Different album info in Media Centre to Media Player Library

rwbarrett

New Member
Hi
I had a few problems with the album info in Media Player (some tracks werent assigned to the correct album - some albums appeared twice with some tracks in one instance and the rest in another). I have resolved this but I now get different album info in Media Center (some are still split, some album art isnt showing even though it appears correctly in Media Player). Does anyone have any ideas how the info is different (I thought Media Centre read the Media Player Library) and how to fix it?
Thanks
Roger
 

My Computer

Hi
I had a few problems with the album info in Media Player (some tracks werent assigned to the correct album - some albums appeared twice with some tracks in one instance and the rest in another). I have resolved this but I now get different album info in Media Center (some are still split, some album art isnt showing even though it appears correctly in Media Player). Does anyone have any ideas how the info is different (I thought Media Centre read the Media Player Library) and how to fix it?
Thanks
Roger

General technique:
1) Edit the tags in Windows
2) Drag the album to WMP11 to check
3) Fix the tag info in Windows where needed
4) Redrag to WMP11 and check again
5) Repeat 3 and 4 as necessary
6) Open VMC and pray!

Problem 1: Inconsistent/duplicate albums
You didn't mention the file types, but I'll assume they're MP3s. In this case the problems is likely in the tags. Try this procedure:

1) Select all of the tracks of the album inside of Windows
2) Right click and select "Properties", then "Details" to bring up the Tag editor
3) Rename the Album Artist to something different like "a" and hit OK
4) Do this again but this time rename the Album Artist back to the correct name and hit OK

This will clear any inconsistencies in the Album Artist which seem to happen when tags are downloaded from the internet. Remember that tag info is a community thing, their is no quality control.

If the problem remains, try the same process for the Album name.

Problem 2: Album artwork in VMC
This can be really tricky, I have one album that I cannot fix this problem! But try this:

1) Inside of WMP11, right click the first track and select Advanced Tag Editor, then Pictures. Make sure that the picture is correct.
2) If it is not, delete it and Add the correct picture (Amazon.com/music has great album art).
3) If the art is missing on on the tracks, then you should be able to drag the JPG art over the album icon in WMP and it will add it to every track.
4) Try deleting all of the non-music files in the album's folder in Windows. These are hidden so you will need to go into "Folder and Search Options", then "View" and select "Show hidden files and folders" and deselect "Hide protected operating system files".
5) Also, try deleting the Windows Media Center Art Cache while you have hiddne files and folders viewable. They are in one or both of these locations:
C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\Microsoft\ehome\Art Cache
C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Media Player\Art Cache\LocalMLS

Overall, getting your Music library to catalog and display properly is really hard work, but eventually it will work.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Stuid Slim 540s
    CPU
    Core Duo E7200
    Motherboard
    Intel G45
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel G45 Integrated
    Sound Card
    RealTek HD Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony XBR4 46" LCD 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    640 GB & 1TB Samsung Spinpoint
    PSU
    Dell
    Case
    Dell Studio Slim
Thanks for this!! On the split albums I found that on some tracks although the "Artist" was correct, the "Album Artist" was blank. Filling this in sorted the problem out (why Media Player treats the tags differently to Media Center is beyond me though). Clearing the album art cache sorted the missing art problem - a great tip. Thanks very much for the pointers - this has been frustrating me for many months.
 

My Computer

Happy to help out. I started this journey into Vista Media Center a few months ago and it has been quite a learning experience. Everything is a challenge from music to photos to videos to TV, even getting the display working properly on my TV (which I still haven't figured out).
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Stuid Slim 540s
    CPU
    Core Duo E7200
    Motherboard
    Intel G45
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel G45 Integrated
    Sound Card
    RealTek HD Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony XBR4 46" LCD 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    640 GB & 1TB Samsung Spinpoint
    PSU
    Dell
    Case
    Dell Studio Slim
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