Duplicate albums, tagging issues

[rolandarnold]

I’m getting duplicate albums popping up with the tracks dispersed between the two (see photo). What do I need to do to prevent this? I tagged everything in the latest version of iTunes because tagging in AO took too long, and did not solve the problem.

Also, when I make mixes, AO places the music back to their original location rather than all together under one album title.

Audirvana Origin 1.0.5 (10005)

macOS Version 12.4 (Build 21F79) with 32GB physical RAM

Connected account of : RONALD BUCK

SIGNAL PROCESSING:

Polarity Inversion:
	Globally: OFF
	Per track: ON
Effects plugins NOT ACTIVE

UPSAMPLING:
r8brain not in use
r8brain filter parameters
Bandwidth = 99.5%
Stop band attenuation 218dB
Phase linear

AUDIO VOLUME:
Max allowed volume: 100
Replay Gain: None
SW volume control: OFF

LIBRARY SETTINGS:
Sync list: 1 folders
AUTO: /Volumes/PIPER 6/HiResLibrary/iTunes Media/Music
iTunes/Music library synchronization: not synchronized
Library database path: /Users/ronbuck123/Library/Application Support/Audirvana/AudirvanaDatabase.sqlite

Remote Control server:
Listening on 127.0.0.1 on port 51428

=================== AUDIO DEVICE ========================

CoreAudio audio path, buffer I/O frame size: 512

Max. memory for audio buffers: 29696MB
Exclusive access: Enabled
Integer mode: Enabled

Preferred device:
APPLE INC. RON BUCK’S BEATS STUDIO³
Model UID:2009 4c
UID:50-1F-C6-60-91-ED:output

Active Sample Rate: 44.1kHz
Hog Mode is off

Bridge settings:
Sample rate limitation: none
Sample rate switching latency: none
Limit bitdepth to 24bit: OFF
Mute during sample rate change: OFF

Selected device:
Local audio device
ID 0x4a iMac Speakers
Manufacturer: Apple Inc.
Model Name: Apple Inc. iMac Speakers
Model UID: Speaker
UID: BuiltInSpeakerDevice

4 available sample rates up to 96000Hz
44100
48000
88200
96000
Audio buffer frame size : 14 to 4096 frames
Current I/O buffer frame size : 512
Volume Control
Physical: Yes
Virtual: Yes
MQA capability
Auto-detect MQA devices: Yes
Not a MQA device, user set to not MQA
DSD capability: Unhandled
Device audio channels
Preferred stereo channels L:1 R:2
Channel bitmap: Ox3, layout:
Channel 0 mapped to 0
Channel 1 mapped to 1

Audio channels in use
Number of channels: 2
Use as stereo device only: No
Simple stereo device: Yes

1 output streams:
Number of active channels: 2, in 1 stream(s)
Channel #0 :Stream 0 channel 0
Channel #1 :Stream 0 channel 1

Stream ID 0x4b 2 channels starting at 1
4 virtual formats:
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 96kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 88.2kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 48kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 44.1kHz

4 physical formats
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 96kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 88.2kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 48kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 44.1kHz

Local devices found : 1
Device #0: ID 0x4a iMac Speakers Manufacturer: Apple Inc. Model UID: Speaker UID: BuiltInSpeakerDevice Model Name: Apple Inc. iMac Speakers

UPnP devices found : 0

[sandsOfArrakis]

Hmm… How are the tags set when it comes to disc numbers?

If these aren’t set correctly, then you’ll end up with what you are describing.

I’m using JRiver Media Center to do all my tagging.

The same album in JRiver. All the tracks in the album have disc number 1 set. JRiver can set all tracks of an album at once this way. Instead of having to do it for each track seperately.

[philipjohnson]

Hi everyone

I can change the disc/track problem… in Audirvana… it is a nuscience and I can’t figure out why this occasionanly by continually pops up. One day all in place, next AO start and duplicates and disc incorrectly numbered.

I go to the album, select all tracks and either remove any disc references or make then one disc of one.

Sometimes I have to rearrange the track numbers which is track by track which means I have to find the track order from “dust jacket cover” (that’s a fun reference) and then reorder those tracks.

I’d love to be able to open the pdf in an outside of Audirvana program. It’s annoying to want to read the notes but not have access to the tracks at the same time.
I don’t recall having to redo “that album” again.

…

One of my lovely early memories was sitting in my “listening/chair/room” and reading the cover or CD notes. These things… listening and reading accompany each other. Yes, I mostly listen to classical music but every-now-and-then it’s Joni Mitchell’s bio or Duke Ellington I want to read about.

Never Ye’s bio though. Ney, never Ye’s bio.

…

Another weird thing is the pdf disappearing. I have to download the zip/extract/replace pdf.

Ah, the mysteries of our lives make our lives interesting

I often wonder what the hell am I gunna do if I get everything perfectly aligned.

[Pierre168]

rolandarnold I have the same problem.

What I suspect is that this happens when I copy new music to my local MacOS drive while Nirvana Origin is running. Could it be that when Aurivana detects new content it indexes a partial album before all tracks have been copied to the drive; then Nirvana revisits the disk and creates another index entry of the album with the remaining tracks? Disclaimer: this totally a guess. In any case, it would be great to have a “merge” function to fix these duplicates.

[philipjohnson]

Merge is an excellent solution.

It is weird they way these things happen. I can understand on a new installation, but simply adding a new album…? Maybe something to do with the metadata online retrieving info system… I can’t remember what it’s called.

[patifr]

Dear all,
It appears that such an issue pops up when tagging is not correct (Some tracks are pointing to a different album).
But it also appear that in some cases, there are no issue with the tagging and there is no obvious reason leading to create separated albums. In such cases I already encountered at least twice, I tried to remove the tracks that were not put in the right place and copy them again, and “miracle” after another (or two) trials, finally all tracks are merged into only one album.

Maybe the hypothesis raised by Pierre168 is something to look at: file copy performed as the same time as import task by AS.

[philipjohnson]

Well… A couple of times I’ve simply deleted the album in AO or AS. Move the file from the source position. Closed AOoe AS. Reopened. Added file to source position… and still the erroneous data appears.

[o99]

Hi to everyone
AO, AS and already A 3.5 had this issue. It has gotten better with time but never disapeared.
Before you add tracks to your library, tag them with an external app. I use Yate. Be sure that they are taged the way you want it, before you open Audirvana. Updating changed ID3 tags of already added tracks does not work correctly always.
After having synced, control if everything is alright and then make a backup of your new library. This way you always have a correct version of your library to go back to, if something happens.

[philipjohnson]

I know. But my excitement getting a new album is always eclipsed by administrative tasks.

I am always discovering these glitches days after the acquisition of a new file and then I have to remember to back up (to my three (yes three) external BU discs. It’s a nightmare and I want to see an easy fix. (Apart from gaining patience.)

[o99]

Patience is a good virtue
There are so many threads of frustrated users about this problem.
It seems to be very difficult to solve it.

[philipjohnson]

Philosophically we might look at the need for us (mere) human’s neediness for control. When things go wrong, out of our domain, we panic (I frequently panic and worry) for fear of loss… loss of control over our precious and fragile life/world. A mere 80 to 100 years and poof… nothingness.

[dteh]

I too was having duplicate albums and duplicate titles even if they are different files and the tagging is correct. Once I deleted the “.cue” files in the album, the library refreshed and the duplicate tracks are all fixed. Perhaps a clue for the devs as well.

[Yohmi]

I also experienced it recently when I installed Audirvana Origin on another computer, and plugged an external drive which contains the exact copy of my main computer’s music library (managed by iTunes and played through Audirvana). I don’t have any duplication issues on my main computer, but on the new one, it’s basically unusable like in the picture of the original post.

I don’t know why nor what to do, but I suppose it has something to do with the fact the music isn’t always accessible for Audirvana, and maybe when it comes back when I plug the drive, instead of just reviving exisiting links, Audirvana creates new entries in the DB instead.
There aren’t any .cue files on my music folder, and the tagging is, as far as I know, perfectly fine (at least iTunes and Audirvana Studio / Origin on the main computer are fine with it).

[jlm70]

I have the same exact problem…
Latest Audirvana Studio with Mac Studio Ultra / Ventura.
I’m ripping all my historical SACD library with an Oppo-105 (great) and saving DSF files in a folder structure like this:

• Artist-Album name / 6ch / all the multichannel tracks (no cue files)
  … / Stereo / all the stereo tracks (no cue files)

I’ve the same irrational fragmented situation with one album with 80% of tracks (stereo and multichannel) and another album with 20%… completely randomic.
One album is 80/20%, another is 95/5%, another is correct.
Tags I’m sure are correct.

PLEASE AUDIRVANA listen to us, people paying licenses, and help us to solve this damn problem!! I could even accept to manually move files between albums, to correct the errors, but it is not possible.
Probably the best action now is creating a “consistency check” procedure that merges duplicated albums and deletes duplicated tracks…

I’m losing a LOT of TIME… and it’s not nice, for such an important program like Audirvana is… (and so bad to see these problems are so old and still not resolved)

[RunHomeSlow]

Have you tried to just put the same cover on the two mixed same album title with info panel, even if they look the same.

Take one same title, put info panel, replace cover that reside in the album folder, save. Replace the other faulty or separate same album with the same cover residing in the same first album, save.

What happen?

[jlm70]

Thanks for the reply!
I tried… using mp3tag I copied the cover (inside the file, not as an external jpg) from the first track to all the others. For some album… it solved! For some others… not (still I get 2-3 albums with tracks fragmented across them with no apparent reason).

This situation is really strange… Even because the cover I used in the DSF files were always coming from the same single downloaded jpg, copied In file as a metadata and then deleted.

Even looking at the many people having similar problems… I believe Audirvana friends should take this issue seriously and try to definitely solve it… Even because, we know since the “Spotify success”, that your well organised playlists are the real value of YOUR music…
If I cannot solve this mess… easily - yet with sadness - I’ll consider moving to Roon Having a “deterministic” indexing is critical… It is our very owned and curated library (vs the streaming giants out there…)

[bigbirdwpg]

I have the same problem with Origin. Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, for example, has 1 song per album, whether I choose artist or album. Never used to do this. Tried install 3.51 and importing my 3000+ songs (iTunes), same mess. Very annoying to the point that I might stop using this app altogether. BTW I am on Windows 11 Pro.
Oops, Problem was caused by iTunes, Automatically Add. These were FLAC files that were not added, iTunes breaks them up into separate audio files with Album Name. I just copied the flac and dsf files into the Itunes Music folder, reimported into Audirvana - now displays properly, mostly.

[Undertone]

What is the underlying cause of duplicate listings of the same tracks? Like user jlm70, I rip my SACDs to DSF files and tag the DSF files with mp3tag. I do the same with ripped CDs and downloaded hi-res AIFF files. I then copy the tagged files, one album to a folder, onto three SSDs that are USB cabled directly to my Mac Mini. The copying of albums is done while AO is not running. I never add an album when Origin is running.

Is the problem of duplicate listings, or the separating of some tracks into two listed albums, occurring at the first sync of an album? Is the problem caused by the folder structure I use on my SSDs? Is there a limitation to the number of albums that can be accurately held in Origin’s database? I run the maintenance procedures regularly.

It seems difficult to believe that the database is corrupted. Relatively few of the hundreds of albums in my library display with false duplication or album-splitting. What is frustrating is the apparent randomness of the problem, though I feel that it must have definite underlying causes.

I’ve read in many similar threads the advice to back up our smart playlists, delete the library file and start over. But if there were a problem or error in the tagging of albums, then it should be expected that after re-syncing, duplicate listings would reappear. But they do not reappear. My own workaround for problem albums suggests the fault is not in the (offline mp3tag) tagging, but in the Origin sync process.

WORKAROUND
Exit Origin, send the ‘problem’ album to Mac Mini trash, empty the trash.
Restart Origin and display the album. Select and delete the album.
Go to Origin, Settings, Library and delete the ‘ghost’ tracks. Exit Origin.
Offline, copy the ‘problem’ album back onto one of my library SSDs.
Restart Origin, resync.

The ‘problem’ album now displays WITHOUT duplication of tracks.

I have run the above steps on ripped CDs, on purchased, downloaded hi-res albums, and even on a few ripped SACDs. When the album is resynced into the Origin database, it displays without false duplicates.

Developers: I repeat the request of many other users for you to solve this problem. If there are limitations to how many albums Origin’s database can manage, or if the diversity of file types and resolutions is a problem, be honest with us about those limitations.

If there are recommendations to PREVENT the appearance of false duplicates, please share that information. In the many threads on this problem, dating back years, I have only seen recommendations to trash the library file and start over.

Below is a screenshot showing an album with false duplicates, followed by the dump data from my system.

Audirvana Origin 2.5.19 (20520)

macOS 15.1.1 x86_64 with 64GB physical RAM

Connected account of : [Undertone]

NETWORK
Status: available
Local network access: allowed

SIGNAL PROCESSING:

Polarity Inversion:
Globally: OFF
Per track: ON
Effects plugins NOT ACTIVE

UPSAMPLING:
SoX to DSD256 with filter type B 7th order
SoX filter parameters
Bandwidth at 0dB = 98%
Filter max length = 16000
Anti-aliasing = 100
Phase = 100%

AUDIO VOLUME:
Max allowed volume: 100
Replay Gain: None
SW volume control: OFF

LIBRARY SETTINGS:
Sync list: 3 folders
AUTO: /Volumes/2TB PCM/
AUTO: /Volumes/4TB HI-RES DSD/
AUTO: /Volumes/Music DSD/
iTunes/Music library synchronization: not synchronized
Sort and display order: en_US
Library database path: /Users/[Undertone]/Library/Application Support/Audirvana/AudirvanaDatabase.sqlite

Remote Control server:
Listening on on port 49181

APPEARANCE SETTINGS:
UI theme: dark
Font size: regular
Language: System language
Show album covers in tracks list: yes
Source list sorted:
My Music
Library
Startup view: My Music: Albums
Show local extended in source list: yes
Use media keys: yes
Use media keys for volume control: yes
Use Apple Remote: yes
Number of paired remotes: 1
Remote pairing code required: yes
Screen saver disabled: no

=================== AUDIO DEVICE ========================

Active method: Local

Max. memory for audio buffers: 12230MB

Local Audio Engine: CoreAudio
Exclusive access: ON
Integer mode: ON
Use max I/O buffer size: ON
Actual I/O buffer frame size: 512

Preferred device:
GSD Audio Interface GUSTARD USB AUDIO
Model UID:GUSTARD USB AUDIO:292B:C4B3
UID:AppleUSBAudioEngine:GSD Audio Interface:GUSTARD USB AUDIO:14600000:1

Active Sample Rate: 44.1kHz
Hog Mode is off

Bridge settings:
Sample rate limitation: none
Sample rate switching latency: none
Limit bitdepth to 24bit: OFF
Mute during sample rate change: OFF

Selected device:Mac mini Speakers
Manufacturer: Apple Inc.
Model name: Apple Inc. Mac mini Speakers
Model UID: Speaker
UID: BuiltInSpeakerDevice
ID 0x5b

4 available sample rates up to 96000Hz
44100
48000
88200
96000
Audio buffer frame size : 14 to 4096 frames
Current I/O buffer frame size : 512

Volume Control
Physical: Yes
Virtual: Yes
Max volume alert: Enabled

MQA capability
Auto-detect MQA devices: No
Not automatically detected, user set to not MQA

DSD capability
Unhandled (PCM conversion) with boost gain of 0dB

Device audio channels
Preferred stereo channels L:1 R:2
Channel bitmap: Ox3, layout:
Channel 0 mapped to 0
Channel 1 mapped to 1

Audio channels in use
Number of channels: 2
Use as stereo device only: No
Simple stereo device: Yes

1 output streams:
Number of active channels: 2, in 1 stream(s)
Channel #0 :Stream 0 channel 0
Channel #1 :Stream 0 channel 1

Stream ID 0x5c 2 channels starting at 1
4 virtual formats:
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 96kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 88.2kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 48kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 44.1kHz

4 physical formats
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 96kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 88.2kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 48kHz
2 ch Mixable linear PCM Interleaved 32 little endian Signed Float 44.1kHz

Local devices found : 2
Device #0: ID 0x61 SAMSUNG
Manufacturer: Apple Inc.
Model UID: AppleGFXHDA:0
UID: AppleGFXHDAEngineOutputDP:f803:0:{2D4C-0A75-00000000}
Model name: Apple Inc. SAMSUNG
Device #1: ID 0x5b Mac mini Speakers
Manufacturer: Apple Inc.
Model UID: Speaker
UID: BuiltInSpeakerDevice
Model name: Apple Inc. Mac mini Speakers

UPnP

UPnP network interface
Available Network interfaces:
Wi-Fi

UPnP devices found : 0
Chromecast
Chromecast devices found : 0