Privacy-first workflow
Why use offline music analysis for private or unreleased audio?
Offline analysis keeps the source recording on the computer you control. SongKeyPad reads an audio file from disk, performs the requested analysis locally, and displays the result without uploading the track. The desktop app has no user account, networking code, telemetry, advertising, crash-reporting service, or in-app analytics. This is especially practical for unreleased songs, demos, stems, client material, rehearsal recordings, and other audio that should not be copied to an external server merely to learn its tempo or harmony. Results remain part of a local workflow, and microphone captures are temporary local files that are cleaned up automatically. The SongKeyPad marketing website does use disclosed analytics services, but those website measurements are separate from the downloadable desktop app and never receive audio from it.
The complete separation between the app and website is documented in the SongKeyPad privacy policy.
Analysis outputs
What information does SongKeyPad extract?
SongKeyPad combines headline results with an editable time-based view. The result is intended to speed up listening and preparation, not to present an algorithm as unquestionable ground truth.
| Output | What SongKeyPad provides | How it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Tempo | An estimated tempo expressed in beats per minute (BPM). | Check pacing, compare tracks, or establish a starting point for a session. |
| Musical key | An estimated key with confidence information and an alternate reading. | Review tonal context and make your own harmonic-mixing or production decisions. |
| Chord timeline | Timestamped chord segments that can be retagged and have their boundaries adjusted. | Follow harmonic movement, correct uncertain sections, and document a progression. |
| Song map | A view of sustained tempo and key changes across the selected audio. | Spot sections where the musical reading changes rather than relying on one global label. |
| Structured export | Reviewed results in text, CSV, or JSON format. | Move the information into notes, tables, scripts, or another production workflow. |
DJ preparation
How does SongKeyPad fit into a DJ music-library workflow?
SongKeyPad can act as a private second opinion when preparing tracks for a set. Load a local file, review its BPM and standard musical-key result, inspect the confidence and alternate reading, and listen around any chord or key changes that might affect a transition. A DJ can then copy the result or export it for notes beside an existing library. This supports harmonic-mixing preparation without pretending that one automatic label replaces listening, phrasing, energy, or taste. SongKeyPad does not currently batch-scan an entire library, write metadata directly into Rekordbox, Serato, Traktor, or another DJ platform, convert keys to Camelot notation, mark intros and outros, or select compatible tracks automatically. Its role is narrower and transparent: analyze one selected track or passage locally, show uncertainty, and let the DJ decide how the information belongs in a set.
Microphone quick-scan
Can SongKeyPad detect BPM, key, and chords from live audio?
SongKeyPad can analyze a passage captured through a microphone, but it is not a continuous real-time listening service. Press the microphone control, record the passage you want to check, stop the capture, and SongKeyPad automatically sends that temporary local recording through the same BPM, key, and chord analysis used for imported files. This is useful for testing a rehearsal, instrument phrase, room audio, or a short section playing nearby without first preparing an audio file. Windows asks for microphone permission when recording is requested. The capture stays on the PC, is used only for the analysis, and is cleaned up automatically. The app does not continuously monitor the microphone, stream the recording, or capture the computer's system-audio output.
Structured chord data
Why export a timestamped chord timeline as CSV or JSON?
A chord list becomes more useful when each change retains its place in time. SongKeyPad lets you review the detected timeline, retag a chord, move a change boundary in small increments, undo or redo edits, and then export the corrected result. Plain text is convenient for quick notes and human-readable sharing. CSV turns the timeline into tabular data that can be opened in a spreadsheet, filtered, annotated, or combined with other session information. JSON provides a machine-readable representation for developers, scripts, research notebooks, or custom music tools. These exports do not claim automatic compatibility with every DAW or DJ application; they provide portable structured information that can support cue notes, arrangement review, transcription, dataset preparation, or a custom downstream workflow.
Practical process
A reliable offline analysis workflow
- Choose the source. Load MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A/AAC, or WMA, or record a microphone passage.
- Select the useful range. Analyze the whole track or focus on the section relevant to your task.
- Run FLOW. Review the BPM, key, confidence, alternate reading, and timestamped chord timeline.
- Listen where confidence is uncertain. Complex harmony, ambiguous tempo, and relative keys still require judgement.
- Correct the timeline. Retag chords, adjust boundaries, and use playback or looping to check the result.
- Export what you need. Copy the progression or save text, CSV, or JSON for the next stage.
Important: automatic music analysis is an estimate. Dense mixes, rubato performances, unusual tuning, key changes, syncopation, and harmonically ambiguous material can reduce confidence. SongKeyPad exposes uncertainty and keeps the chord timeline editable so your ears remain the final check.
Try the local workflow
Get SongKeyPad for Windows
SongKeyPad supports Windows 10 and Windows 11 on 64-bit PCs. No account is required inside the app.