OWL Programmable Effects Pedal (Kickstarter)
Not too many kickstarters will appeal to the mobile music crowd (for mobile music anyway), but I thought that this one might.
Last day ever for Rebirth for iPhone!
You might remember I posted about this a while back, but I only just remembered that today is in fact the last day! The iPad version will continue to be available, but not the iPhone version after today.
If you want to get it today then the iPhone version is still priced at $2.99 (£1.99).
You can read the announcement here.
If you want to get it today then the iPhone version is still priced at $2.99 (£1.99).
You can read the announcement here.
Last day for Arpeggionome for iPhone at $0.99
Today is the last day that Arpeggionome for iPhone will be at the intro price of $0.99, so if you've been meaning to get it then today's the last chance before the price goes up.
CDM on Android Latency
As ever CDM gets to the heart of the issue. This time on Android latency which has been a concern for a very long time now and has really stifled the market for Android music apps.
The video in the piece is quite a long one (40 mins) but is apparently worth it if you're a developer.
However, even if you're not a developer the CDM article is well worth a read.
The video in the piece is quite a long one (40 mins) but is apparently worth it if you're a developer.
However, even if you're not a developer the CDM article is well worth a read.
Enjoying the retro look of Vinyl Mini
I know it isn't a music making app, but Vinyl Mini from the makers of Live FX is a great little retro music player that looks beautiful.
Musyc arrives and is free
Musyc, the latest app from Finger Labs has arrived and it's free although there's an IAP to unlock the full version.
This just makes me smile ...
Another post from Miki on our brilliant day of talking, walking and art. I can't say anything, Miki's just too kind.
LH Rubbing, a new free iPad Synth
It has a strange name, but I can't argue with free. Here's the details of the new synth app:
LH Rubbing is a polyphony software synthesizer app for iPad running on iOS 6.0 or latter.
There are three wave oscillators, one noise oscillator, two LFOs and one three type embedded filter (low-pass, hi-pass and bandpass).
Each wave oscillator can generate three kinds of waveform which are triangle, square and saw wave.
LFO can be attached to different modul for different modulation or control such as OSC Pitch, PW, Filter Cutoff Frequency, Filter Resonance and OSC Output Mixing.
The frequency and amplitude of the 1st LFO can be modified by the 2nd LFO.
Pitch, Filter Cutoff Frequency and Resonance can be controlled by the ADSR envelope generator.
The Keyboard Rubbing brings up vibrato while control the vibrato rate and depth.
Another bC16 on eBay
Another bC16 comes along. This one's not nearly as expensive as the last one. Not yet anyway.
Chimera Synthesis BC-16 rare modular synthesizer
IKM Adds a new Studio Section and says that Amplitube is now a full DAW
I don't anything about this as yet, but this is all IKM have said so far and I couldn't find anything on their site. This is all:
NEW STUDIO SECTION TURNS AMPLITUBE INTO A FULL-FLEDGED DAW
NEW STUDIO SECTION TURNS AMPLITUBE INTO A FULL-FLEDGED DAW
- Studio section* (available via in-app purchase) offers DAW features such as cut/copy paste, normalize, fade in/out, punch in/out recording and much more
- AutoFreeze feature allows for full effects chain on every recorder track
I really couldn't have put it better myself
The start of Miki's account of our long overdue meet up last Saturday. Made me smile to read it and I can't wait for part two. So if you want to find out where we went and what we did, have a read at Miki's blog.
Something new coming from FingerLab ... Musyc
MUSYC
Musyc is a fun and innovative music application where touch turns into music.
No use of piano keyboard or partitions, draw shapes and listen to your piece of music while viewing sounds bouncing on the screen.
Discover the new music application by Fingerlab, winner of the Apple Design Award 2012 for DM1 - The Drum Machine.
Enjoy the 64 instruments (organized into 16 groups) exclusively created and produced at Fingerlab music studio as well as all the exciting and new physical and music tools provided in Musyc.
Musyc is free and its full version is available through in-app purchases.
WARNING: Musyc is not compatible with iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPod touch 3 and iPod touch 4.
Features:
- Graphic design by Jonas Eriksson
- Retina Display
- Optimized for iPhone 5 and new iPad
- High quality sound engine
- Ultra-realistic physical engine
- Audio track mixer (level, pitch, length, pan, mute)
- 2 effect channels with 5 effects (Delay, Overdrive, Reverb, Dalek, Compressor)
- Physical sequencer
- Motion recorder
- Advanced physical objects (planet, black hole, modulator, …)
- Real-time audio recording
- High-quality or compressed exports (DropBox, SoundCloud, Mail, AudioCopy and iTunes)
- iPhone4 & iPodTouch optimization
- Import & Export song project (DropBox, Mail, iTunes)
- User sound kit with samples import
- Audio background support
- Wist synchronization
- Midi synchronization
- AudioBus support
Guitarism iOS virtual acoustic guitar - video review and demo
Video Description:
A quick tour of the Guitarism iOS virtual acoustic guitar instrument and some audio examples of the app in action. Guitarism is an excellent - and pretty playable - little app, easy to learn and fun to 'busk' with. See the full review of the app at the Music App Blog www.musicappbog.com
Molecule interest
Yep, I just do like shots of the molecule synth. Here's one from the last maker faire it was shown at.
Original Protein (DS) still available plus sources
Yep, Protein Der Klang for iOS came from original DS routes and the app and code is still available. You can find both here.
Volcas in SOS
Starting to get the feeling that these little boxes are going to be very awesome indeed.
Cubasis 1.4 brings new MIDI features and more
Here's what's new:
- MIDI clock support (sends clock, start, continue, stop)
- MIDI thru (located in inspector's MIDI connections tab)
- New recording mode menu for punch in/out, pre-roll and count in
- Interactive piano-roll in key editor
- Improved key editor workflow
- Drag & drop files from the Mediabay into the arranger or the trash.
- Many user reported problems were solved
Hexler explains why TouchOSC has been quiet for so long
Worth a read if you're interested in why the app's taken so long to get an update and talks about the Android version too.
The article is here.
The article is here.
After a long time we get an update to TouchOSC, it's very welcome
Here's what's in version 1.9:
- Support for iPhone5
- Support for more MIDI message types (All controls now support Control Change, Note, Program Change, Poly Pressure, Channel Pressure and Pitch Bend messages)
- Added XY control MIDI mapping mode (Placing 2 or 3 fingers on the control will send only x or y messages)
- New iPhone5 layout: “Automat5”
- Fixed handling of UTF-8 encoded strings in both application and editor
- Fixed naming issues with virtual CoreMIDI connections
- Removed support for MIDIMobilizer Mk I (Please use a CoreMIDI compatible accessory, i.e. MIDIMobilizer Mk II, instead
Cubase iC Pro updated
Here's what's new in Cubase iC Pro:
- Full screen key commands page
- Import/Export of key command presets
- Stereo combined panner mode support
- Panner display in the mixer has been redesigned
- Dynamic font color support for track names in the mixer.
- Many user reported problems were solved.
Alchemy Synth Mobile Studio update
Here's what's new:
- New 'Himalaya: Vintage' Sound Library available - authentic classic synths
- Copy/Paste to Garageband and other non-ACP apps
- New Manual makes learning easy - see Extra->Help
- Improved background rendering
- Empty installed libraries are no longer displayed
- Fixed clicks with compressor and distortion
- Fixed issues with swing
- Fixed rare crashes
- Various other improvements and fixes
Awesome Animoog template for MIDI Designer
Now that looks pretty amazing to me. Take a look at this page where you can download the template directly from your iPad.
KoalaSAN FAQ
The KoalaSAN FAQ is available here, and it's very handy if you're wondering about what this app's capable of.
Audiobus – a case study in app collaboration
An interesting piece on Audiobus and description of how it addressed the problem. I was also interested to see Palm Sounds described as a 'technical forum'. Anyway, it's worth a read especially if you're new to Audiobus.
Harmony Theory from Audanika
This time a post on composing with iPads in the classroom. Read it here.
Good news on StudioMini 3
After a long quiet spell we're happy to share that building of StudioMini 3 is well under way. Very excited about all the new features!
— StudioMini (@StudioMiniApp) May 24, 2013
VoKey 2.0 arrives
Some interesting additions to Vokey in version 2.0. Here's what's new:
- Pro Mode (create multilayered samples)
- Layer Samples
- Create Sample Zones
- MIDI mapping and advanced interpretation of MIDI data
- LFO and Envelope
Something new from humbletune: voice bot - robot, monkey, mexican, cat beard
This app hasn't been released as yet, but Mr Humbletune is considering it. You can find out more about the app here, and why not give Mr Humbletune some feedback if you can.
I think he can probably guess my answer.
Echo Pad - Touch Effects Processor 1.4.3 arrives
Here's what's new:
- new stereo audio engine, great for stereo synths and drum machines in Audiobus!
- new stereo delay
- control rings are no longer able to enter the top panel area where they could get stuck.
- minor bugfixes
Anything new for the wait list?
It's Monday, is there anything that needs adding into the wait list? Let me know if there is, or just take a look and see what's coming up.
Symphonix Evolution 2.0.1 arrives
What's New in Version 2.0.1:
- It's now easier to add Repeat Bars. The app no longer requires the user to select the exact start and end of the measures where repeats will be applied and will automatically detect the start and end of the measure. Also added a Repeat option to the "Measure" button on the main toolbar so that the user can mark a selection and then press Repeat to quickly add Repeat Bars.
- New selection menu options for "Expand" and "Compress": Use the Expand option to increase the space between the notes in a selection. Use the Compress option to bring the notes closer together.
- Added a new "Switch" setting to the MIDI Commands screen to assist with mapping pads with velocity to on/off commands. Use it by setting the controller value to "129" (the display will read "fader" for 128 and "switch" for 129). Once the "Switch" setting is active, non-zero inputs will be mapped to "127" and then only the first non-zero value will trigger the command so that the pad input is effectively converted to a momentary and then latched.
- Added a new MIDI command "ARP+Hold Toggle". This works exactly like "ARP Toggle" except that the ARP Hold is automatically enabled when ARP is switched on.
- This update allows the user to unlink the app from Dropbox. Go to the File Load/Save screen and press the Dropbox button. A red Unlink button will appear in the top right corner of the file browser. Press this button to remove the link to Dropbox.
- Minor user interface improvements to some screens
- The Controllers function now allows a System Exclusive from the Device Manager to be added to the score (this was a bug preventing the Select button from being visible)
- Fixed a bug where the Device Manager and Controller screens did not handle long SysEx messages
- Fixed bug when copying and pasting notes with ties, beams or slurs where the links were broken after pasting. This bug could also cause instability and crashes after using the copy/paste function.
- Fixed a bug where slurs were not printed correctly.
- Improved stability of the Lyric Pad
A big thank you
Just a quick note to say thanks to everyone who tweeted and comment birthday wishes for the blog on Saturday. I really appreciated it. It's great to have so many friends in the mobile music world.
A bit of history, the second ever Palm Sounds post back in 2006
The 27th of May in 2006 was the second post on Palm Sounds. It was more of a description of what the site was then going to be about. You can read it here.
That was last week, here's the highlights ...
I always say it, but it has been a busy week, but it has been again, and Palm Sounds turned 7 years old yesterday. Anyway, here are the highlights from the last 7 days:
New apps:
Apps that are now on the Audiobus
New apps:
Apps that are now on the Audiobus
- PixelWave from Nightradio is on the bus
- SpectrumGen from Nightradio is also on the bus
- PixiTracker is also on the bus
- PixiTracker 1bit is on the bus
- Samvada on the bus
- The Oscillator now has JACK support
- Sonic Logic 1.1 brings virtual MIDI
- Guitarism 3.1 brings triple play and more
- MIDI Designer 1.5.1 is a pretty awesome update
- Novation updates Launchpad and Launchkey, but sync requires an iPad 4!
- Artiphon INSTRUMENT 1 is open for reservations
- MidiBridge: Splitting a MIDI controller between two apps
- Integra Live, modular environment for audio, coming to an iPad
- OhBac 2000 for OP-1
- Molecule Synth at HAXLR8R
- Unity makes iOS and Android licenses free
- New molecule synth table of elements, new elements coming soon
- Ampkit LiNK HD video and review
- New things coming from IKM on the 30th?
- Ok, not really to look forward to, but Propellerheads will retire Rebirth for iPhone on the 1st of June, so if you want to get it, don't leave it until the last minute
Palm Sounds is 7, and there's more cake too ...
Here's to many more years of writing about mobile music.
Yum!
This time last year ... Now we are 6
Coming back to the world of mobile music. Interesting for me to look back and remember what was happening 12 months ago.
Back in 2010 ... The Mobile Music Alphabet, W
I did enjoy doing these alphabet posts, of course back in 2010 there weren't as many apps as now, but there were still a few. You can find out which ones right here.
Palm Sounds begins, back in 2006
That's right, the 25th of May in 2006 was the first day that there was a post on Palm Sounds. It wasn't much, but it was a start. You can read it (for what it's worth) here.
Artiphon INSTRUMENT 1 is open for reservations ...
You can reserve here. The reservation is $10 which doesn't commit you to buying, but does mean you can get early access to the first hand built batch of instruments.
How tempted are you?
Just a few pictures from Music Tech Fest last weekend
Whilst not a huge amount of mobile related stuff it was a great event and good to catch up with people too.
Audio Mastering Studio 1.1 has arrived! Here's what's new:
- Function Normalize at conversion of file.
- Feature "Open in" that give possibility "Open audio file in Audio Mastering" from other applications (like AudioShare, Mail, etc).
- Export audio file directly to AudioShare application.
- Playback from Mark In position when selecting file.
- Files .m4a are supported now (you need to reload file).
- Built-in description updated.
- Some minor bugs fixed.
KoalaSan arrives
I posted a video on this a way back and today it's arrived. Here's the rather brief app description:
KoalaSAN allows people to broadcast to Icecast 2 servers in few steps. It can capture the device internal microphone and supports AudioBus (so you can use other applications as a sound source).
It supports Ogg Vorbis and Opus audio codecs.
KoalaSAN can also save your audio stream on the fly, which you will be able to transfer via iTunes or on your Dropbox account.
KoalaSAN allows people to broadcast to Icecast 2 servers in few steps. It can capture the device internal microphone and supports AudioBus (so you can use other applications as a sound source).
It supports Ogg Vorbis and Opus audio codecs.
KoalaSAN can also save your audio stream on the fly, which you will be able to transfer via iTunes or on your Dropbox account.
Cicuit bending 'how-to' posts from little-scale
There's a whole bunch of great posts from little-scale on circuit bending. You can find them here.
Novation updates Launchkey and Launchpad
Both of these apps get the ability to sync to each other, which sounds great. However, they recommend an iPad 4 for their new sync mode, which is going to count out quite a few people I guess.
I suppose it shouldn't be a shock that a developer has introduced an iPad4 only feature. In some ways I'm surprised that it's taken so long, but it signals a move that I'm sure will be followed by others.
iPad 5 anyone?
I suppose it shouldn't be a shock that a developer has introduced an iPad4 only feature. In some ways I'm surprised that it's taken so long, but it signals a move that I'm sure will be followed by others.
iPad 5 anyone?
Pythonista Drum Machine
Not my code, but quite interesting that this is running in Pythonista on my iPad with really not very many lines of code at all.
Back in 2007: Meteor first arrives
Meteor arrived back in 2007 on Windows Mobile. It was a really big deal back then. There was no multitrack on a mobile platform at all back then, so this was (and for me it still is) pretty amazing. You can read about it here.
MIDI Designer 1.5.1 is here
MIDI Designer goes from strength to strength with a bunch of new features in 1.5.1:
MIDI Designer 1.5.0 just grew up, and its new name is 1.5.1. New advanced features:
MIDI Designer 1.5.0 just grew up, and its new name is 1.5.1. New advanced features:
- NAMED TICKS allow you to specify and name each value on a slider, knob, crossfader or XY.
- CONTROL COPIES: put the same control on various pages, in the size you need.
- NEW BUTTON SHAPES: piano keys and hex buttons give you some options. More will be coming soon.
- HIDDEN CONTROLS: as you use supercontrols and subcontrols in MIDI Designer, you'll want to hide some in performance mode. When you get there, you'll know.
- Use normal buttons to toggle the accelerometer or send all values from the current page.
- Rotation of touch axis for knobs/sliders/crossfaders allows for more placement possibilites.
- Channel changers have been reworked to acommodate button groups and values-per-channel.
- "Relative" dynamic MIDI messages (control sends MAX for up, MIN for down, usually 65 and 63).
- White LED color
- Sysex learn. We now support learn for Control Change, Note On, NRPN [14- and 7-bit], Program Change and Bank Select
- Mail a list of unused channel-cc combinations
- Reworked the entire Design/Config UI: more consistent, flexible, and comprehensible
- Long Throw has been reworked to allow hitting all control values
Guitar! by Smule arrives
Something new from Smule? I don't think it's for me particularly, but I'm sure it'll get plenty of attention. Here's the detail:
Guitar! by Smule brings you the unique experience of musical collaboration between guitarist and singer. Our carefully crafted list of guitar songs have been paired with real vocals from our Sing! Karaoke app, giving you the true feeling of playing with a live singer.
You create the invaluable foundation for your singer as you strum the chords of the song. Add personal flourishes on individual strings, a bit of vibrato, or emphasis on particular notes. And for advanced players or those who just want to jam out and sing to your own tune, check out our freestyle mode!
You always sound good, but practice makes perfect and it pays to play! The more you play, the more you earn. Start off in easy mode, and keep playing to earn new difficulty levels and more challenging songs. As you continue your journey, try out new guitar sounds by unlocking our Electric and Rock guitars.
This first version has a limited songbook because we wanted to make sure every song was fun, satisfying, and a bit challenging. We’re working on adding many more songs and singers, and we would love your feedback. Please suggest new songs from inside the app!
The current songbook includes:
- When I Was Your Man - Bruno Mars
- I Won’t Give Up - Jason Mraz
- Bubbly - Colbie Caillat
- Stand By Me - Ben E. King
- I’m Yours - Jason Mraz
- Your Song - Elton John
- The A Team - Ed Sheeran
- Home - Phillip Phillips
- Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen
- Amazing Grace
- ...more songs coming soon! Suggest songs in the app!
PLAYING TIPS:
- Strum - swipe your finger across the strings
- Pick - tap a single string
- Change the chord - select from the colored tabs on the left
- Create vibrato - shake the phone
- Emphasize a strum - swipe faster and you’ll play louder
AmpKit LiNK HD video review and demo
A video review and demo of the AmpKit LiNK HD iOS guitar interface from Peavey/Agile Partners. For full review see www.musicappblog.com.
Orchestra Plays 'Carmen' Entirely on Mobile Devices
It's a shame that it's for an ad for a bank, but then who else would have that kind of cash?
Via Mashable.
guitarism - pocket acoustic guitar version 3.1 arrives
Guitarism 3.1 arrives. Here's what's new:
- In-App Purchase: guitarism "Triple Play"
- Simultaneously play 3 additional instrument apps
- Complementary roles: guitar, bass and chords
- Configure channel, octave and velocity per role
- Demo video and detailed help to get you going
- Use with GarageBand or any MIDI-compatible app!
- Master volume control for playing with other apps!
- "Open In..." option to export recordings to DropBox, AudioShare and more
Auria: Anatomy of a mix
A big article that covers a lot of ground from Simon Hughes on the Auria blog. Worth a read.
Step Sequencer update
Step Sequencer updates with the single most wanted feature which is direction control for the sequence. You can now select between up, up-down, up single shot and up-down single shot.
The Oscillator now has JACK and more
Here's what's new:
- Add ON/OFF toggle in main view and remove bg-audio/mute toggles in About view.
- Display pitches as midi note numbers in addition to frequency in hertz.
- Support JACK audio connection kit.