KEYBARS PRO · COMING SOON
keybars as an app. Nothing else to install.
keybars Pro hears what your computer plays and talks to your keyboard itself. No cava, no loopback driver, no Keymapp: open it, and the bars play. Every setting is in a window, with a live preview of your board.
# keybars, the free CLI
$ brew install jwarykowski/tap/keybars
# + open Keymapp and turn its API on
# + on macOS: BlackHole and a Multi-Output Device
$ keybars -source 'BlackHole 2ch'
# keybars Pro
$ brew install --cask jwarykowski/tap/keybars-pro
# open it; that's allWhat Pro adds
Everything keybars does, without the setup, and with the parts that are easier in a window than in flags.
Hears your computer
The app records what your computer plays: PipeWire or PulseAudio on Linux, and a Core Audio tap on macOS 14.2 or later. No cava, and no loopback device to route sound through.
Talks to ZSA boards over USB
No Keymapp. The app speaks the Oryx protocol to your Moonlander or Voyager directly, and sends seven keys a packet to firmware that supports it.
Every key, thumbs included
Built-in Moonlander and Voyager maps cover the whole board. Each column fills from its lowest key, so short columns keep in step.
Settings with a live preview
Colours, gain, peaks, smoothing and the rest, with an on-screen keyboard that plays as you change them.
Mirrored on split keyboards
Both halves show the same music, with the bass in the middle or at the edges. On by default for Moonlander and Voyager.
A test without music
A 30-second piece generated in the app sweeps every column and swells every row, so you can check the board in a quiet room.
PLANNED
More than music
Your keyboard is in front of you all day. Pro is adding modes that light it up for what's happening, not only what's playing, and they layer: a build result shows over the bars, then the music carries on.
Roadmap
Planned, not promised: the waitlist's votes set the order. A licence gets every mode that ships within its year of updates.
NEXT
- Calls: the mic key glows red while you're live, and the camera too
- Builds: CI running, passed or failed, from GitHub Actions, Forgejo or any webhook
- Typing: ripples from each key, a heatmap and a words-per-minute meter, on ZSA boards
- Notify: flash the board from a script, a webhook or Home Assistant
THEN
- Meetings: a countdown to your next call, from your calendar
- Focus: a pomodoro timer, and dimming all but the home row
- Coding agents: which agent is working and which is waiting for you
- System: CPU, memory or temperature as bars; battery low, network down
LATER
- Album art: colours taken from the track that's playing
- Theme files: save a look and share it as a file or a link
- Gallery: browse and install other people's themes
- Streaming: an on-air light, OBS scenes and Twitch follows
Compare
The app is free to use with the essentials. A licence unlocks the rest, and any Pro setting already shows in the preview before you buy.
| Feature | keybars | Pro app, free | Pro app, licensed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, MIT | Free | US$19 once 20% off for waitlist founders; a year of updates, and your version keeps working |
| Setup | cava, Keymapp with its API on, BlackHole on macOS | Open the app | Open the app |
| ZSA boards | Through Keymapp | Over USB | Over USB |
| Other RGB keyboards | OpenRGB | OpenRGB | OpenRGB |
| Settings | Flags and a config file | A window with a live preview | A window with a live preview |
| Mapping a keyboard | A text map, keybars find | Find keys: click each key as it lights | Find keys: click each key as it lights |
| Colours | Any | Three presets | Your own gradient |
| Peak dots, smoothing, frequency range, frame rate | Yes | In the preview | Yes |
| Keys left alone, idle time | Yes | In the preview | Yes |
| Systems | macOS, Linux | Linux, macOS 14.2+ | Linux, macOS 14.2+ |
Or €18, £15 or A$29. Prices include tax.
No account, no tracking
Checked on your computer
You activate your licence key once on each computer, up to three. After that the app checks it offline and never phones home.
Audio stays on your computer
The app listens to what your computer plays to draw the bars, and nothing it hears is recorded or sent anywhere.
Get the founder price
Leave your email and you'll get one message when keybars Pro opens, with a code for 20% off, good for the first two weeks.
One email when Pro opens. No spam, unsubscribe any time.
Questions
Is keybars still free?
Yes. The keybars CLI stays free and MIT licensed, and nothing moves out of it into Pro. Pro is a separate app for people who'd rather not set up cava and Keymapp.
What does Pro cost?
US$19 once (or €18, £15 or A$29), with a year of updates; people on the waitlist get 20% off in the first two weeks. The version you have keeps working after that year.
Can I try it first?
Yes. The app is free to use with the essential settings and three colour presets. Pro settings show in the on-screen preview, so you can see them before you buy.
Which keyboards does it work with?
ZSA Moonlander and Voyager over USB, and per-key RGB keyboards that OpenRGB supports, with OpenRGB running. For a board OpenRGB has no layout for, Find keys maps it by clicking each key as it lights.
Which systems?
Linux, and macOS 14.2 or later. Windows comes later.
How many computers can I use it on?
Three per licence. Deactivate one in the app to move the licence to another.
What do you keep from this waitlist?
Your email address, the date you joined and any modes you voted for, nothing else. We use the address to email you once when Pro opens, and you can ask us to delete it at any time.