UPDATE: TuneUp CEO Gabe Adiv speaks

Unfortunate that this service uses the Gracenote database with all of its inherent quality problems. Gracenote already does a fine job of messing up my tags in iTunes, why would I want to have it screw them up again using TuneUp? I would prefer something that uses the allmusic.com database. Is there any service like this that uses allmusic.com for cleaning up tags?

I haven't seen one that uses the AMG database, John. But although I find allmusic.com indispensable, I don't think its database is ideal for tagging songs in iTunes. It still has errors, and duplicate data too. Be careful what you wish for.

Gracenote's database seems to fix itself sometimes, presumably via user submissions. It also has a much deeper catalog of micro-indie releases and bootleg recordings.

But if anyone out there is using AMG's database for tagging songs in iTunes, please speak up!

Paul

@Paul Bonanos
Paul,
Apple uses the AMG database throughout iTMS. It is also used by eMusic, Rhapsody, Napster, Nokia Music, Yahoo!, Amazon, B&N, AOL, MSN, Google, and many, many others. It is the global industry standard database for entertainment content, and has been for years.

AMG launched a media id service that has rapidly gained market share. It competes quite nicely with Gracenote, and is used by former Gracenote customers like RealPlayer, Rhapsody, Sony PS3, Sprint, Verizon, Nokia, B&O, Iriver, and many others.

The AMG solution includes acoustic fingerprinting and is generally regarded as being faster and more accurate than the similar tech from Gracenote being used by TuneUp. The data is far richer, as well.

I do not know of any TuneUp-like assistant applications for iTunes that use AMG, but someone could easily build one. Perhaps someone should?

@John Reznik
John,
A simple alternative is downloading an AMG enabled application from the list above and using it to clean your tags. The Iriver "Plus" app works very well for this, and also adds cover art. Once you clean up your collection, just re-import into iTunes. Unfortunately, this will generally not work for AAC files, nor files purchased from the iTunes store.

I agree that the Gracenote database is a poor choice for cleaning up a collection. Gracenote has been one of the biggest reasons for the low quality of music tags for years. It is ridiculous to expect them to clean up their own mess.