# Visualize a local MP3 or WAV with PHASE//VOID

Canonical guide: https://phasevoid.com/guides/music-visualizer/

## Visualize your MP3 or WAV on this page

[Open the working visualizer](https://phasevoid.com/guides/music-visualizer/#music-workbench). The MP3/WAV guide includes a working single-world visualizer: choose a local MP3/WAV up to 200 MB or explicitly load the original test WAV, select any of the 108 worlds, set 16:9, 9:16 or 1:1, then Play, Pause and seek. Preview speakers default off. No file selection, world or format change starts playback. Continue in Studio or Make a music video preserves the public world/frame/motion settings and offers the same File through the existing explicit, one-use, same-origin Receive step. The guide must stay open until receipt; the track arrives paused with speakers off. Preview is lower resolution, not the complete composition or encoded film. Media and names are not uploaded, put in links or retained after reload.

If graphics, JavaScript or the local transfer are unavailable, choose the file directly in Studio. The existing MP3/WAV format-test links remain under **Open directly in Studio**. Keep the guide open during receipt; cancel or retry a blocked/expired handoff. A successful preview or receipt does not prove an exported video or projector synchronization.

## File → look → output

1. **Sound.** Choose your local MP3/WAV in the on-page workbench, or explicitly use the original test WAV. Selection is not playback; Play/Pause/seek are deliberate. Preview speakers default off.
2. **Look.** Select a world, 16:9 / 9:16 / 1:1 and Gentler motion. The preview is one source up to 640 pixels on the long edge; its reference is a still until playback. Program layers, mapped geometry and final encoded output are separate.
3. **Output.** Continue in Studio for composition/performance/projector, or Make a music video for File render. With a selected track, keep the guide open and choose Receive in the new same-origin Studio tab. It arrives paused, speakers off. Cancel a pending transfer or choose the original file directly in Studio if needed. No filename or audio enters a public recipe.

### Finish and verify the actual result

- **Film:** Sound → Picture → Render. Review source passage and film steps; Layers & text owns titles/artwork/timed words. Inspect, save and reopen the encoded file. [Finished-file checklist](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#check).
- **Performed take:** Record video follows the actual performance. Inspect a short saved take before the full session. [Recording instructions](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#record).
- **One screen/projector:** Output → Open projector window; Mapping owns corner fitting and independent worlds. [One-projector setup](https://phasevoid.com/guides/projection-mapping/#first-screen). Physical alignment/timing still needs the real display.

### Controls with different owners

Sound owns the selected source and transport. Look edits the main world; Energy and Motion do not change file volume or BPM. Audio bands, effect links and beat loops are different. [Local BPM/grid tool](https://phasevoid.com/tools/bpm-detector/) offers a candidate to review and beat one to align; manual cue timing is separate. Output owns frame pixels; [canvas planner](https://phasevoid.com/guides/aspect-ratios/#canvas-planner) reviews exact dimensions. Layers & text owns overlays; independent mapped worlds exclude Program clips/overlays/master FX.

### Reopen without confusing settings and files

Save session keeps settings/references; retain original audio/video/artwork separately. Import session reviews before explicit Apply. One temporary tab-local Undo can restore prior settings and attached local video files, protecting newer edits; another full session, Discard Undo or reload ends it. Audio/artwork remain separate. [Recovery instructions](https://phasevoid.com/guides/troubleshooting/#session). An encoded film is a separate artifact.

### Dated first-party reference

The MP3/WAV file-input evidence below is retained from September 25, 2026. Related signals were recorded at different moments in one desktop Chrome setup; this is not a synchronized codec comparison, present device benchmark or physical-projector test. HTML players start muted; old fragment links still open their reference chapters.

Updated: 2026-10-28

Open an MP3 or WAV from your device in the [file-input Studio](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?start=file&ratio=16%3A9&from=music-guide). PHASE//VOID plays and analyzes the selected file in your browser; it is not uploaded. No account is needed. If playback fails, try a standard PCM WAV or MP3 your browser can decode. Source transport, visual reaction and an optional beat grid are separate controls.

## Try a reproducible file setup

These are fixed first-party test inputs made from the same original 24-second, 160 BPM stereo signal. They are not the default PIP — TARSAN demo. Opening a link preselects Interference and the exact frame below; loading and playback still require a click in Studio.

| Frame | MP3 test | WAV test |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 16:9 · 960 × 540 | [Try MP3](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=mp3&ratio=16%3A9&from=music-guide) | [Try WAV](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=wav&ratio=16%3A9&from=music-guide) |
| 9:16 · 540 × 960 | [Try MP3](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=mp3&ratio=9%3A16&from=music-guide) | [Try WAV](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=wav&ratio=9%3A16&from=music-guide) |
| 1:1 · 540 × 540 | [Try MP3](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=mp3&ratio=1%3A1&from=music-guide) | [Try WAV](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?try=interference&sample=wav&ratio=1%3A1&from=music-guide) |

1. Press **Play MP3 test** or **Play WAV test**. Watch the meters and moving Interference contours. The sample uses a manual 160 BPM grid; this is known metadata, not automatic BPM detection.
2. Switch the input with **Load MP3 test / Load WAV test**, or use **Use my MP3 / WAV**. Replacement keeps the current look, aspect ratio and output size. Canceling the file chooser keeps the current sound. Your own track needs its own tempo/alignment if you use a manual beat pulse.
3. Explore any of 108 visual worlds. Bass, midrange and high-frequency energy can move different parts of the image. Change the frame in Output; 540 is a quick preview size, with 720, 1080, 2160 and custom sizes also available. Gentler motion remains available.
4. Optionally press **Make a video** to enter File render without choosing the song again or resetting the look/frame. Review the soundtrack segment and timeline, render deliberately, then inspect, save and reopen the actual film.

The HTML guide includes real moving browser recordings and the original inputs. [Download original WAV](https://phasevoid.com/media/examples/techno-test-loop-160bpm.wav) · 48 kHz PCM stereo · SHA-256 aa8d4dafd54fe18a9ad4f0948450f77f4bbfd18b3d4e6d45fc565a74f1299a28. [Download converted MP3](https://phasevoid.com/media/examples/techno-test-loop-160bpm.mp3) · 192 kb/s stereo · SHA-256 b2b48ac0e637b87ba3e317e82a09db58e550e51d56c03abdd159bb95ba6d0b04. These separate plays are not synchronized codec-quality comparisons; support and performance vary by browser and device.

## Take your own sound to video

Press **Make a video** in the Studio file guide to keep the current track, look and frame. A local File already selected in this tab is handed off silently, without another chooser. For a new session, [open the first-film setup](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?flow=video&file-render=1). **Choose MP3 / WAV** or **Use original 12-second test WAV** retains the current composition.

Alternatively [open the complete four-act example setup](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?file-render=1&render-example=1), then press **Load four-act example** deliberately. The link alone loads/plays nothing. The loader keeps current output frame/size/motion; **Undo example setup** restores prior settings and attached local clips paused.

Select the soundtrack segment, Current composition or Show sequence, and any missing Manual holds. Press **Review film timeline**, then **Render reviewed film**. Inspect, save and reopen the actual result. Output is limited to 30 minutes and 750 MB, subject to browser codec, GPU and memory support. Processing may take longer than the film; the soundtrack is decoded silently and music stays paused afterwards. [Full file-render instructions](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#file-render) explain dependencies, timing, codecs and limits.

### Realtime for a performed take

Use [real-time capture](https://phasevoid.com/studio/?flow=video&realtime=1) for microphone/shared-tab input or live MIDI/pad gestures. Rehearse, check the setup and record a short test with Studio visible. A five-minute performed song takes roughly five minutes to capture. Play the result with sound, save it and reopen the actual file. The [recording checks](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#check) cover this separate path.


## Studio: Sound → Look → Output

With no audio connected, one starter above the preview offers Music file, Live audio and Try the demo. Route selection alone does not play or capture. Live offers explicit microphone/interface or tab/system permission actions and a separate input-settings jump. Loading, Cancel and failed-source retry stay at this starting point; the normal Sound inspector remains available. Existing sources, including paused files, hide the starter. Public-test and planned-show arrivals retain their specialised actions. When Mapping is enabled, Look and Effects show an Edit target selector for Program and each named surface. Source-routing text states how many enabled surfaces use Program, including independent-only and all-hidden cases. Choosing a surface opens the existing Mapping editor for that exact ID and focuses Visual source or Surface FX. Back to Program returns to the original controls. Navigation does not apply a world, effect, source, geometry, calibration or output change; source counts do not prove final pixel visibility through masks, overlap or test patterns. Studio starts with three steps: Sound chooses MP3/WAV or an explicitly permitted live input; Look chooses a procedural world and its controls; Output sets aspect ratio/resolution and opens a projector or the frame-by-frame music-video renderer. Record video in the header is the separate realtime capture path. Layers & text groups Title & logo, Soundwave layer, Video layers and Mix two worlds. Effects controls Program before mapping; independent surface FX belong to the selected surface in Mapping. Worlds opens the world browser, Video library opens local media management, and Show opens the cue sequence. The Studio section selector stays available on compact screens and in Stage view. Save and Import session share the header menu, alongside help and Loxone control. Named advanced disclosures keep timing, MIDI and display tools available. Selecting a section changes navigation and its URL, not audio playback, show settings, output pixels or projector state.

1. Sound → Open MP3 / WAV, Microphone or Tab / system. Check source/meters and control playback explicitly. Timing & beat sync contains BPM, pulse and MIDI.
2. Look → Choose a visual world, then adjust the scene. A mixer’s copied decks and off-air preview still require an explicit Take.
3. Output → frame/resolution → Open projector window or Render music video. Record video in the header captures live performance instead. Check the actual saved output.

Layers & text contains Title & logo, Soundwave layer, Video layers and Mix two worlds. Effects changes Program before mapping; independent surface FX live in Mapping. Header Worlds, Video library and Show reach their actual tools. Save/Import session share the header menu; media bytes remain separate.

[Full workflow and scope table](https://phasevoid.com/guides/live-visuals/#studio-workflow).

## Align a music visualizer to the beat of your file {#file-beat-grid}

Tempo describes the spacing between beats. Beat one places that pattern on your song. Use Studio → Sound → Timing & beat sync → **Align file beat grid** with the already loaded MP3/WAV. Nothing plays, uploads or replaces the track.

1. Enter 30–300 BPM. Find tempo can propose a number; its result opens this editor separately.
2. Click the intended downbeat on the waveform or enter **Beat one · file seconds**. White marks your origin, blue quarter notes and amber every fourth beat. Optional snap chooses an amplitude peak within 35 ms, not a detected downbeat or bass-only stem.
3. Inspect a 2-second close-up; use ±10 ms, Arrow keys (1 ms / Shift 10 ms), Previous/Next beat or Use current playhead. These controls edit the draft; they do not seek/play audio.
4. Change Window starts and Show waveform to compare an early and later 2–32 second passage. A constant displacement suggests placement/delay; increasing drift suggests wrong BPM or changing tempo.
5. Apply track beat grid deliberately changes BPM, file origin and Track sync. Audio, playback, cue-grid position, mapping and existing delay stay separate. Guarded Undo restores the exact previous phase/BPM/pulse source while this file/timing remain current.
6. Use the same loaded soundtrack in File render. Review freezes absolute track alignment, BPM and delay. A passage starting at soundtrack 30 seconds samples that position instead of restarting its pulse at film zero. First-frame review, causal storyboard and each encoded frame use the same rule across target ratios. A different file cannot borrow the old grid.

Manual-BPM film pulses start at film zero. Audio transients follow decoded sound. The separate cue timeline is not requantized, clip points do not move and audio speed is unchanged.

![Actual Studio beat grid editor](https://phasevoid.com/examples/file-beat-grid/editor.webp)

### Diagnose the timing problem

| Observation | Check |
| --- | --- |
| Correct spacing, constant displacement | Beat-one placement and existing pulse delay. Positive is later; negative earlier. |
| Aligned initially, increasing drift | BPM, half/double time and a later steady section. A constant grid cannot follow changing tempo. |
| Wrong phase in a rendered passage | Track sync, same loaded file and a fresh Review after edits. |
| Aligned file, misaligned physical room | Measure the real speaker/interface/projector path. Device/acoustic delay is separate. |

[Resolume BPM/Resync](https://www.resolume.com/support/bpm) and [Ableton downbeat/warping](https://www.ableton.com/en/live-manual/11/audio-clips-tempo-and-warping/) distinguish tempo/placement too. This workflow does not supply audio warping, Ableton Link, automatic downbeat detection or native media-server parity.

Alignment lasts only for this track in this tab. A new file, session load or reload resets it. Normal BPM/pulse settings remain in saved sessions, not a recoverable private-file grid. The bounded waveform is released on close.

[Dated engineering evidence](https://phasevoid.com/evidence/file-beat-grid-2026-10-15.json) · [BPM finder](https://phasevoid.com/tools/bpm-detector/) · [Render a film](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#file-render) · [Live timing](https://phasevoid.com/guides/live-visuals/#beat-sync).


## Beat-loop effect modulation

Beat loop is a separate driver in Effects or the selected mapping surface’s Audio links & beat loops editor. Each of four targets—Kaleidoscope, Pixelation, RGB split and FX amount—can use Manual, one existing audio band, or its own beat loop. Loops have Low/High endpoints, a quarter-beat to sixteen-bar period, Cycle offset and Sine, Triangle, Ramp, Alternating or deterministic Step random shape. Reversed endpoints reverse the response. Track sync follows the loaded file’s BPM/aligned beat-one grid through seeks and trimmed renders; other sources use the existing manual BPM grid, starting at film zero for file rendering. Visual timing offset also shifts loop phase. Gentler motion makes loops four times slower. Loops do not detect beats, start audio or alter playback speed. Program/surface loops share the same clock and persist in their settings, maps, sessions and captured acts; they do not reset on each cue or surface selection. Freeze holds final output while the clock can continue. Bypass retains routing, Manual removes one route and Clear links removes every route in that editor. Public MCP describes the feature without reading or operating private Studio settings. [Complete workflow](https://phasevoid.com/guides/live-visuals/#beat-loops).


## Independent audio-to-effect links

Audio links independently map Bass, Mid, High, Energy or the detected audio Transient to Kaleidoscope, Pixelation, RGB split and FX amount. Each link has Low/High endpoints, gain, a noise floor and Linear/Smooth/Punch response. Descending endpoints reverse the response. Program links sit in Effects; Mapping has separate links for the selected surface. Links follow the existing shared audio analysis without starting audio or creating another analyser. Sessions, saved compositions/cues and maps retain their respective settings; causal file rendering consumes the current decoded frame. Manual restores the rack value, Clear links removes the routing, Bypass FX disables the rack, and Reset rack also clears links. For repeating BPM-driven movement, choose the separate Beat loop driver. Audio-band mapping is relative signal mapping, not source separation, a new adjustable frequency crossover, independent attack/release timing, a calibrated meter or physical latency correction. [Full human workflow and actual output](https://phasevoid.com/guides/live-visuals/#audio-links).


## Audio spectrum composition

Soundwave opens a free Program layer with frequency Spectrum bars, a radial Ring or an instantaneous Waveform. Choose color, position, size, response, opacity and background darkening without replacing or starting audio. The layer uses the existing MP3/WAV or supported live-input signal, sits above Program video/worlds and below titles/artwork, and reaches the composed projector and realtime recording. File-render first-frame review, causal storyboard and encoded films consume the current decoded signal with frozen layer settings at each actual output size. Local/settings-only sessions retain the layer; legacy sessions default off. Freeze/Blackout cover the complete output. Independent mapped world sources and shared procedural-look links exclude this global layer. This is not a whole-track waveform, calibrated meter, lyric generator, source separation or physical latency correction. [Complete workflow](https://phasevoid.com/guides/audio-spectrum-visualizer/).


## Try your own track before opening Studio.

The [visualizer on this page](#music-workbench) and the [homepage composer](https://phasevoid.com/#project-builder) can preview a selected world with your local MP3/WAV. You do not have to upload a track or replace it with the public demo.

1. **Choose the local track.** Select an MP3/WAV up to **200 MB** from your device. Loading the file does not start playback. Keep the originating page open until Studio has received the file.

2. **Check the picture.** Start the preview deliberately, then pause or seek through your track. Speaker monitoring is **off by default**; enable **Hear preview audio** explicitly if you want sound. The visual can react while speakers remain muted. Compare worlds with the same passage and inspect **16:9, 9:16 and 1:1** framing. This lower-resolution preview runs one world, not your complete mapped show or exported film. The homepage video path offers a twelve-second **Original test WAV**; this guide offers the separate 24-second format-test WAV. Neither starts playback when selected.

3. **Continue with the same file.** Choose **Continue with my track in Studio**. It opens a **new tab** on the same site; choose **Receive selected track** there within **90 seconds**, while the originating page remains open. The one-use transfer keeps the same local file and public project settings. The received track is **paused**, and speaker monitoring stays off. No audio or render starts automatically.

4. **Make the film.** In Studio, review the selected world, final dimensions and soundtrack segment. Use the existing [File render workflow](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#file-render), review the timeline and render deliberately. Inspect, save and reopen the actual result. A successful transfer or moving preview is not proof of a finished or synchronized film.

The transfer needs the original preview page and receiving Studio tab to remain available. If a popup is blocked or the transfer expires, retry from the preview page or choose the file directly in Studio. Reloading the page holding a local file requires choosing it again. Audio is kept in memory, not a cloud library or persistent media cache; this does not install an offline application. Browser decoding, graphics and render limits still apply.

On the homepage, **Copy setup link** shares public visual settings, not the track. The existing custom-work brief can carry that public direction without the local file or filename; nothing is sent automatically.


## Compare worlds with your own music.

Use the [catalogue audition](https://phasevoid.com/scenes/#audition) to search worlds, select your local MP3/WAV and compare A/B on the same passage. Save candidates to existing Favorites. Continue with the selected world and track through explicit Studio receipt; audio arrives paused. Propose this passage in Studio is optional and off by default; File render requires accepting or declining the range before [reviewing and rendering](https://phasevoid.com/guides/youtube-visualizer/#file-render). The catalogue owns the audition controls and limits.

## Share your own music-visualizer look

Share procedural look captures the Program world, ten numeric look controls and canvas dimensions in a URL fragment. Opening it keeps the current Studio. Review shared look opens a bounded moving clean-source preview; Apply look to Program is explicit and keeping the recipient frame is the default. Undo restores the previous source and frame until newer edits. Audio, clips, artwork, titles, calibrated mapping, master FX, cues, MIDI and global motion choices are excluded. MCP create_look_link makes the same public review link without private session access.

1. In Studio, tune Program in Look and choose **Share procedural look ↗** beneath Your presets. Reopen after later tweaks to capture new settings.
2. Inspect the moving clean-source preview and all ten numbers. **Copy public look link**, or copy the visible text manually if the clipboard is unavailable. Opening starts no audio.
3. The recipient chooses **Review shared look**, then **Apply look to Program** explicitly. The recipient frame stays unless **Also apply the shared canvas dimensions** is checked. Independent surface looks remain independent.
4. Check the complete output and a short saved recording. **Undo applied look** restores the previous source/frame until a later source/frame edit; the current global motion choices stay. Finish Auto scene, an active sequence/mix/transition, recording, render or Room mode first.

### Three authored starting directions

- [Review Braided pressure](https://phasevoid.com/studio/#look=eyJ2ZXJzaW9uIjoxLCJzY2VuZUlkIjoibGFzZXItYnJhaWQiLCJsb29rIjp7InBhbGV0dGUiOjIsImludGVuc2l0eSI6MS42NSwic3BlZWQiOjEuNDUsImNvbXBsZXhpdHkiOjAuOCwiYmxvb20iOjAuNiwic3ltbWV0cnkiOjksInpvb20iOjEuMSwicm90YXRpb24iOjI0LCJncmFpbiI6MC4wMiwiY2hyb21hdGljIjowLjF9LCJmcmFtZSI6eyJ3aWR0aCI6MTI4MCwiaGVpZ2h0Ijo3MjB9fQ) — A tight violet laser direction for a fast section. 1280 × 720.
- [Review Silver suspension](https://phasevoid.com/studio/#look=eyJ2ZXJzaW9uIjoxLCJzY2VuZUlkIjoib3JiaXRhbC1nbGFzcyIsImxvb2siOnsicGFsZXR0ZSI6NSwiaW50ZW5zaXR5IjowLjksInNwZWVkIjowLjU1LCJjb21wbGV4aXR5IjowLjcyLCJibG9vbSI6MC4zOCwic3ltbWV0cnkiOjUsInpvb20iOjAuODUsInJvdGF0aW9uIjo0NywiZ3JhaW4iOjAuMDIsImNocm9tYXRpYyI6MC4wNH0sImZyYW1lIjp7IndpZHRoIjo3MjAsImhlaWdodCI6MTI4MH19) — A slower, lower-glow glass direction for breathing space. 720 × 1280.
- [Review Folded peak](https://phasevoid.com/studio/#look=eyJ2ZXJzaW9uIjoxLCJzY2VuZUlkIjoiaHlwZXJjdWJlLWNvbGxhcHNlIiwibG9vayI6eyJwYWxldHRlIjoxLCJpbnRlbnNpdHkiOjEuOCwic3BlZWQiOjEuMzUsImNvbXBsZXhpdHkiOjAuOTIsImJsb29tIjowLjcyLCJzeW1tZXRyeSI6OCwiem9vbSI6MS4yNSwicm90YXRpb24iOjMxLCJncmFpbiI6MC4wMzUsImNocm9tYXRpYyI6MC4xOH0sImZyYW1lIjp7IndpZHRoIjo3MjAsImhlaWdodCI6NzIwfX0) — A dense geometric direction framed for a square. 720 × 720.

Recipes are editable starting directions, not recordings. Audio, phase and motion choices affect frames; clips, titles, mapped sources and master effects can alter or cover Program. Preview is at most 384 × 216, eight updates per second, lower with slow frame pacing. It uses current audio analysis and starts no sound. A complete URL reveals its numeric settings to recipients; its fragment is not part of the website HTTP request. No media, names, room calibration, credentials or source-repository access is included.

[Actual review screenshot](https://phasevoid.com/examples/shared-look/review.webp). A bounded native test preserved three surfaces, an independent source and a title in three frame shapes. A saved square film decoded to 90 different frames; three PCM windows had zero measured offset. It was reopened muted to its end. [Measurements and limits](https://phasevoid.com/evidence/shared-look-2026-10-15.json). These are digital checks, not physical projection or all-device acceptance.

[Public MCP instructions](https://phasevoid.com/connect/mcp/#shared-look).