[Desktop] Not all Local Files are playable

[Deweks]

Plan

Premium

Country

USA

Device

Desktop

Operating System

Windows 10

My Question or Issue

For years now local files have been finicky. I have a folder of roughly 2.3k playable mp3 files that I route to Spotify as my local files. I only see 2,072 songs in Spotify, and I have compiled a playlist of the greyed-out songs in Spotify to monitor this problem. I have tried the solutions previously posted in the forum i.e. Deleting the local files index in %AppData%, uninstalling Spotify completely (including registry information), copying and pasting the files to a new location, converting all of my mp3 files to a uniform 192 Bitrate, using the same local files through a different desktop, changing titles of songs with foreign characters, creating exceptions in my antivirus and firewall.

So far, I haven't found any discernable pattern between the 2k functional songs and the other 200, there are some old files that don't work and some new files that don't work. Titles range from English to Chinese and Japanese characters. I have files ranging in duration from 0:30 to 4:30:00, there is no consistency in which files do and don't work. I don't know what else to do short of doing a fresh install of Windows. Are there any solutions I am overlooking here? If the mp3 files are playable I don't see why Spotify would have issues importing them.

[Deweks]

Hi there @Deweks,

Thanks for the question.

Certain bitrates or masters of mp3 files might not be supported if they're downloaded from unofficial sources like video converters etc. What you can do is to try exporting those song which are not working in different bitrates, even though we don't recommend using songs that are not legally downloaded.

Another thing that might be preventing some files from being properly uploaded and steamtable might be your internet connection, as some routers block certain protocols which Spotify needs in order to upload files. Try deleting the grayed out files from the app. After that create a mobile hotspot and connect both your computer and phone to that. Have both apps open while reuploading the files. 

Note: Make sure the file names don't contain any special characters or letters outside of the standard English alphabet.

Hope you find this info useful.

[kiboy6]

@Ver

No error message when searching for local files. It just acts as though that local file song is not part of my library.

E.g. if i have a song named "Pring" in my Local Files Folder, it will show up in my Local Files area in Spotify, and it will show up in any playlists I have added it to. However when I search for "Pring" no results will be returned.

Thanks. Hope this can be fixed soon!

The same behaviour definitely occurs in Android version too. Here is a screenshot of that version number:

[Ver]

Hey @kiboy6,

Thanks for getting back to us 🙂

Currently there is no option to search for local files in the search bar on the PC or your phone.

You can open the Local file section in Your Library on your PC. Then you can search for a specific song.

We always strive to improve our app and the experience with it. We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback with us. Here you can find more information about the New Desktop Experience.

You can also have a look in our Idea Exchange to see if someone else has already made a similar suggestion about searching for local files in the Search bar on a phone. If there isn't one, you can give these steps a go and submit your idea. That way other users can also support it. Rest assured that the higher the number of votes an idea gets, the more likely it is for it to be implemented.   
 

If you have questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We'll be happy to help.
 

[kiboy6]

@Ver 
Thanks for your response. Makes a change from the the dismissive lack of meaningful response from Spotify to the  70+pages of furious unhappy paying customers on the "New Desktop Experience" thread.

Currently there is no option to search for local files in the search bar on the PC or your phone.

I know! That is precisely the bug I was reporting to you. And yes, i say bug because this feature was always available in Spotify and has recently, for some unknown reason, been removed.

I can't imagine a single person who has local files in their Spotify library who would want the ability to search for those files removed. So please put this functionality back!

And, no, I don't think, creating a "new idea" forum thread for Spotify to un-butcher something they have very recently butchered is a very sensible approach to software development. This is not a new idea - it is something Spotify has recently broken and your users are merely alerting you to this fact. 

PLEASE FIX THIS BUG!