Classify songs into groups, depending on which device I sync them to?

Get answers about syncing MediaMonkey 4 with iPods and other devices.

Moderator: Gurus

YetAnotherLondonder
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2019 5:10 am

Classify songs into groups, depending on which device I sync them to?

Post by YetAnotherLondonder »

Is there a quick way to flag certain artists or songs so that they are only synced to certain devices? Basically I want to sync only some songs to my phone, and only some others to a USB stick which I then play in my car.

I know that, if you connect the device, you can choose what to sync, but:
  • This requires the device to be connected, whereas ideally I'd like to be able to make the list of what to sync even if the device isn't connected (eg USB stick in the car).
  • This option is linked to the device. Ideally, I'd like to see a way to filter my media library by this, i.e. something like a category, a genre, some criterion by which to filter the library, so that it's straightforward to see what I want to sync where.
  • It shouldn't be typed to the specific device. If I have a "sync to phone" flag / category / group, it should stay valid even if I change phone. On this, does "exporting device options" export the playlist? The resulting file is binary so I can't really tell.
Any thoughts would be most appreciated!

PS I am about to upgrade to Gold.
Lowlander
Posts: 56491
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 5:53 pm
Location: MediaMonkey 5

Re: Classify songs into groups, depending on which device I sync them to?

Post by Lowlander »

Use AutoPlaylists or Collections to create lists of files for a certain use. You then use Criteria to filter what is shown on the AutoPlaylist and can have the AutoPlaylist selected to be synced.

For example you could use Genre to filter between different AutoPlaylists or use the Custom Fields to tag with device1 or device2 to then filter on this.


The Device Profile where you select what should be synced can always be accessed under Tools > Options > Portable Device Sync. The exported Device Profile does not contain the sync selection. This can't be exported or copied to another device. However if you use AutoPlaylists/Collections they'd be available to any device you want to sync to.
YetAnotherLondonder
Posts: 35
Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2019 5:10 am

Re: Classify songs into groups, depending on which device I sync them to?

Post by YetAnotherLondonder »

That's great - you're a star! :D Thanks a lot- I have just bought the gold licence and tried exactly this!

One more question, if I may: if I understand this table correctly (you posted a link to it a while back): https://www.mediamonkey.com/wiki/index. ... erties/4.0

custom fields are not part of the id3 tag standard. So, if I set Custom1 to "phone" and Custom2 to "car", the approach works, but these tags are stored only in the MM database, and not in the id3 tag - is this correct?

What would you recommend if I wanted to save this classification in the tags, too? Set Genre to: "Sync_to_phone" or some other specific word which won't have been chosen for any other file?
Lowlander
Posts: 56491
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 5:53 pm
Location: MediaMonkey 5

Re: Classify songs into groups, depending on which device I sync them to?

Post by Lowlander »

For most file formats the Custom tags are saved to the files themselves too. This means if you take the file to a different MediaMonkey install it will be able to read the Custom tag values. However as it is a non-standard tag most Players won't be able to read this tag. Some tag editors will be able to display it though.

Genre and Classification fields are multi-value fields. This means you could use either for their intended purpose and add your custom values if you choose this route (ie. Genre = Rock; SyncDevice1; SyncDevice3).
Post Reply