JRiver tips and techniques: user experiences repository

[BacHolz]

the download link just started playing it in my browser..may be a setup, i just got a new pc. anyway, i used firefox plugin and was able to download...thanks.

 

Right click on the link and select "save link as". Choose a location and you'll have your copy for off-line viewing.

[BacHolz]

When i have been happy with J.River was the ability to setup a custom view for classical music with Composers for the top graphic view Icons. The composer icons look like a stack of albums. You then click on the composer icon then to albums by that composer with all of the cover art showing. Easy to do once you know the way.

 

Could you share a little more or direct us to where we can gather the knowledge and skill to accomplish "a custom view for classical music with Composers for the top graphic view Icons"?

I agree that there is much to learn of what JRMC can do for me. Hopefully this will prompt me tackle the task at hand. Thanks in advance and special thanks to ted_b for his introductory video tutorials. I have saved then and will review them forthwith.

[BacHolz]

Thanks for the prompt response and helpful direction. Happy listening...

[BacHolz]

here is another but I wanted my cover art so I use my previous post method.

 

JRiver - defining a classical view - Bill and Lesley's Pictures

 

Thanks again to Old Listener and john57 for the direction and feedback. I've used JRMC for a few years and while very pleased with my setup, I have been remiss in not spending the time to learn how to further personalize this software.

I rip with dbpoweramp, fine tune tagging in MediaMonkey and use JRMC for playback. Yes, I know I could do all those things in one program, JRMC. I prefer the 'user experience' of these other utilities and like to support those whose talents enable me to enjoy the pleasure that is music at home.

Again, much appreciated.

[BacHolz]

I have been using JRiver for a few years and have finally been motivated to design several custom views. Doing so has greatly facilitated the ease with which I manage my library presently approaching some 3,000 titles. I can now approach this diverse collection of music in new ways that have renewed my listening experience and enjoyment. Thanks to all those who share their experience here and encourage others to explore the rich possibilities of this resource.

To my question - none of these views are especially difficult to create but a few of them are time consuming to replicate. Can I use the library backup on the primary PC and import the settings to my second PC? Or is there another way to transfer these new views to my other platform?

Both are synced and share identical content. I thought I had done something similar once but my efforts at present have not been successful. I am using JRMC 20 on Window 7 devices.

[BacHolz]

Thank you both for the prompt responses. First to ted_b, thanks for the videos which I should revisit but doing as you suggest didn't do the trick. Assuming you mean to call up the backup feature through File, Library, Backup - then use the created file to "restore" the library on my second PC. Doing so doesn't seem to work regardless of whether I check the two restore options or not. Puzzled as I thought that I had done this with success previously. Any thought as to where I am failing?

To the second point raised by Jabs1542 concerning synchronizing with a central server. I do have a Synology DS212J (2 bay, 6 TB) NAS. I do all of my media management on my desktop and synch content using Syncovery to both the NAS and my HTPC from which I play music.

I appreciate many of the benefits of a media server but all of this gear is in one medium size room and I am the only user at any one time. Given this, it seemed to me that the short and simple SATA interface to multiple drives in my HTPC was the best way to access my files for playback.

While I can appreciate the potential benefits of a server setup for those with other arrangements, would it also be a superior alternative to my present practice?

I welcome and appreciate your feedback...

[BacHolz]

I just tried it again using the "File, Library, Backup > Restore" method and it worked when I used the default choices, didn't check the two restore options and then reconfigured the import locations as one of the drive letters was different. All is well and new custom views are present and working flawlessly. However I would like some feedback on a point I raised. To quote the query posed above.

 

"To the second point raised by Jabs1542 concerning synchronizing with a central server. I do have a Synology DS212J (2 bay, 6 TB) NAS. I do all of my media management on my desktop and synch content using Syncovery to both the NAS and my HTPC from which I play music.

I appreciate many of the benefits of a media server but all of this gear is in one medium size room and I am the only user at any one time. Given this, it seemed to me that the short and simple SATA interface to multiple drives in my HTPC was the best way to access my files for playback.

While I can appreciate the potential benefits of a server setup for those with other arrangements, would it also be a superior alternative to my present practice?"

 

Thanks to all for the information and inspiration.

[BacHolz]

I dropped the NAS a while back (need to update my signature), the NAS was located in my listening room and was too loud (though it was fanless) and a bit weak when it came to DSD files (I had a lot of trouble getting tags to write to the files, it would hang up). I went to a dual external enclosure intending to go SATA but discovered that USB 3 worked fine. My NAS problems were clearly a matter of a weak machine (which was intentional in order to make it quiet).

 

I leave my main JRiver music server (CAPS v4) on 24x7 and have two other computers in the house running JRiver with thier databases pointing back to the main server (the two other computers have no JRiver database, other than the empty default database). I'm constantly exploring new music, or catching up on things I never had, and seem to be adding files almost weekly. So not having to constantly create backup database files and transfer them to the other machines is a big deal for me.

 

I thought of building a C.A.P.S. level build but am reasonably pleased with my present HTPC. I'm not sure that my modest system (Music Fidelity Vlink 192 > Schiit Bifrost Uber > Marantz SR 6005 / Marantz UD5005 > Aperion Intimus 6Bs LR - 5B Center - 4 4DPs & Bravus 12D) would be revealing enough to warrant the investment in a C.A.P.S. build.

However, I do like the notion of having the libraries share the same database which could be centrally located on my NAS. Keeping the libraries' content synched with Syncovery is a simple matter but sharing a central database between devices sounds worthy of a try.

Any tips on setting this up? It seems like it is relatively straight forward.

Any thoughts on unwanted and unintended consequences?

[BacHolz]

I do the same but have even more copies of JRiver running. They all share the same NAS directories, so that is all good as you say. But what about sharing custom views, playlists, smartlists, and things like that? I haven't found a way to sync those.

 

I appreciate the advantage of a central, shared library on a NAS operating 24/7. Given my simple needs and as as a former clinical research associate, managing and synching data, is a task I still find pleasurable. So this is less an issue for me.

My thought, naive perhaps, is that a simple and short SATA connection to drives in my HTPC would afford me the simplest (arguable best) interface for audio file traffic. Perhaps a question for another forum, but is there any net loss in fidelity with a network connection?

I will research elsewhere and experiment myself (theory aside, my ears will guide me in practice). However, I am curious as to the experience of others in this matter. At least I'll place my JRMC database on the 24/7 NAS and see how that 'serves' me...

[BacHolz]

[quote name= Originally Posted by BacHolz View Post

but is there any net loss in fidelity with a network connection?

 

Matt Ashland]Of course not. The same bits are read from the file wherever you have the file stored.

 

For extra credit, you could enable memory playback so that the entire file is read into memory at the start so that there's no I/O while it plays.

 

Clearly a poor choice of words on my part, I grasp that bits are bits regardless of source. A more careful phrasing of my question might be as follows: "For the individual without the need for multi-location or concurrent playback, is there a preferred method of accessing one's audio files? A short and sweet SATA interface might seem preferable to those like myself who are poorly informed in the intricacies of digital audio.

As to the memory playback option, I have used that and will try again in this new context. Thanks for responding and for the suggestion.

[BacHolz]

I started with JRMC 17 and upgraded with each version until JRiver 20. Money was a little tight when 21 was released and as I use the software only for audio, I couldn't justify the modest cost for features that were of no special benefit to me.

Depends on your needs and which of the new features may be valuable to you. As I recall, with each new release ,the website outlines the critical new features of the latest release.

[BacHolz]

It's really impossible to compare versions because the current version is always under constant development with new features and fixes coming out all the time.

 

A point well made. There is no simple way to do an A/B comparison given the constant evolution of the product. However at time of initial release when a change log of sorts is available, a compare and contrast would be more straightforward.