Esperado Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 with all this talk of I-device music making I am curious how many people ACTUALLY use them to make music? I know the midi sequencer apps are a bit gimmicky, but some of the synth apps seem like they would be useful and are sometimes cheaper than buying a real moog or something. I also use Touch OSC as a control surface and i find it to be useful. I was also curious which apps, if any , you guys might use! To list some of the fun ones: Rebirth- a fun step sequencer app that was ported over, its a bit cramped on the iphone though. touchosc- nice customizeable touchscreen control surface app. its also a bit cramped, but still useful, and its cross platform! imaschine-more of a toy than anything, but good if you wanted to experiment with pad based beatmaking without paying a bunch for a controller or mpc. i use it to make comedic beats using things my coworkers say alchemy- i guess this is a vst , but i never got the vst to work, but its got a few neat sounds. theres a bunch of others that i havent tried , like animoog, the electribe emulator(s), nanostudio. etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frederic Petitpas Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 (edited) I only have an iPod, and NanoStudio is very boring on it. Major fun with "Figure" http://www.propellerheads.se/products/figure/ <- They also made the ReBirth you mentioned. Promo vid: I made a lot of cool beats in the bus with it. It's fast, sounds great, nice tweaking, fun, etc. It doesn't try to be a DAW and that's what I like (and it's only 1$). Edited December 31, 2012 by Metal Man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 5, 2013 Share Posted January 5, 2013 Nanostudio is still the best midi sequencer for iOS period. It isn't gimmicky at all. It sounds good and handles supremely well on an ipad. Figure is fun but very much on the toy side. Give wejaam a try, it's a samplebased groovebox for free with a lot more power. Audiobus is the current hype; it enables you to chain supported apps together in an in - fx - out manner. Cool shit, but only worth it on an ipad 4. running apps in parallel requires loads of cpu. The one thing i think that everyone should have is Impaktor. It turns your desk into any kind of drum, basically. It's a drum synth that utilises the microphone in a contact mic manner. Quite unique. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshaggyfreak Posted January 5, 2013 Share Posted January 5, 2013 Animoog is one of the best and most innovative synths on iOS. I highly recommend it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannthr Posted January 5, 2013 Share Posted January 5, 2013 Steinberg just released Cubasis, a DAW for the iPad. I'm curious, since it apparently is openable in Cubase. I am really excited about this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66AEYRXiVnA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 6, 2013 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Steinberg just released Cubasis, a DAW for the iPad.I'm curious, since it apparently is openable in Cubase. I am really excited about this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66AEYRXiVnA Oh that looks delicious. Maybe this can help me to become friends with notation again (not sure how much of a friendship we had so far :/ ) Cubasis got a definite "meh" response. Solid foundation, but nothing special and lacking some key features (automation, apparently). Just summing up other's impressions, i was interested myself. When i see major functionality updates happen, i might be interested again. Right now, VFM seems off when you compare it to other offerings in the appworld. Check out Auria if you haven't, same price as cubasis, but probably the only daw you'd ever need if you like to work with audio. It's really good supposedly. I'm more on the midi side though. If only nanostudio had basic audio channel functionality as well....all you can do is sample audio onto the drum pads and trigger those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannthr Posted January 6, 2013 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Oh that looks delicious. Maybe this can help me to become friends with notation again (not sure how much of a friendship we had so far :/ )Cubasis got a definite "meh" response. Solid foundation, but nothing special and lacking some key features (automation, apparently). Just summing up other's impressions, i was interested myself. When i see major functionality updates happen, i might be interested again. Right now, VFM seems off when you compare it to other offerings in the appworld. Check out Auria if you haven't, same price as cubasis, but probably the only daw you'd ever need if you like to work with audio. It's really good supposedly. I'm more on the midi side though. If only nanostudio had basic audio channel functionality as well....all you can do is sample audio onto the drum pads and trigger those. We have Auria at the studio--we used it on a location multi-track recording session sampling a moving car, worked pretty well! Plus FabFilter and PSP Audioware FX built in?! Yes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 6, 2013 Share Posted January 6, 2013 Yup, vst in appworld. Anyone tried tabletop? It's like a mini reason, sort of. Basic version is free, but the free instruments aren't so hot. I got the 303 and the impc for it. Good fun for jamming, very basic sequencing. Would be cool for live if it didn't crash every other while... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Ok, this is kind of exciting: I got a USB hub to connect stuff to my ipad via the camera connection kit, and tried hooking up my old x-station which is a portable audio interface/preamp/synthesizer/midi controller type thing. Everything just worked right away! The ipad instantly switched to the x-station's interface, i could record midi and audio, record the synth, use the insert fx...basically do everything i could do with it on a PC. Pretty awesome. Off to garageband Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esperado Posted January 8, 2013 Author Share Posted January 8, 2013 Ok, this is kind of exciting:I got a USB hub to connect stuff to my ipad via the camera connection kit, and tried hooking up my old x-station which is a portable audio interface/preamp/synthesizer/midi controller type thing. Everything just worked right away! The ipad instantly switched to the x-station's interface, i could record midi and audio, record the synth, use the insert fx...basically do everything i could do with it on a PC. Pretty awesome. Off to garageband its getting harder and harder to resist buying an iPad for music stuff. good thing its tax season... but its cool to see that ios is getting actual usage from real musicians where it didn't when it was first a thing. funny to think that people use tablets to make music when not too long ago it took huge rooms of outboard gear to make sounds that are only marginally better. I haven't heard of a lot of these apps you guys mentioned ! but they all sound good to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Touch device music making is still in its infancy, but that's part of why it's so fun. The number of really comprehensive music tools is limited, but you can witness a lot of creative designs emerging from the touchscreen paradigm. Any DAW on PC/Mac is more powerful. But powerful doesn't always mean effective, or fun. I mean, i can sequence lying on my bed now. In case i want to record midi or audio, i just stand up, plug the ipad into the hub and play my guitar or midi controller. Touch devices are fun. It wouldn't have to be apple, but that's where most of the audio devs end up at, heh. If you look at the ipad like a console (which it is by all means), i'd say the software lineup justifies the overpriced hardware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esperado Posted January 9, 2013 Author Share Posted January 9, 2013 the only thing im sad about is that they changed the connector. all the old akai products no longer work. or the mpc fly, i thought that was an increaibly cool product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 True. And the official apple adapters are just too damn expensive. As i said though, USB devices tend to be very compatible. Get a powered USB hub (cheap) and the lightning CCK from apple (pricey). Or wait until a 3rd party hub comes out that connects via lightning connector and powers the ipad as well. Cause that's the one thing i can't do with this setup. The ipad mini (which i have) has excellent battery life tho, and with the hub powering the other devices it can last for quite a while. I think the mini is a great choice for musicians based on form factor, but if i was considering an ipad right now, i'd wait until the mini comes with the new CPU they built into the ipad 4. which should happen within half a year. ....what have i become! I enjoy technobabbling about apple products. Please kill me now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esperado Posted January 10, 2013 Author Share Posted January 10, 2013 i do alot of photography , and one problem i had last summer was that due to the ridiculous heat, i didnt feel like lugging both my laptop and my camera everywhere i went (plus i bus).so the idea of a music making device that fits in my camera bag is pretty nice, all hipsterisms aside. i just hope that akai and the other companies revise their devices to make iterations that work on the current hardware. But youre right, i could theoretically just get the usb connection kit and call it a day. speaking of peripherals, anyone tried those headphone jack mic kits they sell? like the tascam xlr mic adapter for idevices, or the Irig guitar interface? i thought about buying one for my violin since i dont have an amp ( just for practice) but i wasnt really sure if its worth it, or if i should just buy an audio interface. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 (edited) Depends. There are a load of options really. The connector/adapter BS threw me off at the start because i was basically looking at a bunch of outdated products, like you said. Little did i realise i had a perfectly compatible device on my desk already. Before i learned that i could just use the x-station's line in, i was set on getting Jamup Plug from amazon for $20. If you combine that with the CCK and any usb midi keyboard, you got your basic recording setup. Someone recommended the m-audio venom. Similar to the X-Station, you're getting a keyboard, mic/line ins, an onboard synth and an audio interface. They're selling the venoms for really cheap now. In other news, i think i found my sequencer. First tune with beatmaker 2! Best 18 bucks spent! http://soundcloud.com/shlonz/ha-ha-ha Edited January 11, 2013 by Nase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esperado Posted January 11, 2013 Author Share Posted January 11, 2013 Someone recommended the m-audio venom. Similar to the X-Station, you're getting a keyboard, mic/line ins, an onboard synth and an audio interface. They're selling the venoms for really cheap now. ive heard the novation ultranova is a slightly better investment for the money though, and has the audio interface in it as well. the venom has some weird firmware issue where it lags when you change sounds or something. i dont quite remember but it was apparently a pretty blaring issue for something thats supposed to be used live. but then again ive seen them for less than half the price of the ultranova, so.... tune is a bit TOO glitchy to me, but im also a newb and it sounds good so far as imusic is concerned ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 If you can do midi "glitch" in a sequencer, it's a good one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshaggyfreak Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 (edited) Audiobus is the current hype; it enables you to chain supported apps together in an in - fx - out manner. Cool shit, but only worth it on an ipad 4. running apps in parallel requires loads of cpu. Not quite true about Audiobus. I have an iPad mini now and it works out rather well running several applications at once. I've also seen a number of youtube videos demoing Audiobus on an iPad mini and no one has really been complaining about performance issues. I think only the original iPad will really suffer with this sort of thing. Sure, you won't be able run as many apps simultaneously as an iPad 4 but an iPad 2/3 will work fine with Audiobus. I mostly like the fact that I can multitrack record other apps via Audibus easily. It's nice to have that option. Edited January 23, 2013 by theshaggyfreak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 (edited) I have a mini, and i'm getting buffer underruns with some combinations of 3 or even just 2 apps. Like MS-20 and multitrack daw. It works well with some, but the whole plug and play experience feels a bit dampened for me when i can't use a few of my apps in simple setups. Not saying it's unusable, but it's probably the one music related app that benefits the most from a better processor. Ipad 4 does have twice the power of a mini, so... Tbh i don't care too much, the sequencers are all so modest in cpu use. I found audiobus interesting because it sort of brings the vst paradigm to tablets, but i actually prefer working in closed systems for the most part. As soon as beatmaker has audiobus support, i might use it sometimes if i really really want the input from another app. Can't see myself switching between apps all the time. Btw, your last name sounds way more polish than mine, wow. Edited January 23, 2013 by Nase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 Lol, Synth1!! http://rekkerd.org/ichiro-toda-intros-synth1-for-ios/ Can't wait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshaggyfreak Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 (edited) I have a mini, and i'm getting buffer underruns with some combinations of 3 or even just 2 apps. Like MS-20 and multitrack daw.It works well with some, but the whole plug and play experience feels a bit dampened for me when i can't use a few of my apps in simple setups. Not saying it's unusable, but it's probably the one music related app that benefits the most from a better processor. Ipad 4 does have twice the power of a mini, so... Tbh i don't care too much, the sequencers are all so modest in cpu use. I found audiobus interesting because it sort of brings the vst paradigm to tablets, but i actually prefer working in closed systems for the most part. As soon as beatmaker has audiobus support, i might use it sometimes if i really really want the input from another app. Can't see myself switching between apps all the time. Btw, your last name sounds way more polish than mine, wow. Yeah, it gets cranky if you run a couple of massive synths at the same time but I'm justly happy to just be able to multitrack stuff. I don't plan on doing too much production with my iPad but it's nice to have as an alternate source. Animoog is still my favorite one to play with so far. I Am Synth is another one that's really intuitive and fun to play with. Synth1 will definitely be a must have when it comes out. Oh! Figure is also another really fun app to play with. You can really get some nice grooves with it rather quickly. Yeah, my last name is quite Polish/Slovak and there aren't many families in the world with that name. You can understand why my wife decided to keep her maiden name. Edited January 24, 2013 by theshaggyfreak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nase Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 If it sounds as scatological as it reads, then yes, haha. Skowronek is the name of a bird in polish, but it sounds so aggro, it'd work perfectly as a curse word. Regarding audiobus, if synth1 gets optimised like the pc version, it'll be great for that. Super modest stronk synth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theshaggyfreak Posted January 27, 2013 Share Posted January 27, 2013 I just discovered something that's really awesome if you have any hardware synths. Little MIDI Machine is a free app that acts like an old school step sequencer and it works via coreMIDI. I was able to plug my Little Phatty straight into my iPad (via camera kit adapter) and run this app like a classic sequencer. It'll also work over an ad-hoc connection to your computer. For doing Berlin School style jams, this is pretty awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esperado Posted January 28, 2013 Author Share Posted January 28, 2013 I just discovered something that's really awesome if you have any hardware synths. Little MIDI Machine is a free app that acts like an old school step sequencer and it works via coreMIDI. I was able to plug my Little Phatty straight into my iPad (via camera kit adapter) and run this app like a classic sequencer. It'll also work over an ad-hoc connection to your computer. For doing Berlin School style jams, this is pretty awesome! so it runs the midi sequence to the little phatty? like if you set the sequence to play mario, it would make the moog play the mario theme? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-RoN Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 I love TechnoBox2. It's got two built in 303 machines and two built in drum machines where you can import your own samples. Only con is that it only lets you use 12 patterns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.