Retagging collection, need some advice.., DISCNUMBER, ALBUMARTIST, etc.. Options

[BelleAndZEK]

So I finally decided to retag my FLAC library because I want to get rid of the mp3 transcodes and only use FLAC instead. Will do with XBMC.
Now before I start, I'd like some advice on a few things..
EVERYTHING is tagged the same way right now:
- ARTIST
- TITLE
- TRACKNUMBER
- ALBUM
- DATE
- ENSEMBLE (for Album Artist, Tag&Rename used that.)

Here's what I'm going to do, what I want to do:
- Remove the ENSEMBLE tag and use ALBUMARTIST instead
- Use TOTALTRACKS
- Use TOTALDISCS
- Use DISCNUMBER

Now I'm wondering what's best.. Should I use a leading 0 for TOTALTRACKS, TOTALDISCS and DISCNUMBER or not?
For albums that have only 1 disc, should I use the TOTALDISCS tag or leave it blank? Same for DISCNUMBER..

For multi-disc albums, TOTALTRACKS is for each disc or the total of all discs? I'm guessing it's per disc...

Also, let say I have an album called 'Hello' and a CD-Single also called 'Hello' by the same artist. What's the best way to get the tracks of both releases not mixed together if I want ALBUM to just be "Hello" and not "Hello (CDS)" for CD-Single for instance? Is there a 'CDS' 'EP' 'Album' tag that most softwares recognize for that?

For albums with a bonus disc, is there a field I should be using for the name of the bonus disc? A field where I can add 'Live in ...' for the bonus disc for instance..

Any other tags I should take in consideration apart from GENRE? That one's too subjective.

I have thousands of albums to do, I just want to make sure I get things right before I start. Thanks!

This post has been edited by BelleAndZEK: Jun 4 2012, 21:15

[db1989]

Like Ouroboros, I can only report my personal preferences/tendencies, albeit not based on any substantial consideration or research. And as Ouroboros said, a lot of the questions that you’ve asked probably have no standards-based, or I suspect even majority-based, answers. Anyway, hopefully you’ll find others’ experiences/opinions useful and get some ideas on how to put together a scheme that ticks all the boxes for you. That’s the most important thing!

Now I'm wondering what's best.. Should I use a leading 0 for TOTALTRACKS, TOTALDISCS and DISCNUMBER or not?

I don’t; I could add one in software during tag parsing if I needed it for filesystem-based sorting and the like.

For albums that have only 1 disc, should I use the TOTALDISCS tag or leave it blank? Same for DISCNUMBER.

I don’t include either unless they are relevant.

For multi-disc albums, TOTALTRACKS is for each disc or the total of all discs? I'm guessing it's per disc...

Yes, per-disc. That’s the only option that makes sense alongside TRACKNUMBER!

Also, let say I have an album called 'Hello' and a CD-Single also called 'Hello' by the same artist. What's the best way to get the tracks of both releases not mixed together if I want ALBUM to just be "Hello" and not "Hello (CDS) for CD-Single for instance? Is there a 'CDS' 'EP' 'Album' tag that most softwares recognize for that?

I don’t believe there’s a widely supported tag for release type or whatever you’d like to call it. Personally, in the tiny number of cases in which I’ve catalogued a single, I’ve just appended “[single]” to the title. I also do this with EPs. Albums are my default, so they get no suffix. I can see the benefit of having a field (of whatever name) that is always filled out, of course, but I confess that I’m just too much of a simpleton for such a level of organisation.

For albums with a bonus disc, is there a field I should be using for the name of the bonus disc? A field where I can add 'Live in ...' for the bonus disc for instance..

Hmmm… See, the closest I ever got to this was Stadium Arcadium having two discs, each with its own title. I think I abandoned it and just used DISCNUMBER, but this is something you could accomplish with a dedicated field for disc subtitle, or simply including it within ALBUM, if you wished.

As for subtitles of the album as a whole, that depends: if it’s a genuine subtitle, I use Album Title: Subtitle Here; if it’s an identifier of an edition thereof, I go with Album Title [10th Anniversary Special Edition].

Individual tracks have information about versions, etc. appended within square brackets: “Title of Song [live]”, “Song Name (Genuine Subtitle) [demo]”, and so on.

[Ouroboros]

Individual tracks have information about versions, etc. appended within square brackets: “Title of Song [live]”, “Song Name (Genuine Subtitle) [demo]”, and so on.

That's exactly what I do. Exactly. Genuine subtitles in parentheses, with title metadata ([Live], [Demo], [Rerecorded], [Remastered], etc.) in square brackets appended to the track title. I thought I was being slightly eccentric/obsessive, obviously not ....

[db1989]

But I use different types of case within the different types of brackets – title case for the regular title, regular case to mark editions – so does that make me even worse?

Nice to see that it’s not just me, then! That definitely confirms that we’re not crazy, right?