Audiophiles, rejoice! Now you can automate your music downloads with Lidarr, just like you automated your movie grabs with Radarr and TV grabs with Sonarr. In fact, all three programs are almost identical, other than the kinds of content they focus on.
But is Lidarr actually good? And is it worth the effort spent setting it up? Keep reading for our full Lidarr review.
[+] 'Lidarr Review' contents (select to expand)
Lidarr Review: Features
We’ll kick off the review by looking at some of Lidarr’s most important – and useful – features.
- Ability to automate many tasks, including:
- Finding, download, and sorting songs, albums, and collections
- Adding metadata, like cover art, release info, and more
- Using your personalized settings, RSS sync, or the built-in calendar to grab the latest releases
- Finding and downloading replacements for failed files
- Identify audio quality, file size, file type, and more
- Download higher-quality versions of existing songs or albums
- Use manual search to quickly navigate multiple indexers and providers
- Works with all the major operating systems: Windows, MacOS, Linux, and even Raspberry Pi
- Compatible with popular NZB downloaders, like SABnzbd and NZBGet
- Easily add your favorite NZB indexers, like DogNZB, NZBGeek, or DrunkenSlug
- Pairs well with Plex and Kodi
- Torrent friendly too, with support for popular torrent clients like qBittorrent, Transmission, Deluge, and uTorrent
Pricing: Is Lidarr Free?
Yep, that’s right: Lidarr is totally free. That being said, it is still being actively supported and developed, so the team does welcome any donations.
Lidarr Review: Usability
Usenet automation can make life a whole lot easier. That’s especially true for music downloads, since you’d usually have to deal with finding, downloading, and managing tons of individual song files.
But there is a slight catch. Setting up Lidarr for the first time can be a little daunting, if you don’t know what you’re doing.
That’s why we usually recommend that Usenet newbies start by signing up for a provider, indexer, and NZB downloader first. For starters, you’ll need them anyways to run Lidarr. And a manual Usenet setup like this still lets you download to your heart’s content, while having a slightly lower learning curve.
From there, it’s easy to change or add more providers and indexers, then eventually switch over to full automation with Lidarr.
Of course, if you’re already an experienced Usenet user and looking to start automating, you shouldn’t find Lidarr too complicated. And if you’ve already used Radarr and Sonarr, you’ll be right at home.
How to Install Lidarr
If you’re ready to get started, this quick guide will show you how to install Lidarr for Windows. The steps are pretty similar for Mac and Linux.
1. To download the installer, either go to Lidarr’s website and use the link to the Servarr wiki…
Or simply use this link to go there directly.
Once you’re there, download the installer.
2. Once the installer’s finished downloading, run it.
3. The setup screen should ask whether you want to Lidarr to start automatically when Windows boots up. We’d suggest choosing Do not start automatically. It’ll just make starting up your computer take longer.
You can also Create a desktop shortcut, but that’s more of a personal preference thing.
4. Click Next and wait for Lidarr to install.
5. The final screen will ask whether you want to Enable Access from Other Devices and/or Start Lidarr. Make your choices and click Finish.
Lidarr will either start automatically (if you selected that option) or you can open it manually by clicking on the shortcut or typing localhost:8686 into your browser’s URL bar.
If you need help setting Lidarr up after installation, the Servarr wiki you used earlier has a lot of good info.
Lidarr Review: Wrap-Up
We’ve led you through some of Lidarr’s biggest elements, from features to price to usability, and even gave you some tips on installation. We hope you found it helpful.
But let’s summarize everything we covered by answering one last question: do we recommend Lidarr?
For sure. If you’re a music fan looking to manage and expand your audio library, Lidarr will definitely make your life a whole lot easier.