What is STEM Separation and Why Guitarists Should Care

How Does Stem Separation Work?

Modern stem separation tools use AI to analyze a full mix, identify the component stems (vocals, guitars, bass, etc.), and creates separate audio files for each stem. This allows you to re-balance the stems, focus on a specific part, create your own backing tracks to play over, and much more.

Stem Separation is a Guitarist’s Best Learning Tool

Guitarists have a lot of ways to access free stem separation tools today, from standalone apps to browser-based web tools to DAW integration. Stem separation makes the process of learning to play new songs faster and easier, by allowing you to focus on the song parts you want to hear and eliminating or lowering those you don’t. Some stem separation tools are free to try, with just enough functionality to show you how it works: paid tiers unlock more stems, more functionality, or other perks beyond the basic free tier.

Isolate Solos and Complex Passages

It’s difficult to learn a complex guitar part when you’re trying to hear it through a dense song; stem separation allows you to isolate guitar parts to learn them faster and more accurately. Isolate the guitar part completely, or simply lower the volume of competing stems to help fast-track your learning progress.

Mute the Guitar Part and Play With the Band

One of the most fun things you can do with stem separation is to completely remove the guitar part and play the part yourself. It’s the natural progression after using stem separation to isolate and learn the part. Muting the guitar part also allows you to re-mix the separated stems into a backing track you can play anytime from your music library.

Separate Stems from a Phone Recording of Band Practice

I tried using the Moises app to separate stems from a stereo recording I made on my iPhone of my surf band practicing a song. To be clear, this was a rough recording that was never mixed from separate tracks: just a raw live recording. Moises cleanly separated guitars, bass and drums (there were no vocals) and allowed me to hear each part clearly. I didn’t expect stem separation to work so well on a live band recording, but I would definitely use it in the future to analyze jam sessions recorded at band rehearsal.

Popular Stem Separation Tools for Guitarists

Stem Separation Tools Compared

Here’s what you need to know about the stem separation tools listed above (there’s only so much info we can put into a table). I’ll fill in the most-needed info on each tool, as well as the pros and cons for guitarists.

Moises

Moises is a standalone app, and is also integrated with Blackstar Beam Solo and Beam Mini amplifiers. It’s important to note that the Moises app is a “freemium” model, while the integration with Blackstar Beam amplifiers is completely free. It’s also important to note that the Moises app requires an internet connection, while Beam amps with Moises can operate offline. All this is to say that for guitarists specifically, the best Moises experience is with a Beam Solo or Beam Mini amplifier.

Pros for guitarists: integrated with Blackstar Beam amps and Fender Studio Pro software

Cons: free model gives you control over all stems except guitar, requires internet connection

Ableton Live 12

Ableton Live is a popular songwriting tool for guitarists, and built-in stem separation makes it even better. Live 12’s stem separation creates stems for Vocals, Drums, Bass, and Other, enough for basic separation tasks. If you need more advanced separation to create more stems, you’ll want to look to one of the separation apps that offers more stems: you can process your audio there, and then bring the stems into Live to work with them there.

Pros for guitarists: free if you already use Ableton Live, doesn’t require internet connection

Cons: only four stems

Apple Logic Pro

Logic Pro DAW software added the Stem Splitter tool in version 11, and can currently create up to six stems. It’s fast and easy, but note that the Stem Splitter tool requires that you have a Mac with at least an M1 silicon processor. If you’re a guitarist with a silicon Mac, Logic Studio is your best choice for DAW and stem separation in one.

Pros for guitarists: six stems for greater control, free if you’re already a Logic user

Cons: requires Logic Pro and a silicon Mac

LALAL.AI

The Stem Splitter tool from LALAL.AI allows you to separate up to 8 stems for greater precision than 4- or 6-stem tools, and it’s available to try for free with limitations of 10-minute file length and 200MB file size. Paid tiers give you access to more tools like batch processing and support for larger files, but they’re not really necessary for basic guitar learning applications. LALAL is aimed at musicians and content creators, not guitarists specifically. Content creators that need advanced tools for de-mixing audio will find a lot of functionality here, but the guitarist looking for a simple practice tool may be overwhelmed by the overall range of options and tools.

Pros for guitarists: eight stems for more precision and less bleed, support for wide range of file types

Cons: lots of content creation tools that may overwhelm new users or distract from basic practice applications

MVSEP

The Music and Voice Separator app (web and standalone) is simple to use and can separate up to six stems. Where it’s limited as a free application is the restriction of file types: you can only output mp3 files with the free tier, higher resolution files like WAV and AIF require paid registration. It’s a great way to try out MVSEP to see how it handles your specific tracks, but most users will want to register to access professional audio quality.

Pros for guitarists: easy to use and free to try, six stems for more control and less bleed

Cons: free tier only allows mp3 output, higher fidelity requires paid registration

Ultimate Vocal Remover

Ultimate Vocal Remover is a completely free, open-source software tool that supports multiple AI stem separation models. If you’ve never used open-source software, or you’ve never used GitHub, there’s a more technical learning curve when it comes to downloading the appropriate software package for your system (and downloading new AI models as they’re developed). In short, Ultimate Vocal Remover is a powerful tool that’s growing and improving at a constant rate, but you should expect to spend a bit more time getting it set up and running smoothly.

Pros for guitarists: completely free

Cons: open-source software can be more complex to set up and use than a simple web app or standalone app

FAQ

What is stem separation?

Stem separation is the process of taking a finished song and separating it into its individual components like vocals, drums, and guitars. You can then mute the guitar part to put your playing in the mix, solo a part to learn it easier, or remove parts to create your own custom backing track. In other words, stem separation allows you to “un-mix” a recording into separate instrument stems.

Does stem separation use AI?

Yes; unlike older “vocal remover” tools, stem separation uses AI to identify individual stems based on their waveforms in the song file.

Is stem separation free?

It depends; most standalone stem separation tools like Moises and MVSEP offer a free tier that allows you to try the technology for free, with more stems and more advanced functionality available for paid tiers. Stem separation integrated with your DAW, like Ableton Live and Apple Logic Pro is technically free, but you need to purchase the DAW software to get it.

Which is the best stem separation tool?

DAW software with integrated stem separation is your best option, assuming you also use DAW software for other music production tasks. Apple Logic Pro, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, and Image Line FL Studio all feature built-in stem separation tools.

What is a stem, and how is it different from a track or a backing track?

A stem is a single component of a finished mix, such as drums, vocals, or guitars. A “track” is a finished mix with all stems mixed together. A backing track is basically a full mix with one stem removed; for example, a track with guitars removed so that you can play your guitar along with the track.

What can a guitarist do with stem separation that they couldn’t do before?

Guitarists can use stem separation to hear song parts better to learn them more accurately, removing the sonic clutter that can make it harder to hear what the guitarist is doing. Stem separation also allows you to make backing tracks that sound identical to the real song, because it is the real song.

How good does it sound? Where does it fall apart?

Stem separation sounds really good with traditional instrument arrangements: vocals, guitars, bass, drums, piano, and so on. You will encounter bleed with more dense/busy mixes, or tracks with lots of synthesizers and sound effects. In my testing, I encountered bleed the most with synthesizer-heavy mixes as well as songs with very prominent, wide-ranging bass guitar tones.

Where can I get it: apps, DAWs, amps?

Yes, all of those: apps include Moises, LALAL.AI, MVSEP, and Ultimate Vocal Remover. DAWs with stem separation include Apple Logic Pro, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, and Image Line FL Studio. And the Blackstar Beam Solo and Beam Mini amplifiers feature built-in Moises integration for free.

Is it legal to separate a commercial song for practice?

Yes, this is precisely the way that stem separation is intended to be used. Stem separation is the best way to learn individual parts of a commercially released song, and is completely legal for practice purposes.

Do I need a fast computer or a subscription?

For DAW software with integrated stem separation, you should really check the manufacturer’s recommended computer specs: some DAW software like Steinberg Cubase does not require a special processor for stem separation, while Apple Logic Pro requires Apple’s silicon M1 chip to use stem separation. App-based stem separation tools typically offer limited functionality for free, with more advanced features available with a subscription model.

Learn more about stem separation for guitarists: How to Use Moises With Blackstar Beam Solo and Beam Mini