Skip to main content ↑ ↓

Notice

Please note that most of the software linked on this forum is likely to be safe to use. If you are unsure, feel free to ask in the relevant topics, or send a private message to an administrator or moderator. To help curb the problems of false positives, or in the event that you do find actual malware, you can contribute through the article linked here.
Topic: Using foobar2000 in 2021 (Read 3321 times) previous topic - next topic
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Using foobar2000 in 2021

I'm new to foobar2000 and am trying to figure out which components to install. I'd like to be able to efficiently navigate to an album or song. I'd also like to be able to view album art, lyrics, and song ratings. Which components would you recommend?

I looked up ColumnsUI, and its seems that if I install this component, then all my other components would need to be ColumnsUI-compatible. Is this correct?

Since ColumnsUI hasn't been updated in a while, would you still recommend ColumnsUI? Anyone know if it's been abandoned? Are there any alternatives that you'd recommend?

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #1 –
Are two kind of users:
_the ones that use ColumnsUI
and
_the ones that prefer the DefaultUI

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #3 –
Hi.  This is just a suggestion, but you might want to try TT's excellent Georgia ReBORN theme which includes everything you need to find and play music.  It uses CUI but if you install it according to his instructions everything is set up for you automatically.  I recommend using a portable install.  Just create a folder on the desired drive, then specify portable when installing Foobar2000 and point it to your folder.  You can find everything you need to know about Georgia ReBORN at https://hydrogenaud.io/index.php?topic=121047.0

Be sure to install the required fonts as mentioned in the instructions.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #4 –
Quote from: dwmartin0906 on
Hi.  This is just a suggestion, but you might want to try TT's excellent Georgia ReBORN theme which includes everything you need to find and play music.  It uses CUI but if you install it according to his instructions everything is set up for you automatically.  I recommend using a portable install.  Just create a folder on the desired drive, then specify portable when installing Foobar2000 and point it to your folder.  You can find everything you need to know about Georgia ReBORN at https://hydrogenaud.io/index.php?topic=121047.0

Be sure to install the required fonts as mentioned in the instructions.

Thanks!! It took me a couple of attempts to get it installed correctly...but now it's done.  :)

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #5 –
I'm glad you like it.  You might want to check out kbuffington's site on the original Georgia theme for some additional info, particularly on using cd art and the image packs.  The site is https://kbuffington.github.io/Georgia/. 

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #6 –
Quote from: Fabcore on
_the ones that prefer the DefaultUI

I don't prefer the DUI, however I find themes restrictive. My usage keeps evolving as Foobar has and I find the DUI is easy to extend. Most themes, not so much. I've often thought about developing my own CUI theme, but I always find it involves some compromises when compared to the DUI. Yes, the CUI is pretty, but other than that, is there really any other advantage?

So, I often wonder if CUI adopters really appreciate everything Foobar2000 can do? I guess I'm advocating for the DUI here. Maybe it's a better starting point for new users?
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?  ;~)

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #7 –
In my way of approaching the irreplaceable foobar2000, CUI has wonderful and visually pleasing themes for playing audio and video files (when configured for this).

However, when the focus is on file organization - which is my case - DUI is unbeatable and makes foobar2000 the best file organizer in the world. And, of course, it's also an audio and video file player (with the right components) as well.

So, I think that between CUI and DUI there must be a choice between having an attractive or functional player.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #8 –
^ Agreed... (with last two posts)

Quote from: tigershark on
I'd also like to be able to view album art, lyrics, and song ratings. Which components would you recommend?
I assume you are the one who asked on reddit, but in case not, here is my answer over there. (And for people living in the future who might browse this topic)

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #9 –
DUI vs CUI in my opinion is just personal preference. Both are great.
As a long time foobar2000 user I'm still using DUI and I won't be changing that.

Quote from: Adil on
However, when the focus is on file organization - which is my case - DUI is unbeatable and makes foobar2000 the best file organizer in the world.

Agreed.
Somewhere, there's someone dying in a foreign land
Meanwhile, the world is crying stupidity of man
Tell me why, tell me why

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #10 –
Quote from: tigershark on
I looked up ColumnsUI, and its seems that if I install this component, then all my other components would need to be ColumnsUI-compatible. Is this correct?

In the layout, yes. You can have anything installed, but it has to be made for CUI (or both) to be placed in the main window layout.

Interestingly you can create an entire DUI layout in a CUI or DUI pop-up window that can hide off-screen, or be shown with a button click - foo_flowin

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #11 –
This may be slightly off topic, but since anamorphic mentioned it I wanted to mention a few things about ohyeah's foo_flowin.  One benefit is that its popup windows don't impact Foobar's startup time unless you have them set to show on startup.  My startup time went from 15-20 seconds to less than 2 seconds after converting all my various tabs and panels to popup panels.

Using foo_flowin can also make themes such as Georgia and Georgia-ReBORN less restrictive.  In just a couple of minutes I added panels for Facets and MPV to Georgia-ReBORN.  If you want to use buttons to activate your popups and have no other place to add them, you can even add a popup for the DUI toolbar header.

The only minor drawback I have seen is that the popup windows are independent of the Foobar window and don't resize with it.  If minimizing Foobar to the taskbar, you need to manually close any open popup windows, although you can add a Hide All button to close all open popups.  Also, all popup windows default to 'Show at Startup' when created.  You may want to disable this in most cases.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #12 –
I spent a day trying out different layouts and components and am getting close to a setup that I like. Thanks so much to everyone for the advice and recommendations!

I've applied ReplayGain to all my music. I've noticed that the volume of Foobar is lower than the volume of my browser; for example, Youtube videos are noticeably louder than Foobar music. Is there a way to have Foobar and my browser be at approximately the same volume?

I'm also using Lyric Show Panel 3 to display lyrics. Every time the song starts, LSP3 spends a few seconds searching for lyrics. This occurs even if there's a text file containing the lyrics in the same folder as the song. Is there a way to not perform this search if a lyrics file is already present?

And some songs (like instrumental music) doesn't have lyrics files. Is there a way to tell LSP3 to not perform a lyrics search in this case?

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #13 –
Quote from: tigershark on
I've applied ReplayGain to all my music. I've noticed that the volume of Foobar is lower than the volume of my browser; for example, Youtube videos are noticeably louder than Foobar music. Is there a way to have Foobar and my browser be at approximately the same volume?

The only way I've found is to use the equalizer, and boost all frequencies.
 

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #14 –
Applying ReplayGain can decrease the volume significantly.  You could set the Source mode to none under Preferences/Playback although you would lose the benefits provided by ReplayGain .  You can also increase the Preamp volume under Preferences/Playback.  Another option is to install foo_dsp_amp which can be found at https://foobar.hyv.fi/?view=foo_dsp_amp.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #15 –
Obviously, reduce the volume of the web browser with a method of your choice: by the Windows 7 operating system mixer, by reducing the WaveOut volume and playing your music through ASIO, by using media.volume_scale option in Firefox clones. This will reduce intersample clipping on overdriven web audio or pumping from the Windows limiter. You need to allow sufficient headroom for ReplayGain to function well.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #16 –
Definitely install foo_wave_minibar_mod. Neat little tool that shows the waveform of the track and lets you skip to passages more effectively.

Re: Using foobar2000 in 2021

Reply #17 –
I am very much in the DUI camp. I want the ultimate library organisation capability and the purest music playback experience possible. Heres my layout, no third party components at all.

I can browse my library, search my library, queue up songs/albums.. whatever and see album art for the selected item. I have a few tabs for different visualisations and a playlist manager. What more do you want?

X
Life-long Music Collection: 747GB / 25,646 Tracks & COUNTING! - 99% Lossless FLAC