OpenMPT manual — About OpenMPT
The manual's own description of openmpt: what kind of tracker it is, its feature list, limitations and history from ModPlugin to open source.
Key claims#
- "OpenMPT is a third-generation tracker — a music application with a focus on a mostly textual note representation with a strong keyboard focus", with a built-in sampler plus MIDI and VST instruments; unlike most trackers it uses Windows' native look and feel.
- Features: free; up to 128 pattern channels with their own volume, pan, plugin and name; customisable colours and keyboard shortcuts; DSP effects and equaliser; auto-save; a side-panel file tree; import of many formats and export to WAV/FLAC/MP3 including single patterns, channels or instruments; soundfont extraction (Windows' GM.DLS); MIDI in/out; VST 1.x/2.x and DirectX plugins; WASAPI/ASIO/WaveRT output; alternate tunings and temperaments for samples.
- Limitations: "limited control for editing of sample data"; tunings not for plugins; text-based only, no piano roll; "only available as a native Windows program, but can also run in Wine on Mac computers and Linux".
- History: ModPlugin was written in the mid-1990s by Olivier Lapicque as a browser plugin for module files; from it came ModPlug Player and ModPlug Tracker; the tracker "became completely open-source in 2004", which allowed bug fixes and features such as advanced VST use and tunings; the player stayed closed. Rated among the top five free trackers by Computer Music Magazine.
Practical takeaways#
OpenMPT is the Windows-native, plugin-capable heir of ModPlug Tracker; its native strengths (plugins, tunings, MPTM) are exactly the things that do not travel to other players.
Notable quotes#
"OpenMPT is a third-generation tracker."