'This revision is from 2015/12/05 22:49. You can Restore it.'
Here are some music trackers I know and would recommend. The comments about pros and cons are only my own experience so it can differ from your, of course.
| Technology / tracker | + Pros + | – Cons – | export | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-bit | Well delimited field: it will boost your creativity. You don't need to bother with instrument creation (unless you program your own beeper engine | Restricted possibilities: you can feel somehow limited | ||
| Beepola | very easy to use, compact and efficient (only one binary) | Only for windows, but works well with wine. Closed source | 1-bit spectrum beeper | url |
| 1tracker | Multiplateform, Open-source | 1-bit spectrum beeper | url | |
| houston tracker 2 | native to TI calculators. Quite easy to use and intuitive once you get used to it. Open-source | several keys to learn | Texas instrument calc beeper | url |
| milkytracker + beeper engine | Open-source | needs a converter + z80 compiler | 1-bit spectrum beeper | |
| 8-bit | The true sound of chiptunes | can be somehow repetitive | ||
| DefleMask | multiplateform (win/linux/mac os x). Easy to use. multichip | closed source | YAMAHA YM2612, Texas Instruments SN76489 PSG, Z80 Game Boy, Hudson Soft HuC6280, Ricoh 2A03, MOS Technology SID, YAMAHA YM2151, SEGA PCM | url |
| Famitracker | very intuitive and easy. Open-source | native to windows only / works well with wine | NES | |
| GoatTracker | Works on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X. Rather easy to use interface. Can import / export xm midi. Open-source | Difficult to create new instruments | SID | url |
| lsdj | very intuitive and well design | closed source | gameboy | |
| maxYMiser | good manual. Powerful. Native Atari ST | Interface is a bit cramped (it would have been better to have several screens to handle so many informations). Quite difficult to create new instruments. Closed source | sndh (atari) | url |
| musicmon | Quite easy to create good instruments. Native Atari ST | Some parts of the tracker are really awkward and clumbersome (orderlist). Almost no manual. Closed source | sndh (atari) | url |
| SidWizard | Native to C64: runs everywhere with an emulator. Can import and export to midi, to xm. Easy and well designed interface. Open-source | No mouse, no fancy, no high resolution screen | SID | url |
| starkos | very well designed interface and shortcuts. The player is open source | The tracker part is closed source. | ym (amstrad cpc) | url |
| vortex tracker 2 | closed source | ay | url | |
| > 8-bit | more "possibilities" | sometimes "fakebit" (samples) | ||
| amusic | fm opl2 synthesis | dos | amd (fm) | |
| LMMS | easy to use, easy to create new instruments, Open-source | No midi import or export | wav | |
| milkytracker | Open-source | mod, xm, it, wav | ||
| modplugtracker |Open-source | ||||
| klystrack | Open-source | |||
| sunvox |