Adding music to the library: Difference between revisions

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{{GetStarted|'''Managing XBMC's music library'''}}<br />
{{DISPLAYTITLE:Scanning Music}}
{{XBMC wiki toc}}
{{MusicLibraryCreate}}
<section begin="Intro"/>XBMC adds music to the library by [[Adding_music_to_the_library#Scanning_Your_Music_Into_the_Music_Library|scanning]] music files to extract identifying information from tags in the files.  In order to be able to include information on your music collection in the '''[[music library]]''', XBMC needs your music to be tagged. When your collection is scanned, XBMC stores all the tagging information (artist, album, year, genre, etc) in the database which allows you to efficiently search and manage your music collection.
{{mininav|[[Music library]]}}


Your audio files '''MUST''' have a valid ID tag for them to work properly in the XBMC music library. There are third party applications available for download from the internet that allow you to add and manage ID tags in your music files.<section end="Intro"/><br /><br />
= Introduction =
<section begin="intro"/>This page details the following:
*Adding and removing Sources
*Scan (import) your music collection into the Music Library.
*Troubleshooting common problems <section end="intro"/>


== See also audio streams ==
A reminder of the following:
{{see also|Internet_video_and_audio_streams}}
*Ensure the setting ''[[Settings/Media/Music#Fetch_additional_information_during_updates|Fetch additional information during updates]]'' is disabled
*Ensure you have taken care to correctly tag your music and set up your [[Artist information folder]]


== Scanning Your Music Into the Music Library ==
To scan your music collection into the Music Library, first make sure you are not in 'Library Mode' (checkmark on the left). Next, browse to the location of your music collection and bring up the the [[Music_library#Context Menu|Context Menu]]. (The selected item can be a music file, a folder containing music files, or a folder containing other folders.) Select the option labelled "Scan Item to Library". XBMC will then scan the selected music source into the library database. Once the scan is complete, you can browse your collection by selecting 'Library Mode'.


== Sources for Music ==
{{main|Media sources}}
XBMC gives you the ability to listen to music from a variety of sources, click here for more information and examples of [[Types of Media Sources|Types of Media Sources (link)]].<br />
Some examples of sources that allow you to easily access all your digital music collection:
* '''On your computer or a [[NAS (Network Attached Storage)]] device/system, which supports [[SMB]] file sharing'''
* '''Stored directly on the hard drive'''
* '''On CDs/DVDs'''
* '''Streamed from the Internet'''
For information on how to configure remote file shares, please click [[Configuring PC Shares|here (link)]]


== Applications to edit music Tags ==
= Adding Music to Library =
Your audio files '''MUST''' have correct audio tags to use the Music Library mode. Without tags you're limited to the fileview in XBMC. There are several tools out there that will allow you to manipulate music ID tags.
*'''Populating the music library is a two step process.'''
**The first step reads the tags embedded in the music files. This is referred  to as '''scanning'''. If there is any embedded artwork, this will also be scanned and cached.
**The second optional step fetches additional artwork, artist and album information. This information and artwork can be downloaded from either online sources or fetched from local nfo files. This is referred to as '''scraping''' and is covered in detail in the next step of the guide.
{{-}}
 
 
== Initial Set Source & Scan ==
<section begin="First Time Music Setup" />
This process achieves the following:
*Sets your music '''source(s)''' in {{Kodi}}. Simply explained, this points {{kodi}} to your music files
*Allows {{kodi}} to '''scan''' the tags in the music files and import that data into the library


*[[Supplemental tools/Linux#Music tools]]
*[[Supplemental tools/Mac OS X#Music tools]]
*[[Supplemental tools/Windows#Music tools]]


== Technical Explanation: File tags ==
<gallery mode="packed" widths="500px" heights="283px">
''Skip this section if you're not interested a technical explanation of this subject. You don't need this information to use what is explained in the previous section.''  
File:Estuary_home_music.png|'''Step 1:''' On the Home menu select '''Music''' from the menu items.
File:Estuary_music_file_browser.png|'''Step 2:''' In the '''Music File Browser''' select '''Add music'''. In some cases you may need to select '''Files''' to access this.
File:Estuary_add_music_source.png|'''Step 3:''' In the '''Add music source''' window select '''Browse'''.  You can also manually add your source by selecting the box with '''<None>''' then typing in your path.  If you chose to do it this way skip to '''Step 5'''
File:Estuary_music_browse_source.png|'''Step 4:''' In the '''Browse for new share''' window, navigate to where your music is stored, select the folder and then select '''OK'''.
File:Estuary_music_name_source.png|'''Step 5:''' You will now be taken back to the '''Add music source''' window. Under '''Enter a name for this media source''' you can optionally name your media source to replace the suggested name. Select '''OK'''
File:MusicScanSource01.jpg|'''Step 6:''' You will now be asked if you wish to add your media source to the library.  If you do, then select '''Yes''', if you do not, then select '''No'''.  By selecting '''No''' you will only have the option of accessing your media though the '''Music file browser'''
File:MusicScanSource02.jpg|'''Step 7:''' Choosing '''Settings''' in the previous step allows fetching additional info, setting up the scrapers and adding the Artist Information Folder if these have not been done yet. For the first scan, leave these disabled.
File:Estuary_music_scanning_library.png|'''Step 8:''' If you selected '''Yes''' in step 6, Kodi will begin scanning your source to the library. Once finished, you can back out to the Main Menu. There is no ability to queue processes so wait until the first scan is finished before adding more sources.
File:Estuary_home_music_library.png|'''Step 9:''' Once your library is scanned you will be able to see & access '''Recently added albums, Random albums, Random Artist & Unplayed albums''' on the Home menu.
</gallery>
<section end="First Time Music Setup" />


<center>{{green|'''At this point you should have a functioning Music Library'''}}</center>


For many categories, such as genres and artists, XBMC supports multiple values in the one field.  By default it uses the character sequence " / " to divide the entry into multiple values.  This divider may be changed via [[advancedsettings.xml]].


=== Artist Tags - Resolving Compilations and Multiple Artists ===
== Adding Additional Music Sources ==
XBMC reads the ''Album Artist'' tag in ID3, Ogg, APE and MP4 tags and uses it if available to assign an artist to the album (independently of the track's artist information).  This is the "Album Artist" tag (in ID3 this is represented by the "TPE2" tag; in vorbiscomment (ogg) files "ALBUMARTIST", "ALBUM ARTIST" and "ENSEMBLE" are all supported). Multiple artists for either a track or album artist can be specified in "Artist1 / Artist2 / Artist3" format.
<gallery widths=500px heights=313px>
File:Music-CategoryList.jpg|To add additional sources to your library, from the Main Menu enter '''Music'''.  Navigate to the to the bottom of the page and select '''Files'''.  Then repeat the steps from '''Step 2''' in the previous section.
</gallery>


If no ''Album Artist'' tag exists, XBMC will use the first (primary) artist from the tracks as the ''Album Artist''.  Essentially we do a string comparison of all the track artists, and assign the common artists as the ''Album artist''. This is generally the TPE1 tag in ID3.


As many users don't yet use the ''Album Artist'' tag, XBMC has an additional filter system for identifying compilation albums, where each track normally has a different artist.  As XBMC scans a folder, it does the following:


# Identifies albums based on ''Album'' name alone in the folder and groups the songs that have the same ''Album'' name together as an album.
== Scan to Library ==
# Runs through each album's assigned songs.  If there is 2 or more tracks with the same ''Track'' number, the group of songs must come from 2 or more albums, so the ''Album'' name is ruled out as a possible compilation.
In step 6 above, you were asked ''Do you want to add the media from this source to your library?''  
# If any of the songs assigned to the ''Album'' name have an ''Album Artist'' tag, then XBMC assumes the user knows what they're doing, and this album is also ruled out from being a compilation.
# If two or more songs assigned to the ''Album'' name then have different primary artists, then the ''Album'' name is considered to be a group of songs from a compilation, and the ''Various Artists''" tag is assigned as the album artist.
# Otherwise, if all the songs have the same primary artist but don't have the same full artist list (eg a song or two has an additional artist) then the album is assigned the primary artist as it's ''Album Artist'', and we assume the additional artists are guest artists.


=== Ratings in ID3 tags ===
Click the below link if you selected '''No''' and would now like to add the music files into the library
Ratings in ID3 tags are read via the POPM field, and (if this doesn't exist) in a custom (TXXX) field named "RATING".  For the RATING field, we accept 1-5 as valid ratings.  For the POPM field things are more complicated, as there is no established standard in place.  We currently most closely respect what Mediamonkey does, and also have some support for what Windows Media Player 11 does.  The POPM tag takes a value from 0..255, with 0 meaning no rating, 1 the worst, and 255 the best.  We currently map these as follows:


{| class="wikitable"
:'''See: [[Update_Music_Library#Scan_Source_to_Library|Scan Source to Library]]'''
|-
|
'''POPM value'''
|
'''Star rating'''
|-
|
0
|
|-
|
1
|
'''*''' This is a special case for Windows Media Player
|-
|
2-8
|
|-
|
9-49
|
'''*'''
|-
|
50-113
|
'''**'''
|-
|
114-167
|
'''***'''
|-
|
168-218
|
'''****'''
|-
|
219-255
|
'''*****'''
|}


== Embedded Album Art ==
XBMC supports embedded album art in files with ID3 tags, WMA tags and MP4 tags only. It does not support embedded album art in APE, Ogg or FLAC tags currently. To have album art for these formats, see the [[Thumbnails]] portion of the manual.


== Album art and thumbnails ==
{{See also|Thumbnails}}
{|
| valign="top" |
There are a number of ways to get thumbnails to display in Music.<br />
Album art can by obtained via [http://www.allmusic.com Allmusic.com] and described in the [[My Music Navigation and Control#The Context Menu|The Context Menu]] section. Music tags can also contain art for that specific song, as can be seen in [[Preparing your Music]].<br />
If you want a custom thumb, you can add a .jpg file to your music directory. The .tbn file can be either a .JPG or a .PNG file (with transparency) that you simply rename the extension from .jpg/.png to .tbn.<br />
The size of the picture can be anything from 64x64 to 256x256 in pixel-size (you may want to use a larger pixel-size if you use XBMC in 720p/1080i HDTV resolution to get a sharper image).<br />


'''Examples:'''<br />
= Troubleshooting =
In this example audiofilename.mp3 will use audiofilename.tbn as thumbnail:
{| width="100%"
Music\path\'''audiofilename.mp3'''
{{FAQ|
Music\path\'''audiofilename.tbn'''
| BGcolor=WhiteSmoke
|
| Question=Library contains random or duplicated entries
[[File:mymusic.jpg|right|500px]]
| Answer= This is a result of errors in tagging.
#Take note of the errors and correct them by following the recommended procedure in the previous step of the guide- Music Files and Tagging
#Once errors are corrected follow the steps detailed in '''Remove A Source'''
#Re-add the source using the '''Initial Set Source & Scan''' procedure detailed above
}}
|}
|}
The same goes for playlists, [[Cue sheets]], SHOUTcast, and [[HOW-TO: Play Internet Streams|internet-stream files]], eg:
Music\path\'''audioplaylistname.m3u'''
Music\path\'''audioplaylistname.tbn'''
Music\path\'''cuelistname.cue'''
Music\path\'''cuelistname.tbn'''
Music\path\'''shoutcastlinkname.pls'''
Music\path\'''shoutcastlinkname.tbn'''
Music\path\'''audiostreamname.strm'''
Music\path\'''audiostreamname.tbn'''


If you store each of your music-albums or artists in a separate subfolder to keep things organized, you can also make the folder have a custom thumbnail image. To do this you need to rename your .jpg thumbnail as folder.jpg and place it in the folder (the size of the picture can be anything from 64x64 to 256x256 in pixel size).<br />


'''Example:'''<br />
Music\path\album\'''folder.jpg'''


Now your album/artist folder will have a lovely custom thumbnail-image.
= Network Sources =
Kodi gives you the ability to listen to music from a variety of sources.
<br />
Some examples of sources that allow you to easily access all your digital music collection:
* On your computer or a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device/system, which supports [[SMB]] file sharing
* Stored directly on the hard drive
* On CDs/DVDs
* Streamed from the Internet
<br />
 
{{Top}}
 
<div style="{{linear-gradient|left|#f5d3ff, #12b2e7}}">{{next|[[Artist_information_folder|Artist Information Folder]]}} </div>


You can via [[advancedsettings.xml]] change the default filename of the image that XBMC uses for music folders. See the [[advancedsettings.xml#<musicthumbs>|<musicthumbs>]] tag. for more information.


[[Category:Music Library]]
{{updated|18}}
[[Category:How-to]]
[[Category:Index]]
[[Category:Guides]]
[[Category:Manual]]
[[Category:Karellen]]
[[Category:First time user]]
[[Category:Music library]]
[[Category:Quick Start Guide]]

Latest revision as of 19:52, 22 February 2023

Steps to create your Music Library
Nuvola apps kscd.png
1. Guide Main Page
2. Music Settings
3. Music File Tagging
4. Scanning Music Into Library
5. Artist information folder
6. Scraping Additional Music data
7. Update Music Library
8. NFO Files
8.1 Music NFO Files
9. Artwork
9.1 Music Artwork
10. Import-export library
10.1 Music Import-Export
11. Backup & Recover
Zappy.png
Home icon grey.png   ▶ Music library ▶ Adding music to the library

Introduction

This page details the following:

  • Adding and removing Sources
  • Scan (import) your music collection into the Music Library.
  • Troubleshooting common problems

A reminder of the following:


Adding Music to Library

  • Populating the music library is a two step process.
    • The first step reads the tags embedded in the music files. This is referred to as scanning. If there is any embedded artwork, this will also be scanned and cached.
    • The second optional step fetches additional artwork, artist and album information. This information and artwork can be downloaded from either online sources or fetched from local nfo files. This is referred to as scraping and is covered in detail in the next step of the guide.



Initial Set Source & Scan

This process achieves the following:

  • Sets your music source(s) in Kodi. Simply explained, this points Kodi to your music files
  • Allows Kodi to scan the tags in the music files and import that data into the library


  • Step 1: On the Home menu select Music from the menu items.

    Step 1: On the Home menu select Music from the menu items.

  • Step 2: In the Music File Browser select Add music. In some cases you may need to select Files to access this.

    Step 2: In the Music File Browser select Add music. In some cases you may need to select Files to access this.

  • Step 3: In the Add music source window select Browse. You can also manually add your source by selecting the box with <None> then typing in your path. If you chose to do it this way skip to Step 5

    Step 3: In the Add music source window select Browse. You can also manually add your source by selecting the box with <None> then typing in your path. If you chose to do it this way skip to Step 5

  • Step 4: In the Browse for new share window, navigate to where your music is stored, select the folder and then select OK.

    Step 4: In the Browse for new share window, navigate to where your music is stored, select the folder and then select OK.

  • Step 5: You will now be taken back to the Add music source window. Under Enter a name for this media source you can optionally name your media source to replace the suggested name. Select OK

    Step 5: You will now be taken back to the Add music source window. Under Enter a name for this media source you can optionally name your media source to replace the suggested name. Select OK

  • Step 6: You will now be asked if you wish to add your media source to the library. If you do, then select Yes, if you do not, then select No. By selecting No you will only have the option of accessing your media though the Music file browser

    Step 6: You will now be asked if you wish to add your media source to the library. If you do, then select Yes, if you do not, then select No. By selecting No you will only have the option of accessing your media though the Music file browser

  • Step 7: Choosing Settings in the previous step allows fetching additional info, setting up the scrapers and adding the Artist Information Folder if these have not been done yet. For the first scan, leave these disabled.

    Step 7: Choosing Settings in the previous step allows fetching additional info, setting up the scrapers and adding the Artist Information Folder if these have not been done yet. For the first scan, leave these disabled.

  • Step 8: If you selected Yes in step 6, Kodi will begin scanning your source to the library. Once finished, you can back out to the Main Menu. There is no ability to queue processes so wait until the first scan is finished before adding more sources.

    Step 8: If you selected Yes in step 6, Kodi will begin scanning your source to the library. Once finished, you can back out to the Main Menu. There is no ability to queue processes so wait until the first scan is finished before adding more sources.

  • Step 9: Once your library is scanned you will be able to see & access Recently added albums, Random albums, Random Artist & Unplayed albums on the Home menu.

    Step 9: Once your library is scanned you will be able to see & access Recently added albums, Random albums, Random Artist & Unplayed albums on the Home menu.


At this point you should have a functioning Music Library


Adding Additional Music Sources

  • To add additional sources to your library, from the Main Menu enter Music. Navigate to the to the bottom of the page and select Files. Then repeat the steps from Step 2 in the previous section.

    To add additional sources to your library, from the Main Menu enter Music. Navigate to the to the bottom of the page and select Files. Then repeat the steps from Step 2 in the previous section.


Scan to Library

In step 6 above, you were asked Do you want to add the media from this source to your library?

Click the below link if you selected No and would now like to add the music files into the library

See: Scan Source to Library


Troubleshooting


Library contains random or duplicated entries

This is a result of errors in tagging.

  1. Take note of the errors and correct them by following the recommended procedure in the previous step of the guide- Music Files and Tagging
  2. Once errors are corrected follow the steps detailed in Remove A Source
  3. Re-add the source using the Initial Set Source & Scan procedure detailed above


Network Sources

Kodi gives you the ability to listen to music from a variety of sources.
Some examples of sources that allow you to easily access all your digital music collection:

  • On your computer or a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device/system, which supports SMB file sharing
  • Stored directly on the hard drive
  • On CDs/DVDs
  • Streamed from the Internet


Return to top


Next step: Artist Information Folder


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