Background Discs
Concentric rings of light displaced by the live spectrum, with each ring lagging the one inside it so a beat travels outward.
Background Discs is a concentric-ring composition in the Backgrounds category. Rings of light sit one inside the next, and the sound bends the rings themselves: every point around a ring is pushed outward by the frequency it stands for, so the circle takes on the shape of the spectrum rather than merely brightening with it. Each ring reads the sound a little later than the one inside it, so a hit lands in the center and then travels out through the stack as a visible ripple. Because it is a background, the treatment stays restrained — the rings glow rather than flare, and they keep a resting light when nothing is playing. Background Discs requires WebGPU; see Browser Support for current platform details.
Open Background Discs
Launch the visualizer with its matching left-nav entry selected.
How the ripple works
Each ring reads a slightly older moment of the sound than the ring inside it, and Ring Lag sets how much older. With it at zero the whole field pulses as one. Raised, a transient appears at the center and then moves outward, one ring at a time, so you can watch a kick drum travel through the stack. Pair it with Spectrum Push — the first decides how far the sound travels, the second how much shape it carries.
Presets
Default opens head-on with a wallpaper backdrop: the main stack against a repeating grid of small copies sized to fill the canvas. It is the restrained look: a cool field that stays out of the way behind other content. Neon Pulse turns the color up and drives the rings hard from the bass. Deep Space slows everything down into a wide, dim field. Solar Flare uses fewer, much heavier rings and the strongest displacement, so the circles visibly deform.
Quick start
- Start the demo track, choose a local audio file, or enable a live input.
- Try a preset or style first, then open the section for the part of the image you want to change.
- On a control with Assign modulation, open the source picker, choose a signal, and watch the slider's live fill.
- Use Reset to Defaults whenever you want to return to the original look.
Presets and styles
Default · Neon Pulse · Deep Space · Solar Flare
Audio modulation
On a control with Assign modulation, select the activity icon to open Modulate with. Choose a named source, or choose — None to leave the control unmodulated. After you assign one, its name appears below the slider; select that name to edit the route, or use Clear modulation to remove it. The slider track shows the live signal reaching the control.
| Modulated control | Section | What the route changes |
|---|---|---|
| Ring Spacing | Core | Sets the gap between rings, and with it how far the whole field spreads. The framing follows automatically so the outermost ring stays in view. |
| Ring Thickness | Core | Sets how broad each ring is, from a fine filament to a wide band of light. |
| Hue Speed | Colors | Sets how quickly hue changes or moves. |
| Spectrum Push | Spectrum | Sets how far the sound bends each ring out of round. At zero the rings are perfect circles; raised, they take the shape of the spectrum. |
| Ring Lag | Spectrum | Sets how far behind each ring runs the one inside it. At zero every ring moves together; raised, a hit travels outward through the stack as a ripple. |
| Glow Burst | Spectrum | Widens a ring as it is struck, so loud moments thicken the line as well as brighten it. |
| Brightness Boost | Spectrum | Sets how much the sound lifts the rings above their resting glow. |
| Base Speed | Animation | Sets how fast the field turns. Neighboring rings counter-rotate, so the stack never reads as one rigid object. |
| Bloom | Animation | Sets how far light spills beyond each ring. |
| Distance | Camera | Sets how far the camera sits from the subject. |
| Spacing | Arrangement | Sets how far apart the depth copies sit, front to back. |
| Backdrop Level | Appearance | Sets how much dimmer the backdrop is than the main stack. This separation is what keeps it behind rather than competing. |
| Backdrop Blur | Appearance | Softens the backdrop without touching the main stack, pushing it further behind. |
| Backdrop Hue | Appearance | Rotates the backdrop color around the spectrum, leaving the main stack alone. |
Settings reference
Core
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Ring Count | 4–32 | Sets how many rings make up the stack. More rings give a finer ripple but each one carries less weight. |
| Ring Spacing | 0.2–2.5 | Sets the gap between rings, and with it how far the whole field spreads. The framing follows automatically so the outermost ring stays in view. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Ring Thickness | 0.005–0.3 | Sets how broad each ring is, from a fine filament to a wide band of light. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
Colors
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Color A | Color | Sets the color a. |
| Color B | Color | Sets the color b. |
| Color C | Color | Sets the color c. |
| Color D | Color | Sets the color d. |
| Hue Animation | On / Off | Turns hue animation on or off. |
| Hue Speed | 0.01–1 | Sets how quickly hue changes or moves. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
Audio
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Audio Enabled | On / Off | Turns audio enabled on or off. |
| Master Gain | 0x–3x | Sets how strongly the input signal affects master. |
| Bass Intensity | 0x–3x | Sets the visible bass intensity. |
| Mid Intensity | 0x–3x | Sets the visible mid intensity. |
| High Intensity | 0x–3x | Sets the visible high intensity. |
| Smoothing | 0.01–0.8 | Balances immediate audio response against steadier motion. |
Spectrum
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Spectrum Push | 0–2 | Sets how far the sound bends each ring out of round. At zero the rings are perfect circles; raised, they take the shape of the spectrum. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Ring Lag | 0–12 | Sets how far behind each ring runs the one inside it. At zero every ring moves together; raised, a hit travels outward through the stack as a ripple. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Glow Burst | 0–2 | Widens a ring as it is struck, so loud moments thicken the line as well as brighten it. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Brightness Boost | 0–5 | Sets how much the sound lifts the rings above their resting glow. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
Animation
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Base Speed | 0.1–3 | Sets how fast the field turns. Neighboring rings counter-rotate, so the stack never reads as one rigid object. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Bloom | 0–2 | Sets how far light spills beyond each ring. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
Camera
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Camera Angle | MANUAL, FRONT, TILT, RAKED, EDGE, ISO | Chooses the framing. Front looks straight down the stack so the rings read as concentric circles; Tilt and Raked lean it progressively; Edge sits almost in the plane, where the rings collapse toward lines; Iso adds a turn to the side. Manual hands Distance and Elevation to you. |
| Auto Camera | On / Off | Advances through the available eased camera views using the current BPM. |
| Beats Per View | 1–32 beats | Holds each view for this many beats before beginning the next camera move. |
| Remaining | Live readout | Counts down the current hold and previews the next camera view. |
| Distance | 0.5x–2.5x | Sets how far the camera sits from the subject. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Elevation | 4°–88° | Sets how far above the plane of the rings the camera sits, from almost level with them up to looking straight down. |
| Auto Rotate | On / Off | Slowly turns the framing around the field. |
| Auto Rotate Speed | 0–1 | Sets how fast the framing turns. |
Backdrop
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Background Opacity | 0–1 | Fades the dark background and the wallpaper grid behind the rings. At zero the canvas is fully transparent and only the ring stack remains, ready to sit over another layer in Studio. Depth copies stay, because they are part of the stack. |
Arrangement
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Repeat | OFF, WALLPAPER, DEPTH | Chooses what sits behind the main stack. Wallpaper fills the backdrop with a repeating grid of small copies, the look the original tiled pattern had. Depth puts full-size copies one behind the next, which reads as a tunnel from the Front framing. Off leaves a single stack. |
| Columns | 1–12 | Sets how many copies across the wallpaper grid holds. |
| Rows | 1–10 | Sets how many copies down the wallpaper grid holds. |
| Backdrop Distance | 5–80 | Sets how far behind the main stack the wallpaper sits. |
| Copies | 1–12 | Sets how many copies recede behind the main stack. |
| Auto Fill | On / Off | Sizes the wallpaper grid to cover the canvas automatically, following the window shape and the backdrop distance. Turn it off to set the gaps yourself. |
| H Spacing | 0.5–40 | Sets the horizontal gap between wallpaper copies. |
| V Spacing | 0.5–40 | Sets the vertical gap between wallpaper copies. |
| Spacing | 0.5–30 | Sets how far apart the depth copies sit, front to back. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
Depth & Scale
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Depth Fade | 0.2–1 | Sets how much dimmer each depth copy is than the one in front of it. |
| Tile Size | 0.05–1 | Sets how large each wallpaper copy is next to the main stack. |
| Copy Taper | 0.7–1 | Sets how much each depth copy shrinks relative to the one in front, reinforcing the recession. |
Appearance
| Setting | Available values | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Backdrop Level | 0–1.5 | Sets how much dimmer the backdrop is than the main stack. This separation is what keeps it behind rather than competing. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Backdrop Blur | 0–20 | Softens the backdrop without touching the main stack, pushing it further behind. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Backdrop Tint | Color | Chooses a color the backdrop is pulled toward, so it can be separated from the main stack without recoloring it. |
| Tint Amount | 0–1 | Sets how far the backdrop is pulled toward the tint color. |
| Backdrop Hue | -180°–180° | Rotates the backdrop color around the spectrum, leaving the main stack alone. Use Assign modulation to choose a source. |
| Backdrop Saturation | 0–2 | Moves the backdrop from gray toward vivid. |
Some controls appear only after you enable a related mode or style. The settings panel always reflects the options available for the current selection.
Tips for a better audio visualization
- Use lower modulation amounts than you would for a foreground effect so the background supports the mix instead of competing with it.
- Try assigning Bass to Ring Spacing, then compare Mid, High, and Volume while the demo track plays. The slider's live fill shows the signal reaching that control.