Ampache — Self-Hosted Music Streaming Server

Introduction

Ampache has been a staple of self-hosted music streaming since 2001. It catalogs your audio and video files, organizes them with metadata, and streams them to your browser or any Subsonic/DAAP-compatible player on your phone, desktop, or smart speaker.

What Ampache Does

• Catalogs and streams audio and video files from your server
• Organizes music by artist, album, genre, year, and custom playlists
• Provides a web player with queue management, shuffle, and repeat
• Supports Subsonic and DAAP APIs for third-party mobile and desktop players
• Manages multiple users with individual libraries, playlists, and access rights

Architecture Overview

Ampache is a PHP application backed by MySQL or MariaDB. It scans configured media directories to build a metadata catalog, pulling tags from files and optionally fetching album art and artist information. The web interface is server-rendered with JavaScript enhancements. Streaming is handled through direct HTTP delivery or on-the-fly transcoding using FFmpeg. The Subsonic and DAAP API endpoints allow any compatible client to connect as if it were a native streaming server.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Deploy with Docker or install on any LAMP stack (Apache/Nginx + PHP + MySQL)
• Point Ampache at one or more directories containing your music files
• Run the catalog scanner to import metadata and generate the library
• Configure transcoding profiles to convert FLAC or other formats on the fly for mobile streaming
• Enable the Subsonic API to connect mobile apps like DSub, Ultrasonic, or play:Sub

Key Features

• On-the-fly transcoding with configurable bitrate and codec settings
• Multiple API interfaces: Ampache XML/JSON, Subsonic, DAAP, and WebDAV
• Smart playlists based on genre, year, rating, play count, or custom rules
• Album art fetching and metadata correction tools
• Multi-user support with per-user catalogs and access controls

Comparison with Similar Tools

• Navidrome — modern Go-based server with a clean UI; Ampache offers more configuration options and supports video alongside audio
• Jellyfin — full media server for movies, TV, and music; Ampache is focused specifically on music with deeper library management
• Plex — commercial media server with music support; Ampache is free, self-hosted, and does not require an account on an external service
• Funkwhale — federated music platform with social features; Ampache is a traditional server-client model without federation
• Koel — Laravel-based music streamer with a modern SPA interface; Ampache has a larger feature set and longer track record

FAQ

Q: What audio formats does Ampache support? A: Ampache reads any format that PHP and your media scanner can parse, including MP3, FLAC, OGG, AAC, WMA, and OPUS. FFmpeg-based transcoding can convert between formats on the fly.

Q: Can I use Ampache with my phone? A: Yes. Enable the Subsonic API and connect with any Subsonic-compatible app such as DSub (Android) or play:Sub (iOS).

Q: Does Ampache support podcasts? A: Yes. Ampache can subscribe to podcast RSS feeds, download episodes, and stream them through the web interface or API.

Q: How do I keep my library updated when I add new files? A: Schedule the catalog update command via cron, or trigger a scan manually from the web interface. Ampache detects new, modified, and deleted files.

Sources

• https://github.com/ampache/ampache
• https://ampache.org/