# Using special characters with unparsed special characters
**URL:** https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372
**Category:** Support
**Created:** [November 19, 2009, 1:50pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372 "2009-11-19T13:50:27Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@juggernaut](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/juggernaut)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 1:50pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/1 "2009-11-19T13:50:27Z")
Can someone please tell me the correct syntax of how you do this.
I'm trying to do:
```
$regexp(%_filename%,'exp',$1 ()
```
I tried:
```
$regexp(%_filename%,'exp',$1 '(')
```
But it throws a syntax error.
I know the following two work:
```
$regexp(%_filename%,'exp',$1 a)
$regexp(%_filename%,'exp',a '(')
```
So you must just need some sort of different syntax when trying to mix parsed and unparsed special characters?
Thanks for any help.
---
### Author:  [@gvm](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/gvm)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 2:14pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/2 "2009-11-19T14:14:45Z")
You need to escape the ( character with a backslash - use ( instead.
Edit:
No - I'm wrong. That doesn't work.
Even stranger is that:
```
$regexp(%_filename%,(\d),$1')') works but
$regexp(%_filename%,(\d),$1'(') doesn't...
```
Regards,
gvm
---
### Author:  [@dano](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/dano)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 2:21pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/3 "2009-11-19T14:21:47Z")
You can use \x28 instead of (
---
### Author:  [@juggernaut](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/juggernaut)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 3:09pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/4 "2009-11-19T15:09:49Z")
Ah that works thanks.
---
### Author:  [@gvm](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/gvm)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 3:28pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/5 "2009-11-19T15:28:55Z")
Also not working is:
```
$regexp(%_filename%,(.*),$1\))
```
which outputs the filename with "\\)" appended (two backslashes). I could understand if it output no backslashes or one backslash, but why does it produce _two_ backslashes?
gvm
---
### Author:  [@juggernaut](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/juggernaut)
#### Post date: [November 19, 2009, 4:06pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/6 "2009-11-19T16:06:14Z")
It is confusing me a little, I don't think the syntax is properly correct here. But I have all the functionality I want now, so (although it goes against a lot of my principles as a programmer) I'm just going to ignore it all 🙂
---
### Author:  [@system](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/system)
#### Post date: [February 9, 2026, 12:21pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/using-special-characters-with-unparsed-special-characters/9372/7 "2026-02-09T12:21:57Z")