Shuffle is not random

[LucasBS]

The title says it: the shuffle feature is not random.

I have a m3u8 playlist with songs sorted alphabetically.

When, on the library, I select this playlist and press Shuffle, it starts playing in the same alphabetical order.

By the way:

When I do the above, this Shuffle Songs/Categories is selected by default. How to change this default to Shuffle Songs instead ?

Anyway...

I can select any of the above shuffle modes while playing, and it doesn't matter: it keeps playing alphabetically.

 

I read on this FAQ the word random many times on the suffle section, so I'm not crazy: It really should be random.

Poweramp V3.871

Edited May 31, 2020 by LucasBS

[andrewilley]

You haven't got anything left in the Queue which is still playing through have you? Because otherwise, viewing a playlist and tapping the Shuffle icon at the top should start playing that list in random order, that's what is meant to happen anyway.

Andre

[LucasBS]

@andrewilley

 

Sorry for the delay. 

The warning that the topic got an answer ended up on the spam...

 

But no... Queue is empty. I check it all the time.

 

One note: on the global library (all songs), the shuffle does work (randomize the songs).

Only happens when shuffle on any Library→Playlist.

 

Gets worse: if I quit Poweramp, and come back, it always repeat the same sequence. It doesn't remember it already played that song (dumb shuffle, as known)

[andrewilley]

You don't have Settings > Library > Lists > No Reshuffle enabled by any chance do you?

You say this only affects Playlists, how are you starting shuffled playback? Tapping a song title or using the Shuffle icon at the top of the list? Or are you using the Playlist tree-dots menu > Re-Sort feature?

Andre

[MotleyG]

6 hours ago, andrewilley said:

You don't have Settings > Library > Lists > No Reshuffle enabled by any chance do you?

You say this only affects Playlists, how are you starting shuffled playback? Tapping a song title or using the Shuffle icon at the top of the list? Or are you using the Playlist tree-dots menu > Re-Sort feature?

Andre

I use the header shuffle button often in lists, including playlists. It works as expected, but as @andrewilley has suggested, you need to check this option Settings > Library > Lists > No Reshuffle.

[LucasBS]

@andrewilley @andrewilley @MotleyG

 

Indeedd, it was ON

Now it's off, and it's FIXED.

 

If I use the Shuffle button on the playlist header, it used to play alphabetically before this fix.

If I re-sorted, and pushed Play, it played the randomized one.

 

Thank you both for the attention.

Resolved.

 

Now, two suggestions: 

- A better explanation of the functions on those deep menus. Explanation WITHIN the app, not outside. A little (i) button for information, would not ruin the visual.

 

- An option to memorize the playback and prevent a song to be played again in another session before the whole category reaches an end (smart shuffle).

 

 

 

Edited June 18, 2020 by LucasBS

[andrewilley]

18 minutes ago, LucasBS said:

- An option to memorize the playback and prevent a song to be played again in another session before the whole category reaches an end (smart shuffle).

As long as you don't start a new shuffle, you won't hear the same song twice. If you do reshuffle, the new list will be completely random and thus will contain all of the same songs at some point in the playback. That's what the no-reshuffle option was designed for, if you do enable that mode then the order doesn't get re-randomised and thus you won't hear recent songs again (as long as you don't change the playback position within the running order manually of course).

Andre

[LucasBS]

 

On 6/18/2020 at 1:22 PM, andrewilley said:

As long as you don't start a new shuffle, you won't hear the same song twice. If you do reshuffle, the new list will be completely random and thus will contain all of the same songs at some point in the playback. That's what the no-reshuffle option was designed for, if you do enable that mode then the order doesn't get re-randomised and thus you won't hear recent songs again (as long as you don't change the playback position within the running order manually of course).

Andre

 

I'd like to reopen this topic. Because.. Well... The answer above leaves us on a conundrum !

 

It took us the whole topic to conclude that I need the no-reshuffle option OFF if I want to shuffle. And I DO want to shuffle. Or at least not hear the same songs everytime I run the playlist.

Yet, as I switch between many playslist depending on the party, or when the app crashes, etc, I'm met with the problem of no random playback (songs repeat).

 

We need a third system. One that memorizes the already played songs, and skip them.

Not to insult, but... Winamp has it since before I was born...

On it, the songs are sorted alfphabetically (perfect), and played randomly, with the care of not repeating, even after I close the program.

 

Edited June 3, 2021 by LucasBS

[andrewilley]

Blocking any songs that have ever been played before wouldn't really be practical. For starters, how long should the block last for - this session, today, this week/month/year, forever? And what happens if you then want to listen to a specific album or a playlist? Only some of the songs would play, getting fewer and fewer over time.

What you could do to make a permanently random list that wouldn't ever repeat would be to first create a special one-off Playlist containing all of the songs in your Library (open the All Songs category, long-press on any song, tap 'All', and add the whole lot to a new Playlist). Once created, open that new Playlist and use (three-dots menu) > Re-sort to permanently randomise the whole list. Then enable 'List Position Memory' for that playlist (it's in 'List Options') and then every time you use the 'Play' icon to start listening to that playlist, it will continue playing at the same position in the random order that you last listened to. 

Andre

[LucasBS]

Your solution works !

And works for any playlist, not just the All Songs.
If I switch to another playlist, it will remember.

Resolved !

Thank you

The only imperfection about this fix is that if I jump to a song in the middle of the playlist, once that song ends, it will continue from there instead of resuming the previous sequence. Gets worse if I choose a song above on the playlist instead of below.

 

For the sake of curiosity:
The problems you listed are easy to overcome:

- The banishment lasts until all the songs on the playlist have been played. And, the blocking is only valid for THAT specific playlist.
Not much different than the "list position memory" we already have.

- If an user wants to listen again to a song on that playlist, all he must do is to click on it, as it won't disappear from the playlist after played, only be skipped by the engine. 

This system is amazing if I want to keep the list alphabetically, and play at random

That's sincerely something I miss here from Winamp

Edited June 3, 2021 by LucasBS

[andrewilley]

The List Position Memory can be enabled or disabled independently for each separate playlist (also works with folders by the way).

And yes, the list position memory only stores the song which you last listened to; if you move backwards or forwards through a list then that location will be the saved song when you return to the list. Which is basically the point of the feature.

Andre

[mikeweb66]

I'm having a shuffle problem that doesn't relate to playlists. In the past when I've gone into artist view and selected a certain artist then hit shuffle it would shuffle all the songs from that artist from all their albums. Now all it does is pick one album from the artist and shuffle those songs. I've tried changing all the settings I can find. Very frustrating. Note: this happened after I got a new phone. 

[andrewilley]

@mikeweb66 Yes, that is the designed default behaviour. There are two ways to do what you want though:

1) Tap on the 'All Artist Songs' button first, and then tap the Shuffle icon at the top of the resulting full songs list.

2) If you only ever want it to work that way, set PA Settings => Library => Shuffle => Category Items Shuffle to 'Shuffle Songs'.

Andre