Experiment in iOS – The Buyer’s Guide

As we conclude our essential guide to iOS music production we present another buyer’s guide, this time it’s some ideas for sound designers wanting to experiment in iOS…

Experimental apps

Some instruments that can help you explore everything from modular synthesis to out-there beats and vocals…

Pulse Code Modular
Price £8.99 plus IAPs
Contact www.pulsecodeinc.com

We say: “Don’t get too addicted to the sonic experimentation: the IAPs cost.”

Sugar Bytes Turnado
Price £19.99
Contact www.sugar-bytes.de

We say: “It might be designed for creating monster beats and basslines, but can be a great effect for anything.”

Yamaha TNR-i
Price £19.99
Contact uk.yamaha.com

We say: “The original hardware was much beloved, so try it on iOS for off-the-wall beeps and melodies.”

Ripplemaker
Price $8.99
Contact ruismaker.com

We say: “Want to get into modular the easy way? Here’s the app for you: a great tool for sound design.”

Hardware accessories

Four very different extras you might want, to introduce fun or monitor the results with in your experiments in audio…

Beyerdynamic DT 1990
Price £479
Contact www.beyerdynamic.com

We say: “Great for the studio and outside recording.”

RØDE i-XY
Price £135
Contact www.rode.com | www.sourcedistribution.co.uk

We say: ”A great iOS option to get audio into iOS from the outside.”

IK iLoud Micro
Price £279 pair
Contact www.ikmultimedia.com

We say: “Mobile speakers? Almost, and the best desktop speakers you can get, simple as that.”

Korg plugKEY
Price £69
Contact www.korg.com

We say: “Turns your iPad or iPhone into a sound module/instrument, and welcomes iOS devices to your studio.”

Soft accessories

Four very different software utilities to help you with your experimental sound designs…

JazzMutant Lemur
Price £23.99
Contact www.jazzmutant.com

We say: ”JazzMutant’s pre-iPad multi-touch controller, which lives on in iOS. And it’s very cool…”

Kymatica AUM
Price £18.99
Contact kymatica.com

We say: ”A great way to mix apps together within iOS, and once you start mixing, you start designing.”

Ableton Link
Price Free platform, with certain apps and Live
Contact www.ableton.com

We say: ”Mixes and matches sounds across desktop and iOS devices.”

Secret Base Design musicIO
Price $9.99
Contact secretbasedesign.com

We say: ”Unify your iOS and OSX platforms with this great solution.”

DAW

Even if you want to dabble with sound design, you’ll want a DAW, and some of these let you experiment along the way…

WaveMachine Labs Auria Pro
Price £23.99 or £49.99 with all IAPs
Contact auriaapp.com

We say: ”An ideal, pro app for recording and processing audio.”

Apple GarageBand
Price Free
Contact www.apple.com

We say: ”GarageBand is a great choice: you can load what you like in – or use sounds from its huge library.”

Ampify Blocs Wave
Price Free plus IAPs
Contact ampifymusic.com

We say: ”Great for sound design if you’re starting with raw ingredients that are just a bit left of centre.”

Ampify Groovebox
Price Free plus IAPs
Contact ampifymusic.com

We say: ”A contender for Ampify that’s great for realising ideas and inspiring new ones… fast.”