https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/groups/psyshelp/discussions/3/3085520348635519081/
Old thread of info/links / messy post


Self Radio / User music Info
(some options missing, some things untested)
(don't confuse with 'media player' on radio wheel)

Correct location to put music: my documents / rockstar games / gta v / user music
(c / users / <windowsusername> / documents / rockstar games / gta v / user music)
I have seen plenty not using the space, in both 'gta v' AND in 'user music'
Onedrive, non-default my docs, symlink'd changes, etc - could all cause issue.

3 is the minimum songs required. This very easy to test if you have 3 -properly- working songs. Some are listed at very bottom of this post. When I tested - those with 'blank' or 'yes' do not trigger as part of that 3 count. (more info below)

Also personally tested 1-6 hour tracks (some up to 1gb in size), 112 through 320kbps - had no issues. I believe I had also previously(years) tested some sub 1mb files and they didn't work (but possible they were blank/yes - may test more later). I suspect people suggesting to convert to a different file type/bitrate, or to change filesize - were really just flipping the yes/blank flag.

Per R*'s faq - valid file types and non-drm music.
https://support.rockstargames.com/articles/208767008/How-to-Play-Custom-Music-on-the-Self-Radio-station-in-GTAV-and-GTA-Online-on-PC

As stated in R*'s link - NON-DRM. This means protected info inside the details of the audio file should = NO. If they have <blank> or YES - that is a problem. You can sit and rightclick, properties, details tab, and check the content section for 'protected' for each song. Easier- you can change a folder to details view and enable the protected attribute to show in file explorer alongside time, date, size, bitrate- and see it all at a glance. You can also search using protected:yes or no - blanks didn't show under either when I tested. Some online 'converters' will download, and give blanks. Some will give 'no'. Obviously, you can try other converters. You can also try converting / re-streaming / saving the audio as the same/different bitrate or something else to get a 'no'. (I don't think mp3gain changes the no/yes/blanks - may test later). If you want to know what DRM means - google it, or in simple terms, copyright/protection, or system proprietary - ex. apple music.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2638059639
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2650995479

Autoscan on startup- it has the potential to cause issues. This depends on how much music was put in. Imagine someone who shoveled their 25k song collection into self radio and it took 30mins to scan - this could prompt ridiculous load times. I'd also be wary of 1000, 500, even 100*. Not in mood or position to test atm - as it could be somewhat hardware dependent. You are welcome to do testing on your own hardware. You've been warned.

Quickscan. Once complete- autoscan does nothing unless you've added more songs (or you are constantly changing self radio and keeping the song count down). It is also possible to have issues starting/detecting music due to lack of permissions and how the quickscan information is saved.

Tracks/playlists are generally saved in "%appdata%\local\rockstar games\gta v\user music" - they might be hidden. Called usertracks.db, and usertracks.dbs (this one you can view via notepad). Potential for access/permissions/write/issues while generating these too. Can easily delete both files before going ingame to see if playlist is completely gone, in case you are having problems loading too much music, with ghost music after emptying 'user music' / using shortcuts, or just want to verify the recreation of those files.

You can also create and use shortcuts to music (to keep space down), or even shortcuts to folders/subfolders (be wary of song count if you start slapping these in). I also tested folders 'inside' the 'user music' folder - everything seemed to work fine. Did variations - some folder, sub sub folders, folders with mix of songs/shortcuts, so on. Everything appeared to be working correctly here.

Again - Onedrive causing issues / using the onedrive variation of my documents. Non-default my documents locations also possibly causing issues. Windows defender -controlled folder access may also cause issues -BUT- generally, if you do have it enabled - your game isn't working without whitelist/exclusion/allowance - so it should be ok unless you were very specific on which folders were/weren't allowed.

Music too quiet? Audio manipulation software like mp3gain or audacity can be used to increase the loudness. Plenty of steam guides or webpages/directions. (not tested if these change no, yes, blank - depends what is done to the song(s)).

Rumored special characters not working. Someone mentioned dashes " - " not working. Works fine here. Someone mentioned <spaces> - ridiculous, and works fine here. Tested many others `~!@#$%^&*()[]{} so on - from what I saw - if it could be saved in a filename - it worked. YMMV. Only tested english.

Many have said they needed artist, band, titles, etc in the music. From my tests - I had no issues with anything I tried in regards id tags / song info. The test songs at the bottom don't have anything either and work fine here. I suspect, depending how these details were added - they possibly changed the yes/blank flag.

Someone mentioned lossless not working - not tested. The ones I have are 'blank' and I am going to just assume they won't work. Have not tested cbr vs vbr (that I can specifically recall - if even worth it - was important in past for other media devices)

There have also been some users having problems with self radio that had files related to Media Feature pack on N/KN windows in their gtav folder. Putting these files in the gtav folder 'can' work - but you'd be better off to simply/correctly install the proper media feature pack, or fix your system files if not on a N/KN. By leaving those files (or using the wrong ones) in the gtav folder - they could easily cause future issues after windows updates, or even after correctly installing the media feature pack. Others- have also had similar issues with those files but NOT on N/KN - instead had corruption/damaged files (or may have attempted replacing those files.. who knows anymore -.-). Lastly- a potential issue is slim windows installs, or missing windows media features/player, being uninstalled, force removed, etc - this has been problematic in the past too. There is a 'mod'/non-vanilla files removal link on my profile if you aren't sure if your folder is clean.


--- Just listing some other catches that could cause issue ---

In regards to my documents / non-default locations, or other changing/old methods/etc -
In the registry you can navigate to---
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

And look in the right pane for Personal - what does that say? It should say:
%USERPROFILE%\Documents - on a default windows install at time of this post.
(may/may not be affected by Onedrive)

Are there any other users on that pc? Are you SURE you are in the correct user folder?
(just doublechecking.. ya know...)

If you want some guaranteed music to test with - last time I used these - they worked correctly - https://www.bensound.com/ 4 songs - (buddy - idea - energy - cute). There are more there now, though I would assume they all work. Just something else to download all/check later.


Experiencing world load/texture issues? What have you done in terms of testing?
Insert all the other details questions here---> Amount of music files? Autoscan? Quickscan or full scan? Shortcuts? Drives that game and music reside on? Do they share? 'Old' issue with ultrawide/res/drivers? Using fullscreen or window/borderless? Audio playback quality/hz on pc? Random/sequential? What are your usage stats before/after turning on self radio? Game priority? Is something that has been affecting many for years.

Personally, no issues here- and I've tested some of the supposed problem configurations in the past with no issue. Will test more/all in the future when I have time to waste/feel like it.