I tried Suno as an electronic music producer and I’m not sure how to feel about it [Review]

Suno has been generating headlines since it launched. Checking on the hype around their v5.5 update, I tested it out from the perspective of an electronic music producer. After running the free plan through four genre tests in a single session, the answer is more interesting than expected.

What Is Suno?

Suno is a browser-based AI music generation platform that converts text prompts into complete audio tracks in under a minute. The tool launched to widespread attention in 2023 and has steadily evolved, with the v5.5 update introducing voice cloning, custom artist models, and taste profiling earlier this year. According to a recent IMS Ibiza 2026 report, AI music creation tools have surged 651% in revenue since 2023, placing platforms like Suno at the centre of one of the fastest-growing segments in the music industry.

The Interface

Suno runs entirely in the browser at suno.com, with no downloads, DAW integration, or plugin installation required. The Create page offers two modes: Simple, which accepts a single text description, and Advanced, which separates Lyrics and Styles into distinct input fields.

For instrumental electronic music, Advanced mode is the better option. Leave the Lyrics field blank, describe the genre, mood, BPM, and reference aesthetic in the Styles field, and the model generates two audio clips per prompt in real time. Each clip receives an auto-assigned name that leans toward the evocative. Prompting for tech house returned “Circuit Orchard.” Melodic techno came back as “Copper Pulse.” Afro house produced “Groove Quarry” and “Mop Bucket Groove.” The naming can be edited as well.

Electronic Music Performance Across Four Genres

Four genres were tested across a single free-plan session: tech house, melodic techno, liquid drum and bass, and afro house.

For tech house, I prompted “tech house, minimal, driving groove, four-on-the-floor kick, deep bassline, hypnotic, underground, instrumental, no vocals”. I was lazy enough to write the prompt, so I asked Claude to write it for me. I received 4 output options for it. On the free option, i could get 2 outputs from v4.5 and 2 outputs from v5.5. The 5.5 outputs are however, limited to 1 min listening with the full song available on upgrade. For the two outputs on the earlier version, the results were “okayish”; the structure was there but the mixing, choice of sounds and overall arrangement felt quite mediocre.

Similarly, for all the other genres, the results kinda had the same issue. Overall, I concluded that v4.5 had a somewhat similar output to that of a music producer in their early years of music production journey.

The real shocker came when I heard the v5.5 outputs that were gated at just 1 min listen version. All the mixes were crisp and the levels were optimum; there were quite a lot of earcandies and FX elements to keep things interesting. The Melodic Techno one was pretty close to being as good as something you would hear on popular labels like A State of Trance or Afterlife a few years back. The sound design was good, the vocal textures were on point, and the tension created was optimal. Honestly, I have been making music and working in the industry for 10 years. I just couldn’t feel that this was indeed AI-generated.

Did I enjoy making music this way? Not at all. Is it good? Yes, it is. I can use the v5.5 and send an EP across to some decent record labels, and i am pretty sure they would be happy to take it. It’s honestly quite a scary scenario where machines are now able to make more than just sub-par music with enough movement that the line between what is human and what is AI is blurring even further. To give you an idea, here’s a 1 min version of a melodic techno track using v5.5.

Here’s what I got for a liquid drum and bass track. All the minute details like stereo imaging, EQing, levels, fx have been taken care of by the software itself. I didnt even type the prompt myself and do note that this is without any iterations or changes made by me or Suno. This is output of just a basic prompt.

After seeing what Suno had made for slightly popular genres like Melodic Techno, Afro House, I created another account to test out some underground genres like Rominimal in the style of Ricardo Villaloboss, Arapu etc. The results from v4.5 were meh, and infact from the v5.5 were also subpar. The mix was clean and the bass had enough weight to it however, the drums weren’t good at all and it was noway near to what modern day Rominimal sounds like. Similarly for hypnotic techno of the underground, the results were nowhere close to the vibe described. It kept on returning a similar style to what I got for melodic techno.

Free Plan Limitations

The free plan allocates 50 credits per day. Each generation costs 10 credits and returns two tracks, capping free users at five generation rounds or ten tracks per 24-hour period. Credits refresh daily. The more significant constraint is duration: free plan tracks are limited to one minute. Full-length songs require a paid subscription, and every clip in the workspace carries an “Upgrade for full song” prompt.

There are no download options for wav files on the free plan. Suno does offer a Challenges system that allows users to earn up to 50 bonus credits by completing tasks like creating ten tracks, sharing a song, or publishing one publicly — a gamification layer worth knowing about before the credits run out.

Pricing

The Pro Plan starts at $10 per month and includes 2,500 credits, translating to up to 500 full-length songs per month. The plan also includes commercial use rights for generated tracks, access to the v5.5 model, and full-length generation. Annual billing reduces the per-month cost further.

Verdict

Overall, I think it was definitely worth checking out the free version just to see what AI has achieved in music. Did it inspire my creativity? Honestly, no. Is it scary? Yes, a lot. The outputs from basic prompts are good enough to find themselves as official releases on record labels. I didn’t find the v4.5 good enough. It was okay, and i could sense the “AIness” in it. But v5.5 was too good, but only for popular genres. I don’t think Suno is good enough to guide us on what’s next in music. It can definitely make a good case to supply quantity for popular genres. If you’re actually serious about making as an artist, i wouldn’t recommend using Suno as a way to cut through in the music industry.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of We Rave You.