Crying over lost music metadata

[maticevska]

Does anyone else here have fairly large FLAC libraries where you've got A SYSTEM of organisation that you can't live without?

So this is me. I listen mainly to the radio or my FLAC library via a DAP using PowerAmp as I much prefer the interface over FiiO's default interface for listening to music. Lately I've been replacing some MP3 files with FLACs so I can ensure my library is entirely lossless audio (not debating this pls)

and

and...

I went back into my 'albums' screen and see that tracks within albums are listed alphabetically...

i've lost all the track name edits and other metadata edits and medata i've added over the 16 years i've been maintaining and growing this library...

and I noticed all this on the way home from choir rehearsal when I had no time to fix it because I have work this morning and all I could do was cry in bed, literally bawling. my partner fuсken comforted me for like an hour until we fell asleep lmao shoutout to her, she's fantastic like that.

Anyway, I wake up this morning and decide fuсk it lets rescan this whole library through the PowerAmp app.

AND EVERYTHING GOES BACK TO NORMAL


I legit felt like my life was over. now things are fine.

god damn it.

I hate technology sometimes.


Does anyone else have any weird metadata stories, tips or advice in maintaining a digital music library? I probably won't take you're advice on board because i'm
stubborn.

Cheers! 

[Daverz]

How did you convert the MP3s?  Did you deleted the MP3s afterward? Otherwise you could just redo the conversion so that the metadata is preserved.  Did you check the metadata on the individual FLACs?

EDIT: oops, missed that you didn't convert the MP3s. Did you keep the MP3s?

[maticevska]

Deleted the MP3s because they were from the first rips i made of CDs

I would love to discover the kind of black magic that can convert lossy to lossless!

[Daverz]

Deleted the MP3s because they were from the first rips i made of CDs

I would love to discover the kind of black magic that can convert lossy to lossless!

So what kind of metadata is on your FLACs?

I suppose you could try ripping a typical CD to MP3 and to FLAC and then compare the metadata.

[maticevska]

So what kind of metadata is on your FLACs?

I suppose you could try ripping a typical CD to MP3 and to FLAC and then compare the metadata.

The main issue I had was losing the edits I made to track titles and artists so that the tracks are all stored correctly. But it all came back to how it was this morning............somehow!

[Daverz]

The main issue I had was losing the edits I made to track titles and artists so that the tracks are all stored correctly. But it all came back to how it was this morning............somehow!

Is PowerAmp DbPowerAmp?  If you use it to edit metadata, I think it keeps the changes locally.

[Spotted Horses]

I'm using Mac and use XLD to rip and Swinsiam to playback through Bluetooth headphones or an external DAC. I started with pc and I think I was using foobar2000. I never depended on metadata to keep it organized. I've got more than 2TB of flac files and would never trust any media app to keep it organized. My top level folder has a subfolder for every record label (Decca, Erato, EMI, Harmonia Mundi, Teldec, etc).  There must be 100 in all. Within the label folders there are sub folders for each release named for the catalog number. So, for example, my set of Schnittke string quartets by the Tale Quartet are in folder BIS, subfolder CD-487. Using this scheme I can invariably find what I am looking for no matter how bad the metadata is messed up. If I am looking for a release I remember that I have I can, as a last resort, look it up on Presto, Amazon, Discogs, etc and find it on my disk by label and catalog number. I also keep my own scan of the booklet in the folder. I have a "cache" folder which I use like a CD tray. When I want to listen to a CD copy the folder to the cache folder, load it into my player (Swinsian) and play it. When I'm done playing it I clear it from my player and delete the audio file from the cache folder. I typically have a few dozen CDs in the cache before I decided I am done listening to them and clear them out. The metadata is only needed to find tracks within that small cache of audio tiles.

But I also have my own "database." Each release folder has a file named "contents.txt" which lists the contents in a peculiar format. For that BIS set of Schnittke string quartets the contents file contains:

label : "BIS"
catalog : "CD-487"
release_title : "Volume 7"
series_title : "The Alfred Schnittke Edition"
acquisition_year : "2010"
n_discs : "1"

composer_first : "Alfred"
composer_last : "Schnittke"
conductor : "Eri Klas"
ensemble : "Malmo Symphony Orchestra"
ensemble_type : "Violin and Orchestra"
recording_year : "1990"
performers : "Mark Lubotsky:Violin"
works : "Violin Concerto No 1::Violin Concerto"
works : "Violin Concerto No 2::Violin Concerto"
program : "reset"

Years ago I wrote a c-program that scans the directory tree, opens every content.txt file, loads the fields and compiles a giant list. Finally it writes a series of HTML files that I can inspect. It makes a composer.html file with a table every composer in my collection. if I click on a composer it brings up a table of every release I own featuring that composer. It was a big hobby project I did 15 years ago at least. I'm a bit worried at this point because the last time I rescanned my FLAC file it was under Windows 10 (I think). It certainly would be a pain to get it working on MAC, and possibly on a current Windows compiler.

But something more relevant to your problem, I settled on ripping to FLAC+cue format (a single FLAC file for an entire disc with a cue file listing the individual tracks). When I give my media player the cue sheet it never gets confused about the track order. But for stuff I originally ripped as individual tracks it could get mixed up because it alphabetizes the track titles. But I found that there was some sort of "track number" field that was my media player did not display by default, but which I could use to properly order tracks. Anyway, when I buy FLAC downloads I'm stuck with the individual files, but when I rip I always use FLAC+cue format to avoid the track ordering issue and facilitate gapless playback.

(BTW, this is what suits me, I am not suggesting anyone should do it this way. The only thing I would assert is having the file organized by label and catalog number means you can find something based on looking up the catalog number in an independent source.)

[Mandryka]

Does anyone know a tool which will look up and tag music files without ripping a cd first? All the ones I know won't tag files, they all want a CD to rip and tag.

@maticevska - you really should keep a backup of the tagged files.

[Papy Oli]

If all the latest edited Flacs are on a DAP and this is where the changes are usually manually made, isn't the solution to try and back them up regularly to a PC or an external Hard drive, ?

I edit my Flacs on mp3tag or directly into my player MusicBee on the PC. I just back them up when I have some bulky editing or added new files, or at least once a week to an external Hard drive using FileSync. (For the whole drive, not just the Flac folder)

You might not be so lucky next time that the issue just "goes away"...

[Papy Oli]

@maticevska - you really should keep a backup of the tagged files.

What he said 

[Daverz]

Does anyone know a tool which will look up and tag music files without ripping a cd first? All the ones I know won't tag files, they all want a CD to rip and tag.

@maticevska - you really should keep a backup of the tagged files.

The Musicbrainz Picard tagger has a plugin for classical music.

https://music.highmossergate.co.uk/symphony/tagging/classical-extras/

(description below all the PHP errors)

[Mandryka]

I don't think it will transfer tags to the files. It will  identify the information, but not write it into a tag. I may be wrong about that!

[maticevska]

This thread is turning into a great resource for metadata tagging software! very thankful for the contributors

[Papy Oli]

Does anyone know a tool which will look up and tag music files without ripping a cd first? All the ones I know won't tag files, they all want a CD to rip and tag.

Check MP3Tag. I use it to re-tag CD rips.

I have never used this particular specific feature but it has a "tag Sources" button where you can check your already existing files against online databases.

[Holden]

I've done this with my CD collection using the excellent dBPoweramp program. In this case I had recorded the CDs in FLAC but needed an MP3 version to play on my car stereo.

[Mandryka]

Check MP3Tag. I use it to re-tag CD rips.

I have never used this particular specific feature but it has a "tag Sources" button where you can check your already existing files against online databases.

Thanks papy. That worked brilliantly using the Discogs code for the release.

[Papy Oli]

Thanks papy. That worked brilliantly using the Discogs code for the release.

Cool, note to self too!