We’ve got a big (or should we say loud?) announcement to make: Plexamp—our highly rated, fan favorite music player app—is now free for all! But before we get to that, let’s answer the bigger questions. Like, what is Plexamp and why is Plexamp?
Allow Us to Re-Introduce Ourselves
Plexamp was born out of a combination of passion for music and Plex. It was one of the early fruits of Plex Labs—the place for employee passion projects and community creativity. Built by a handful of people in their spare time, Plexamp may or may not have started over a few whisk[e]y sours.
Over the years Plexamp has evolved from a small, highly opinionated music player, to being the flagship place for music in Plex. As a standalone application, it provides a (highly customizable) focused experience for music, with features found nowhere else. It’s also everywhere you’d want to be, including iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Linux.
It took blood, sweat, and tears to get to where we are today, and if you feel so inclined you can read more about the journey here.
But back to the present. We’ve decided that Plexamp is just too good not to share with all Plex users!
No Money, No Cry
We want every music user on Plex to have the best possible experience. Rock solid streaming and high quality audio, in a streamlined application which is a treat for the eyes. This is why we’ve decided to release a new version of Plexamp which allows everyone to use it, absolutely free.
While there are tons of pro features in Plexamp for our Plex Pass subscribers, the free functionality still offers an array of enviable features.
Ready to Pump Up the Jam?
Step 1: Add your music to your Plex Media Server.
Step 2: Download Plexamp.
Step 3: Make the hills come alive with the sound of your music.
What’s available for everyone:
Stream On
Unlimited streaming of your entire music library, at home and on the go.
Paradiso Della Musica
High-end audio features like Sweet Fades, gapless playback, pre-caching, and loudness leveling.
Find Your Fix
Smart playlists and stations for the mood you’re in, or want to be in.
Music to Your Eyes
UltraBlur backgrounds, sexy visualizations, and multiple themes to pick and play with.
On da Couch or on da Road
The free version supports CarPlay, Android Auto, Siri, AirPlay, and Chromecast. Wherever you are, the music never stops.
We Will Rock You (Even Harder)
Once you start re-discovering your music with the free version, we are certain that you’ll soon be ready to take it to the next level.
This is where Plex Pass comes in. By becoming a Plex Pass holder, you’ll unlock features that music lovers’ dreams are made of. Check out this veritable cornucopia of deliciousness that a Plex Pass will add to your experience:
Downloads
Bring all your favorite personal music wherever you roam, no internet required. Download playlists, albums, stations, and more to keep you jamming outside the home. Remember to call shotgun!
Mix Builders
Use our fun interactive builders to choose related artists and albums for a fabulous, fun mix. Get all the applause while Plexamp does all the work.
Sonic Adventure
With a sonic-enabled server, build a playlist which travels between tracks like magic.
Sonic Sage
Create unique playlists by simply describing what you want to hear. Enter anything from “Sounds like Nick Drake’s Pink Moon” to “Songs to listen to while sitting on the dock of the bay”.”(This feature requires an OpenAI API key.)
Guest DJ
Turn over your play queue to one of our talented DJs who will keep the music playing in a variety of ways. Some DJs require a sonic-enabled server.
Aural Fixations
Wanna know more about yourself? Explore your own personal music charts, go back in time, and explore your favorites.
Pro Audio
Bit-perfect playback on iOS, macOS, and Linux with automatic sample rate matching.
Home Audio Perfection
The ability to run Plexamp on a Raspberry Pi or similar. Jack it into a receiver for the highest quality music solution with all of the incredible features of Plexamp, and control it from your phone or desktop.
Lyrics
See timed lyrics to your favorite songs when available, so you can karaoke (or lip sync) like a pro.
Auto Play
Keep the music playing, select from different modes which ensure you’re never stuck in silence.
Full Home Screen Customization
Organize the home screen exactly how you like it, including adding custom areas. For those days when you play Plexamp, staring endlessly out the window and wondering “if only I had complete control over how my home screen looks.”
Equalizer
Use this powerful 10-band equalizer with thousands of headphone presets. You can even use a different equalizer curve for each output device.
Related Tracks
Build the best mixes with our related track suggestions, right in the player.
Server Features
With a Plex Pass, a server gains the ability to perform Sonic Analysis as well as many other video features like Hardware Transcoding, Skip Intro, Skip Credits, Multiple Movie Editions, and much more.
TL;DR? Here’s the Short of It
| Plexamp for All Included Features |
Plexamp with Plex Pass Features Unlocked with Membership |
| Gapless playback | Artist & Album Mix Builders |
| Loudness leveling | Sonically similar artists/tracks/albums |
| Sweet Fades | Super Sonic |
| Advanced pre-caching | Sonic Sage |
| Smart playlists & stations | Sonic Adventure |
| Unlimited streaming | Downloads |
| Visualizers | Guest DJ |
| UltraBlur Backgrounds & Themes | Aural Fixations |
| Android Auto & Carplay | Headless Plexamp on Raspberry Pi |
| Chromecast & AirPlay | Lyrics |
| Siri | Autoplay |
| Write to NFC tags | Home screen customization |
| Ten-Band Equalizer | |
| Related Tracks | |
| Server Features | |
| Track & Album Radio | |
| Sample Rate Matching |
Take a Walk on the Plexamp Side
If you were looking for a sign to do more with your music collection, this is it. Go ahead, download Plexamp and give it a spin. We’re imagining it will be like the moment your parents handed over the car keys—but in this case, you don’t need a license, just a Plex Media Server. And it won’t cost you a thing!
Ready to get jamming?
Head over to the forums for some notes from the Plexamp community on how to get your music collection thriving.