A step by step walkthrough for turning a spreadsheet of titles and audio links into a published, embeddable playlist in PlotSet, with play buttons, progress bars and category filters.
About 6 minutesA list of tracks with play buttons, progress bars and category filters, built from a spreadsheet and ready to embed: that is what you will have. Each row becomes one playable track, and adding a track later means adding a row.
If you already have direct links to your audio files, it takes about six minutes. The one prerequisite is hosting, since PlotSet streams from the links you give it rather than storing the files.
One row per track with up to four columns: title, an optional description, a direct audio file URL, and an optional category used for filtering and colour.
| title | subtitle | url | filter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morning Drive | A bright synth-pop instrumental | https://example.com/audio/morning-drive.mp3 | Electronic |
| Blue Room Sessions | A laid-back jazz trio | https://example.com/audio/blue-room.mp3 | Jazz |
| Open Highway | Guitar-driven rock with a steady backbeat | https://example.com/audio/open-highway.mp3 | Rock |
The URL must point directly at an audio file such as an MP3, OGG or WAV, not at a page that contains a player.
A row with a title but no link still appears, dimmed and not playable. A row with neither title nor link is dropped.
Keep category spellings identical, or the filter will list the same group twice.
The hosting server must allow direct linking and, ideally, range requests so seeking and the buffered bar work.
The exact click path in PlotSet, from a blank template to a finished chart.
From the PlotSet dashboard, start a new project and choose Audio from the Other category. It loads with a sample playlist so you can see how each row becomes a track.
Give each track a title and a direct file link, plus a description and category if you want them. Open each link in a browser tab first to confirm it plays.
Import a CSV or .xlsx file from the data panel, paste rows from a spreadsheet, or connect a Google Sheet so new tracks appear without re-embedding. The first row is read as the headers.
Confirm which column is the title, the description, the audio URL and the category. This is usually right automatically when the headers are clear.
Open the Player tab to set the button colour, size and roundness, put it left or right of the text, and show or hide the progress bar. You can also choose one, two or three columns.
In the Filter controls tab choose pill buttons, a dropdown or a stepped slider. In the Color tab you can tint the rows by category too.
Adjust the artboard height so the rows you want fit. Longer lists are paginated with a pager underneath rather than scrolled.
Publish for a live playlist and copy the embed code for your page. A PNG or PDF export captures only the page of tracks currently showing.
Start from the Audio Player template with sample data already loaded, then swap in your own.
Open the templateThe last stretch is the same for every chart type: Share turns the chart into a live public link and an embed code, Export writes it out as a static file.
Activating the embed code and public link publishes the chart. The link is safe to send to anyone, and the embed code drops into any page as an iframe that keeps the hover tooltips and the interactivity. Edit the chart later and hit Recreate to push those changes out to both.
Export writes a static copy at whatever size you need. SVG stays sharp at any scale and can still be edited in a design tool; PNG and JPG are the safe choices for slides and documents. The scale multiplier is what gets you a crisp image on a retina screen.
Titles and descriptions truncate to a set number of lines. Keep titles short and let the description carry the detail; the full text appears on hover.
Tinting play buttons by category makes groups recognisable at a glance and makes the legend useful.
A larger button is easier to tap on mobile. Check the preview at the phone artboard size.
Rows play in sheet order, so put the clip you most want heard first.
The row has a title but no usable link. Check the URL column for blanks, and that it ends in a real audio file.
The link probably points to a web page, or the host blocks direct linking. Open the URL on its own in a browser tab to test it.
The server may not support range requests. Host the files somewhere that does, or accept that seeking is limited.
Not sure the Audio Player is the right choice? See what it is, when to use it and when not to.
A title and a direct audio file link for each track. A description and a category are optional.
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