ECHO

Community Edition is free. What does the Steam edition add?

ECHO Community Edition is permanently free, open source under AGPL v3, and includes its available DSP effects for free. You do not need to buy the Steam edition or Pro to use it. The community helps maintain it. Updates are slower, some smaller features are not supported, and the interface is more basic.

Steam is the edition I mainly maintain, with more frequent updates and more attention to the interface and smaller conveniences. It installs and updates through Steam, with Workshop, achievements, listening statistics and friend presence. You can choose Steam Cloud sync for selected settings; music files are not uploaded.

Large libraries and background listening

We keep improving library browsing and background playback in the Steam edition to reduce unnecessary memory and CPU use. Listen from the tray while working or gaming, or choose UltraLight to reduce the main interface's resource use further. Actual usage depends on your computer, library, skins and audio settings.

What can skins and mods change?

Themes change colors, fonts and controls. Complete skins can rearrange pages and playback controls. Workshop also has lyric scenes, artwork layouts, backgrounds and visualizers; items that support independent parts let you mix them.

Functional mods / plug-ins can add commands, tool panels and entry points using ECHO's playback, library and visualization interfaces. Authors declare the permissions they need, and you decide whether to approve them.

Find a Workshop item in the app, subscribe, then enable it. Subscribed content can receive updates. Disable items you no longer want, or return to built-in visuals. If you want to make your own, there is an in-app authoring studio, public Workshop SDK, templates, documentation, local previews and validation tools.

Ordinary themes, skins, lyric scenes and visualizers do not need Pro. DSP / EQ presets and items using other Pro capabilities need the corresponding entitlement. Animated effects and third-party items add their own overhead; simpler combinations can save resources.

The base app covers everyday listening

Import your music and browse songs, albums, artists or folders. Make playlists, mark favorites and check playback history. Immersive and desktop lyrics, the mini player and quick controls are included. Word highlighting depends on suitable timing in the lyric file.

WASAPI, ASIO, DSD file playback and supported DoP / ASIO Native DSD passthrough are included without Pro. Available output modes depend on the system, device and driver; ECHO shows the path actually in use.

ECHO Pro is mainly for Hi-Fi users

Most people playing local songs, organizing playlists and reading lyrics have little need for Pro and do not need to buy it. Community Edition or the Steam base app covers those needs.

Pro is optional paid DLC for EQ, ReplayGain, dynamics, crossfeed, headphone / room correction, ECHO SRC and PCM-to-SDM, plus Remote libraries, Connect device workflows, ECHO Pet and other extras. Buy it if you have a specific use for those tools. Hardware, drivers and processing settings affect what works and how it sounds.

Bring your own music

ECHO includes no songs or music subscription. The Steam edition has no built-in third-party music-platform search, login, extraction or online playback, and no music-video search / playback. Pro does not unlock those platform features. Remote servers and devices are yours to provide.