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Cue is a browser-based drum machine built by developer Fadhlullah Mustapha, with its song represented as structured Sanity content rather than an audio file. The browser synthesizes the sounds from parameters stored in voice documents. Its central idea is to treat a song as editable, publishable data—and to make a published change reach listeners in time with the music.
What Cue is—and what it is not
Cue was submitted to the Sanity Challenge. It is a software demonstration, not a physical drum machine: its musical state lives in a Sanity dataset, and audio is generated in the browser from stored sound parameters. Mustapha’s account is described in his DEV Community article, published October 4, 2026.
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The design separates listening from editing. The public-facing “Floor” plays the published song; the “Deck” is a Sanity App SDK interface for editing and previewing a draft. Mustapha likens that split to a DJ hearing a cue in headphones while the room hears the playing track.
How the song is represented as data
Cue’s schema combines shared sound definitions with a song document that contains its arrangement and pattern. The described fields are:
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- Compact stylus drum machine - 4 drum kits, 4 bass sounds
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- Record multiple patterns - Built-in speaker with volume control
- Connect any wired headphones - Powered by 3 x AA batteries (1.2-1.6V, not included)
- Voice documents: name, kind, pitch, decay, tone, and gain—the parameters used to synthesize a voice.
- Song document: title, BPM, swing, and sections.
- Sections: title, kind, bar count, and lanes.
- Lanes: a reference to a voice and a sequence of steps.
- Steps: an index from 0 to 15, velocity, probability, and a timing nudge measured in milliseconds.
Sections, lanes, and steps are embedded in the song document, while voices remain referenced documents. That choice supports a coherent publish: if patterns lived in separate documents, publishing the song alone would not necessarily publish those documents, potentially leaving the new song paired with draft patterns. The author treats voice documents as shared kit elements that change less frequently, making them suitable references.
Each step is an object rather than a character in a compact pattern string. That lets the data carry and expose properties such as velocity, probability, and timing nudge for individual hits, including off-beat ones. The structure is therefore not just a way to store a beat; it makes musical details available as queryable content.
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- Compact and portable design with a built-in speaker for on-the-go music creation
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How editing and publishing work
In the Deck, an editor changes and previews a draft through Sanity’s App SDK. Publishing that document is the “Drop.” The Floor reads the published perspective without a token, listens for updates with Sanity’s client.listen(), and, according to Mustapha, polls every two seconds as a fallback. The Deck uses useEditDocument for draft editing and publishDocument to publish.
This creates two states with distinct audiences: an editor can work on a draft, while public listeners continue to hear the published song. On a Drop, already-open Floor clients move to the new song at the next bar line rather than changing in the middle of a measure.
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What the reported timing does—and does not—show
Mustapha reports that a publish was noticed after 1.4 to 1.9 seconds, and that at 118 BPM the new song began on the next bar, about 3.2 seconds after publishing. He says these observations came from real Chrome against the live dataset. They are the developer’s reported measurements, not a Sanity performance guarantee or an independently verified benchmark. The account does not specify a repeat count or broader test methodology, so the figures should be read as an example of the project’s behavior, not a general latency promise.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where to see the project
Mustapha’s article includes links to the public Floor demo and to the Deck, which requires sign-in to a Sanity organization. Their current availability and behavior are not established here, so the article’s description should not be taken as confirmation that either link is presently live.
Quick Recap
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- 16 Pad Controller with customizable lighting: The midi drum pad STARRYPAD's 16 soft silicone backlit pads can trigger drums, samples, effects and more; One button push allows you to quickly switch between 3 different pad banks for a total of 48 assignable pads; In addition, the beat maker STARRYPAD comes with adjustable velocity sensitivity curves. Perfect for all music makers
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- Customizable lighting: The MIDI controller pad STARRYPAD backlit pad lighting with 7 vibrant colors. Helps you group your instruments with a visual reference; Tips: the editor only can set this drum pad, doesn't have the function of recording and arranging music
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