Provided by: ncmpcpp_0.7-1_amd64 
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
SEE ALSO
mpc(1), mpd(1) ncmpcpp(1)