Zrythm

Overview

Zrythm is a free, open-source digital audio workstation designed for composing, recording, editing, arranging, mixing and mastering audio and MIDI data.¹³ It targets both professionals and beginners with an intuitive interface and comprehensive feature set, emphasizing streamlined workflows and extensive automation capabilities.¹² The software is written in C using GTK4 toolkit and can be extended with user scripts in Scheme or ECMAScript.¹

Key Features

• Automation - Limitless automation capabilities using automation events, curves, LFOs and envelopes for almost any parameter.¹⁴
• Piano Roll Editor - MIDI editor with chord integration, drum mode and lollipop velocity editor for detailed note editing.²
• Chord Assistance - Chord pad with built-in and user presets, ability to generate chords from scales and chord highlighting in piano roll.²⁴
• Audio Editor - Part editing with adjustable gain and fades, including support for editing in external applications.²
• Mixing Features - Signal groups, aux sends, FX tracks, MIDI effect slots and anywhere-to-anywhere routing for flexible signal flow.²⁴
• Plugin Support - Support for LV2, CLAP, VST2, VST3, AU, LADSPA and DSSI plugins with optional sandboxing.²
• Multi-track Recording - Audio and MIDI recording with punch in/out options, MIDI input recording and take creation.²
• Project Management - Automatic backups, undoable user actions with serializable undo history and multi-format import/export.²⁴

Pricing

Platforms & Requirements

Zrythm runs on Linux, macOS and Windows across multiple architectures including x86, PowerPC, RISC-V, ARMv7 and ARMv8.⁵ It supports various audio and MIDI backends including JACK/PipeWire, Windows MME, WASAPI and Core Audio/MIDI.⁵ The software is currently in beta with a stable project format working toward a v1 release.¹

Integrations & Ecosystem

• LV2 plugins
• VST2/VST3 plugins
• AU plugins
• CLAP plugins
• LADSPA/DSSI plugins
• SFZ/SF2 SoundFonts
• Type 0 and 1 MIDI files
• Most audio file formats

Alternatives

Reputation

Zrythm is recognized as a promising open-source DAW offering professional-grade features with an accessible interface.⁶ Its strength lies in comprehensive automation, flexible routing and cross-platform support with auditable source code.⁴ As beta software, it remains under active development with ongoing refinement toward a stable v1 release, which may limit adoption among users requiring production-ready stability.¹