Demucs in Stem Deck: local audio stem separation

Stem Deck is a free standalone app for local AI audio stem separation. This Russian-language review covers downloads for Mac, Windows and Linux, including an Nvidia-specific build. The presenter uses a Mac ARM build and says separation runs entirely on the user's computer.

The walkthrough starts with an audio file and a choice of vocals, drums, guitar, piano and bass. A nearly five-minute track takes about 40 seconds in the presenter's test; that result is specific to his setup. He finds the separated audio acceptable, though he hears artifacts. Stem Deck uses the six-stem Demucs model for separation. The presenter says this alpha has one model available, compared with UVR's broader model selection.

The app lets users audition and mute individual stems before saving them for a DAW. The presenter also demonstrates track information such as key, BPM and dynamic range, plus playback at twice the normal speed. He says results remain temporary unless explicitly saved.

YouTube links provide another input route for sampling. The demonstration succeeds with some videos but fails with others, and the presenter cannot explain the difference. He prefers Stem Deck's simpler workflow to UVR while judging its separation quality below Logic Pro and Ableton. Alpha limitations include a settings button that does nothing in his test.