Encore Karaoke vs UltraStar Deluxe

Encore Karaoke is an open-source karaoke player for computers that uses music supplied by the user; a song library is not included by default. It works best with MIDI and MP3+G files and also supports popular audio and video formats. An audio mixer can enhance a singer’s voice, video recording captures performances, and advanced scoring gives real-time feedback on pitch and timing. Encore Sessions lets people create karaoke rooms, while EnMoku allows song queuing, chat, and cheering from a machine without installing an app. The player can romanize Japanese and Korean songs automatically, and users can place their own background images or videos behind lyrics. The latest listed release describes OBS scene automation and overlays for lyrics and the current setlist. The setup menu is PIN-protected and starts with PIN 0000, which users can change. The listing includes Android, Linux, macOS, and Windows, with desktop support varying by release: Windows for versions 1.0.0–1.3.1, Linux from 1.4.0, and macOS from 1.10 onward. The plan costs nothing.

UltraStar Deluxe is a free, open-source karaoke game for Windows, Linux and macOS. Players sing and score points based on pitch and rhythm, and can create their own songs. Party mode supports 8–12 players divided into two or three teams. The maker says more than 10,000 songs are available; players can also use DRM-free audio files or music stored on their computers. SingStar microphones work with the game. Users can create themes and download community plugins, free songs and code patches. Lua plugins are supported, with the .usdx extension and placement in the plugins directory required. The Official UltraStar Song Format is shared with partner games and song editors. Listed minimum requirements include a 1GHz CPU, OpenGL 1.2, 512MB free RAM and 200MB disk space, plus room for songs and videos. The downloads page lists version 2026.9.0 and links to an installer, release notes and source; Flathub and AUR are alternative installation methods. Audio devices do not have plug-and-play support, so the game must be restarted after a new device is connected.