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Fields, Frames and Atoms - What's In and What's Out

MP2, MP3, AIFF, DFF, DSF and WAV files are tagged according to the ID3 specifications. You can find the specifications at id3.org. Using ID3 terminology, tag items are called frames.

MPEG-4 files call tag items atoms or boxes.

FLAC and OGG files use Vorbis tags and call tag items tags or comments.

Monkey's Audio and WavPack files use APE trags and call tag items ... tag items.

In Yate, we typically refer to items as fields.

You can see a complete list of the implemented frames, atoms and comments in the Field Mapping Table.

For those of you familiar with the ID3 specification, we thought you might like a list of frames which we don't currently handle.

The following frames are made available to you in Yate but do not have editors. The contained data can be viewed and exported. You get to choose as to whether or not you want to trash the frames.


FrameDescription
AENCAudio encryption
ASPIAudio seek point index
COMRCommercial frame
ETCOEvent timing codes
MLLTMPEG Location lookup table
POSSPosition synchronization frame
RBUFRecommended buffer size
SYLTSynchronized lyric/text
SYTCSynchronized tempo codes

The following frames are completely unsupported and are always dropped from the file. Yate does not support encrypted frames, multiple tags per file or frame groups.


FrameDescription
ENCREncryption method registration
GRIDGroup Identification
LINKLinked Information
SEEKSeek frame
SIGNSignature frame

Yate supports all FLAC/OGG comments. Comments that are not mapped to a Yate field appear in one of two places. If an unmapped comment name contains the word URL, or if its content begins with http, it will appear in the User Defined URL items, otherwise it will appear in the User Defined Information items. The item name will be the description field.

Yate supports all APE tag items. Tag items that are not mapped to a Yate field appear in one of two places. If an unmapped tag item contains the word URL, or if its content begins with http, it will appear in the User Defined URL items, otherwise it will appear in the User Defined Information items. The item name will be the description field. Note that Read-only, binary, locator and reserved APE tag items appear in the Unhandled section.

Purchased MPEG-4 tracks from Apple contain various metadata items which are non standard. More information on these items can be found in Apple Store UDTIs.