We’ve come across several no-ratio music torrent trackers such as CE, SQN (reviews coming soon), TSCN, etc. Although overlooked by many, Libble.com is one of the first ratio free music trackers to hit the BitTorrent scene. In my opinion this is a very underrated tracker –it has a great set of usability features (runs on Gazelle codebase), a content rich torrent index and a decent user base. Keep in mind that Libble is a private community and public registrations are currently closed. However there is some good news for those who are itching to get in - free invites are available on the official IRC channel.
Some of you might not have heard about this site but it has been around for several years. Libble has over 5600 registered members and tracks over 12000 music torrents – respectable stats for any private torrent site, not just for a specialized music tracker. However, note that Libble did not start out as a Gazelle tracker – they only migrated to the script in 2008. Same goes for being ratio free. Initially, this site was based on a ratio system just like most other private trackers. However Libble recently introduced an interesting concept called ‘Share Rank’ that effectively replaced the ratio system.
So what exactly is this Share Rank system? Following paragraph (quoted from their Knowledge Base) should give you an idea:
Share ranks are a system we've implemented to replace ratios. It is a measure of your contribution to the site based on several factors:
Ratio - If your ratio is between 0 and 3 you will get a positive or negative bonus based on how good (or bad) your ratio is.
Torrents Uploaded - The more torrents you upload, the higher bonus you get.
Data transferred - The more data you transfer on torrents (up or down) you higher bonus you get.
Torrents Snatched - The more torrents you snatch the higher your bonus.
Torrents seeding - The more torrents you're seeding the higher your bonus.
Hit and runs - Your total hit and runs in the last month is subtracted from your score.
These factors are combined (with different weightings) to give you a final score. This will determine your user class and whether you are put on Share rank watch or not. In general you should keep your share rank positive.
If you need more information about Share Rank or Share Rank Watch, I suggest you read this article on Libble.com.
Image: Screenshot of Libble, showing some of the torrent categories, tags and search features of the tracker
As for the content available, Libble tracks a lot of English music releases spanning across a number of different genres. This includes popular album releases by p2p and scene groups. In addition, they have a series of exclusive mixtape releases you won’t find on any other tracker (look in the ‘Libble Mixtapes’ category). Most of the audio files are either in MP3 or FLAC formats.
Signups for Libble are currently closed. Although open signups do occur from time to time, there is an alternative way you can join without having to wait for one – IRC. Yes, you can ask for an invitation on Libble’s official IRC channel. Note that you might be asked to provide ratio proof/speedtest depending on staff who handles your invite request.
Site Name: Libble (http://libble.com)
IRC Details:
- Server: irc.rizon.net (port 6667)
- Channel: #libble.com
- Direct Link: irc://irc.rizon.net:6667/libble.com
IRC noob? Read this article.
Please don’t spam the chat room – wait patiently for your requests to be handled.
Special thanks to flugger and rest of Libble staff for the support given.
