Popular audio player AIMP is deservedly considered one of the best tools for listening to music on mobile devices due to support for a huge number of formats and a powerful equalizer. However, after the first installation, the application may appear empty, since it does not always automatically find all the music files in the smartphone’s memory, especially if they are stored in non-standard directories. Users often wonder how to force the player to show the path to tracks or why some songs are not displayed in the general playlist.
The process of filling a library with tracks does not require complex manipulations and takes only a few minutes if you know where exactly the necessary library management functions are hidden in the interface. In this article, we will look in detail at all the ways to import audio files - from automatically scanning the entire memory to manually adding individual tracks through the built-in file manager. You will also learn how to set up exceptions for system folders so that unnecessary noise does not appear in the playlist.
Automatic scanning of device memory
The easiest and fastest way to populate your music library is to use the built-in scanning function, which analyzes the internal memory and SD card for the presence of audio files. When you first launch AIMP usually it offers to perform this procedure automatically, but if you missed this window or added new music later, the function can be called up manually through the main settings menu. The system will sequentially check all available sections of the storage and add the found tracks to the player database.
To start the process, you need to go to the section Settings, which is usually indicated by a gear icon at the top of the screen, and select the item Media library. Here you will see a button Scan or Update library, clicking on which initiates a search for files with extensions .mp3, .flac, .wav and other supported formats. It is important to note that the speed of the algorithm directly depends on the amount of memory and the number of files, so on devices with large storage the process can take up to several minutes.
During the scanning process, the algorithm ignores system directories and folders with temporary files, focusing exclusively on user content. If, after completing the operation, some tracks are still missing, they may be protected by DRM rights or are in encrypted containers that a standard scanner cannot read without additional access rights.
⚠️ Attention: Automatic scanning may take a long time on devices with large internal memory (more than 128 GB), so it is recommended to connect the smartphone to a charger before starting this procedure to avoid draining batteries.
If you have a lot of music on your memory card, make sure that it is correctly mounted by the system before starting the scan, otherwise the player simply will not see these files.
Manually adding tracks and folders
Sometimes automatic search does not give the desired result, for example, if the music is stored in a specific folder, which is the default algorithm skips, or if you want to add only a specific album without clogging up the general library with unnecessary songs. In such cases, the manual addition function comes to the rescue, allowing the user to independently specify the path to the desired files through the built-in explorer or system file manager.
To add files manually, open the main screen of the player and click on the menu button (three dots or stripes), where select the option Open file or Add from storage. A directory navigation interface will open, where you can go to any folder on the device, check the necessary tracks and confirm the action with the Addbutton. This method is especially convenient when working with downloaded archives or files received via instant messengers and saved in the folder Downloads.
In addition to individual files, AIMP allows add entire directories, which significantly speeds up the process of importing large collections. By selecting the parent album folder, you automatically add all the audio files it contains to the current playlist or to the main library, depending on the selected import settings. The recursive search function inside a folder ensures that even nested subdirectories will be processed correctly.
- 📂 Use the built-in file manager to quickly navigate to hidden folders.
- 🎵 Multiple selection of files is supported via a long press on the first track.
- 📁 Adding a folder saves album structure is better than selecting individual files.
- ⚡ Manual mode is ideal for adding new releases without completely rescanning.
Setting up search paths and exclusions
For advanced users who want to optimize the player's performance and speed up the indexing process, detailed search path settings are available. In the media library settings section, you can explicitly specify the list of directories that should be included in the scanning area, as well as create a “black list” of folders that should be ignored. This is an extremely useful feature for those who have audio notifications from games, ringtones from instant messengers, or podcasts stored on their device that should not be mixed with the main music collection.
To set up exceptions, go to Settings → Media Library → Scan Folders. Here you will see a list of all available paths with radio buttons next to each of them. Uncheck those directories whose contents you do not want to see in the player, for example Android/data or system folders with navigator voice acting. Alternatively, you can add a new path manually by clicking the button Add Folder and specifying the specific location of your FLAC collections.
Correct search path configuration not only clears the interface of excess visual noise, but also significantly reduces the time it takes to launch the application and update the track list. The database becomes more compact, and searching through the library works faster, since the algorithm does not need to process thousands of irrelevant files with each iteration.
⚠️ Attention: The settings interface may vary slightly depending on the Android version and AIMP theme, so if you do not find the "Folders to scan" item, look for it in the "Advanced settings" or "Filters" section.
| Folder type | Recommended action | Impact on speed |
|---|---|---|
| Music | Enable (Required) | High |
| Downloads / Downloads | Enable (If there is music) | Medium |
| Android / data | Exclude (Recommended) | Low (but a lot of garbage) |
| DCIM / Camera | Exclude (Required) | Low |
| Telegram / Audio | Optional | Medium |
Excluding system folders from scanning is the best way to prevent duplicates and service sounds from appearing in your playlist.
Working with playlists and playback queue
After the files have been successfully added to the library, the logical question of organizing listening arises. AIMP offers a flexible playlist management system that allows you to create thematic collections, lists for training, or just a set of tracks for a trip. Unlike a simple play queue, playlists are saved on the device and can be reopened at any time, even after restarting the application.
Creating a new playlist is done through the context menu of any track or through a special section in the sidebar. You can give the list a unique name, add cover art, and customize the sort order of the tracks within it. Adding files to an existing playlist is done by simply dragging (Drag-and-Drop) in landscape mode or through the "Add to playlist" menu by long pressing on a track in portrait mode.
The playback queue (Queue) works differently: it is temporary and is cleared after the added tracks have finished playing or the application is closed. This is a convenient tool for situational listening when you need to insert several songs between the current track and the rest of the list without disturbing the structure of the main playlist. Files can be added to the queue directly from Explorer by selecting the "Play next" or "Add to the end of the queue" option.
- 📝 Playlists are saved in .aimppl format for compatibility with the PC version.
- 🔀 The playback queue is automatically cleared when the application is restarted.
- 🎨 You can attach your own covers to playlists for visual navigation.
- 🔄 Drag and drop tracks are supported to change the order within the list.
How to restore a deleted playlist?
If you accidentally deleted a playlist, you can restore it from a backup file if you previously enabled settings synchronization or manually saved the .aimppl file in a safe place on the device.
Solving file display problems
Despite the reliability of the app code, users may encounter a situation where physically existing files do not appear in the list playback Most often, the reason lies in the presence of a file .nomedia in the music folder - this hidden system file tells the Android operating system and all media scanners that there is no content in this directory for indexing. Deleting this file usually solves the problem instantly, forcing the system to rescan the folder.
Another common cause is a failure in the media storage database of Android itself. In this case, clearing the cache of the “Media Server” or “Media Storage” system application through the smartphone settings helps. After clearing the cache and rebooting the device, all applications, including AIMPwill receive an up-to-date list of files and display them correctly in their libraries.
It is also worth checking the application's access rights. In modern versions of Android (starting from 11 and higher), access to the file system is strictly regulated. Make sure that access to “Files and media” or “Storage” is activated in the “Applications → AIMP → Permissions” section of your phone settings. Without this permission, the player simply does not have the technical ability to read data from the disk, regardless of the settings within the application itself.
⚠️ Attention: If files have exotic extensions or are damaged, the player may ignore them when scanning. Try renaming the extension to a standard one (for example, .mp3) or check the integrity of the file on your computer.
☑️ Diagnosis of missing music
Synchronization with computer and cloud
For owners of extensive music collections stored on PC, the issue of quickly transferring files to a mobile device is relevant. The most reliable way is to connect your smartphone via a USB cable in file transfer mode (MTP). In this mode, the device appears in the computer system as an external drive, allowing you to copy music folders directly to a directory /Music or any other folder convenient for you.
After copying files, do not forget to safely remove the device or at least wait a few seconds before disconnecting the cable so that the data has time to be written to the file table. Then on your smartphone you just need to start the scanning procedure in AIMP, and new tracks will appear in the library. This method is preferable to wireless transfer for large amounts of data (gigabytes of music), as it provides maximum speed and stability of the connection.
An alternative option is to use cloud storage or network access functions if your version of the player and router support the SMB/DLNA protocol. This allows you to stream music directly from your computer's hard drive without taking up space on your smartphone's internal memory. However, to add such files to your local library for offline listening, you will still need to download them to your device.
When organizing synchronization, it is important to consider the file system. If you are using an exFAT or NTFS memory card, make sure that your smartphone supports reading these formats out of the box, otherwise the files may be visible but not playable. The standard FAT32 format is the most compatible, but has a limit on the size of one file of 4 GB, which is important for long mixes in high quality.
When copying large volumes of music via USB, use the original cable included in the package, since cheap analogues often only support charging and do not transfer data.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Why does AIMP not see music after connecting a flash drive via OTG?
Make sure that the flash drive is formatted in a compatible file system (FAT32 or exFAT). Also check if the app is given permission to access USB devices. Sometimes you need to manually specify the path to the flash drive through the "Add Folder" menu, since automatic scanning of external drives may be disabled by default to save resources.
Is it possible to add music from Telegram or WhatsApp directly?
Yes, files from instant messengers are usually saved in folders Telegram/Telegram Audio or Android/media/com.whatsapp. You'll need to add these specific paths to your AIMP scan settings or manually open the files through the player's built-in explorer, as the standard scanner may ignore these directories due to access features in new versions of Android.
How to add files if the scan button is inactive?
If the button is inactive, check if the "Playlists only" mode is enabled or the filter by genre/year is hidden all tracks. Also try clearing the app cache in Android settings. In rare cases, reinstalling the application and first saving the settings helps.
Does AIMP support adding files from the Google Drive cloud?
There is no direct integration with Google Drive for adding files to the local library. You can play files through third-party managers that open them in AIMP, but to add them to a permanent library, the files must be physically located in the internal memory or on the device’s SD card.
What should I do if the track names are displayed incorrectly (crazy)?
This is a tag encoding problem. Go to the AIMP settings, find the "Tags" or "Encoding" section and try changing the default encoding to UTF-8 or Windows-1251 (for Cyrillic). After changing the setting, rescan the library to update display names.