the Genre tag box. Do you need a separate Genre folder?
If you decide you do want all albums to come under a Genre folder, the naming string below, should achieve this. A maximum file length has been added, to save potential problems.
[MAXLENGTH]240,[IFCOMP][genre]\Compilations\[album] [IFMULTI] \Disc [disc][]\[track] - [title] - [artist][][IF!COMP][genre]\[IFVALUE]album artist,[album artist],[artist][]\[album][IFMULTI] \Disc [disc][]\[track] - [title][][]
Why not give a CD a go with both of these suggested strings, and see how you like the results on your player? This will cover all CD variations, though you may want to use Composer, instead of Artist, for Classical.
To work, the album name must be identical for all discs, i.e. The Beatles, The Beatles, and Disc must be populated 1/2, 2/2.
In garym's note 5, he also mentioned that he doesn't embed art in each track, but uses a cover.jpg. This attachment shows using Folder.jpg, which I use, and also the Album Art, pixel and file size restrictions, I've set. This prevents the occasional massive file size, and helps maintain compatibility with some players: I believe that Bluesound rejects file sizes bigger than 600kb, so the 1000x1000, 300x300 settings should be OK.
Note, if you want Folder.jpg, or Cover.jpg, and I believe Bluesound works with both, you need to uncheck both Disable Tag Writing AND Album Art, as per screenshot below, and set the appropriate, Write to [output folder]\
Hope this helps,
OggyLast edited by Oggy; November 03, 2017, 12:04 PM.Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
For example, here's a thread from yesterday containing info on the composer and composer sort tag and the artist and artist sort tag, with examples: Tags, Tags, and more Tags ...
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Hi mville,
In your earlier post you mentioned "Tags (some of which have corresponding sort tags)." What is a sort tag and what is its relationship to tag? Are you able to help me with an example?
Thanks,
DbarnbyLeave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Regardless of what I may have led you to believe, my understanding is that the Naming string establishes the structure of the folder-tree one sees in the File tree (its sequence and indentation) and has nothing to do with the selection of music by way of the music player app for listening. So that we're clear on terminology, I assume (though I've never seen any clear definition) that the words, file, directory names, and structure that you refer to are in fact concepts that relate to the record of the music as it's stored on the PC C drive or in the NAS, i.e. the File Explorer.Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Hi garym
Thanks so very much for your comments on my "Overview" and also the rundown on my 10 specific questions. I'll respond to the Overview questions in another post but the question here.
1) Here's a revised Naming string sequence that I believe incorporates your comments:
NC: genre\artist\album\composer\disc no.
CL: genre\composer\album\artist\disk no.
What do you think about that?
What, then, would be the explicit naming strings I would use for each?
4) I do understand that I can make album artist whatever I choose. What I was asking is: I believe that dbpa automatically inserts the default "various artists" when the compilation box is checked and it is not overridden. However, regarding various composers and various artists (not album artists) are the simply entered "manually" at the user's choice? Do I have this right?
7) You have suggested that I'm pretty confused about several things:
a) In item 7 you point to tags, file, directory names, and structure.
b) In you previous post you point to "mixing up of tagging with the searching and filtering music typically done by music library databases and players "
I'm always open to finding I'm wrong, however, in these cases I believe I do, indeed, understand. The problems I think stem from misunderstanding of each other's terminology and perhaps poor writing on my part.
Regardless of what I may have led you to believe, my understanding is that the Naming string establishes the structure of the folder-tree one sees in the File tree (its sequence and indentation) and has nothing to do with the selection of music by way of the music player app for listening. So that we're clear on terminology, I assume (though I've never seen any clear definition) that the words, file, directory names, and structure that you refer to are in fact concepts that relate to the record of the music as it's stored on the PC C drive or in the NAS, i.e. the File Explorer.
Tags, on the other hand, are used to sequentially in the music player app to select music stored in the PC. If any part of what I've just written is wrong please tell me.
Still, I'm unsure of the answer to my original question *7 which was how do different naming strings (which I believe call for different folder-tree structures) work together in a File Explorer when that graphic is built from both Naming strings?
8. It's encouraging to hear that writing a desired Naming string couldn't be any simpler. Indeed, I've found the help pages in dbpa that provide a list of meanings for various "entries," however I have not run across any description of the syntax or logic that is used to string them together properly, i.e. the rules for creating such a string.
Early on I understood from someone that there was no such tutorial, and that has been pretty discouraging. I confident that one can't just throw various words and symbol into that Naming box haphazardly and expect anything good to result. Everyone in the Forum has been most generous to suggest literal strings that will do the job, however at this point I remain entirely dependent on it. Once I have such strings in hand for NC and CL I will be able to proceed; then I may be able to suss this out.Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
1. Regarding folder structure, here's what I think I want. (I remain open to critique and suggestions on this score):
Non-classical: genre\artist\album\disk no.\composer
Classical: genre\composer\album\disc no.\artist
I do want to include the option of using "compilation"
Rock/The Beatles/The Beatles/Disk 1/Lennon and McCartney
And you could have tracks from that disk spread out over many subdirectories because some songs would have George Harrison as composer. You need to rethink what you want here and post a few specific examples from real CDs. I'm thinking that you are having trouble understanding how a file organization system works with directories and subdirectories (as opposed to being able to browse/search by tag data in order to select and play things, which is a different context altogether).
[
ARTIST: Miles Davis Quintet
ARTIST: Miles Davis Sextet
ARTIST: Miles Davis and Bob Dorough
But in all three cases I might assign ALBUM ARTIST= Miles Davis. This way all my Miles Davis related albums, with slightly different ARTIST tags, will show up in my music library when I browse to "Miles Davis".
In my own case, I leave ALBUM ARTIST blank unless I have a specific need for it (like the Miles Davis example). Other folks fill in ALBUM ARTIST for every track on a CD, even though in many cases ALBUM ARTIST has the same entry as ARTIST.
[QUOTE=dbarnby;178623]
6. Title: I'm a bit confused about "title." First, I don't see a clear definition for "title." Is it CD title, music title, song title, album title, work title, or what? [Quote]
TITLE is the title of the song (track) on a CD. TITLE is the tag field name for a *song*. You should be able to easily see this if you've ripped some CDs and look at the resulting tags.
As I understand it, there is no "title" tag-group and therefore no title in the Naming Structure (although I've see that word in Naming strings that have been suggested). What's up?
The title of a work or CD seems pretty important element, so I'm wondering if the intent is for "Album" to serve as a stand-in for the title of the piece?
Further, I notice that in the online suggestions under the tag icon some of the song titles also contain Name, Genre, and Act, all together in the Title. How/why did those get there? Why not just the song name? (I realize that this info came from other peoples rips, but why/how would "title" accumulate data on genre, and act, etc.in the first place?
7. It has been suggested I use different naming strings for classical vs. non-classical. If one rips classical under one Naming string, and NC under a different string, do each of those Naming formats create its own folder-tree in the File Explorer? If not, how to they "interleave" together given that they are different structures?
8. Is it true that dbpa does not intend for users to write their own Naming strings but to always get them from the Forum.? Given that the only way to arrive at the desired folder structure is through trial-and-error, that means repeated experimentation, and that means repeated queries to the Forum. With thousands of users, all experimenting repeatedly to get the job done, that seems like an untenable business model.
9. When genre is "classical" or "opera" dbpa presents options for "Work," "Movement number," "movement count," and "Movement name." Are these categories used in the Naming string as are the other categories like composer, artist, etc. or are they simply carried into the listing as additional information?
10. When I have a two-disc set, and put each disc in its own folder, as is often recommended, are the two linked in some way so that the player knows to oplay the second disc automatically following the first? I realize the playing of the music is a function of Tags (not naming) but is the sequential playing handled automatically or do I need to link the two disks somehow? Most operas take two or more discs and I'd like to be able to just select the opera by name once, and get all of it.Last edited by garym; November 02, 2017, 10:31 PM.Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
I agree with mville here. There are as many approaches to tagging as their are people I suspect. With regard to your white paper draft, I have several issues. I would have attempted to suggest edits, etc. but I find that such an endeavor would be very long and detailed and require a complete rewrite of your document. Respectfully (and I know you worked hard on this), I find much of the information in the document either incorrect, misleading, or confusing. In addition to the "tag groups" discussion mville mentioned, I see mixing up of file names/directories with tagging as if they are the same thing, mixing up of tagging with the searching and filtering music typically done by music library databases and players (and *not* dbpa). And frankly too many other things to list.
I appreciate that the write-up probably does follow the logic of your own personal understanding of the process (and may be a good document for yourself to keep track of how you do things). In fact, many of us keep private documents with listings of commands, tips, etc. related to our own use case of dbpa (and other software).Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
I appreciate that everyone's approach is different, however the overview I'm suggesting is primarily about definitions (which would/should) be the same for everyone so we're all on the same page, and about the relationship between the variables in dbpa which is a function of dbpa. It represents, for me, an orienting piece that I feel would have gotten me off to a smoother start; the ultimate variability from user to user will always remain, just as you have pointed out.
The first part of my Overview is an attachment (Part 1); I hope you are able to read it. I would welcome your comments.
However, I have read your overview and although I don't want to rain on your parade, I can't agree with much in it. For example, the first 4 pages mentions Tags and Tag Groups and that Tag Groups are a fixed set of seven elements. To my mind this is nonsense. There are simply Tags (some of which have corresponding sort tags), which contain data. I could go on...Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Mville:
I appreciate that everyone's approach is different, however the overview I'm suggesting is primarily about definitions (which would/should) be the same for everyone so we're all on the same page, and about the relationship between the variables in dbpa which is a function of dbpa. It represents, for me, an orienting piece that I feel would have gotten me off to a smoother start; the ultimate variability from user to user will always remain, just as you have pointed out.
The first part of my Overview is an attachment (Part 1); I hope you are able to read it. I would welcome your comments.
Spoon:
With regard to my failure to be able to attach Part 2 to a separate post, my problem was that when I tried to attach Part 2 I found that Part 1 (which I had attached to the previous post) was also attached to the second post and I don't know how to delete it. Indeed, as you suggested, the two attachments together are too long.
Thanks,
DonLeave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Early on I was told that there is no white paper that describes these fundamentals in simple terms, and so I offer this overview to the Forum and to dbps for two purposes:
1) I hope you all will read it and correct the errors I surely have made, so I can learn.
2) I offer it to all as the white paper that is missing to help other individuals that are trying to learn the system; it constitutes, in the main, what I wish I'd been able to read when I began this process. All of you on the Forum have been so patient and helpful; let this be my contribution.
Also, I applaud the need for tagging standards however, I don't think it is possible to write such a white paper as you describe, unless you believe everyone use, organize and tag their files in the same way.
Personally, I don't believe this and do not want to encourage this. These forums tell me that much of what users want, comes down to personal preference and cannot be defined in a single white paper.Leave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
HELP!
I'm trying to send a post that has Part 2 attached as a follow-on to my previous post which had the Part 1 attachment, but in making the Part 2 attachment I can't clear out the Part I attachment. The result is that the second post will have both attachments and exceed the allowed limit. How do I clear out the previous attachment from this second post?
DbarnbyLeave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
(THIS IS A BIG ONE w/ATTACHMENTS; PLEASE BEAR WITH ME)
PLEASE READ "OVERVIEW – PART 1 (ATTACHED)
THE PART 2 IS ATTACHED TO A SECOND POST THAT FOLLOWS THIS DIRECTLY
It's been over three months since I last posted; I've been busy with termites in the attic, travel to Oregon to see the gorgeous scenery and total eclipse, and doing my taxes.
During that hiatus, much of what you forum posters have patiently taught me seems to have gelled. I've re-read the entire thread, and ripped some disks as you all have suggested.
Now, to wrap my mind around it completely and not forget it, I've written up a overview summary covering the basic elements of dbpa and network music playing.
I would have loved to find such an overview readily available just a click away, when I began the learning process. I think, it condenses in a concise summary the definitions and relationships that I, as a beginner, have struggled with for some months, and which I believe form a necessary starting point in order to use dbpa. I realize this overview is not the whole story and still lacks important detail but it does speak to the basic lack-of-understanding that plagued me in the beginning.
Early on I was told that there is no white paper that describes these fundamentals in simple terms, and so I offer this overview to the Forum and to dbps for two purposes:
1) I hope you all will read it and correct the errors I surely have made, so I can learn.
2) I offer it to all as the white paper that is missing to help other individuals that are trying to learn the system; it constitutes, in the main, what I wish I'd been able to read when I began this process. All of you on the Forum have been so patient and helpful; let this be my contribution.
My hope is that all of you who have been helping me will go beyond correcting mistakes, but will, seeing the areas that I've not addressed, write your own pieces to fill those in and complete the job I've begun (sort of like fleshing out Wikipedia).
It is my further hope that dbps will see the benefit they can gain by having such a white paper linked to their software from a "Help" button prominently displayed on the dbpa main page. In dbpa, Illustrate has the best ripping software in the industry, so there is no reason they shouldn't become the leader in standardizing industry terminology, and in providing education to potential customers, while documenting its software. With a little input from this strong Forum community, that can become a reality. Spoon could curate this effort.
Much of what this overview covers is obvious (dare I say trivial and completely unnecessary) for users who are experienced with dbpa, but for those just starting out, I believe a compact and cogent overview is essential in order to get the lay of the land right up front and know what's going on, and even to understand what they read in the Forum.
It's also entirely possible that I've got it ALL WRONG, in which case I'd better find that out.
I've attached the Overview as a PDF file to preserve the Word formatting I used when writing it. I hope you will open and read it, then tell me if and where I go off the rails.
Below, I've listed some specific questions that I still don't understand, and I hope to learn the answers so I can proceed with confidence and complete the job; my wife is impatient.
1. Regarding folder structure, here's what I think I want. (I remain open to critique and suggestions on this score):
Non-classical: genre\artist\album\disk no.\composer
Classical: genre\composer\album\disc no.\artist
I do want to include the option of using "compilation"
Would any of you be open to, once again, specifying specifically the naming strings that will accomplish the above? I realize you have done this before but I've been generously offered so many strings throughout this long conversation I've lost track, and since I can't decode them to confirm what they do I'm a bit lost; the above is what I think I should start with. (As always, I welcome your critique and comments.)
In some of the naming strings that have been offered I see the term "title." Are song name set up in the Naming string or do they just appear anyway?
garym, I believe it was you who asked why I "resist leading off with composer." I think the reason is because I don't always know or remember a composer's name, particularly for non-classical but can remember the album or work name. Shades of LP albums on the shelf.
2. I'd like multi-disc CD sets to play the discs one after the other automatically without intervention on my part. On the other hand, I take seriously the suggestions that I put each disk in its own folder. Will doing this negate automatic sequential playing?
If possible, I'd like the disc nos. to show as 1/2, 2/2, etc. in the disk column (not as part of the name)
3. I'm confused by Album Artist vs. Artist. What is the specific definition of each?
Further, Blusound says that their app (BluOS) doesn't recognize "Album Artist" or use it. What does this portend?
4. I am a bit confused about Compilations (which I guess inserts "various artists" for Album Artist). But what happens with multiple composers, and multiple "Artists"?
5. How do I handle a CD that contains two complete works? One of you spoke to this issue, however the answer involved two possibilities, one of which required "offsets," which truly mystify me.
6. Title: I'm a bit confused about "title." First, I don't see a clear definition for "title." Is it CD title, music title, song title, album title, work title, or what?
When the word title is use along, without a qualifier, it is ready-made ambiguity.
I note that "title" is used as the name of a song; is it used in any other way?
As I understand it, there is no "title" tag-group and therefore no title in the Naming Structure (although I've see that word in Naming strings that have been suggested). What's up?
The title of a work or CD seems pretty important element, so I'm wondering if the intent is for "Album" to serve as a stand-in for the title of the piece?
Further, I notice that in the online suggestions under the tag icon some of the song titles also contain Name, Genre, and Act, all together in the Title. How/why did those get there? Why not just the song name? (I realize that this info came from other peoples rips, but why/how would "title" accumulate data on genre, and act, etc.in the first place?
I'm confused on this whole title issue.
7. It has been suggested I use different naming strings for classical vs. non-classical. If one rips classical under one Naming string, and NC under a different string, do each of those Naming formats create its own folder-tree in the File Explorer? If not, how to they "interleave" together given that they are different structures?
8. Is it true that dbpa does not intend for users to write their own Naming strings but to always get them from the Forum.? Given that the only way to arrive at the desired folder structure is through trial-and-error, that means repeated experimentation, and that means repeated queries to the Forum. With thousands of users, all experimenting repeatedly to get the job done, that seems like an untenable business model.
There is, indeed, some sketchy info under the "?" symbols, but I find no fundamental tutorial for beginners about how to create meaningful Naming strings. I'm at a loss when it comes to Naming strings.
9. When genre is "classical" or "opera" dbpa presents options for "Work," "Movement number," "movement count," and "Movement name." Are these categories used in the Naming string as are the other categories like composer, artist, etc. or are they simply carried into the listing as additional information?
Is it true that these properties are recognized only by iTunes?
10. When I have a two-disc set, and put each disc in its own folder, as is often recommended, are the two linked in some way so that the player knows to oplay the second disc automatically following the first? I realize the playing of the music is a function of Tags (not naming) but is the sequential playing handled automatically or do I need to link the two disks somehow? Most operas take two or more discs and I'd like to be able to just select the opera by name once, and get all of it.
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Don't forget to open the Overview attachments Part 1, and Part 2.Attached FilesLeave a comment:
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Re: Set-Up for Ripping
Thanks, I'll try it. I really appreciate the advice, garym.Leave a comment:
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