Media library
The media library is your pool of audio and video files. You add media to it once, and then point a slot's sources at the files you want to play. The library keeps track of everything — titles, artists, tags, and loudness data — so you can find the right file quickly during setup.
You can open the library two ways:
- Select the music note icon in the left sidebar to open the full-screen Library view.
- Select the gear icon to open Configuration, then choose Library under the Media group.
The sidebar Library view is where you browse, tag, and preview files. The Configuration → Library pane is where you manage which folders ArenaDirector scans and keep the index up to date.
Add media to the library
ArenaDirector scans folders you register. To add a folder:
- Open Configuration → Library (gear icon, then Library under Media).
- Select Add Directory.
- Give the directory a name, then use the folder picker to point it at your media folder.
- Select Scan next to the new entry to index it immediately, or select Scan All to index all registered folders at once.
The row for each directory shows its last-scanned time, or Never scanned if it has not been indexed yet. A progress bar appears in the toolbar while scanning is in progress; select Cancel Scan to stop early.
If your media lives on removable storage whose mount path changes between events, select Change Path to repoint the entry without losing the directory's history.
To remove a folder from the library, select Remove on its row. This removes all of its entries from the index; the actual files on disk are not deleted.
Supported formats:
- Audio — MP3, WAV, FLAC, OGG, M4A, AAC, WMA, AIFF, OPUS
- Video — MP4, MOV, AVI, MKV, WEBM, M4V
- Image — JPG, JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, WEBP, TIFF, TIF
Tag and organize media
Tags let you group and filter files by any category you define — for example, genre, event type, or artist. Tags are organized into named categories and displayed as colored chips.
To assign tags to a file:
- Open the Library view (music note icon in the sidebar).
- Select a file in the table to open Track Details on the right.
- In the Tags section, select Manage Tags to add or remove tag assignments for that file.
To create and manage tag categories and individual tags, select the tag icon (Manage Tags) in the Media Library toolbar at the top of the Library view. Changes take effect immediately and appear in the filter panel.
Find media
The Filters panel on the left side of the Library view narrows the list by several criteria at once.
- Search — type any text to match against title, artist, or filename.
- Directory — use the Directory drop-down to show only files from one registered folder, or leave it on All Directories.
- Type — check or uncheck Audio, Video, and Image to show only the media types you need.
- Tags — select one or more tag chips to keep only files that carry those tags. Select Clear to remove all tag filters.
The table columns — Title, Artist, Type, Duration, BPM, LUFS, True Peak, and Status — are all sortable. Select any column header to sort by that column; select again to reverse the order.
To preview a track without assigning it to a slot, select the play button in the leftmost column. A mini waveform and elapsed time appear while the track plays; select the stop button to end the preview.
Media details
Selecting a row opens the Track Details panel on the right side of the Library view.
Information — you can edit the Title, Artist, Album, and BPM fields here. The BPM field accepts a manual override; if ArenaDirector has already detected the tempo it shows the detected value as a hint. Select Save Changes to write your edits.
The following fields are read-only and filled in automatically after analysis:
| Field | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Duration | Total running time |
| LUFS | Integrated loudness |
| True Peak | Highest sample peak in dBTP; a warning icon appears if the track exceeds −1.0 dBTP, and turns red if it clips |
| Status | Ready, Pending, Queued, or Failed |
Cue Points — shows a waveform preview for audio or a thumbnail for video. Select Edit Cue Structure to set loop and jump points for the track.
Tags — shows tags currently assigned to the file. Select Manage Tags to update them.
Actions — select Reanalyze Track to re-run loudness and tempo detection on the selected file.
Running analysis
ArenaDirector analyzes tracks to measure loudness and detect tempo. The Status column in the library table shows where each file is in that process. To run analysis:
- Select Analyze Pending in the Media Library toolbar to process only unanalyzed files.
- Select Analyze All to reprocess every file in the library.
A progress bar appears in the toolbar while analysis runs. Select Cancel Analysis to stop early.