The Grid

Each row is a drum instrument (Kick, Snare, Hi-Hat, etc.) and each column is a time step. Click a cell to add or remove a hit. Drag across cells to paint multiple hits at once. Press Play or Space to hear your beat loop — the highlighted column shows the current position.

Quick Start — A Simple Rock Beat

With the default settings (120 BPM, 16th grid, 2 bars), try this: place Kick on beats 1 and 3 (columns 1, 5, 9, 13), Snare on beats 2 and 4 (columns 3, 7, 11, 15 in 8th-note terms), and Closed HH on every other column. Press Play to hear it.

BPM (Tempo)

Controls how fast the beat plays. Default is 120 BPM. Use the +10/−10 buttons for quick adjustments, or type a number directly. Range: 40–300 BPM.

Swing

Adds a shuffle feel by delaying every other note slightly. At 0% the rhythm is perfectly straight. Increase it for a jazzier, hip-hop, or lo-fi groove. Try 30–50% for a noticeable shuffle.

Grid (8th / 16th)

Sets the resolution of the grid. 16th gives you 16 steps per bar — good for detailed patterns with hi-hat rolls and ghost notes. 8th gives 8 steps per bar — simpler and easier to start with.

Bars

How many bars your pattern spans before looping. Start with 1–2 bars for simple beats. Use 3–4 bars if you want a longer pattern with fills or variations.

Drum Kits

Switch between kits below the grid: 808 (deep bass, trap), Classic (all-purpose), Acoustic (natural drums), Electronic, LinnDrum (80s), and more. Click a kit name to switch instantly — your pattern stays the same.

Instruments & Mute

Click an instrument name (e.g., "Kick") to preview its sound. The M button next to each instrument mutes/unmutes it — useful for isolating parts while building your beat.

Volume

The speaker icon slider in the toolbar controls the master volume for all instruments.

Undo / Redo / Clear

Made a mistake? Press Cmd+Z (or the undo arrow) to go back. Cmd+Shift+Z to redo. The trash icon clears the entire grid after confirmation.

Save & Publish

Click Save to keep your beat (sign-in required — your work is preserved). Toggle Public/Private to control whether your beat appears in the public library for others to discover and remix.

Import / Export

Use the download arrow to export your pattern as a JSON file. Share it with others — they can import it with the upload arrow to load your exact pattern, settings, and kit.