Beats drum machine
Hacker ApprovedThe most recommended of 3 drum machines
Free, open-source browser drum machine with an instant, fun step sequencer and a retro look. Caveat: some hear crackling or odd sounds in Firefox.
Free, open-source browser drum machine with an instant, fun step sequencer and a retro look. Caveat: some hear crackling or odd sounds in Firefox.
35 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 32
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 91%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 32 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 11 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Addictive and fun to play
“Decent UI for a first cut -- trying it out, I found it really addictive.”
Comment from 18 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “Really nice, loved playing with it!”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “I can’t stop using this app.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” Retro scanline and 8-bit look
“The scan line effect is very nice. Not over done like many others are.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “I see scanlines, I upvote. Simple as.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “The 8-bit aesthetic looks great too.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” Web-based, instant access
“the UI is immediate and instant play”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “having this on, Web based, is great!”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” Careful work, plain JavaScript
“You can tell a lot of care and effort went into the experience.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “I love how you're not using a framework just pure javascript.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Crackling or odd sounds in Firefox
“This is great! I can report a bit of odd sounds here and there on firefox ubuntu, but chromium ubuntu works perfect.”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine” “Lots of crackling and popping in firefox on macos, pretty cool otherwise”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Show HN: Beats, a web-based drum machine”
Other drum machines people recommend
The two most recommended other drum machines, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beats drum machineThis page | 32 | 3 | 91% | 4 | — | Approved |
| Techno machine | 11 | 0 | 100% | 1 | — | — |
| Make Audio Loops Online | 7 | 3 | 70% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
24 of the 36 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“this project is open source”
“Then they brought Beats which sound worse than 30$ sennheiser HD201s”
“The same category as Beats by Dre.”
“Beats brand basically disappeared after that or at the least has become "uncool".”
“Really nice, loved playing with it!”
“I see scanlines, I upvote. Simple as.”
“I can’t stop using this app.”
“You can tell a lot of care and effort went into the experience.”
“The scan line effect is very nice. Not over done like many others are.”
“I absolutely love this as an amateur beat maker.”
“I really like the square step sequencer for something fresh instead of the standard row.”
“the current beat highlight is always red and so it's invisible when the content is red as well”
“This is great! I can report a bit of odd sounds here and there on firefox ubuntu, but chromium ubuntu works perfect.”
“Very nice. Would be great to see a "tap bpm" instead of setting numerically”
“having this on, Web based, is great!”
“This made my day. Love this, thank you!”
“the UI is immediate and instant play”
“Well done. It reminded me of Tricky :)”
“The 8-bit aesthetic looks great too.”
“I love how you're not using a framework just pure javascript.”
“yours is a lot better though”
“Lots of crackling and popping in firefox on macos, pretty cool otherwise”
“Bossa nova sounds nothing like bossa nova.”
“Decent UI for a first cut -- trying it out, I found it really addictive.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.