Minecraft Discs: The Complete Guide to Every Music Disc and How to Find Them in 2026

Minecraft’s music discs are more than just ambient background noise, they’re collectibles, trophies, and in some cases, pieces of a cryptic narrative puzzle. Whether you’re hunting down every minecraft music disc to complete your collection or just trying to figure out how to make a Creeper drop one, this guide’s got you covered. As of 2026, there are 16 music discs available in the game, ranging from peaceful melodies to unsettling, fragmented audio that’s sparked countless Reddit theories. Some drop from specific mobs, others hide in chest loot, and a few require piecing together fragments deep underground. If you’ve ever wondered how many music discs are in minecraft or where to find that elusive disc 5, you’re in the right place.

What Are Music Discs in Minecraft?

Music discs are rare collectible items in Minecraft that play unique tracks when inserted into a jukebox. Each minecraft disc has its own distinct sound, composer credit, and aesthetic vibe, ranging from chill lo-fi beats to eerie, glitchy soundscapes.

They were introduced back in Alpha, making them one of the oldest collectibles in the game. Unlike most items, they serve zero functional purpose beyond playing music and fueling completionist runs. You can’t craft them (with one exception), and most require specific conditions or luck to obtain.

Each disc displays as a colored vinyl record in your inventory, with a unique item texture and name. When played, the music loops indefinitely until the disc is manually removed or the jukebox is broken. They’re especially popular in creative builds, roleplay servers, and as bragging rights for players who’ve mastered the Creeper-Skeleton farming trick.

Complete List of All Minecraft Music Discs

As of Minecraft version 1.21.4 in early 2026, there are 16 unique music discs in the game. Here’s the breakdown by category.

Classic Music Discs

These are the OG discs, most obtainable via the Creeper-Skeleton method or found in dungeon chests:

• 13 – Dark, unsettling ambient track. One of the first discs added. Creepy vibes, low hum.
• Cat – Upbeat, synthetic melody by C418. One of the most recognizable tracks.
• Blocks – Chill, piano-driven tune. Perfect for building sessions.
• Chirp – Playful and bouncy. Sounds like early internet hold music in the best way.
• Far – Dreamy, atmospheric. Great for slow exploration.
• Mall – Calm, jazzy. Feels like wandering a deserted shopping center at 3 AM.
• Mellohi – Eerie, off-key guitar. Slightly unnerving but catchy.
• Stal – Jazz fusion with a laid-back groove.
• Strad – Tropical, upbeat. Sounds like a beach level from a ’90s platformer.
• Ward – Mysterious, slowly builds tension. Another C418 classic.
• 11 – Fragmented, distorted audio. No music, just footsteps, coughing, and static. Lore-heavy.
• Wait – Melancholic and reflective. One of the more emotional tracks.

Cave Update Music Discs

Added in the Caves & Cliffs Update (1.18), these discs reflect the shift toward deeper, more mysterious underground content:

• Otherside – Created by Lena Raine. Warped, glitchy beat with a haunting melody. Found in dungeon and stronghold chests.
• Pigstep – Also by Lena Raine. Hip-hop inspired, heavy bass. Exclusive to bastion remnants in the Nether.

Special and Rare Music Discs

These are the rarest and most lore-rich:

• 5 – Added in 1.19 (The Wild Update). Composed by Samuel Åberg. Dark, ominous, and deeply unsettling. Only obtainable in ancient cities. Ties into the Warden lore.
• Relic – Added in 1.20 (Trails & Tales Update). Another Samuel Åberg track. Craftable using 9 disc fragments found exclusively in ancient city chests. Atmospheric and haunting.

That’s all 16. If you’re aiming for a complete collection, expect to farm Creepers, raid a dozen structures, and venture deep into the Deep Dark.

How to Obtain Music Discs in Minecraft

Getting your hands on minecraft music discs requires a mix of combat tricks, exploration, and a bit of luck. Here’s how each method works.

Creeper and Skeleton Method

This is the most reliable way to farm most classic discs. The trick: get a Skeleton to kill a Creeper with an arrow.

Here’s the setup:

1. Lure a Creeper near a Skeleton (spawns naturally at night or in dark caves).
2. Position yourself so the Skeleton has line-of-sight to you but the Creeper is between you and the Skeleton.
3. Let the Skeleton’s arrow hit the Creeper.
4. The Creeper will drop a random music disc when killed this way.

This method can drop any of the 12 classic discs (13, Cat, Blocks, Chirp, Far, Mall, Mellohi, Stal, Strad, Ward, 11, Wait). The drop is random, so you’ll need multiple kills to collect them all.

Pro tip: Skeletons in the Nether (Wither Skeletons) don’t drop discs this way. Stick to Overworld Skeletons.

Finding Discs in Chests and Structures

Several discs are chest loot exclusives. Here’s where to find them:

• Otherside: Dungeons, stronghold altar chests, and some woodland mansion chests.
• Pigstep: Bastion remnant chests in the Nether. Roughly 5% chance per generic chest, higher in treasure chests.
• 5: Ancient city chests in the Deep Dark biome. Extremely rare, only a handful of chests per city.

Many experienced players use dungeon exploration strategies to maximize chest finds across multiple structures in a single session.

Ancient City Disc Fragments

The Relic disc is unique. You can’t find it whole, you need to craft it.

1. Explore ancient cities in the Deep Dark (found below Y-level -20, typically under mountain biomes).
2. Loot chests to collect disc fragments. Each fragment has a small drop chance.
3. Once you have 9 disc fragments, arrange them in a crafting table (any pattern works) to create the Relic music disc.

This is the only craftable disc in the game. Ancient cities are dangerous due to Wardens and Sculk Shriekers, so bring wool, sneak constantly, and avoid triggering alerts.

Best Strategies for Farming Music Discs

If you’re serious about collecting every minecraft disc, you’ll want efficient farms and optimized exploration routes.

Creating a Creeper Farm for Disc Farming

A dedicated Creeper farm speeds up the Skeleton-kill method significantly. Here’s a basic setup:

1. Build a mob spawner platform in a dark area (ideally a flat plains biome or mushroom island perimeter to control spawns).
2. Use trapdoors and cats to funnel Creepers into a holding chamber. Creepers flee from cats, so place cats strategically to push them.
3. Manually bring Skeletons to the chamber or use a separate Skeleton farm output to merge the two.
4. Position yourself so Skeletons aggro on you and shoot through Creepers.

This is more labor-intensive than automated farms, but it’s the only renewable method for classic discs. Some advanced mob farm designs created by the modding community can streamline the process even further, though vanilla options remain the standard for unmodded gameplay.

Alternative: Use a trident with Channeling during thunderstorms to convert Creepers into Charged Creepers (they drop mob heads, not discs, but it’s a fun side project).

Dungeon and Structure Exploration Routes

For chest-exclusive discs, efficiency is key:

• Dungeon route: Use the /locate structure minecraft:dungeon command (creative/cheat mode) or explore caves systematically. Dungeons spawn frequently below Y=0.
• Ancient city route: Head to mountain or Deep Dark biomes. Use a Night Vision potion and Wool blocks to navigate safely. Loot every chest, but avoid Sculk Shriekers.
• Bastion remnants: Bring Fire Resistance potions and gold armor to pacify Piglins. Treasure bastions have the best loot tables for Pigstep.
• Strongholds: Use Eyes of Ender to locate. Check altar chests for Otherside.

Keep a Shulker Box or Ender Chest handy to store discs safely while exploring.

How to Play Music Discs Using Jukeboxes

Once you’ve got a minecraft music disc, you’ll need a jukebox to actually hear it.

Crafting and Placing Jukeboxes

Jukeboxes are straightforward to craft:

• Recipe: 8 wooden planks (any type) surrounding 1 diamond in a crafting table.
• Place the jukebox anywhere. Right-click (or interact) with a music disc in hand to insert it.
• The music starts immediately and loops until you remove the disc (right-click the jukebox again).

Jukeboxes emit note particles while playing, and nearby players can hear the music within a ~65-block radius. They’re a staple in creative builds, music halls, and roleplay towns.

Using Music Discs for Redstone Contraptions

Jukeboxes output a redstone signal when playing a disc. The signal strength depends on which disc is inserted:

• Signal strength ranges from 1 to 15, with each disc mapped to a unique value.
• You can use comparators to detect which disc is playing and trigger different redstone outputs.

This opens up possibilities for custom jukeboxes that shuffle tracks, hidden doors triggered by specific discs, or even music-based puzzles. For players interested in complex builds, pairing jukeboxes with redstone logic is a creative sandbox unto itself.

Rarest Music Discs and How to Get Them

Not all discs are created equal. Here are the three rarest and what makes them special:

1. Pigstep

Exclusive to bastion remnants in the Nether. Low drop rate, dangerous environment, and limited number of bastions per world make this a grind. Bring fire resistance, gold armor, and prepare for Piglin Brutes in treasure bastions.

2. 5

Found only in ancient city chests. Ancient cities are rare, Warden encounters are deadly, and the drop rate per chest is low. Expect to explore multiple cities. Wool, Slow Falling potions, and extreme caution are mandatory.

3. Relic

Requires 9 disc fragments, all from ancient city chests. Statistically, you’ll need to loot 15–30 chests to gather enough fragments, often across multiple cities. It’s the ultimate trophy disc and a true endgame collectible.

If you’re hunting these down, patience and preparation are non-negotiable. Many players share ancient city coordinates and tips via community gaming forums to optimize the search.

The Story Behind Music Disc 5 and Disc 11

Discs 11 and 5 aren’t just music, they’re narrative fragments that have fueled years of speculation.

Disc 11 is the older of the two, added in Beta 1.9. Instead of music, it plays:

• Footsteps on stone and dirt
• Heavy breathing and coughing
• Breaking sounds, possibly glass or stone
• Distorted static and abrupt cutoff

Theories range from a player fleeing the Enderman (which was new at the time) to a deeper lore about Herobrine or a doomed miner. Mojang has never confirmed a canon explanation.

Disc 5, added in 1.19 (The Wild Update), expands on this mystery. It features:

• Sculk sensor sounds
• Warden roars and heartbeat-like thumps
• Muffled voices and environmental echoes
• A sense of descent into the Deep Dark

Many players interpret it as a prequel or parallel story to disc 11, someone exploring the ancient cities, triggering Sculk, and meeting a grim fate. The connection to the Warden and ancient civilizations adds weight to the theory that Minecraft has a subtle horror narrative woven through its ambient storytelling.

Both discs are deliberate departures from C418’s melodic style, designed to unsettle and intrigue. Whether you believe the lore or not, they’re essential listens for anyone serious about Minecraft’s hidden depths.

Creative Uses for Music Discs in Your Builds

Beyond collecting, minecraft music discs have practical and aesthetic applications in builds:

Music halls and lounges: Build a dedicated room with multiple jukeboxes, each loaded with a different disc. Players can interact to switch tracks.

Redstone jukeboxes: Use comparators to create shuffling playlists, where discs auto-swap via hoppers and droppers.

Themed areas: Pair discs with biome builds. Strad works great in tropical builds, Pigstep in Nether hubs, and 5 or 11 in horror maps or escape rooms.

Roleplay and servers: Discs are popular in roleplay servers as rare trade items, quest rewards, or collectibles that unlock achievements.

Trophy rooms: Display discs in item frames above jukeboxes for a museum aesthetic. Some players dedicate entire wings to their music disc collections.

Since discs are non-renewable (except via Creeper farms), they carry inherent value on multiplayer servers, making them useful for bartering or flexing on your friends.

Conclusion

Minecraft’s music discs are a blend of nostalgia, challenge, and cryptic storytelling. Whether you’re farming Creepers for that last classic track, braving the Deep Dark for disc 5, or piecing together Relic from fragments, each disc represents a milestone. With 16 total discs as of 2026, completionists have their work cut out for them, but the payoff is a full jukebox collection and bragging rights that few players can match. Keep your Skeletons close, your Creepers closer, and always pack extra wool before heading into an ancient city.