Beats: A Web-Based Drum Machine for Music Experimentation

A new web-based application named Beats has emerged as a tool for music enthusiasts to experiment with drum patterns. The project was developed over a weekend and iterated upon in free time, resulting in a functional platform for beat creation.

Unlike complex sequencers, this application focuses on providing a simple way to manipulate basic sounds, save compositions, and share them with others through a generated link. The tool was built using specific web technologies and deployed as a static website.

The development of Beats was sparked by two distinct sources of inspiration. The creator holds a deep appreciation for Teenage Engineering's Pocket Operators, even owning the EP-133 K.O. II model, which influenced the project's aesthetic and functional direction.

Additionally, a Google Sheet containing drum patterns, shared by user andiam03 on Reddit several months prior, provided a novel concept for visualizing and sharing beats. The creator found this method of distribution to be a "very cool way to share and understand beats," which directly motivated the coding of the initial application version.

"I thought it was a very cool way to share and understand beats."

The application was constructed using a specific stack of web technologies. The core audio functionality is powered by Tone.js, a framework for interactive music in the browser, while the user interface was built with Stimulus.

Deployment was handled through Render, where the site is hosted as a static website. Notably, the creator had no prior knowledge of sound production, so an LLM (Large Language Model) was utilized to read the Tone.js documentation and generate the initial sound assets, which were then modified to fit the project's needs.

• Tone.js for audio synthesis and timing
• Stimulus for frontend interactivity
• Render for static site hosting
• LLM assistance for sound generation

Beats is designed specifically as an experimental tool rather than a full-featured production sequencer. Its primary purpose is to allow users to play with beats and basic sounds in a low-pressure environment.

Key capabilities include the ability to save created patterns and integrate them into larger musical projects. A standout feature is the sharing functionality, which generates a unique link for each composition, making it easy to distribute creations to collaborators or friends without requiring file transfers or complex exports.

The project was a personal endeavor that brought significant satisfaction to its creator. The development process spanned a weekend for the initial prototype, followed by ongoing refinement during spare time until a "pretty good version" was ready for public sharing.

The creator expressed enthusiasm for the build process, stating they "had a blast building it." The project represents a successful intersection of personal interest in hardware synthesizers and web development skills, resulting in a tool that bridges the gap between digital experimentation and musical creativity.

Beats represents a growing trend of accessible, web-based music tools that lower the barrier to entry for beat making. By leveraging modern web technologies and AI assistance, the application demonstrates how complex domains like sound synthesis can be approached by developers outside the traditional audio engineering community.

The project serves as both a functional tool for musicians and a showcase of rapid prototyping capabilities. As web audio APIs continue to evolve, applications like Beats highlight the potential for browser-based creative tools to rival desktop software in functionality and accessibility.