GuitarChordIdentifier.com has two chord identification modes. In both modes, your data — whether a fret position selection or microphone audio — is processed entirely within your browser. Nothing is recorded. Nothing is stored. Nothing is transmitted to any server. What you play on your guitar and what you select on the fretboard never leaves your device.
This page documents exactly how each mode handles data.
Mode 1 — Fret Input Data Handling
Fret input chord identification involves no audio capture of any kind. When you select fret positions and strings on the virtual fretboard, the browser records your selections as numbers — string index and fret number — in active JavaScript memory. The pitch calculation, pitch class extraction, interval analysis, and chord lookup all run locally using JavaScript.
- No microphone is accessed
- No audio is captured
- No data is transmitted to any server
- Your fret selections are not stored in cookies, localStorage, or any persistent storage
- The identified chord name is displayed on screen only and cleared when you reload or close the page
Mode 2 — Microphone Audio Pipeline
The microphone chord identification mode uses your guitar’s audio as a detection instrument. The entire pipeline — from permission prompt to chord name display — occurs within your browser with no network activity at any stage.
Stage 1 — Permission prompt The browser displays a microphone permission prompt before any audio is accessed. GuitarChordIdentifier.com cannot access your microphone without your explicit approval. If you decline, no audio is accessed and the microphone mode does not run.
Stage 2 — Local audio stream Once permission is granted, the browser opens a live MediaStream via getUserMedia(). This stream exists only in your browser’s active memory. It is not routed to any external server, not logged by any analytics or advertising tool, and not written to any browser cache or persistent storage.
Stage 3 — Web Audio API processing The microphone stream connects to a MediaStreamAudioSourceNode within an AudioContext, then feeds into an AnalyserNode configured with a large FFT window (4096 or 8192 samples) for spectral analysis. All polyphonic pitch detection — spectral peak extraction, harmonic series analysis, fundamental separation, pitch class extraction — runs entirely within the browser’s local audio graph. No audio data exits this graph.
Stage 4 — Chord identification and result display The detected pitch class set is matched against the chord database locally. The result — a chord name — is displayed on screen. The audio frames that produced it are not retained. No recording, no waveform snapshot, and no spectral data is stored or transmitted.
Stage 5 — Session clear When you close or reload the tab, the MediaStream is closed, the AudioContext is suspended, and all in-memory audio buffers are released. There is no persistent copy of your guitar audio anywhere after this point.
What This Site Never Does With Your Audio or Input Data
- Never records microphone audio to any file, database, or storage medium
- Never transmits microphone audio over the internet to any server
- Never shares microphone audio with Google Analytics, advertising networks, or any third-party service
- Never stores microphone audio in browser localStorage, sessionStorage, IndexedDB, or cookies
- Never transmits fret input selections to any server
- Never stores fret input selections in any persistent browser storage
- Never retains audio or input data after the session ends or the tab is closed
- Never uses guitar audio for any purpose other than displaying the chord name on screen
- Never accesses the microphone without displaying the browser’s permission prompt first
Your Music Is Your Own
For guitarists playing unreleased compositions, original riffs, or music they are developing privately: the local-only architecture of both identification modes means your playing never reaches a server. There is no cloud processing step. There is no audio logging. The chord identification happens on your device using your browser’s local JavaScript and Web Audio API — and is cleared when the session ends.
Advertising and Analytics Are Separate From Your Data
GuitarChordIdentifier.com does not currently run advertising. If basic analytics tools are present on this site, they operate entirely separately from the Web Audio API pipeline and the fret input calculation. Analytics collect anonymous page-level data — page views, browser type, approximate region — through standard HTTP request metadata. They have no access to fret input selections, no access to the MediaStream, and no ability to interact with guitar audio in any form.
File Uploads
GuitarChordIdentifier.com does not support audio file uploads. The only audio data processed in microphone mode is the live microphone stream handled locally as described above. No files are uploaded to any server as part of using this tool.
HTTPS Encryption
All pages on GuitarChordIdentifier.com are served over HTTPS. All data exchanged between your browser and this site’s server — page content, scripts, and voluntary contact form submissions — is encrypted in transit. Guitar audio and fret input data never travel over the network and require no network-level encryption.
Cookies and Session Data
Chord identification results are displayed on screen during your session only. They are not written to cookies, not stored in localStorage, and not sent to any server. Closing or reloading the page clears all results entirely. For a full explanation of what cookies this site uses, see the Cookie Policy.
Children’s Privacy
GuitarChordIdentifier.com does not knowingly collect personal data from children under the age of 13. The tool requires no account registration and requests no personal information. Guitar audio and fret inputs are never transmitted or stored for any user. If you believe a child has submitted personal data through the contact form, contact Daniel Murphy at contact@guitarchordidentifier.com and the data will be deleted promptly.
Reporting a Security Concern
If you identify a potential security vulnerability on GuitarChordIdentifier.com — including any behaviour suggesting guitar audio or input data is being handled contrary to what is documented on this page — report it immediately via the Contact page with the subject line “Security Concern.” Daniel Murphy reviews all security reports personally within 48 hours.
Your Privacy Rights
Your rights regarding any personal data this site may hold are documented in full on the Privacy Policy and GDPR and CCPA pages.
Written by Daniel Murphy, founder of GuitarChordIdentifier.com. Last updated: June 2026.