Acetate is a code-native, local-first DJ library manager designed to give users full ownership and control over their music collections. The tool organizes music libraries as SQLite databases residing on the user's local disk, allowing DJs to manage, edit, and synchronize their tracks without reliance on cloud services, accounts, or subscriptions. Acetate emphasizes transparency and user autonomy, positioning itself as an alternative to cloud-based or subscription DJ library managers by ensuring that all data remains local and under the user's control. The platform supports import of music libraries from sources such as Engine DJ databases, Rekordbox XML files, or folders of audio, bringing over tracks, playlists, cues, beatgrids, album art, and play history. All source databases are accessed in read-only mode during import. Acetate provides several interfaces for library management, including a command-line interface (CLI), a web UI accessible at a local address, and a Python API, making it suitable for users who wish to script or automate their workflows. Editing features include bulk editing, find-and-replace, metadata cleanup, unlimited tagging, playlist management, waveform and Camelot-key views, and a full undo log for every change. The tool is optimized for speed, supporting instant operations even on libraries with tens of thousands of tracks. Synchronization and export are handled through a non-destructive process: every export runs a diff-preview, backup, validation, and atomic swap, with rollbacks on failure to prevent data loss. Acetate includes an experimental, code-native Pioneer export.pdb writer, enabling users to build CDJ-ready USB drives directly from their library without needing the Rekordbox application; this feature is currently in beta. The tool is distributed as MIT-licensed open source software, is free to use, and does not require any form of subscription. Installation is available via pip for macOS with Python 3.11 or higher, and Windows support is planned. Acetate is aimed at DJs and technically inclined users who prioritize ownership, speed, and openness in managing their music libraries.
In the Other dev tools space, acetate takes a focused approach. It focuses on managing and organizing large DJ music libraries programmatically instead of manually. acetate is an open-source project aimed at DJs and developers managing large music libraries. The project is open source (MIT). It runs on the web and the command line.
acetate first shipped in 2026. Among its 6 catalogued features are library management, CLI interface, and music metadata support. acetate is currently in beta.
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