Helium 18 is finally here!

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Welcome to Helium 18! This major release brings significant improvements across the board, from a modernized user interface to powerful new scripting capabilities and enhanced audio features. Here’s everything that’s new.

User Interface Enhancements

Optimized Layout for Maximum Screen Space

The title bar now hosts the main menu (via hamburger icon), navigation history, search bar, sidebar toggles, and quick options access. This frees up the full width for the customizable toolbar, and for ultra-wide displays, the toolbar can be docked vertically on the right side.

Customizable Context Menus

Context menus are now fully customizable. You can control which actions appear, reorder items, and organize them into groups. Available for tracklists, play queue, album views, album details, and My Computer.

Customizable Album Details & Sidebar

Configure which fields display in the Album Details information column, their order, and automatically hide empty fields to reduce clutter. You can also customize which tabs appear in the right sidebar and their order.

Alphabetical Quick Navigation

Album, Artist, and Label thumbnail views now feature an alphabetical quick navigation bar for faster browsing through large collections.

User Avatars

Set a personalized avatar image for each user, displayed in the top bar for easy identification of the current logged-in user.

Audio & Playback

High-Quality Waveform and Spectrogram

A new high-resolution waveform control offers much greater visual detail. It can be beat-colored based on frequency and tempo—perfect for DJs identifying specific parts of a track. Seeking performance has also been improved.

DSD/DSF File Support

Helium 18 now supports DSD/DSF files, the ultra-high-resolution audio format from Sony and Philips. Full support includes cataloging, tagging, and playback.

Upgraded Core Audio Engine

The BASS audio framework and all related add-ons have been updated for improved audio processing and playback reliability with full 64-bit support.

Enhanced Waveforms in Splitter and Joiner

The Splitter and Joiner tools now use the same high-resolution waveform control as the main player, with zoom levels from 1% to 10% and smooth scrolling during playback.

Queue Mode Control for Album Play Buttons

Control how albums are added to your playback queue when using album play buttons.

Tagging & Metadata

Improved Filename to Tag

The Filename to Tag tool features significantly improved automatic format detection with folder support. A new embedded editor in the Tag Editor allows per-file template editing with instant preview. The Advanced Tag Editor and scripting engine also support this new logic.

CD Subtitle Support

A new CD Subtitle tag field supports multi-disc albums where each disc has its own title. The subtitle displays in grouped album views.

Markdown Text Editing

Lyrics, Biography, and Album Review fields now use Markdown instead of HTML-based rich text. Plain text is the default, with Markdown available for controlled formatting. A built-in preview and conversion tool for existing HTML data are included.

Enhanced Lyrics Downloader

New options allow you to edit the search artist/title before searching and ignore track duration for broader matches.

Search & Discovery

Faster, Smarter Search

Optimized search performance with categorized top matches in the dropdown. A “Show more” button opens a full results page for comprehensive searching.

Artist Discovery via Discogs

The Discogs plugin now automatically fetches similar artists when downloading artist information, making it easier to explore related music in your library.

Album Comparison in Duplicate Finder

Compare the full contents of multiple albums side by side in the Duplicate Finder.

Scripting & Integration

JavaScript Scripting Support

Write scripts in JavaScript alongside the existing C# support. JavaScript offers an easier entry point while maintaining full power and flexibility. Updated documentation and sample scripts are included.

Enhanced External Application Integration

Pass arguments from most tag frames (artist, album, title, etc.) to external tools using the new “Codes” button in application settings.

Views & Navigation

Releases View as Album Details

The Releases view can now display as Album Details.

Active Track View Improvements

Support for multiple artist pictures with automatic cycling. Click the current picture to manually advance to the next.

Time-Synchronized Lyrics Timestamps

Lyrics now display timestamps for a clearer overview of playback position.

My Computer Improvements

Scan subfolders directly via context menu. Significantly improved loading and response times, especially for large folders.

Label Details Enhancement

Label Details now show which artists are assigned to the selected label.

CD Ripping

Single-File Rip with CUE

Rip a CD to a single file with an automatically generated CUE file—ideal for mixed CDs.

Technical Improvements

Upgrade to .NET 10

Helium has moved from .NET 8 to .NET 10 (LTS), bringing significant performance and security improvements.

Updated Database Drivers

Revised drivers for all supported database types with improved performance and stability. SQL Server drivers updated to the latest version.

General Improvements

  • Updated UI components for improved consistency
  • Performance optimizations throughout the application
  • Memory usage improvements for large libraries
  • Enhanced cache handling in Advanced Tag Editor
  • General stability improvements and bug fixes

Helium Streamer

Helium Streamer has been updated to support Helium 18, including the database enhancements and .NET 10 upgrade.

Important Notes

  • Helium 18 can be installed alongside Helium 17 in isolated folders
  • Databases upgraded to Helium 18 format will no longer be compatible with Helium 17
  • Always back up your database and settings before upgrading

Upgrade

Users who purchased Helium 17 within the last year receive this upgrade for free. Users who purchased Helium 17 or any previous version of Helium can upgrade to Helium 18 at a discounted price via our Customer Center.

Click here to download Helium 18

Helium 18.4 beta 4 now available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Welcome to the new Helium 18 beta release!

This update focuses on several major new features and important stability fixes. Here are the primary changes included in this version:

Customizable Context Menus

At first glance, the context menus look similar to those in previous Helium versions. However, you now have full control over their contents. You can customize which actions are displayed, change the order of menu items, and organize them into one or more levels of grouping. To get started, select “Customize Context Menu…” to open the configuration dialog.

Customizable context menus are currently available for:

  • Tracklists
  • Play queue
  • Album views
  • Album details view (Albums and tracks)
  • My Computer

This feature allows you to refine your workflow by exposing only the specific tools you need.

Adjustable User Avatars

You can now set a personalized avatar image for each user. The avatar is displayed in the top bar, making it easy to see at a glance which user is currently logged into Helium.

Database Enhancements

This version introduces revised database drivers for all supported database types. We have also implemented multiple improvements to the underlying code, resulting in better performance and increased stability.

Upgrade to .NET 10

We have updated the underlying framework for Helium from .NET 8 to .NET 10. As the latest Long Term Support (LTS) release from Microsoft, .NET 10 provides significant improvements in both performance and security.

In addition to these major updates, we have included various minor fixes to make Helium 18 even more reliable. If you are using a previous Helium 18 beta, we recommend updating to this version immediately.

Helium Streamer

We have created a revised version of Helium Streamer, which now includes the recent database enhancements and the transition to .NET 10. This update ensures that Helium Streamer benefits from the same performance and security improvements found in the latest Helium 18 beta.

Beta version alert

Please note that this version is a beta release, meaning that not all features have undergone complete testing.

However, you can safely install Helium 18 alongside Helium 17, as beta versions are isolated in their own folders.

When using Helium 18, your Helium 17 databases will be upgraded and will no longer be compatible with Helium 17.

Remember: Always back up your database and settings before installing this version.

Click here to download Helium 18 beta 4

Click here to download Helium Streamer 8 beta

Helium 18 beta 3 available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Major changes in this beta release

  • Queue Mode Control for Album Play Buttons – You can now control the queue mode when using album play buttons, giving you more flexibility in how albums are added to your playback queue.
  • Visual and Stability Improvements in Album Details View – The Album Details view has been enhanced with visual refinements and improved stability for a better browsing experience.
  • Auto-Hide Empty Fields Option – Added the ability to automatically hide empty fields in the Album Details view (album info field), reducing clutter and improving readability.
  • Fixed My Computer State Overwriting Issue – Corrected a bug that was incorrectly overwriting the My Computer state.
  • Subfolder Scanning in My Computer View – You can now scan subfolders directly from the My Computer view using the context menu, making it easier to handle nested music folders.
  • Performance Improvements for My Computer View – The My Computer view now loads and responds faster, especially when working with large folders.
  • Enhanced Cache Handling in Advanced Tag Editor – Improved cache management in the Advanced Tag Editor for better performance and reliability.
  • Filename to Tag Feature Improvements – Enhanced the Filename to Tag feature with various improvements for more accurate tag extraction.
  • Fixed Filename to Tag from Main Menu – Resolved an issue where starting Filename to Tag from the main menu was not working correctly.
  • Main Bar User Interface Improvements – Updated the main bar interface with visual and usability enhancements.
  • Updated SQL Server Drivers – SQL Server drivers have been updated to the latest version for improved compatibility and performance.
  • General Stability and Performance Improvements – Various under-the-hood improvements to enhance overall application stability and performance.

If you are using Helium 18 beta 1 or beta 2, be sure to upgrade to this release today!

Beta version alert

Please note that this version is a beta release, meaning that not all features have undergone complete testing.

However, you can safely install Helium 18 alongside Helium 17, as beta versions are isolated in their own folders.

When using Helium 18, your Helium 17 databases will be upgraded and will no longer be compatible with Helium 17.

Remember: Always back up your database and settings before installing this version.

Click here to download Helium 18 beta 3

Helium 18 beta 2 available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Welcome to a new beta version of Helium 18!

Major changes in this version

User interface improvements

Optimizing UI for Maximum Vertical Space

To save important vertical space (or just height), we are now using the window title bar more efficiently, where a couple of functions have been moved into:

  • The main menu, which no longer occupies a full row, is now available from the hamburger icon.
  • Back and forward navigation in history.
  • The search bar, which also has been extended in width.
  • Left and Right Sidebar visibility.
  • A new quick link to options.

The customizable toolbar will now have the full width available, with the possibility to display more tool buttons than before.

If you have a wide/ultra-wide screen, height is even more important while much width is available. For these specific scenarios, it is now possible to dock the toolbar vertically at the right, sparing even more space in the height.

A faster, smarter search

We’ve upgraded the search feature to be faster and easier to use.

  • Quicker and Smoother: We’ve optimized performance to give you speedier results.
  • No More Overwhelming Lists: To keep things fast, the search dropdown will now show the top matches for each category.
  • See All Results: If your search finds a lot of items, just click the new “Show more” button. This will take you to a full page where you can see all of your matches.

Show Only the Actual Data in Album Details

With a new setting for the Album Details info field, it is now possible to filter out items that do not contain any data to reduce visual clutter.

Rich Text Controls Replaced with Markdown

Helium has long supported both rich text and plain text in controls like Lyrics, Biography, and Album Review. Previously, we used an HTML-based editor for formatting (e.g., bold, italic, underline).

However, standard tag information does not support this rich text, which could cause display incompatibilities.

To simplify formatting, all of these editing controls now support Markdown.

How it Works

  • Plain Text is Default: If you only enter text, it will be saved as plain text. No additional settings are needed.
  • Controlled Formatting: Markdown is a controlled way to format text if you choose to use it.
  • Built-in Preview: When you use Markdown code, each editing control has a built-in preview tab that lets you instantly see the formatted result.
  • Quick Controls: Helium still provides default formatting buttons (bold, italic, underline, and various heading sizes). You can also extend this by entering your own custom Markdown.

Converting Existing Data

Helium will not automatically convert your existing data.

If you have data already stored in HTML, a button is available in the editor to help you clean up and convert the HTML to Markdown.

For a full reference, please click here

Enhanced Waveforms in Splitter and Joiner Tools

The Splitter and Joiner tools now come with the same high-resolution waveform control used in the main player.

This provides a much more detailed view of each track, or part of a track, and includes several key benefits:

  • Deep Zoom: The new control supports zoom levels from 1% to 10% for even more detail.
  • Smooth Scrolling: When zoomed in and playing a track, the waveform will smoothly scroll with the playback position.

Active Track View: Multiple Artist Pictures & Manual Cycling

The Active Track View now supports multiple artist pictures.

If the file currently being played has multiple artists, pictures from all available artists will be available for display.

If you want to avoid the automatic wait for picture changes, you can now click the currently shown picture to immediately show the next one.

A faster, smarter search

We’ve upgraded the search feature to be faster and easier to use.

  • Quicker and Smoother: We’ve optimized performance to give you speedier results.
  • No More Overwhelming Lists: To keep things fast, the search dropdown will now show the top matches for each category.
  • See All Results: If your search finds a lot of items, just click the new “Show more” button. This will take you to a full page where you can see all of your matches.

Upgraded Core Audio Engine

We have upgraded the application’s core audio engine, which is powered by the BASS framework and its related add-ons.

This framework is responsible for all audio playback and processing. This update is a significant “under-the-hood” improvement.

Enhanced External Application Integration

Helium now supports more parameters when launching external applications.

You can now pass arguments from most tag frames (e.g., artist, album, title) directly to any connected external tool.

These parameters can be easily added by using the “Codes” button when you add or edit an external application’s settings.

Artist Discovery with the Discogs Plugin

The Discogs plugin has been enhanced to improve music discovery.

When you use the plugin to download or update artist information, it will now also automatically fetch a list of similar artists (if available). This information is saved with the artist’s other details, making it easier to explore related music within your library.

Lyrics Downloader Improvements

The lyrics downloader has been improved, especially when launched from the Tag Editor.

You now have two new options before searching:

  • Edit Search: You can manually change the artist and title to refine your search.
  • Broader Matches: You can select a new setting to ignore the track’s duration. This helps find more potential matches if the exact track length isn’t matching a database entry.

If you are using Helium 18 beta, be sure to upgrade to this release today!

Beta version alert

Please note that this version is a beta release, meaning that not all features have undergone complete testing.

However, you can safely install Helium 18 alongside Helium 17, as beta versions are isolated in their own folders.

When using Helium 18, your Helium 17 databases will be upgraded and will no longer be compatible with Helium 17.

Remember: Always back up your database and settings before installing this version.

Click here to download Helium 18 beta 2

Welcome to Helium 18 beta 1!

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Major news in this version

Improved Filename to Tag handling

The updated Filename to Tag tool comes with several new features, including:

  • Significantly improved automatic detection of filename formats, also with folder support.
  • Embedded editor in the Tag Editor for faster processing. A new Template column can be shown in the Tag Editor, allowing you to edit templates per file – a very quick way to tag files with different filename formats. The embedded editor lets you experiment with templates and instantly preview the results.

The Advanced Tag Editor includes the same new features, including the embedded editor.

The scripting engine now supports the new logic for Filename to Tag as well.

Extended Scripting support with JavaScript

Helium 18 now includes support for writing scripts in JavaScript.
Previously, Helium only supported scripts written in C# – and that support remains – but it’s now also possible to write scripts in JavaScript.

JavaScript can be a bit easier to use when writing scripts, while still offering the same power and flexibility as C#.

The documentation has been updated to show which functions are supported when using JavaScript, and many sample scripts are included with the installation.

More Customizable User Interface

You can now customize which fields are displayed – and in what order – in the Album Details information column. We’ve also added support for additional fields and more rows (some of which are only shown when a release is expanded).

You can also customize which tabs are visible in the right sidebar, as well as the order in which they appear.

Additionally, it’s now possible to control the visibility of the equalizer in the main player.

High-Quality Waveform and Spectrogram

When using the graphics position bar, we’ve introduced a new high-quality waveform with much greater detail.

It not only provides enhanced visual precision but can also be beat-colored based on the frequencies and tempo of the current song.

This makes it the perfect tool for DJs who need to quickly identify specific parts of a track.
Additionally, the seeking performance has been improved for smoother navigation.

The rendering quality of the spectrogram has also been enhanced.

Support for DSD/DFS files

Helium 18 now includes support for DSD/DSF files, an ultra-high-resolution audio format developed by Sony and Philips.

Helium 18 supports cataloging, tagging, and playback of this format.

CD Subtitle Support

Helium 18 introduces a new tag field – CD Subtitle.

This field is useful for multi-CD albums where each disc has its own individual title, rather than a single subtitle for the entire album.

For example, the album Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of the Worlds includes the following CD subtitles:

  • CD 1 – The Coming of the Martians
  • CD 2 – The Earth Under the Martians

By tagging the CD Subtitle for each track belonging to a specific disc, this title will be displayed in the grouped album views.

Compare albums in the Duplicate Finder

It is now possible to compare the contents of multiple albums in the Duplicate Finder.
Select the albums you would like to compare and review their contents in full detail.

User Interface Improvements

Helium 18 introduces several user interface enhancements:

The Releases view can now be displayed as Album Details.

Album, Artist, and Label thumbnail views now include an alphabetical quick navigation bar (when enabled), allowing faster navigation through long lists.

Label Details now show which artists are assigned to the selected label.

Time-synchronized lyrics now display timestamps, providing a clearer overview of the current playback position within the lyrics.

A new Browse and Search button has been added as an optional toolbar control, giving you faster access to these commands regardless of which view is active.

General Improvements

  • It’s now possible to rip a CD to a single file with an automatically generated CUE file – ideal for mixed CDs.
  • Updated User Interface components for improved consistency and appearance.
  • Updated database drivers to enhance compatibility and reliability.
  • Performance optimizations across various parts of the application.
  • Memory usage improvements for smoother operation on large libraries.
  • Enhancements to the Discogs downloader for better accuracy.
  • General stability improvements and bug fixes, based on user feedback and extensive testing.

Beta version alert

Please note that this version is a beta release, meaning that not all features have undergone complete testing.

However, you can safely install Helium 18 alongside Helium 17, as beta versions are isolated in their own folders.

When using Helium 18, your Helium 17 databases will be upgraded and will no longer be compatible with Helium 17.

Remember: Always back up your database and settings before installing this version.

Ready to elevate your music experience?

Click here to download Helium 18 beta 1

Helium Streamer

Helium Streamer has been updated to support Helium 18 beta, click here to download the updated version.

Update for Helium 17.4 available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ Leave a comment

Welcome to a new update of Helium 17.4 which comes with some new features and improvements.

Changes in this release:

  • When using the grouped album mode in the Tag Editor, you can now skip albums from being changed by unchecking them with the newly introduced checkbox in the top-left corner of each album.
  • Album collections are now displayed correctly when first opened.
  • You can now attach pictures to tags in Wave files.
  • ID3v1 tags are now stored correctly when the option to store them is selected.
  • The album details view now refreshes faster; a slowdown caused by chained events has been fixed.
  • When ripping a CD, Helium now achieves greater accuracy by using each track’s start sector from the CD TOC.
  • Added a window for viewing script log output. It displays calls made to the .Log method as well as errors.
  • Asynchronous scripts are now supported. They run faster, avoid deadlocks, and the default script has been updated accordingly. Old scripts still work, but we recommend switching to the asynchronous versions.
  • You can now use the new FetchAsync script method to download files directly from a script.
  • Added a new script call, AddPictureToFileAsync, which allows adding a specific picture to a file’s tag.
  • The scripting help has been heavily revised with improved structure, clearer descriptions, and detailed parameter information. Some methods are now marked as obsolete, meaning they will continue to work for now but are subject to removal in the next major version.
  • Database drivers and components have been updated for improved stability and compatibility.

In addition to the changes listed above, this version includes various optimizations and stability fixes.

All Helium 17.4 users are encouraged to update to this version right away.

Click here to download Helium 17.4 build 480

Helium 17.4 now available!

~ MikaelStalvik ~ 2 Comments

Welcome to the new Helium release – packed with powerful features and improvements!

Major changes in this version

Releases view
Grouping support for the thumbnails, cards and split view.

Artists view
Grouping support for the thumbnails, cards and split view – and a new view mode – carousel mode. The split view supports both grouping and subgrouping.

Tag editor
In the new grouped mode, you can load and tag multiple albums at once – applying all changes when you accept them – and you can also use the in-place editor in tracklists with full support for the new grouped mode.

Lyrics
When playing tracks, Helium can automatically download lyrics. If time-coded lyrics are available, the lyrics pane will function in karaoke mode. If no lyrics are found online, Helium will look for external .LRC files.

Country icons for artists
If an artist has a country set, a small flag representing their origin will appear in the UI. You can configure custom name mappings to support both local and international country names.

Enhanced Play Queue filtering
Enable filtering on Play Queue columns to more easily view the full queue and remove duplicates or unwanted items.

Tracklist search
Search within artist, title, and album fields, with the ability to jump to the next match.

Improved Find Duplicate tool
When searching for duplicate albums, you’ll now see a thumbnail of each album cover and can view album details for any match.

Rewritten WAVE tag handling
Reading and writing of WAVE tags has been overhauled for better performance and compatibility with other applications.

Custom spans in Advanced Tag Editor
Advanced users can define custom span sizes for each field to organize the layout more intelligently.

Rebuilt logic engine for Advanced Search & Smart Playlist
The engine has been fully rewritten for greater stability and to support faster, more complex queries.

Updated database drivers
This release includes the latest drivers for all supported database types.

…And many more minor fixes and tweaks – make sure to upgrade today!

Click here to read about the news for Helium 17.4 beta 1

Click here to read about the news for Helium 17.4 beta 2

Click here to read about the news for Helium 17.4 beta 3

Click here to read about the news for Helium 17.4 beta 4

Click here to download Helium 17.4

Helium 17.4 beta 4 available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ 1 Comment

Welcome to a new Helium 17.4 beta version.

This version comes with the following new changes:

  • Improved WAVE tag reader and writer for better performance and compatibility.
  • Better UI progress when using the Update library feature.
  • Filtering support in the Play Queue; Enable filters to quickly find items in the Play Queue matching certain criterias:
  • Search support in tracklists and the Play queue: Press Ctrl+F and enter an expression to search for. If the search expression is found in either the artist, title or album cell for a track – the cell will become highlighted. Press F3 to jump to the next match:
  • Multiple improvements to Find duplicate albums: Matches are presented with a thumbnail image, comes with better matching logic and the albums can be previewed via double click or
  • Improvements to Optimize library Tools > View album…
  • Improvements to the Tag editors grouped mode
  • Improvements to downloading of tracks using Discogs
  • Improvements to statistics
  • Improvements to suggested tracks in Now playing
  • Updated database drivers
  • Various stability and performance optimizations

If you are using Helium 17.4 beta, please update to this version as soon as possible.

Click here to download Helium 17.4 beta 4

New Helium 17.4 beta available

~ MikaelStalvik ~ 1 Comment

This beta version focuses primarily on stability and reducing memory consumption.

Extensive memory profiling has been performed, and memory usage for several intensive functions has been significantly optimized.

This release also includes some user-interface improvements to make it both more efficient and more user-friendly. One of the most notable changes is the grouping feature in the artist split-view, which lets you control how sub-items under each artist are organized.

For example, you can group by country as the primary category and by release type as the secondary category. In this configuration, all of an artist’s releases will be shown under their name when expanded, grouped by release type.

Click here to download Helium 17.4 beta 3