Convert MP3 to TAB

What is mp3 to tab conversion?

Users searching for mp3 to tab conversion are most interested in some simple solution to turn their favorite MP3 audio songs into one of the tablature files, most notably .tab files for guitars in generic ASCII format. It's often done by people who want to learn or improve their guitar-playing skills.

Several types of guitar tab formats, or tabs, exist, both proprietary and free, but all of them use specific symbols for music notations, making them easy to read for music composition and notation software or even simply read using a text editor. A typical six-string guitar ASCII tab may look something like this, for example:

        C
e |-----0------|
B |-----1------|
G |-----0------|
D |-----2------|
A |-----3------|
E |------------|

Steps on how to turn an mp3 song to tablature

You can find many solutions that provide song-to-tabs export functionality, from basic music notation apps that first export MP3 to MIDI format to comprehensive AI-based solutions that turn audio content directly into notations or tablatures. You have numerous ways to approach this problem and dozens of tools to pick from, but they all implicitly follow similar steps.

Download tablatures if possible

First and foremost, check out if there isn't a tablature of your MP3 song already available on the Internet. Conversion is unnecessary if you can obtain the tablature, Ultimate Guitar Tabs, or similar websites.

Turn your MP3 into MIDI files

If you do not have access to powerful commercial music composition tools or programs like Guitar Pro, the best thing you can do to start is convert your MP3 audio to MIDI format. This format is supported in every music notation, guitar tablature, or similar software and can be easily imported or converted to other formats.

Some tools do not require this and can process MP3 files directly, but if you are trying out several tools, it may be best to have the MIDI format prepared.

Export the MIDI music to guitar tablature

Now, you must pick one of the many available music notation tools and turn your .midi file to tablature. Notation tools often feature several types of notations and instruments you can use for export, so make sure your tool supports guitar tablatures (.tab files) and not just piano notations or MusicXML files.

Any tips for tablature editors?

You can find both paid and free tablature editors on the market, to name a few: Guitar Pro, Avid Sibelius, Harmony Assistant, or the free TuxGuitar, MuseScore, RoseGarden, and many others.