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Topic: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar (Read 6053 times) previous topic - next topic
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FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

I'm having a strange bug when i try to modify tags within Foobar: the tags are not shown on Windows Explorer anymore. The strange thing is that this happens only with FLAC files (Mp3 work fine) and only if there are pre-existing tags (I usually use Mp3tag as main tag editor). These are my tests:

  • MP3 -> Create/Edit tags = WORKS
  • FLAC-> ADD/EDIT tags from Foobar on a file with no pre-existing tags = WORKS
  • FLAC-> ADD/EDIT tags from Foobar on a file with pre-existing tags = NOT WORKS: tags invisible on Explorer

A way to fix "corrupted" files is to remove all tags with Mp3Tag, then undo the changes and magically they appear again.

I made a small video to show the issue: https://streamable.com/8vpxd

OS: Windows 10 build 1903
Foobar: Tested both v1.4.6 Stable and v1.5 beta 12, fresh (full) portable installations.

Any idea what's going on? Thanks.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #1 –
There was a thread like this earlier. I asked for a sample file that shows the problem but didn't get one there. Perhaps you can share a sample. I can't replicate this behavior.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #2 –
Quote from: Case on
There was a thread like this earlier. I asked for a sample file that shows the problem but didn't get one there. Perhaps you can share a sample. I can't replicate this behavior.

Sure. This is the file I used into the video above: https://www.dropbox.com/s/13fg1qj6w199h3u/01.%20Second%20Hand%20News.flac?dl=0
In its current status I'm unable to see tags through Windows Explorer. To fix it, I need to do procedure described: remove all tags, then undo the changes in mp3tag.

Edit: I followed the hint from the thread you linked, and I found that the issue is actually related to the embededd art. If I remove the art from the file, the tags are shown again. If I add the album art again using Foobar, it works. But... If I edit any tag from Foobar "after" i've added the art, then the issue appears again.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #3 –
Thanks for the sample. Looks like Explorer is silly and doesn't load tags if they aren't near the beginning of a FLAC file. foobar placed album art before the tag data in the header. I used smaller album art image in my tests which doesn't trigger the problem.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #4 –
Quote from: Case on
Looks like Explorer is silly and doesn't load tags if they aren't near the beginning of a FLAC file. foobar placed album art before the tag data in the header. I used smaller album art image in my tests which doesn't trigger the problem.
I see. Not the first time Win10 acts silly :-X So not a foobar issue right? To understand it better, I suppose mp3tag and tagscanner have a different behavior in 'placing' the art inside the file? Because they both work on Windows with embedded art of that size.

If so, i'll report the issue to Microsoft and I'll avoid using foobar for editing from now on until it's fixed.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #5 –
It's definitely not a bug in foobar2000. The file is perfectly valid. The format specifications don't mandate any order for the metadata blocks. No harm in reporting the issue to Microsoft.

But this should be easy to workaround in foobar now that it's known.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #6 –
The new 1.5 beta 13 writes the tags before cover art to work around this problem. You can simply hold shift while right clicking your tracks and command "Tagging" -> "Rewrite file tags" to "fix" existing files.

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #7 –
Quote from: Case on
The new 1.5 beta 13 writes the tags before cover art to work around this problem. You can simply hold shift while right clicking your tracks and command "Tagging" -> "Rewrite file tags" to "fix" existing files.
Thank you. It's working nice now. And thanks for the shift+click hint, it's very easy to "fix" existing files this way. :)

Re: FLAC tags disappear from Windows Explorer when modified with Foobar

Reply #8 –
Quote from: Case on
The new 1.5 beta 13 writes the tags before cover art to work around this problem. You can simply hold shift while right clicking your tracks and command "Tagging" -> "Rewrite file tags" to "fix" existing files.
Quote from: Case on
The new 1.5 beta 13 writes the tags before cover art to work around this problem. You can simply hold shift while right clicking your tracks and command "Tagging" -> "Rewrite file tags" to "fix" existing files.
Didn't know if the OP was referring to ID3 or vorbis comments, but it works like a charm on the latter. Kudos.
Before:

During:

After:


It might not seem like a big deal, but it becomes one when you are trying to import from Windows explorer, and can't determine what it is you are importing.

Neither an audiophile, nor album snob. Why do ratings threads always have someone saying they don't believe in rating music?
Record Label Icons: 600x600 pngs appropriate for any color background:
freeimage.host/johnbuck/?list=images&sort=name_asc&page=1