iTunes question

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Proformance

Proformance

DJ Extraordinaire
Nov 6, 2006
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Perhaps Steve will have the insight in this question since he's often said he manages music with iTunes and DJs with another software.

Can I use iTunes with an existing music collection on external hard without screwing up access to those same files by other DJ software? I guess what I want to know is: does the iTunes music folder actually have to be named iTunes music or can I simply reference the top of the existing folder tree? Can iTunes work with the existing media management or will it try to update files to a preferred naming structure?
 
I cannot speak for current versions a few years back iTunes copied any files from a directory you pointed it at into the iTunes Music directory by default. There's was a setting to stop iTunes from copying; It would just reference the file's location in its' library metadata.

Basically, if I told iTunes to look in F:\Tunes for music it would copy any music files (MP3, WAV, AAC, etc) into it's own directory which is by default C:\Users\<Username>\Music\iTunes Music\. You could disable that in settings

That doesn't really answer your question but I'm thinking an external drive may be an issue if you start iTunes without the drive attached.
 
From my experience any folder of music can be loaded into itunes. You can also drag files or folders into the program. itunes doesn't change the folder structure you have on your hard drive. But it will use it's own folder structure when ripping CDs in the default setting.

I'm not using the newest version of itunes on any of my PCs though. Try loading files from a thumb drive first?
 
Your music can be anywhere .. You can sort the folders as you wish for the other applications .. you do need to make sure the drive shows up with the same drive letter each time it's attached for iTunes to be able to find the files (since the whole path is saved).

When you import the folders into iTunes, iTunes will build it's own library (normally in your user folder under Music\iTunes\iTunes Media but you can change it in preferences).

The key is to uncheck the box "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" on the same Advanced tab of preferences.
 
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itunes has made multiple copies of songs, often in the same folder. I don't know why...or how to stop it. Seemed to happen either during a rip session or when using an external drive..or maybe it just pulled all the music off all my computers/ipods without checking to see if they're already there.

Or better yet, how to clean it up. I've gone thru and deleted the dupe files but itunes still thinks they're there till I go to play them and of course they won't load.
 
Part of the challenge is that multiple files can have the same name, but have different metadata, so to the system, they look different. Some software will update certain fields (like BPM) and then if you re-import, the file will come in a second time (or 3rd).
 
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steve149 said:
When you import the folders into iTunes, iTunes will build it's own library (normally in your user folder under Music\iTunes\iTunes Media but you can change it in preferences).

The key is to uncheck the box "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" on the same Advanced tab of preferences.
Click to expand...

And therein lies the key if you want to keep your mp3 file structure as you currently have it. Otherwise, I Tunes will create separate folders for every artist.
 
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dunlopj said:
And therein lies the key if you want to keep your mp3 file structure as you currently have it. Otherwise, I Tunes will create separate folders for every artist.
Click to expand...
Yes .. though it leaves the music where it was as well, so it shouldn't hurt other applications .. but it will double the needed disc space.
 
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I also use iTunes for managing and other tools for playback (Serato, Virtual, etc). I have taken it a step further in some aspects - my Library is maintained on an NTFS drive, which Apple (my main performance machine) can read but not write to. I leave all the files in place (no taking of the files internal to iTunes) .. and iTunes builds the index, which nearly all the DJ apps that I use, can read.

Regardless of the iTunes index / database, other apps (like WinAmp, Windows Media Player) also retain access to these files.
 
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steve149 said:
Your music can be anywhere .. You can sort the folders as you wish for the other applications .. you do need to make sure the drive shows up with the same drive letter each time it's attached for iTunes to be able to find the files (since the whole path is saved).

When you import the folders into iTunes, iTunes will build it's own library (normally in your user folder under Music\iTunes\iTunes Media but you can change it in preferences).

The key is to uncheck the box "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" on the same Advanced tab of preferences.
Click to expand...

This is what I'm looking for - to verify that I can simply have an iTunes data file without it trying to copy any of the music files to another location, the same way that the majority of DJ applications work. I'm trying to maximize my backup position and possibilities for accessing the music in various settings.

My drives are assigned fixed late drive letters on each of my own PCs, and are setup to work with at least 4 or 5 different DJ programs with each application's various path/data files stored on each drive. This makes it easy to quickly swap drives, applications, or computers without having to rebuild music databases since each possible path/configuration file is already available.

I want to verify that if I turn off iTunes advanced preferences regarding organizing files and copying files I can avoid having any of my file tags changed, and having copies added to my local iTunes Music folder? Will this setting hold if the iTunes version gets updated or will this be a recurring thing to watch out for?
 
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ittigger said:
I also use iTunes for managing and other tools for playback (Serato, Virtual, etc). I have taken it a step further in some aspects - my Library is maintained on an NTFS drive, which Apple (my main performance machine) can read but not write to. I leave all the files in place (no taking of the files internal to iTunes) .. and iTunes builds the index, which nearly all the DJ apps that I use, can read.

Regardless of the iTunes index / database, other apps (like WinAmp, Windows Media Player) also retain access to these files.
Click to expand...

What advantage is there to reading the iTunes index inside the DJ apps rather than building the native index?
I presume you do that because you are using iTunes as the file manager and tagger? Are there reasons beyond that?

I have backup drives in both FAT32 and NTFS formats - so that certain media can be accessible to a variety of device options.
 
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It won't add the copies (assuming you turn off that feature). As for modifying the file, on my computer, iTunes modifies the metadata tag called "Encoded by" to the current version of iTunes .. It's not iTunes doing it directly, but it must set a registry key for all new files. Doesn't touch the others unless you force it to update the tags (which you can do in the UI).

As for reading the iTunes index vs the native app index, for me it just ends up being consistent across apps. The playlists I create to make it easier to find songs stay the same. Some apps will modify the files themselves (BPM usually), but the file doesn't get changed, so iTunes and anything that reads its index can still work with them.

Comes down to operator preference. Since I use my iPads as hot backup (to give me time to fire up another laptop) the iTunes format works well.
 
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If you change a tag in iTunes does the tag reside in the index or is the file updated automatically?

Do you ever run into issues with iTunes using the net to update tags to a preferred style?
 
If you change it in iTunes, it will change it in the actual file.

iTunes only goes to the net if you ask it to Get Track Names or Get Artwork and when you rip a CD. There is also a manual command (right click on a file) to convert tag formats, but I have never used it.
 
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Pro,

What are you asking I Tunes to do for your music collection?

I only have I Tunes to manage the music on my I Pod Classic.

Other than that, it does nothing else for me.

I use Audiograbber to rip and mp3tag to add album artwork and to ensure the tags to are correct after ripping.

Oh, and I use Rick's good 'ol program RockIt to give me spread sheet lists of my music collection.
 
dunlopj said:
Pro,

What are you asking I Tunes to do for your music collection?

I only have I Tunes to manage the music on my I Pod Classic.

Other than that, it does nothing else for me.

I use Audiograbber to rip and mp3tag to add album artwork and to ensure the tags to are correct after ripping.

Oh, and I use Rick's good 'ol program RockIt to give me spread sheet lists of my music collection.
Click to expand...

My music has been digital for many years. I simply want to be able to access it and hot swap in as many ways as possible.
I can't remember the last time I ripped a CD and have no plans to do so in the future. :)

Thanks to all for your input!
 
Proformance said:
What advantage is there to reading the iTunes index inside the DJ apps rather than building the native index?
I presume you do that because you are using iTunes as the file manager and tagger? Are there reasons beyond that?

I have backup drives in both FAT32 and NTFS formats - so that certain media can be accessible to a variety of device options.
Click to expand...

By using the iTunes index / database across multiple platforms, I have access to the same exact list and don't have to reinvent the wheel for differences between databases.

For me, iTunes is nothing more than the library index / 'playlist' folder. I do not tag in it - for that I use MP3Tag.

I have backup drives as well, which obviously can be read by a variety of devices and platforms.
 
ittigger said:
By using the iTunes index / database across multiple platforms, I have access to the same exact list and don't have to reinvent the wheel for differences between databases.

For me, iTunes is nothing more than the library index / 'playlist' folder. I do not tag in it - for that I use MP3Tag.

I have backup drives as well, which obviously can be read by a variety of devices and platforms.
Click to expand...

Not all of the software I use has iTunes integration, and for versatility in different circumstances I create drive specific index files for each application and store copies both on the PC and externally along with the music for faster configurations.
 
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Ideally, you place your music into your desired directory structure .. use 3rd party tagging, gain management (mp3gain), album cover art, filename consistency tools, etc. to get them where you want them .. then use iTunes to put a wrapper around them.

I find the playlist tools in iTunes to be easier to use than those in other tools ... others may have a different view. iTunes doesn't have great tools for the other pieces, so mp3tag, etc. are needed if you don't want an arduous process. Then the library (can be located in multiple locations and on multiple drives as long as they get mounted) and the playlists, can be used by most applications ... if not, the files are still in a directory structure.

I believe VDJ, Traktor, Serato, Mixxx and PCDJ can read the iTunes library files directly (unfortunately, RockIt could not).
 
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