Beat Generator

Beat Generator is a small software application whose purpose is to help you create your own beat patterns. It can be deployed on all Windows versions out there.

Portable running mode

This is a portable program which makes it an ideal candidate for being stored on USB flash drives or other devices. You can gain access to its features by simply opening the executable file because you do not have to go through an installation process.
In addition, you may run it without being an administrator. The tool does not leave entries on the target PC so you can get rid of it using a quick deletion task. It actually saves the configuration settings on the storage device.

User interface

You are welcomed by a clean and simple interface. However, a help manual is not included in the package so you need to experiment with the built-in features in order to understand how the program works. Some of the dedicated parameters cannot be described as highly intuitive.
You cannot appeal to tooltips for finding out short descriptions about the tool’s functions so you are completely on your own when it comes to decoding the GUI.

Generate your own beats

Beat Generator gives you the possibility to make use of drag-and-drop actions in order to define new beats. What’s more, you are allowed to start or stop the playback mode, increase or decrease the tempo, as well as choose between three different music styles, namely Casual, Techno, and Rock.
The application embeds several instruments in the main window and lets you drag and drop the sound notation produced by each instrument directly in the workspace, which looks more like a grid. In addition, you may remove notes from the workspace and move the selected one to the desired position in order to tweak the sound.
Tests have shown that Beat Generator delivers good output results. It does not eat up a lot of CPU and memory resources so the overall performance of the computer is not hampered. However, it has not been updated for a long time so it may cause compatibility issues especially on newer operating systems. For example, we experienced several crashes on Windows 8.1 Pro.

Final thoughts

All in all, Beat Generator provides nothing more than a simplistic software solution for helping you generate custom beats. It is not suitable for professional DJs but more likely for amateurs. On the downside, you cannot record the audio streams to your computer.