Every editor who works with music knows the drill: play the audio, tap M on every beat, realize you're off by a few frames, undo, try again. For a 3-minute song at 120 BPM, that's 360+ taps. And if you mess up the timing, you're starting over.

There's a better way. In this guide, I'll show you how to automatically place beat markers on your DaVinci Resolve timeline using Beat Markers — no manual tapping required.

What You Need

  • DaVinci Resolve Studio 18 or later (the free version doesn't support the scripting API needed for marker placement)
  • macOS with Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4)
  • Beat Markers app (download free trial)

Step-by-Step: Auto-Place Beat Markers

1

Open your project in DaVinci Resolve

Make sure your music is on an audio track in the timeline. Beat Markers analyzes the audio file directly, so the audio needs to be present in the timeline before you start.

2

Launch Beat Markers

Open the Beat Markers app. It automatically detects DaVinci Resolve and connects to your current project and timeline. No configuration needed.

3

Select your audio track and adjust sensitivity

Beat Markers shows all audio tracks with clips. Select the track with your music. The sensitivity slider controls how many beats are detected: lower values catch only strong beats (kick drums), higher values catch every nuance (hi-hats, ghost notes).

4

Click "Detect Beats" then "Place Markers"

Beat Markers analyzes your audio using AI-powered beat detection and shows the BPM and number of beats found. Click Place Markers to put Blue markers on your timeline at every beat position. Done.

Tip: The markers are real DaVinci Resolve markers — they show up in the marker list, clips snap to them when you drag, and you can navigate between them with keyboard shortcuts (Shift+Up/Down Arrow).

Why Real Markers Matter

DaVinci Resolve's built-in "Show Music Beats" feature only shows visual indicators on the waveform. They look helpful, but:

  • Clips don't snap to them
  • You can't navigate between them with keyboard shortcuts
  • They disappear if you move or trim the audio clip
  • No export, no API access, no integration with other tools

Beat Markers places real, persistent markers on the timeline. They survive edits, they snap, and they integrate with DaVinci Resolve's marker workflow. This is the difference between a visual aid and an actual editing tool.

Adjusting Sensitivity

The sensitivity slider is your main control:

  • Low sensitivity (0.1-0.3): Only strong beats. Good for ambient music, ballads, or when you want fewer, more impactful cuts.
  • Medium sensitivity (0.4-0.6): Most beats detected. The default. Works for most genres.
  • High sensitivity (0.7-1.0): Catches every rhythmic element. Good for fast-paced edits, hip-hop, EDM, or when you want maximum beat coverage for reels and TikToks.

Pro tip: Start with medium sensitivity, place markers, and preview. If you need more or fewer markers, use the "Clear Markers" button to remove them and try again with a different sensitivity. The 3 free trial uses count per detection, not per placement.

What Happens After Markers Are Placed?

Once your timeline has beat markers, your editing workflow becomes much faster:

  • Snap cuts to beats: Drag clip edges and they'll snap to marker positions
  • Navigate by beat: Use Shift+Up/Down Arrow to jump between markers
  • Visual reference: Markers show beat number and BPM in the tooltip
  • Blade tool: Enable snapping and blade at every marker with a single click each

If you want to go further, Pulse Edit (coming soon) can automatically take clips from your Media Pool and place them on the timeline at every beat — with speed ramps, zoom effects, and AI mood matching.

Common Questions

Does it work with any music?

Yes. The AI beat detection handles any genre, tempo, and time signature. From 60 BPM ballads to 180 BPM drum & bass, from 4/4 pop to 7/4 progressive rock.

Can I use it on multiple audio clips?

Beat Markers analyzes the first clip on the selected track. If your music is split across multiple clips on the same track, it will detect beats across all of them.

Does it work with video files that have audio?

It works with any audio track on the timeline, regardless of the source. If your video file has audio on a timeline track, Beat Markers can analyze it.

What about the free version of DaVinci Resolve?

DaVinci Resolve Studio is required. The free version of Resolve doesn't expose the scripting API needed to place markers programmatically. This is a Blackmagic Design limitation, not ours.

Try It Free — 3 Uses, No Credit Card

Download Beat Markers and place your first beat markers in under 2 minutes. Full functionality during the trial.

Download Beat Markers See Pricing