1977 1,743 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 One of the most frustrating and time-consuming aspects of converting a large collection of CDs to digital file format is finding decent quality album art. Where do you guys get your album art from? I have not been able to access Album Art Exchange since 2012/2013 due to that stupid blockscript nonsense. This had always been my go-to option. User ScottH has brilliant stuff on there but I can't even browse the site to see it. Google is hit and miss due to quality issues and especially for older titles, even when using the search by image option. Lots of larger scans of covers are plonked online without any cleanup. Amazon is also spotty for older titles. Any other suggestions would be much appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 When I converted my CD collection I frequently found myself using Soundtrackcollector.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unlucky Bastard 7,782 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Here and there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Breathmask 555 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 5 hours ago, Stefancos said: When I converted my CD collection I frequently found myself using Soundtrackcollector.com Same here. Also Google. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryant Burnette 654 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 I've never not been able to find what I needed in five seconds on Google. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share Posted January 17, 2017 8 minutes ago, Bryant Burnette said: I've never not been able to find what I needed in five seconds on Google. As I explained in my post, it's not just about plonking the first image that pops up on Google into your iTunes. I prefer a minimum resolution of 800 x 800 and then the quality also needs to be good. There are lots of cover scans on the web that have speckles, dirt, artifacts, incorrect colour, skew edges, bad cropping, and so on. Anyway, I'm probably just too darn pedantic for my own good. Maybe, one day, Album Art Exchange will stop their blockscript discrimination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 For Intrada titles, I use the 600x600 artwork from Intrada's official site For Varese titles, I use the 2048x2048 artwork from Varese's official site For LLL titles, I use the 1425x1425 artwork from their Facebook timeline Most anything else, I just use Google Image search Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 iTunes, Amazon, label websites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryant Burnette 654 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 2 hours ago, JTWfan77 said: As I explained in my post, it's not just about plonking the first image that pops up on Google into your iTunes. As I explained in my post, I have never not been to find what I need by using Google. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 17, 2017 Author Share Posted January 17, 2017 Well then I'm happy for you. I have at least 40 older titles that I could only find artwork at about 300 x 300 and most were poor quality as well. As an example, the Irwin Allen Fantasy Film Worlds 6 CD box, good luck trying to find decent covers for that one. Also a lot of early FSM titles have very small covers on the site, and nothing better on Google. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryant Burnette 654 Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 If you're converting your CDs, is there a reason you can't just scan the covers and use those? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Indeed. For the obscure Italian scores I own, I just made my own scans. @JTWfan77 what are you specifically looking for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wojo 2,453 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 I can't see the reason to attach cover art greater than 300x300 or 400x400 to digital files for viewing on a tiny iPod screen or the viewer in, say, Winamp. Maybe an iPhone or iTunes have bigger screens and resolution that warrant such a decision, but I can't justify the wasted space on my device. It'd be nice if my car stereo showed album art, but no such luck on 1 DIN tall. Even if Google does not have an album image, and I need one, I just crop the poster or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Album art is irrelevant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryant Burnette 654 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Personally, I can't abide a blank folder. 1977 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Once the music is all properly tagged, arranged in playlists and on your digital device, the hell with cover art. It's easily the most annoying step trying to find the correct cover art and apply it. In many cases, correct covers are difficult to find, or they're poorly scanned or at a terrible resolution and just look like crap anyway. At one point, I had a folder with most of the important cover art organized in the event I would need it, but they were lost like tears in the rain. 1977 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incanus 5,714 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 I hunt for the cover art from the vast wastelands and abundant wilderness of the internet with google as my ally and faithful companion. While usually the catch is plentiful, choosing the prime specimen for my collection usually proves more difficult. Also HQCovers has been my go-to place for wonderful custom cover art. Cerebral Cortex 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
publicist 4,643 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Yeah that's one of our tireless germano/austrian heroes tirelessly reworking artwork. Some of them are real beauties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 18, 2017 Author Share Posted January 18, 2017 8 hours ago, Bryant Burnette said: If you're converting your CDs, is there a reason you can't just scan the covers and use those? Yes, it's incredibly time-consuming and I don't have the PhotoShop skills to colour correct them properly. But in the end I'll probably have to scan my own stuff for titles I can't find elsewhere. 5 hours ago, Koray Savas said: Indeed. For the obscure Italian scores I own, I just made my own scans. @JTWfan77 what are you specifically looking for? I would have to check my iTunes, but there are at least 100+ albums whose art I'm not happy with, for various reasons. 2 hours ago, Rose Dawson said: Album art is irrelevant. To you perhaps 1 hour ago, Incanus said: Also HQCovers has been my go-to place for wonderful custom cover art. Yes, ironically the many custom cover sites often offer dramatically better artwork (in virtually all aspects) than the official art (at least for older titles). 3 hours ago, petaQ said: I can't see the reason to attach cover art greater than 300x300 or 400x400 to digital files for viewing on a tiny iPod screen or the viewer in, say, Winamp. Maybe an iPhone or iTunes have bigger screens and resolution that warrant such a decision, but I can't justify the wasted space on my device. It'd be nice if my car stereo showed album art, but no such luck on 1 DIN tall. Even if Google does not have an album image, and I need one, I just crop the poster or something like that. Well, I can't speak for you, but the devices I use have significantly better screen resolution and PPI. My smartphones are at least 1280 x 720, so a 400 x 400 cover looks absolutely shite. The improved resolution does not really use that much extra space. I must be wierd or something but to me all aspects of my music are important, not least of all the album artwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilal 569 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 How can 400x400 look shite on a 5 inch screen? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy 4,124 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 On 1/17/2017 at 1:41 AM, JTWfan77 said: I have not been able to access Album Art Exchange since 2012/2013 due to that stupid blockscript nonsense. This had always been my go-to option. User ScottH has brilliant stuff on there but I can't even browse the site to see it. I used Album Art Exchange the other day, but had to sign up for an account. What are you referring to with the blockscript? Also, mind if I ask where you got the wonderful artwork for your avatar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 18, 2017 Author Share Posted January 18, 2017 1 hour ago, Bartokus Novus said: How can 400x400 look shite on a 5 inch screen? Um, because of the difference in resolution? I should probably add that I'm a bit of an album art fan, having grown up the the vinyl era. That's why I bought the Japanese releases of Seven Years In Tibet, Angela's Ashes and Memoirs of a Geisha (different cover art). 47 minutes ago, Hedji said: I used Album Art Exchange the other day, but had to sign up for an account. What are you referring to with the blockscript? www.albumartexchange.com is protected by BlockScript. BlockScript is security software which protects websites and empowers webmasters to stop unwanted traffic. Your request was blocked because you appear to be located in region which is not permitted to access this website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy 4,124 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 That's a bummer. So for whatever reason, it's blocked for your region? Perhaps if there's something you're looking for specifically, we can help you out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 18, 2017 Author Share Posted January 18, 2017 29 minutes ago, Hedji said: That's a bummer. So for whatever reason, it's blocked for your region? Perhaps if there's something you're looking for specifically, we can help you out. Yes, it really sucks. Thanks for the offer, I'd have to check my iTunes library to see which ones (might take a while, having IT issues this week). Can I PM you? By the way my avatar is a home job (probably looks like it too)! Yours ain't to shabby either. Is that pic from Rogue One? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Stu 15,495 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 If I can't find a high-res scan uploaded here on the forum, I just do a Google Image search for the highest quality one I can find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy 4,124 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 3 hours ago, JTWfan77 said: Yes, it really sucks. Thanks for the offer, I'd have to check my iTunes library to see which ones (might take a while, having IT issues this week). Can I PM you? By the way my avatar is a home job (probably looks like it too)! Yours ain't to shabby either. Is that pic from Rogue One? Sure, feel free to pm me with any art requests. I'd be happy to help. And regarding my avatar pic...my avatar is me in costume in front of my garage, so if it looks like a screen shot from the films, that's about as high a compliment as one can hope to receive! Thanks! 1977 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 18, 2017 Author Share Posted January 18, 2017 Thanks, appreciate the kind offer. Will PM when I've got my ducks in a row. Awesome avatar, well done! Lucky garage to have such a famous individual posing in front of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will 2,215 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Gosh, speaking of covers, I was just looking at these fan made TFA ones again: https://hqcovers.net/2016/05/14/star-wars-the-force-awakens-deluxe-edition-by-john-williams/ Wow! Stunningly gorgeous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 All of this website's covers are stunningly gorgeous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 If I want to look at the cover art, I'll just flip through my physical collection, the one with the actual covers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 Wait, what's that? The Phantom Menace UE in a jewel case?! Come on, spill, where did you get it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 I thought I would post an example of how difficult it is to find decent album art online. I did a search for "Hollow Man Soundtrack" on Google, and selected the "images" option. This is what I got: I also tried different search variations such "Hollow Man Score", "Hollow Man OST", "Hollow Man Goldsmith" and so on, with similar results. I then clicked on the first image and chose the "search by image" function, and this is the largest image I could find (1000 x 1000): Yes, it is large, but it is quite obvious that the quality is rather poor. Oh, and before anyone asks, I did not alter this image at all (only the Google one above it to reduce file size). So I hope this post clarifies my original post a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 Why not use Amazon's artwork? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OBBICOA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 You mean this one (500 x 500) from the downloads Amazon page? Or this one (from the CD Amazon page): Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 I meant the one I linked to, of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 Yes, I assumed so. Do you find that quality acceptable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo 54 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 17 minutes ago, JTWfan77 said: So I hope this post clarifies my original post a bit. I've had the same issues as you. I decided to check iTunes for Hollowman and this is what I found: http://is2.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music3/v4/8f/2f/e3/8f2fe3a6-c02c-66d8-4a8e-6cd895e9f611/source/1500x1500.jpg The only problem is the odd coloration anomaly on the left hand side, which also appears on the Amazon link above. I'm uncertain if that's normal for this album though. My approach is similar to Koray. Label websites, Amazon, iTunes then scanning if all else fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 Thanks for that. So far it's the best I've seen online. How do you manage to search iTunes for covers, I've never been able to quite figure that one out? I've tried the web link https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hollow-man-original-motion/id927250369 and the iTunes application but the biggest I get is thumbnail size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo 54 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 I search in google for the soundtrack, in this case "Hollowman Soundtrack iTunes". Afterward it's usually one of the top three links, in this case: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hollow-man-original-motion/id927250369 I right click on the image using firefox and select "copy image location". http://is2.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music3/v4/8f/2f/e3/8f2fe3a6-c02c-66d8-4a8e-6cd895e9f611/source/170x170bb.jpg I then change the 170x170bb to the highest quality I can think of. Some iTunes albums have had up to 3000x3000. Usually 1500x1500 is a safe bet. So once you replace it you have the link I showed above. http://is2.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music3/v4/8f/2f/e3/8f2fe3a6-c02c-66d8-4a8e-6cd895e9f611/source/1500x1500.jpg Jay 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 Aha! That last bit is the kicker. I never thought of that. Thanks a million! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo 54 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 You're very welcome. I'm a stickler for album art being good quality as well. 1977 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,353 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 4 minutes ago, Turbo said: I search in google for the soundtrack, in this case "Hollowman Soundtrack iTunes". Afterward it's usually one of the top three links, in this case: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hollow-man-original-motion/id927250369 I right click on the image using firefox and select "copy image location". http://is2.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music3/v4/8f/2f/e3/8f2fe3a6-c02c-66d8-4a8e-6cd895e9f611/source/170x170bb.jpg I then change the 170x170bb to the highest quality I can think of. Some iTunes albums have had up to 3000x3000. Usually 1500x1500 is a safe bet. So once you replace it you have the link I showed above. http://is2.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Music3/v4/8f/2f/e3/8f2fe3a6-c02c-66d8-4a8e-6cd895e9f611/source/1500x1500.jpg Nice trick, thanks for that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1977 1,743 Posted January 19, 2017 Author Share Posted January 19, 2017 34 minutes ago, Turbo said: You're very welcome. I'm a stickler for album art being good quality as well. I was beginning to think there was something wrong with me 47 minutes ago, Turbo said: The only problem is the odd coloration anomaly on the left hand side, which also appears on the Amazon link above. I'm uncertain if that's normal for this album though. I wonder if this image used by iTunes is the actual file used by Varese to print the actual cover for the CD (or possibly a scaled-down version of the original)? I have no idea how these things work of course, but I'm guessing the label provides the artwork to iTunes when listing? The colouration thing could be due to the original film artwork being portrait orientation. Possibly, they added a bit on the side to get it into an album ratio? I don't know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naïve Old Fart 9,521 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 Where do I get my album art from? It comes free with every CD that I buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo 54 Posted January 21, 2017 Share Posted January 21, 2017 On 1/19/2017 at 8:33 AM, Jay said: Nice trick, thanks for that! You're welcome. If you put in the largest size, say 5000x5000, iTunes will rename the file as such but the image will still only be the largest size they have on file such as 1500x1500. 1977 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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