Free Music Resources Masterlist
Decent quality “instruments” that produce MIDI-based sound.
No dynamics or filters--any mixing requires separating the notation of each instrument into individual files, then exporting recordings of each one.
Might be able to send MIDI to other programs? Haven’t tried this yet.
Both conventional and non-conventional notation (such as ClaireNote SN).
Very flexible text-based interface.
Basically functions like Adobe Audition, but with fewer features.
Excellent for working with MIDI.
Pretty barebones but may work better on newer systems.
May come pre-installed with your system.
Made for Mac OS/iOS and works best on those systems.
Many free instrument presets.
Free-ish (will nag you to pay after trial finishes but you don’t actually have to).
Powerful and easy to use.
Familiar interface for people who have used other DAWs.
Works on both Windows and Mac OS.
LOTS of others! Every DAW has its own features and quirks, so it’s reccomended to do some research and find the one that best suits your particular needs and workflow!
A spiritual successor to the popular 1992 DOS tracker, Fasttracker II.
Users create custom instruments by using the built-in wave generator, drawing waveforms, or importing compatible sound files.
Very flexible volume envelopes for instruments.
Standard tracker effects with clear documentation.
No filters and limited note-by-note tweaking of things like panning.
Unlike the other trackers on this list, MilkyTracker does not emulate a specific video game console and cannot produce tracks compatible with video game sound cards.
Very faithful emulation software for producing retro video game tracks
Actually compatible with the systems’ hardware.
Works for Sega Genesis, Gameboy, NES, Sega Master System, Commodore 64, Arcade, and NEC PC Engine.
Probably the most widely used tracker, with decent documentation and active forums.
NES emulation with all soundcard extensions.
Faithful enough that some of the bugs from the original system are reproduced.
No info on if the tracks produced are compatible with NES hardware.
Sparse but clear documentation.
Can be used to send MIDI signals between Ableton Live 10 and VCV Rack 1.x on a single computer (see posted tutorial).
Generates Vocaloids-style vocals using presets or your own voice recordings.
Very hard to set up due to language barriers (Japanese).
Forums are very slow/out of date, little-to-no support.
Free with optional paid modules.
Very complex and realistic digital synth with tons of modules to play with.
Archive of user-submitted sounds available to download.
Always free but use restrictions may apply (such as No Commercial Use).
Sound quality varies quite a bit and search function is not great.
