In a previous example we saw how i-DeClone can find duplicate music with variable bitrates. In large music collections it can get even worse: you may have the same songs downloaded as MP3 and FLAC for example. These are definitely not the same byte content, how do you detect them?
i-DeClone uses ID3 tag information and fuzzy logic AI to detect different file formats as well.
Situation
Multiple music downloads
Multiple music downloads
Applies to
Music and videos
Step by step instructions:
➀ Connect devices to scan
If you want to scan external disks, connect them, or just scan your PC folder contents. Click on Start scan toolbar button to begin. Then click Start new project to setup scan settings from scratch.➁ Scan options
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First setup the options for a 90% similarity search for Music, scanning your entire PC as seen in the
previous example
Then click on Advanced property page and set it up as in the picture to the right. Most things are left at default settings: see how Length (duration) is the dominant comparison property, followed by a compilation of ID3 tags. Then you must untick Files must have same extension. This is the essential bit that allows MP3 and WMA files to be compared, if their duration is close enough. Otherwise i-DeClone only compares identical file types. All set, click Start scan and wait for the results. |
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➂ Mark and remove duplicates
If you want to keep only, say MP3 files, and mark for removal all the other formats, then use the quick filter box as follows:
- Press <Ctrl+A> then <Space> keys to select everything and mark them for removal (there are menu equivalents for these shortcut keys)
- To unmark MP3 files, click on the filter box and type .MP3. This will show just MP3 files (ticked by the previous operation)
- Press <Ctrl+A> then <Space> keys to select everything (only MP3s are showing) and remove the tick off them
- Remove the filter to show all the files (e.g double-click on the status bar filter indicator), then use Clean-up toolbar button to remove everything but MP3 music.
Similarity comparisons are only as good as the available ID3 tag information in your media files. If essential tags are missing or they are all set to Unknown artist and TRACK 02, it would be next to impossible to discover similar files. Sadly this is almost always the case with video files, where most tag information is in the filename and nowhere else!
If your ID3 tags are unreliable, you can scan music by content instead
If your ID3 tags are unreliable, you can scan music by content instead
