Ubuntu Manpage: ncmpcpp - An ncurses Music Player Daemon (MPD) client.

NAME

       ncmpcpp - An ncurses Music Player Daemon (MPD) client.

SYNOPSIS

       ncmpcpp [options]

DESCRIPTION

       ncmpcpp is an ncurses client for MPD (Music Player Daemon), inspired by ncmpc.

       Read more about MPD at http://www.musicpd.org

OPTIONS

-h, --host Connect to server at host [localhost]

-p, --port
Connect to server at port [6600]

--current-song
Print current song using given format and exit

-c, --config
Specify configuration file(s)

--ignore-config-errors
Ignore unknown and invalid options in configuration files

-c, --bindings
Specify bindings file

-s, --screen <name>
Specify the startup screen (<name> may be: help, playlist, browser, search_engine,
media_library, playlist_editor, tag_editor, outputs, visualizer, clock)

-S, --slave-screen <name>
Specify the startup slave screen (<name> may be: help, playlist, browser,
search_engine, media_library, playlist_editor, tag_editor, outputs, visualizer,
clock)

-?, --help
Display help.

-v, --version
Display version information.

CONFIGURATION
When ncmpcpp starts, it tries to read user's settings from $HOME/.ncmpcpp/config
and $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ncmpcpp/config files. If no configuration is found, ncmpcpp
uses its default configuration. An example configuration file containing all
default values is provided with ncmpcpp and can be usually found in
/usr/share/doc/ncmpcpp (exact location may depend on used distribution or configure
prefix).

Note: Configuration option values can either be enclosed in quotation marks or not.
- If they are enclosed, the leftmost and the rightmost quotation marks are treated
as delimiters, therefore it is not necessary to escape quotation marks you use
within the value itself.
- If they are not, any whitespace characters between = and the first printable
character of the value, as well as whitespace characters after the last printable
character of the value are trimmed.

Therefore the rule of thumb is: if you need whitespaces at the beginning or at the
end of the value, enclose it in quotation marks. Otherwise, don't.

Note: COLOR has to be the name (not a number) of one of colors 1-8 from SONG FORMAT
section.

Supported configuration options:

ncmpcpp_directory = PATH
Directory for storing ncmpcpp related files. Changing it is useful if you want to
store everything somewhere else and provide command line setting for alternative
location to config file which defines that while launching ncmpcpp.

lyrics_directory = PATH
Directory for storing downloaded lyrics. It defaults to ~/.lyrics since other MPD
clients (eg. ncmpc) also use that location.

mpd_host = HOST
Connect to MPD running on specified host/unix socket. When HOST starts with a '/',
it is assumed to be a unix socket.

mpd_port = PORT
Connect to MPD on the specified port.

mpd_music_dir = PATH
Search for files in specified directory. This is needed for tag editor to work.

mpd_connection_timeout = SECONDS
Set connection timeout to MPD to given value.

mpd_crossfade_time = SECONDS
Default number of seconds to crossfade, if enabled by ncmpcpp.

visualizer_fifo_path = PATH
Path to mpd fifo output. This is needed to make music visualizer work (note that
output sound format of this fifo has to be either 44100:16:1 or 44100:16:2,
depending on whether you want mono or stereo visualization)

visualizer_output_name = NAME
Name of output that provides data for visualizer. Needed to keep sound and
visualization in sync.

visualizer_in_stereo = yes/no
Should be set to 'yes', if fifo output's format was set to 44100:16:2.

visualizer_sample_multiplier = NUMBER
Multiply received samples by given value. Very useful for proper visualization of
quiet music.

visualizer_sync_interval = SECONDS
Defines interval between syncing visualizer and audio outputs.

visualizer_type = spectrum/wave/wave_filled/ellipse
Defines default visualizer type (spectrum is available only if ncmpcpp was compiled
with fftw support).

visualizer_look = STRING
Defines visualizer's look (string has to be exactly 2 characters long: first one is
for wave whereas second for frequency spectrum).

visualizer_color = COLORS
Comma separated list of colors to be used in music visualization.

system_encoding = ENCODING
If you use encoding other than utf8, set it in order to handle utf8 encoded strings
properly.

playlist_disable_highlight_delay = SECONDS
Delay for highlighting playlist since the last key was pressed. If set to 0,
highlighting never fades away.

message_delay_time = SECONDS
Delay for displayed messages to remain visible.

song_list_format
Format for songs' list.

song_status_format
Song's format for statusbar.

song_library_format
alternative_header_first_line_format = TEXT Now playing song format for the first
line in alternative user interface header window.

alternative_header_second_line_format = TEXT
Now playing song format for the second line in alternative user interface header
window.

now_playing_prefix = TEXT
Prefix for currently playing song.

now_playing_suffix = TEXT
Suffix for currently playing song.

browser_playlist_prefix = TEXT
Prefix for playlists in Browser.

selected_item_prefix = TEXT
Prefix for selected items.

selected_item_suffix = TEXT
Suffix for selected items.

modified_item_prefix = TEXT
Prefix for modified item (tag editor).

browser_sort_mode
Determines sort mode for browser. Possible values are "name", "mtime", "format" and
"noop".

browser_sort_format
Format to use for sorting songs in browser. For this option to be effective,
browser_sort_mode must be set to "format".

song_window_title_format
Song format for window title.

song_columns_list_format
Format for songs' list displayed in columns.

execute_on_song_change = COMMAND
Shell command to execute on song change.

playlist_show_mpd_host = yes/no
If enabled, current MPD host will be shown in playlist.

playlist_show_remaining_time = yes/no
If enabled, time remaining to end of playlist will be shown after playlist
statistics.

playlist_shorten_total_times = yes/no
If enabled, total/remaining playlist time displayed in statusbar will be shown
using shortened units' names (d:h:m:s instead of days:hours:minutes:seconds).

playlist_separate_albums = yes/no
If enabled, separators will be placed between albums.

playlist_display_mode = classic/columns
Default display mode for Playlist.

browser_display_mode = classic/columns
Default display mode for Browser.

search_engine_display_mode = classic/columns
Default display mode for Search engine.

playlist_editor_display_mode = classic/columns
Default display mode for Playlist editor.

discard_colors_if_item_is_selected = yes/no
Indicates whether custom colors of tags have to be discarded if item is selected or
not.

incremental_seeking = yes/no
If enabled, seek time will increment by one each second of seeking.

seek_time = SECONDS
Base seek time to begin with.

volume_change_step = NUMBER
Number of percents volume has to be increased/decreased by in
volume_up/volume_down.

autocenter_mode = yes/no
Default state for autocenter mode at start.

centered_cursor = yes/no
If enabled, currently highlighted position in the list will be always centered.

progressbar_look = TEXT
This variable defines the look of progressbar. Note that it has to be exactly two
or three characters long.

progressbar_boldness = yes/no
This variable defines whether progressbar should be displayed in bold or not.

default_place_to_search_in = database/playlist
If set to "playlist", Search engine will perform searching in current MPD playlist
rather than in music database.

user_interface = classic/alternative
Default user interface used by ncmpcpp at start.

data_fetching_delay = yes/no
If enabled, there will be a 250ms delay between refreshing position in media
library or playlist editor and fetching appropriate data from MPD. This limits data
fetched from the server and is particularly useful if ncmpcpp is connected to a
remote host.

media_library_primary_tag = artist/album_artist/date/genre/composer/performer
Default tag type for leftmost column in media library.

default_find_mode = wrapped/normal
If set to "wrapped", going from last found position to next will take you to the
first one (same goes for the first position and going to previous one), otherwise
no actions will be performed.

default_tag_editor_pattern = TEXT
Default pattern used by Tag editor's parser.

header_visibility = yes/no
If enabled, header window will be displayed, otherwise hidden.

statusbar_visibility = yes/no
If enabled, statusbar will be displayed, otherwise hidden.

titles_visibility = yes/no
If enabled, column titles will be displayed, otherwise hidden.

header_text_scrolling = yes/no
If enabled, text in header window will scroll if its length is longer then actual
screen width, otherwise it won't.

cyclic_scrolling = yes/no
If enabled, cyclic scrolling is used (e.g. if you press down arrow being at the end
of list, it'll take you to the beginning)

lines_scrolled = NUMBER
Number of lines that are scrolled with mouse wheel.

follow_now_playing_lyrics = yes/no
If enabled, lyrics will be switched at song's change to currently playing one's
(Note: this works only if you are viewing lyrics of item from Playlist).

fetch_lyrics_for_current_song_in_background = yes/no
If enabled, each time song changes lyrics fetcher will be automatically run in
background in attempt to download lyrics for currently playing song.

store_lyrics_in_song_dir = yes/no
If enabled, lyrics will be saved in song's directory, otherwise in ~/.lyrics. Note
that it needs properly set mpd_music_dir.

generate_win32_compatible_filenames = yes/no
If set to yes, filenames generated by ncmpcpp (with tag editor, for lyrics, artists
etc.) will not contain the following characters: \?*:|"<> - otherwise only slash
(/) will not be used.

allow_for_physical_item_deletion = yes/no
If set to yes, it will be possible to physically delete files and directories from
the disk in the browser.

lastfm_preferred_language = ISO 639 alpha-2 language code
If set, ncmpcpp will try to get info from last.fm in language you set and if it
fails, it will fall back to english. Otherwise it will use english the first time.

show_hidden_files_in_local_browser = yes/no
Trigger for displaying in local browser files and directories that begin with '.'

screen_switcher_mode = SWITCHER_MODE
If set to "previous", key_screen_switcher will switch between current and last used
screen. If set to "screen1,...screenN" (a list of screens) it will switch between
them in a sequence. Syntax clarification can be found in example config file.

startup_screen = SCREEN_NAME
Screen that has to be displayed at start (playlist by default).

startup_slave_screen = SCREEN_NAME
Slave screen that has to be displayed at start (nothing by default).

startup_slave_screen_focus = yes/no
If set to yes, slave screen will be the active one after startup. Otherwise master
screen will be.

locked_screen_width_part = 20-80
If you want to lock a screen, ncmpcpp asks for % of locked screen's width to be
reserved before that and provides a default value, which is the one you can set
here.

ask_for_locked_screen_width_part = yes/no
If enabled, ncmpcpp will ask for % of locked screen's width each time you want to
lock a screen. If you disable that, it'll silently attempt to use default value.

jump_to_now_playing_song_at_start = yes/no
If enabled, ncmpcpp will jump at start to now playing song if mpd is playing or
paused.

ask_before_clearing_playlists = yes/no
If enabled, user will be asked if he really wants to clear the playlist after
pressing key responsible for that.

clock_display_seconds = yes/no
If enabled, clock will display time in format hh:mm:ss, otherwise hh:mm.

display_volume_level = yes/no
If enabled, volume level will be displayed in statusbar, otherwise not.

display_bitrate = yes/no
If enabled, bitrate of currently playing song will be displayed in statusbar.

display_remaining_time = yes/no
If enabled, remaining time of currently playing song will be be displayed in
statusbar instead of elapsed time.

regular_expressions = none/basic/extended/perl
Type of currently used regular expressions.

ignore_leading_the = yes/no
If enabled, word "the" at the beginning of tags/filenames/sort format will be
ignored while sorting items.

block_search_constraints_change_if_items_found = yes/no
If enabled, fields in Search engine above "Reset" button will be blocked after
successful searching, otherwise they won't.

mouse_support = yes/no
If set to yes, mouse support will be enabled.

mouse_list_scroll_whole_page = yes/no
If enabled, mouse wheel will scroll the whole page of item list at a time,
otherwise the number of lines specified by lines_scrolled variable.

empty_tag_marker = TEXT
Text that will be displayed, if requested tag is not set.

tags_separator = TEXT
Separator that is placed between tags. Also interpreted by tag editor which splits
input string into separate tags using it.

tag_editor_extended_numeration = yes/no
If enabled, tag editor will number tracks using format xx/yy (where xx is the
current track and yy is total amount of all numbered tracks), not plain xx.

media_library_sort_by_mtime = yes/no
If enabled, media library will be sorted by modification time. Otherwise
lexicographic sorting is used.

enable_window_title = yes/no
If enabled, ncmpcpp will override current window title with its own one.

search_engine_default_search_mode = MODE_NUMBER
Number of default mode used in search engine.

external_editor = PATH
Path to external editor used to edit lyrics.

use_console_editor = yes/no
If your external editor is console application, you need to enable it.

colors_enabled = yes/no
No need to describe it, huh?

empty_tag_color = COLOR
Color of empty tag marker.

header_window_color = COLOR
Color of header window.

volume_color = COLOR
Color of volume state.

state_line_color = COLOR
Color of lines separating header and statusbar from main window.

state_flags_color = COLOR
Color of MPD status flags.

main_window_color = COLOR
Color of main window.

color1 = COLOR
One of colors used in Song info, Tiny tag editor and Search engine.

color2 = COLOR
One of colors used in Song info, Tiny tag editor and Search engine.

main_window_highlight_color = COLOR
Color of main window's highlight.

progressbar_color = COLOR
Color of progressbar.

progressbar_elapsed_color = COLOR
Color of part of progressbar that represents elapsed time.

statusbar_color = COLOR
Color of statusbar.

alternative_ui_separator_color = COLOR
Color of separators used in alternative user interface.

active_column_color = COLOR
Color of active column's highlight.

window_border_color = BORDER
Border color of pop-up windows. If set to 'none', no border will be shown.

active_window_border = COLOR
Color of active window's border.

BINDINGS
When ncmpcpp starts, it tries to read user's bindings from ~/.ncmpcpp/bindings
file. If no bindings file is found, ncmpcpp uses the defaults. An example bindings
file with the default values can be found usually in /usr/share/doc/ncmpcpp (exact
location may depend on used distribution or configure prefix).

You can view current keybindings by pressing F1.

SONG FORMAT

       For song format you can use:

        %l - length
        %f - filename
        %D - directory
        %a - artist
        %A - album artist
        %t - title
        %b - album
        %y - date
        %n - track number (01/12 -> 01)
        %N - full track info (01/12 -> 01/12)
        %g - genre
        %c - composer
        %p - performer
        %d - disc
        %C - comment
        %P - priority
        $R - begin right alignment

       You  can also put them in { } and then they will be displayed only if all requested values
       are available and/or define alternate value with { }|{ } e.g. {%a - %t}|{%f} will check if
       artist and title tags are available and if they are, display them. Otherwise it'll display
       filename.

       Note: If you want to set limit on maximal length of a tag, just put the appropriate number
       between  %  and  character that defines tag type, e.g. to make album take max. 20 terminal
       cells, use '%20b'.

       Note: Format that is similar to "%a - %t" (i.e. without any additional braces) is equal to
       "{%a - %t}", so if one of the tags is missing, you'll get nothing.

       Text  can  have different color than the main window, e.g. if you want length to be green,
       write $3%l$9.

       Available values for colors:

        - 0 - default window color (discards all other colors)
        - 1 - black
        - 2 - red
        - 3 - green
        - 4 - yellow
        - 5 - blue
        - 6 - magenta
        - 7 - cyan
        - 8 - white
        - 9 - end of current color

       Note: colors can be nested, so if you write $2some$5text$9, it'll disable  only  usage  of
       blue color and make red the current one.

BUGS

       Report bugs on http://www.musicpd.org/mantis/

NOTE

       Since MPD uses UTF-8, ncmpcpp needs to convert characters to the charset used by the local
       system. If you get character conversion errors while you are running ncmpcpp, you probably
       need  to  set up your locale. This is done by setting LANG and LC_ALL/LC_CTYPE environment
       variables (LC_CTYPE only affects character handling).

HOMEPAGE

       -> http://unkart.ovh.org/ncmpcpp