I talked about some of the challenges of this here.
Feel free to elaborate on this. We’re interested 
I appreciate the suggestion, I have tried this in the past and just tried it again. I end up with a huge list that includes jazz vocalists. For my purposes, not very useful. I understand that if I added more tags my results would be finer tuned. My memory tends to be more spacial than verbal and remembering locations is by far the easier way for me too find things.
I have to disagree with storage locations being clunky. It’s just another way of encoding metadata. It works for some and not for others. I find tags an awkward way to do things, mostly because they rely on verbal memory. I have tagged my photos in Lightroom extensively but only rarely use them to retrieve images. I find it much easier to find things in the folder structure by date and number of photos in the day’s folder.
Probably also why although my desk is mess to others, I generally know where everything is and what is there. That is, unless my wife “cleans” it up for me. Then I’m lost and end up paying bills twice! 
(I’m away from my system, but) I believe Roon already supports drag and drop from Windows explorer. But this imports the Album into the library. If you have the browser organized by import order, you play it as usual. The difference is, you then have to decide whether to leave it there or delete it.
That’s true. But I don’t want to have to put something into the library to play it. Too many steps in and out and not always reliable as to how it shows up.
Hi Mike. Thanks for pointing this out. I suppose a product as sophisticated as Roon will generally create more sophisticated challenges as well! I think there are ways through those issues, but I can see what you mean relative to development resource allocation. Drag and drop to play not as easy as it appears.
I’ll explain my complete prior use case if you are interested. But I will summarize by saying that I think a number of Roon users likely curated their collections through custom metatags embedded in the audio files - I used fields like “Moods” (values like “Morning Coffee” or Late Night Party") and “Shuffle Frequency” (values like “Hits,” “Deep Cuts,” and “Live”) in order to not only set a mood for type of music but determine how deep I wanted Foobar shuffle to dig into my collection.
Thus, I assume that there is a significant number of Roon users that would benefit from being able to convert their custom metatags within their files to Roon tags. The function would just need to allow focus on a specific metatag field value. Roon already does this with standard metadata like genre, and the information is clearly in the database because I can see it in File Info. Just need to be able to search and focus on those values in order to then apply a Roon Tag.
Make sense?
I am studying if Roon is for me or not.
My files struture that I created during 1 year from CD rippings and DSD downlaods, and that I want to keep is
- DSD files
- FLAC files
Within each one sub folders are
CLASSICAL with 4 sub folders - by composers, by instruments, by Choral and by Opera
JAZZ , by artist names only
ROCK , by artist names only.
I had Roon to import , and I cannot find the file I wanted to play , not the ones Roon shows me to play , but the ones I want to select and play.
So, is Roon for me or I use MPD with file folder browser ?
Roon is fun to use but when I seat down I know (have so far good memory…) ,which file I want to play and above all WHERE HE IS LOCATED IN FOLDER STRUCTURE I CREATED, so it’s a simple matter to go to that folder , select it and play ,easy , may be not easy for Roon …???
Ocasionaly I can use Roon funny displays just if I dont want to hear a specific file I have in mind. Not always not every time , just OCCASIONALY…
Would love to hear the experts.
greetings from sunny Portugal
Pedro
Greetings from sunny SW France
Roon is not a folder based system so it will not currently do what you want, I guess you may be able to work around it by tagging very specifically? You could create seperate music folders for DSD/Classical DSD/Jazz and so on which you could filter on using focus and storage locations but it would be a little clunky IMHO.
Russ
Merci Russ, we both have nice sunshine it seems , time for beach not Roon…
anyway… what you say is more work and time consuming than needed just to see the file I want and know where he is.
Tags , filters, focus…Roon could get money from both sides , the ones who dont know where their files are and the ones who know…and dont need to be shown other fantasies…only for fun they go there very occasionaly.
Roon is studying internally this issue I know well…so it’s a matter of time for next update…hopefullly…, their interest also to bring more paying customers to the boat with folder browsing also…some use what Roon shows them, others what they really want… even with extra stories and pictures of THE FILE we select…on the folder we know…that’s ok , but they both pay to same pocket…
Time for beach now…
Pedro
Roon is not a folder-based system, and we believe you will soon see the benefits of that. Most fundamental, a folder-based system requires that you keep the knowledge of your content in your own brain, in your memory. If you know what you want to listen to, any folder-based system (and any other system) can find it for you. But that means you have already navigated the metadata database in you brain (even if it doesn’t feel like a database), and located the thing you want to listen to. What Roon does is help you with that.
You mention the structure you set up in a year of CD ripping, but after a few more years, or 40 more years, that doesn’t work - believe me.
The example I mentioned above: I’m not a vibraphone enthusiast, but I love John Coltrane and he made a great album with a vibes player whose name I don’t recall. The album was called Bags & Trane, for their nicknames. Where is that album? Under John Coltrane? Nope. Under Bags? Nope. What is Bags real name? If you are not a vibes guy you don’t remember Milt Jackson, so if it is in a Milt Jackson directory it is hard to find. But in Roon, I can type BAGS or COL or TRANE or MILT or even JOHN and it’s there. You might say that you wouldn’t file it under Milt, you would file it under Coltrane and you know that, but this becomes problematic because the folder structure permits only one choice, and sometimes that choice isn’t obvious (Karajan or Beethoven?). And sometimes my view about who is primary evolves: I bought an album with Arild Anderson and filed it there, it also had Vassilis Tsabropolous who I’d never heard of, but then I liked him and bought more of his work and now Vassilis is the primary artist in my mind. And other options, I don’t know much about Fado but if I type fado into Roon, half a dozen albums show up.
You can keep your folder structure, doesn’t bother Roon. But I strongly recommend that you look into navigating some other way. Long experience tells me that will make you happier. (Five years from now, will you remember if one of your albums is DSD or FLAC? I thought I would, but no.)
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Many thanks Andreas for kind input.
I still have good memory …and because I made every rip…stiil fresh , when I am older may be memory fades away but then …may be also I am deaf…
I mean I even like Roon to show me things …but after…I played my file not before…for Roon it takes 1-2 months to make folder browsing happen , it doesnot bother all others who like the Roon ‘surprises’ and makes everybody happy, they get more customers and all are happy, why not ?
best wishes after suntan…
Pedro
Just type in what you want to listen to into the funnel and hit play. It’s that easy. If you wish to organise more, use tags.
Also get to know Focus and how powerful it is. You won’t be deaf either.
I favourite tracks as I go, then in tracks/favourites hit ‘Play All’ and it shuffles through all my favourite music with options to reject the next track if I wish.
There is so much more you can do and nothing you can’t do when you let go of folders.
Just my experience, you have to decide for yourself.
Just another input, I have in each file all metadata I need, pictures , front-back, booklets, leaflet, etc…, so all data to fully read abt music file content and that’s the views I basiclally need , any more extras are most welcomed if added by Roon when I select and play the file , Roon extra data is good by then not before…I dont mind to pay 500 for that extra if not presented as an obligation…like ‘‘you dont know-remember what you want, so we your Father Roon gives you what WE THINK you need…’’ seems we are in a psycho hospital of insanes who lost their minds…their willl and above all …their Freedom…
best wishes
Pedro
For me one or two additional levels in Focus-Inspector-Storage locations would do it.
Like sub storage location 1 and sub storage location 2.
That would not introduce “folder view”, but would make my life easier with roon.
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Roon knows well that even customers who are happy now without folder view, wouid welcome it as an option , Roon is listening …and working on it for next update.
This is called supplier flexibility to widen customers satisfaction.
Remember we dont want Roon to get away from their policy to show their nice interface made by their bright minds, we just humbly need folder view as an OPTION…for those of us who want to use try it to simplify their playing lives, we pay 500 and have the right to choose… Roon knows that…here in Portugal there is a popular saying ‘’ dont preach sermons to the Priest’…they know well.
best wishes to all
Pedro
There are a number of us who have been asking for a folder browser for some time for the same reasons you did. Hopefully we will get something in a future release.
Amen , God , sorry, Roon is listening…
I DON’T want it.
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Nick, dont worry, you keep all you have now, folder is an OPTION, relax…
I am relaxed, how much programming time will it take, its an unnecessary option as far as I am concerned if I wish to find which folder a file is in it is easy.
There are many folder driven playback systems but only 1 album sleeve driven one. Why should the album driven one be like all the others. If you want a folder driven one then use one of those as they are apparently ‘better’ sounding.
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I must say I think the small (But Beautifuly formed) Roon team have plenty more worthwhile things to spend time on at this stage.
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