Foobar2000:Freedb masstagger (foo freedb)

Note: This page describes only the foo_freedb component for foobar2000 0.8.x by Dariusz Sieradzki. The information herein does not apply to the foo_freedb2 component for foobar2000 0.9.x by Holger Stenger.

Freedb

You have some old files encoded with no tags and now that you have thousand of tags to enter, you are desparated? This page should help you a bit to have all the work achieved in only several minutes. Foobar offers you the ability to link information to numerous files without any waste of time to do it. You are able to tag your files thanks to the internet or the filenames themselves. It also allows you to add new tag fields to enlarge the abilities of foobar ( for example you can rate your files (with quicktag), know if there are various artists on the album etc.. you could also sort your files by genre, period, year, composer, performer etc...). Foobar not only fully supports APEv2, ID3v2, MP4, WMA, Vorbis_comment, but it also allows you to create and edit fastly your tags, remove some ones, duplicate tags from a file to another etc.. thanks to the different masstaggers. The system is based on the Case utility called TAG which is based on commandline and has enormous possibilities.

Freedb

This component, which was developed by Dariusz Sieradzki (alias messer), allows users to give information related to their albums thanks to an external database (freedb). The gain of time using this component is enormous as you don't have to enter manually any tag.

The selected songs must be into the commercial order of the album or it won't work.

Masstagging functions are avaible from the contextual menu:

http://eolindel.free.fr/foobar/freedb3.gif

Configure

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Freedb configuration

• freedb server: You can choose your freedb server. If your servers seems to work no more, just click on retrieve freedb servers list to have other adresses
• your email address: specifies an email adress which will be transmitted at the freedb serveur. Joe@foo.bar is perfect..
• don’t try to compute discID: the freedb query is based on a number calcuted with the number and length of the files. It may be fruitless even if the information is entered in the database. Using this option, you will forbid to the component to use the identifier to search in the database

preview

• before tagging allow me to select and preview freedb query results: even if only one disc matches the criterion entered, the component will ask you to validate it. Not using this option, the component will always choose the first entry, it is faster but you can't be sure to get the most important amount of information.
• But show preview dialog only if multiple matches were found : when there are several albums matching the album selected, you will have to choose one to tag your files, if there is only one album in the database matching the selected one, it will automatically be used to tag your files
• Automatically load all previews: downloads automatically all the information corresponding to the results found, the user will still have to choose which result he will use to tag his files.

auto CDDA tagging

• when CD is added to Playlist, automatically retrieve titles: will automatically try to search in the freedb a matching result to the CD added
• show preview dialog before tagging CD: foobar will display the preview window before getting information about the CD
• use only foobar’s database to store CD tag: saves the information collected in the database if it is enabled

freedb proxy config

• you will be able to enter your proxy parameters if you are using one

Get tags

http://eolindel.free.fr/foobar/freedb5.gif

Clicking on get tags, the search will start, it only takes couples of seconds generally. Then this window will pop up. The user is able to choose the fields to write, consequently you are able to save the information already entered without overwriting them with this component. You can also choose how your files will be tracknumbered. The interface is really clear. If you have several matches, just choose one and then I advice you to preview the selected album and choose the one with information corresponding to your wantings..

Then just click on tag files to tag them or cancel if you have changed your mind. Then, your files will be updated.

Using Get tags (multiple albums) will only repeat this process for each album.

Manual query

http://eolindel.free.fr/foobar/freedb6.gif

If the automatic way doesn't work, the user can enter manually the values corresponding to his album. You wil have to enter the genre and the discID. As you are not wizards, the only way to know the TWO values is going on the freedb website and do a search there.

http://eolindel.free.fr/foobar/freedb8.gif

Take care of the genre fields, it must be the one entered in the freedb which rarely corresponds to the real genre of the album (for example an album of Mozart could be with the Rock genre !!).

Search

http://eolindel.free.fr/foobar/freedb7.gif

Here, you will do a search on the freedb server. The criterion are various and could filter the results, use them to avoid hundreds of answers (or thousands..).

• Keyword: enter the keywords for your search
• Search genres: as the genre value rarely means anythings and is rarely really linked to the real genre of the album, Do not change it. (You coud miss your album of Beatle with the "genre" classical)
• Search fields: choose the fields where the search will be done
• Show only entries matching: Use it to filter your search to only one album and/or artist. It is really useful, do not neglect these values. As common words like "love" could give you endless answers without any filter..

If those methods do not work, just try to do your search on other database as gracenote..