ID3 tags won't convert!

I just learned that you can convert ID3 tags to Unicode right in iTunes. I used to use Unicode Rewriter, but now I can't convert them in either - it just stays the same! I don't know what's different in my computer now, but I did a complete system restore from my recovery partition since then! Please help! Thanks in advance.

version 7.5
and yes, I did verify/repair permissions with the utility disc.
Should I not have?

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ID3 Tags won't write to file

I recently received a disc from a friend, the disc had 16 songs on it, with no ID3 Tag info. I went through and added the missing info manually using the "Get Info" option from the file in iTunes & hit OK, but when I was done, the files look complete in iTunes, but the original file copied to the hard drive was unchanged. When I used iTunes 10, it used to rewrite the ID tags for the file on my hard drive with the changed info via iTunes. I double checked to make sure that I "Let iTunes Organize" my files and folders. I've looked through threads, googled, etc, and I have NO clue what to do, or even if I did something. Help!
On a side note, where is the "Power Search" in the iTunes Store? That seems to be a never ending question floating around the threads as well.

i'd normally think about access permissions as iTunes will fail silently if it can't write out the updated tag however the fact that Winamp can manage it suggests another problem.
It may be that the files have multiple tags. It used to be common to add both a v1.x & v2.x tag and in theory multiple tags can be used to support different languages. iTunes likes a single tag and may silently fail when it tries to write the data back to the track, thus doing nothing without reporting an error. Next time you access the file the library will update to reflect the true values in the tag. For what it's worth I believe it's recommended to use ID3v2.3 tags with iTunes.
MP3Validator may be all you need, but if not try using the iTunes option *Convert ID3 Tags... > None* say 3 times in a row, then *Convert ID3 Tags... > v2.3* to see if that creates a situation in which your edits can hold.
tt2

ID3 tags won't save

I've noticed that a few songs that I've imported have incorrect ID3 tags, so I go to "Get Info" to fix them. When I click OK, everything looks good, but as soon as I play the file it goes back to the original tag. I've tried changing the tag and sorting options and made everything the same, but nothing seems to work. Once I open the file in Winamp and edit the tag there, iTunes recognizes the new tag, but I am unable to directly edit AND save the tags through iTunes.
For example:
I try to change the tag from "Original artist name - original track title" to
"Artist - Title"
Clicking OK makes it look right, but as soon as I double click the song to play it, it goes right back to "Original artist name - original track title".
This isn't the case with every file, though; some can be edited with no problems. I've made sure the non-working files have been converted to ID3v2.2. None of the files are stored in my iTunes Music folder, and none are DRM protected.

i'd normally think about access permissions as iTunes will fail silently if it can't write out the updated tag however the fact that Winamp can manage it suggests another problem.
It may be that the files have multiple tags. It used to be common to add both a v1.x & v2.x tag and in theory multiple tags can be used to support different languages. iTunes likes a single tag and may silently fail when it tries to write the data back to the track, thus doing nothing without reporting an error. Next time you access the file the library will update to reflect the true values in the tag. For what it's worth I believe it's recommended to use ID3v2.3 tags with iTunes.
MP3Validator may be all you need, but if not try using the iTunes option *Convert ID3 Tags... > None* say 3 times in a row, then *Convert ID3 Tags... > v2.3* to see if that creates a situation in which your edits can hold.
tt2

ID3 tags won't change...

Hi everyone,
i've a problem with my mp3 tags, i'm trying to organize my library trough updating the ID3 tags but it won't work.
For example, I've 2 artists: ACDC and AC/DC, when I change the info artist into ACDC, it won't change anything and i'll still have both names aperaing.
Worse, on some compilation, in my iphone, the album nam will appear as many times as there is songs... if I've 20 songs in an album called "Compilation 1" for example, the album "Compilation 1" will appear 20 times in my iphone list...
any idea?
thanks

cedricsh wrote:
However, they are not on my computer's hard drive but on an ethernet connected external drive, do you think it could be the problem ?
seems very likely to me. - but I've never tried that. That's worth a seperate topic here, perhaps someone who's used one could reply, Barring that, See below (for a way to test)
cedricsh wrote:
I've already tried some of your , my last chance will be to reinstal iTunes, however, will all of my library be lost (i mean, will i have to re-upload all the songs ?, i've over 8000 songs so it's pretty long).
No removing the program won't do anything to your music. After you reinstall itunes first try copying a few songs to default location on your internal HD, and see if problem still exists (make sure iTunes is pointed to it) THEN reestablish the external,
PS: I forgot to ask Does your iTunes Prefs > Advanced Tab show the correct path to your media folder? Do you have the "Copy files to Media Folder when adding... " checked?
Warning: I don't know about iTunes Match: but I would definitely turn off all Automatic updating (everywhere iTunes, iPhone etc ) while you're messing with this.

ID3 tags won't upd

I have a Zen Micro and organise the downloads via WM0 because I find it easier to use than Creative's MediaSource software. This is generally fine but I've noticed that, even if I delete a track from the player, edit the tag info in WM0's Library feature and then download it again, the Zen Micro display often shows the old tag information. This is particularly annoying if I've sourced a track via a compilation (e.g. 'Sega Mega-Funk 2' or some such inanity) or if the artist is listed differently across two sources - e.g. 'Grandmaster Flash' and 'Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Fi've'. Has anyone got a solution to this problem?
Thanks
Joel

Strange. I can think of a couple of reasons why it might do this () the changes aren't being saved back into the file in the right way, so try a 3rd party tagging program instead of WMP0 and see if it works (2) the Zen's library is somehow remembering the data, but this seems very odd and I doubt it.

ID3 Tags - Won't remember new info

I looked around and couldn't find any posts about this topic.
When I edit tags in iTunes 7.0 and 7.0.1, the information is not remembered.
I have spent time changing tags. Then I drop the original file back in iTunes and all my work is gone. The old info is still there and none of my changes are saved. All was fine in iTunes 6.
Any ideas?

I suspect that you have iTunes set to "copy files when importing".
You import the the files into iTunes, and iTunes makes a copy of them in whatever directory you have specified. When you edit the tags it edits the file in the directory you have specified as the iTunes music directory. Then when you copy in your original file again it overwrites the one in your music library.

Is there a reason why my ID3 tags won't update in the artist view in the music app?

I've never had a problem with messing with them manually in itunes before until iOS 5. For example, I don't like to see an artist repeated in the artist list, so I go through and edit all the songs at one to make sure that artist appears only once. I've tried doing it with the new OS but nothing updates. It's even gone so far as to completely omit any new artists that I have added. Anyone else experiencing anything like this?

Any other reason why this it's still under headphone mode?
I'm pretty sure the fact that it was in the washer is the problem. Just because you 'dried' it in the sun doesn't mean it wasn't permanenlty damaged. Try putting it in a bag of rice for 5-7 days. If it still doesn't work, it's probably permanent.

My iTunes library and metadata/ID3 tags issue

Since 2010, iTunes is the only media player I use to play music. My library consists of music purchased from the iTunes Store, CD rips and stuff many artists these days release as freebies on the internet to promote a new album. Also, M4A and MP3 are the only formats I use so far.
Since iTunes, I really got into editing my library's metadata tags by hand, in order to create a custom archive which serves my preferences best. I should mention that besides iTunes being the only software I use to play my music library, it's also the only software I use to edit their metadata. Also, before iTunes – when my library was on different media players – I never bothered with editing them.
A few days ago, I found how a lot of people in forums complain about the way iTunes edits and stores metadata. So, I experimented and moved a few of my songs to other media players after editing their tags within iTunes. And indeed the tags and/or artwork were often displayed messed up and/or incorrect, some times partially and some times completely.
Some people were referring to the version of the ID3 tags being the issue, while others suggested using the "convert ID3 tags" feature. I myself am a little bit confused. "Converting the ID3 tags" wasn't available for my M4A files and once I performed it for my MP3's I didn't know which setting I should apply or what version to choose. I chose one version randomly but I'm not sure what happened.
My goal is to make my music library able to play and display my custom metadata on the majority of the popular media players. I hope that firstly this is possible and that secondly it won't be a solution which requires me going through every single song individually.
I really hope that all those years work on my library wasn't for nothing.
I'm using a MacBook running Snow Leopard 10.6.8 and my iTunes version is 10.7
While my music library is more important that my iTunes version, I do like iTunes 10 more than 11.
I apologize for any grammar mistakes, since English is not my first language. Thank you all for your time and any suggestion is welcome.

itsjamesd wrote:
Hello turingtest2 and thank you for your reply.
In response to "a possible cause of problems is multiple embedded tags", what exactly does that mean and how can I avoid doing it in the future?
Anything ripped with iTunes should get a single tag. If multiple tags in some of your older mp3 rips are the cause of the problems when you try to access the files elsewhere then you should apply the suggested remedy selectively, not to the whole library indiscriminately. Once fixed you shouldn't have the problem again unless you use different ripping software. If so check the options to ensure you generate a single ID3v2.3 tag. Downloads from elsewhere are pot luck.
If I use Convert ID3 Tags>None before converting to v2.3 as you suggested, how many times is "several times" and why do I have to do it more than once? Also, what are your thoughts on 'v2.3 vs. v2.4'?
Several is at least two, but more could be needed if a file has both v1 and v2 tags in multiple languages. If there are two tags, the first conversion to none should remove the first one, and the second conversion the second. Experiment, And stick to v2.3.
In response to "the process removes any embedded art but otherwise preserves the data that iTunes knows". All fields excluding cover art remain the same? Does that mean that I will have to start from scratch and apply new cover art individually for each album? That would be too time consuming given the fact that I embed custom art.
Yes, everything but artwork is held in the iTunes database and is restored with the final Convert ID3 Tags... v2.3. Use Doug's scripts SaveAlbumArtJpeg before you start and RestoreArtworkFromAlbumFolder afterwards to save and the restore your existing artwork.
Also, what happens with my M4A files' metadata? ID3 tags are only used for MP3's, right?
Yes, m4a/aac files have a different tag mechanism. Multiple ID3 tags is just one possible issue that you might have. You said:
So, I experimented and moved a few of my songs to other media players after editing their tags within iTunes. And indeed the tags and/or artwork were often displayed messed up and/or incorrect, some times partially and some times completely.
It might be worth going into some more detail about exactly what differences you noticed. iTunes can automatically associate (instead of embedding) artwork when it can match the album in the store which could be why some tracks didn't get artwork.
tt2

Itunes doesn`t read half of my id3 tags

Hi,
I am stuck with a problem with itunes.
In the music library, itunes only writes half of my tracks with the id3 tags. All of my songs are mp3s. Every single id3 tag of all my songs gets recognized in winamp, wmp, or in the windows file browser.
But Itunes doesn`t!!!! Even if I click on the songfile, and go on information, it shows my art cover, but not the id3 tag!!
About 6 months ago when I installed itunes, all my tracks did get recognized, but after (i guess) 2 months, half of my songs were unwritten.
I did several updates since then, but no changes.
Now with the new Version 7, I even deleted the database who stores all the information, created a new music library, still doesn`t recognize it.
Winamp - new library - recognizes every single id3 tag.
Any Ideas??
Would need to update my ipod, but i don`t want to plug it in now, as it probably would **** up my library on the ipod.
If someone wants I can send you a mp3 file, which doesn`t get recognized, I just can`t find anything.
Thanks
Mario

It could be that the tags are corrupt or do not strictly follow the ID3 standard.
You might try an ID3 tag editor and convert the tags to an newer ID3 version. Maybe that'll fix any tag problems.

ITunes doesn't update Title in ID3 tags

So, I've searched through this forum and found several problems that are similar to mine...but not 100% the same. When trying the new game Audiosurf, I found that it didn't recognize a few songs--it said that the title was "Unknown". Well, I know that all of my songs have titles in iTunes, so I did some investigating. It turns out that for a small percentage of my library, the Title in the ID3 tag is not complete--although the Album, Artist, Genre, etc. tags are! I'm verifying this using a 3rd party ID3 tag viewer, and even can see this by right-clicking the file in Windows Explorer and looking at the advanced summary.
So I've tried several things within iTunes to get the ID3 tag to be written, including setting the files to have no ID3 tag (via the "Convert ID3 Tags..." dialog, as suggested in this forum) and then bringing them back. The tag is correctly removed, but when I restore the tag the Title is still left blank. Many of the files have "Unknown" as the encoder, but I have several that are either "Unknown" but have a title, or are iTunes encoded but don't have a title.
The "easiest" thing that works for me is to modify the song title and then modify it back. This will finally create the Title field in the ID3 tag. So...does anyone know a faster way to do this? Some way to select these songs and force iTunes to update the ID3 tags (besides changing the tag type, which I have already tried)? I fear there is no easy way...I have some ideas with my ID3 tag program I downloaded, but I'd much rather do it in iTunes.
Thanks!

This may not help with whatever you did in Terminal but it may help with trying to update to 5.1.
System Preferences>Network, select your network (ethernet or wifi on the left) and click on the Advanced button and then the DNS tab. On the left, under DNS servers, click the + sign and type 8.8.8.8 click the + again and type 8.8.4.4 and save your settings. See if iTunes will now let you update.
If that fails you could try updating over wifi not using iTunes. These are the instructions for an iPod touch (I guess it'll be similar for the iPhone/iPad). Settings>General>Software Update.

ITunes won't read ID3 tags that Windows sees

I recently switched my library over from a Mac laptop to a PC desktop. I have about 70 GB of perfectly organized music accumulated over years and years.
In the process, after I loaded some songs into iTunes (using the Keep My iTunes Folder Organized and all that stuff), I noticed that about 10 GB of music were without titles, artists, or album info, and just displayed the name of the MP3 file (so like instead of displaying 15 Step by Radiohead from In Rainbows, Track 1 it displayed "01 15 Step" in the Title column only).
The problem is that when I navigate to these songs in Windows Explorer, not only do I see all of the correct ID3 information, I see the extras like Album Art have loaded perfectly as well. I can play these songs in Windows Media Player and the ID3 info is perfect.
Does anyone know why iTunes won't read these ID3 tags or how to get iTunes to read them?

I am also having the same problem with about 200 of my MP3s. The tag info shows up perfectly using QuickLook on Leopard, but in iTunes I can't see any of the info. I have tried converting the ID3 tag version, revesing the unicode....nothing.
Have you had any luck?

"Converting ID3 Tags" Option disappeared? iTunes 8.0.2

Hey everyone!
I'm right now struggling to get my iPod to work again, and I have so many problems, but I think converting ID3 tags would help.
But then the option of "Converting ID3 tags" seemed to have disappeared.
It's not in the Advanced tab, nor is it in the right-click menu.
I need help asap, since my iPod is already acting crazy by not being able to download all of my files in once sync.
Thanks a bunch guys!

It's still there. (iTunes 8.0.2)
In the right-click option menue.
Just select the song(s) in iTunes library view.

Convert ID3 Tags

I've got a problem with ID3 tags. As far as i've been using iPod there was no such problem, but now my iPod is broken and i'm using nokia e50 smartpohone instead. The phone doesn't support ID3v2.4 so I had to downgrade all my tags to v2.3
But in some cases (later i've found those "cases" were encoded with iTunes) no conversion is possible.
my question is: how to enable the "Convert ID3 Tags" for iTunes encoded files? or if it's impossible what should I do to convert tags without using iTunes
Windows XP Pro

If you're up to it, the following should work.
Download and install foobar2000 if you don't already use it. Add the unprotected AAC files to the main playlist window. Select them all, right-click, and choose Tagging > Rewrite File Tags.
Note: At this point, you may need to remove the same files from your iTunes library and add them back again if you will be transferring the files directly from iTunes to your phone. Otherwise, moving the files from their default location to your phone should work just fine.

Converting ID3 tags: v2 to v1 then back to v2?

I converted a lot of my ID3 tags to ver. 1 so they would display properly on my CD player in the car. Can these be set back to ver. 2 again with losing anything. Please don't tell me I have to reimport the CD's again.....

If the version 1.x tags shortened any of the data fields stored in the original files, then that information will still be gone when you convert your tags back to version 2.x (2.3 recommended).
Unfortunately, iTunes isn't a player that encodes MP3s with both version 1.x and 2.x tags (at the same time), so it's best in a situation like this to make copies of the MP3 files you want to edit, and revert back to your original files after burning MP3 CDs, etc.
In the worst case, you shouldn't need to reimport your CDs; you may just have to add some missing information back into your tags once they're converted back to version 2.x.

ITunes 6.0.4 Lossless to MP3 Convert Bad ID3 Tag Bug (Intel Only?)

Hello all,
I usually rip my CDs to Apple Lossless, name it the way I want, include Album Artwork, then switch rip preference to MP3 (224kbps), highlight the lossless files and choose "Convert Selection to MP3" in the Advanced menu. I do this to save the time of having to rip things twice.
Up through 6.0.3 it created proper ID3 tags with the album artwork just fine, but upgrading to 6.0.4 (Intel - I haven't verified this with my G4 Powerbook running 6.0.4) I do my usual process, the information is in the iTunes window, matching the Lossless files, but as soon as I delete the items from iTunes (but not the files themselves) and drag the MP3 files back to iTunes, the tracks show up in iTunes without ANY of the ID3 info, but WITH the album artwork.
The name lists the filename in the Song Name field as if there weren't any ID3 info.
The reason this came up is I rip to one drive, but keep the MP3s on another drive.
Anyone else out there with this problem/can verify this problem?
Thanks!
John V
Intel iMac 20" Mac OS X (10.4.5) 2GB RAM 10.4.5

There have been a lot of recent posts about tags not being updated properly in iTunes, and I am starting to think that it's a bug.
In your case, you might want to consider using Max to rip and encode. You can configure the application to rip your CDs and encode to multiple formats at once, using any of the iTunes encoders plus about twenty others, including LAME MP3. The tag information will remain intact, and the output files can be directly added to your iTunes library if desired.
Also, you may want to try Max's file encoding function for Apple Lossless files you already have stored on your HDD. You can batch encode them to MP3, keeping the tags and album art.

ID3 tags won't convert!

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