Windows Media Player Plus! - Various enhancements for WMP
Reply #35 –
What I want to do is rip compilation CDs and then re-tag each track with its original artist/album/track number etc.
If that's what you want to do, then you do NOT want to use WMP to rip the CDs. The reason is WMP inserts a CD TOC (Table of Contents) in the tag for each track it rips, which not only allows it to permanently "remember" which CD each track was originally ripped from but also links all the ripped tracks together in the database. Change the metadata (album art, etc.) for one of them, and the corresponding field changes for ALL the media library tracks ripped from that CD. This makes editing tags of files ripped with WMP a batch process for albums, but as you've seen it results in some inconveniences.
The only way to stop WMP from being able to recall the original track source is to remove the TOC tag, which is not something you can do within WMP itself. You'll have to use a 3rd party tag editor (I recommend Mp3tag) to completely strip the file(s) of all tags. Once that's done, find them in WMP again by searching for some part of the filename, and then run the "Find Album Info" process again. You'll now be able to edit to your heart's delight without any of the issues you mentioned previously
Another option, which I recommend more is to use EAC as the original ripping tool so you don't wind up with TOC tags in the first place.