MakingWaves is an all-in-one platform for working DJs and internet radio stations. For DJs, it provides auto-tracklists, live OBS overlays, mix mastering, and one-click publishing to Mixcloud, Hearthis, and YouTube. For stations, it provides hosted websites, DJ portals, branded listener apps, and show scheduling.

MakingWaves uses ACRCloud audio fingerprinting to identify tracks in real time. The desktop client captures a short audio sample at regular intervals (30–60 seconds depending on your tier) and sends it to the server for identification. It works even when tracks are pitched, time-stretched, or layered — accuracy is typically above 80% for commercially released music.

A Windows or Mac computer running the MakingWaves desktop client. The client listens to your system audio output, so it works with any DJ software (Serato, Rekordbox) or hardware (CDJs, turntables, controllers). For OBS overlays, you need OBS Studio installed on the same machine.

There's no permanent free plan, but every new account gets a 7-day free trial with full access to all features. No credit card required. After the trial, you pick a plan that fits your needs — DJ plans start at £15.99/mo and station plans start at £49/mo plus a one-time setup fee.

Essential (£15.99/mo) gives you live track ID at 60-second intervals, 20 hours/month of fingerprinting, OBS overlays, and publishing to all three platforms.

Pro (£31.99/mo) doubles your fingerprinting to 40 hrs/mo at 30-second intervals, adds smart next-track recommendations, PDF set exports, and mix mastering.

Touring (£54.99/mo) unlocks unlimited fingerprinting, priority identification, and advanced analytics. Designed for DJs who play multiple gigs per week.

Each time MakingWaves listens to your audio to identify a track, it uses a small amount of your monthly fingerprinting budget. A typical 2-hour DJ set uses around 2 hours of fingerprinting time. If you run out, you can buy top-up packs (5 hours for £3.99 or 15 hours for £7.99) or upgrade your plan.

Yes, all three platforms are supported on every DJ plan. You connect your accounts via OAuth in your MakingWaves account settings, then choose which platforms to publish to when you finish a mix. Tracklists, descriptions, and YouTube chapter markers are auto-filled.

MakingWaves mastering levels your mix to broadcast loudness (−14 LUFS) using a two-pass loudnorm process. It's designed for quick turnaround — drop in a recording, get a broadcast-ready file back. If you have a more involved mastering workflow, you can skip this step and publish your own master.

The one-time setup fee covers building your station site, DNS configuration, initial branding (logo, colours, layout), and a guided onboarding session. Pro and Studio tiers also include submitting your branded listener app to the App Store and Google Play.

Each station gets a unique station code. Share the code with your DJs — when they sign up for MakingWaves (or enter it in their account settings), they're linked to your station. They get a discounted DJ subscription and can publish to your station's channels alongside their own.

Pro and Studio plans include custom domain support. Point your domain's DNS to MakingWaves and we handle SSL certificates automatically. Starter plans use a makingwaves.live subdomain (e.g., yourstationname.makingwaves.live).

Starter (£299 + £49/mo) supports up to 5 DJs with a hosted site, OBS widgets, and show scheduling. Great for small community stations.

Pro (£599 + £99/mo) adds up to 20 DJs, a custom domain, branded listener apps, analytics, and DJ show management. Right for growing stations.

Studio (£1,499 + £179/mo) is fully white-label with unlimited DJs, custom app branding, API access, priority support, and a dedicated onboarding session. Built for established stations.

Yes — DJs have their own MakingWaves accounts with their own DJ tools subscription. Station DJs get a 20% discount off the standard rate. Your station fee covers the station-level features (site, apps, scheduling, admin portal); DJ tools like track ID, mastering, and publishing are covered by the DJ's own subscription.

The MakingWaves desktop client runs on Windows 10+ and macOS 12+. It's a lightweight Electron app that sits in your system tray. Audio capture requires a standard audio output device — it works with built-in speakers, external audio interfaces, and virtual audio cables.

Audio fingerprint samples are deleted immediately after identification — we never store raw audio from live monitoring. Uploaded mix files are retained for 48 hours after mastering to allow re-downloads, then permanently deleted. Published mixes go directly to the platform (Mixcloud, Hearthis, YouTube) and are not stored on MakingWaves servers.

Yes. Every account has a GDPR-compliant data export option in account settings. You can download all your set data, tracklists, and account information as a ZIP file at any time. Set tracklists can also be exported individually as text, CSV, or PDF.