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BeatBax Desktop

BeatBax Desktop is the full-featured BeatBax IDE for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Download installers from the site or itch.io.

macOS GitHub Release installers are Developer ID signed and notarized. Windows installers are not Authenticode-signed — SmartScreen may warn (More info → Run anyway). See README.txt in the install folder.

See the Tools overview for a comparison with the web-lite client and the CLI.

  • Toolbar — Open/Save, chip specific export menu, theme / word wrap / fold
  • Transport bar — play, pause, stop, apply, BPM, loop, live, rewind, BPM nudge, master volume
  • Editor — Monaco editor with diagnostics, CodeLens, glyph margin, and command palette
  • Panels — Problems, Output, Song Visualizer, Help, and (when enabled) Channel Mixer, Pattern Grid, BeatBax Copilot
  • Status bar — cursor position, parse status, chip/BPM, panel menu, diagnostics counts
  • New Song Wizard — New Song Wizard (File → New / toolbar New; first-run chip picker)

Native Open/Save dialogs, recent files, and file associations are built in. File → Open starts in the bundled songs directory shipped with the installer.

Playback​

  1. Open a .bax song (File → Open, or paste into the editor).
  2. Apply or Play (or enable Live for debounced auto-apply).
  3. Pause / Stop from the transport bar.

BPM nudge: transport « / » steps tempo by 1 BPM without editing the source. Editing the bpm line or loading another file clears the override.

Mute / Solo: per-channel controls after a song is applied.

The Editor​

The Desktop editor is the full BeatBax Editor: it includes syntax highlighting, completions, diagnostics, CodeLens previews, glyph margin, beat decorations, and a command palette. Please see BeatBax Editor for full details

The web-lite client uses the same editor without CodeLens, the glyph margin, or the command palette.

Settings​

Desktop preferences live in a single Settings modal. Open it with Ctrl+, (Windows / Linux) / Cmd+, (macOS), View → Settings…, or the toolbar … menu.

Use it to set theme and editor behaviour, playback (audio backend, sample rate, loop), feature flags (Channel Mixer, Song Visualizer, Pattern Grid, BeatBax Copilot), sound chip and export plugins, and the Copilot provider. Most changes apply immediately. See Settings for every tab and the shortcuts that need a reload.

The web-lite client has no Settings modal — theme and word wrap are toolbar-only.

Sound Chip Plugins​

Sound Chip Plugins are enabled in Settings (Plugins). Built-in chips are always available; optional chips can be turned on or off there. See Sound Chip Plugins for supported backends, voices, and chip-specific details.

Exporting​

Export Plugins are enabled in Settings (Plugins). JSON and MIDI are built in for every chip; WAV and chip-specific formats (UGE, FamiTracker text, VGM, Arkos, and others) can be turned on or off there. Use the toolbar or menu to export when a format is available for the active song’s chip. See Export Plugins for format ids and chip-specific guides.

Panels​

BeatBax Desktop docks extra views around the editor. Show or hide them from the status bar panel menu or the View menu. Mixer, Visualizer, Pattern Grid, and Copilot are also gated under Settings → Features.

  • Problems / Output — parser diagnostics and log (bottom pane)
  • Help — syntax reference (H / ?; click-to-insert)
  • Channel Mixer — channel strips, VU meters, mute/solo (bottom panel)
  • Song Visualizer — per-channel waveforms and performance mode (right pane)
  • Pattern Grid — arrangement timeline above the editor (Experimental)
  • BeatBax Copilot — AI assistant (right pane)

MIDI step entry​

MIDI step entry puts notes into a pat from a MIDI keyboard, one step at a time — it is not a realtime recorder. Enable MIDI input in Settings → Editor, arm the transport record control, then play keys into the editor. Scale lock= on a channel snaps or filters incoming pitches. The web-lite client has no MIDI step entry.