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[Feature]: Count-in #269
Description
What problem does this solve?
I use this to create backing tracks and jam along with guitar. Problem is, when the guitar starts the song and I have it muted for the backing, I don't know where to come in
Proposed solution
A count in option, set to bpm at the start of the track, would fix this problem. This should also be an option when exporting
Alternatives considered
No response
Activity
thcp commentedon Aug 8, 2026
Hey @cjhines7, worth a look at 0.8.0 Alpha 16 (pre-release). It does not add the count-in you asked for, but it adds a click track that may well solve the problem behind it, so I would like to know whether it does before building the count-in on top.
Open a separated track and press K, or use the Experimental button above the play controls. You get a click locked to that song's own beat grid, detected from the drums across the whole track, so it follows songs that drift or change tempo instead of sliding out. On most songs the grid reaches back to the very start of the file, which means with the guitar muted you hear the beat from the top and have something to come in against.
The export half of your request is done: the export panel has an Include click track checkbox (off by default), and it works for WAV, MP3, FLAC, OGG and the MP4 video export. So a backing track with the click baked in is a one-click thing now.
What is still missing is your actual ask: bars of count before the music starts. The click begins with the track, it does not lead into it. For jamming in the app that may be enough; for an exported backing track it probably is not, since there is nothing to count you in before bar one. So I am leaving this issue open.
If you try it, the useful things to tell me are whether the click alone is enough for your workflow, and if not, how many bars of lead-in you would want and whether you need them in the exported file, prepended ahead of the audio, or only during playback. That last detail changes the design quite a bit.
Two small things worth knowing: it is marked Experimental for now, and the first time you use it the app downloads a 77 MB beat-detection model (once, then cached). If the click ever feels half or double speed there are
/2andx2buttons, and G opens a beat grid editor if a track needs correcting by hand.Releases get announced at @stemdeckapp.
cjhines7 commentedon Aug 9, 2026
@thcp Thanks for this. The metronome helps and works really well, but a count in is really what I need. My timing is really not the issue, the problem is getting started. After hitting play, the song starts so quickly that, by the time I have my hands in place on the guitar, I miss a note or two. 1 bar would be enough. Being able to have them in the exported file would be ideal. Currently, I export the backing into reaper and add the count in manually. It would be nice to have an all in one solution. I really appreciate your hard work. This is such a great app
fix(ui): hide click-track panel by default before any track is loaded
thcp commentedon Aug 16, 2026
Hi @cjhines7, finalizing some tests and controller update. This feature will go on the next release by the end of this weekend :)
Count-in, and a transport footer rebuilt around the studio's column g…
thcp commentedon Aug 16, 2026
@cjhines7 count in added on https://github.com/stemdeckapp/stemdeck/releases/tag/v0.10.0 , still on pre release but builds will be coming out 10 minutes. enjoy :)
cjhines7 commentedon Aug 18, 2026
This is working great now. Thank you
Reflow the footer control strip instead of scrolling it off screen (#608