AnthemScore

There are two free routes, and they work differently. AnthemScore Web lets a free account transcribe unlimited 30-second clips and start one 14-day trial of full-length songs, up to 6 minutes each. The trial clock starts when you press the button, not at sign-up. Free web results can be viewed and played, but downloads need a paid plan.

The desktop trial transcribes only the first 30 seconds of each song, with a cap of 100 transcriptions, and lets you switch between Lite, Professional and Studio features to compare them. Entering an activation key unlocks full songs without reinstalling. The homepage calls the desktop trial unlimited, but the trial box and edition page state the 100 cap.

The desktop key is paid once, never expires, permits commercial use and runs offline after activation. It covers 4 computers plus one more for each full year after purchase. The web app needs no installation and runs on phones, but it meters songs per month and resets unused credits.

Editorial assessment

The desktop license suits anyone who transcribes regularly on one computer or needs MIDI editing without a monthly bill. The web plans suit a few songs a month or work across devices. Web Pro includes the desktop app on one linked computer, but only while subscribed and with an internet connection; transcription stops when the plan ends, although saved files stay on the computer.

The editions differ mainly in what you can do after detection. Pick by output format, because upgrading later costs more than buying the right edition first:

• Lite: unlimited full-song transcription with PDF sheet music only; no MIDI, MusicXML or note editing.
• Professional: adds MusicXML, MIDI and ASDT export, note and measure editing, and slowed playback without pitch change.
• Studio: adds batch processing and lifetime updates, including future major versions.
• Upgrading within 24 hours costs only the price difference; after that, the difference plus about USD 3.

AnthemScore detects notes, beats and instruments, and percussion when the drum option is ticked when opening a file. Guitar tablature is set per instrument, with frets and tunings adjustable. It opens MP3, WAV, FLAC, OGG, WavPack and MusePack files, but not files with DRM.

The FAQ says it cannot detect vocals or chords; you export notes as MusicXML and add lyrics or chord symbols in notation software. Songs not tuned to A440 must be pitch-shifted first, and the desktop app needs about 4 GB of free RAM for most songs. No accuracy figure is claimed here, because no transcription was run for this page.

The privacy policy says the web service stores the audio or video you submit, the transcripts, your edits and the generated output. The terms let Lunaverus copy, process, store and modify that content only to provide transcription to you, and the privacy policy says personal information is not sold.

You keep ownership of your uploads, but the terms require you to own the copyright or have permission to transcribe and create sheet music from them, and prohibit transcriptions made for infringement or illegal distribution. Transcribing a commercial song for private practice differs from publishing or selling the arrangement, which needs a licence from the rights holder.

Refunds are narrow. For desktop software, only unused activation keys can be refunded; used keys and edition upgrades cannot. Web subscription fees are not refundable, and the terms point to the free tier as the way to evaluate first. Cancelling a web plan keeps its benefits until the end of the billing period.

Lite and Professional include one year of updates. After that, another year of updates costs about 75% of the normal purchase price, and buying it is optional: the installed version keeps working. Studio includes lifetime updates, which matters if you expect to move to AnthemScore 7 or later.

1. Record the file format, length, tuning and the trial start date.
2. Upload the recording and let note detection finish.
3. Compare the first 16 bars on screen with the printed score: pitches, rhythms and hand split.
4. Play the result back in the browser and note sections with missing or extra notes.
5. Repeat with a 30-second clip after the trial to confirm the clip tier behaves the same.

Accept a result where the melody and bass line of the 16 bars are recognisable and the bar lines fall on the beat. Reject whole sections of missing notes or a tempo map that drifts from the recording. No accuracy result is reported until the test is run.