[
Date Prev][
Date Next] [
Thread Prev][
Thread Next]
[
Date Index][
Thread Index][
Author Index]
iTouch music I created and app review
I mentioned a couple of weeks ago inheriting an iTouch from my son when he got an iPhone. I began to discover as many probably know a number of useful music apps and possibilities. The challenge and somewhat still is was a decent way to capture outside sources into it's world. So far from my research it seems to be limited to a mic at least with the 2nd Gen iTouch. I think with a couple of older iPod series Belkin and possibly others are making hardware that you can bring in line sources but I'm still researching that.
For the moment and current budget I chose a combination mic, headphone adapter and remote switch called
SmartTalk made by Griffin Technologies, it was $14 and probably better for 'voice' recording though for acoustic instruments (example follows) I have found it useful.
One of the best apps from those I've tried either 'free apps' or 'paid' from the iTunes app store is
StompVox which is rather cool to my experiences so far. Cost was $1.99 which hovers around norm for several audio applications though others can fetch up to $19.99.
Stompvox is an environment made up of 5 rather cool looking effects pedals - a noise gate, looper, reverb, echo and a mixer, all visually/functionwise modeled after kind of a mix of early Boss and I'd say MXR pedals. Then the app has 11 presets that use all the pedals in various schemes that can be edited. Preset names are Big Bathroom, Brown Acid, Cathedral, Clangers, Human Beat Box, Platform Announcer, Resonating Robot, Rub a Dub, Shower and Subway. You can save a preset to your own name and your own scheme. So far I personally like Brown Acid which does sort of rapid panning thing somehow, Cathedral which as the name suggests is heavy verb/echo and Human Beat Box which is a nice range of enhancement though I've used it with only the gate, looper and mixer.
The looping does not seem to have layering limits but does seem to limit each loop to 45 seconds though I still may be missing some functionality here. Once you've created a loop series that you are ready to finalize and produce you have an option to export the file either with effects or without to a nearby router hosted device/computer which is somehow uniformly always on an open port which befuddles me a bit. When I first did an export I thought I was going to a Stompvox server as I was in the laundry and when it was done the software said go to an ip and port address to download on a computer which the export produces the file to a wav file. Once done however I was home and I couldn't access the address. I saved again and realized it was now going to my router 192.168.2.7 with a port address. When you go to that address you are presented with a StompVox page and a download link and at that point you Control Click on the Mac and save the Wav to your hard drive.
So I recorded 6 loops (unfortunately lost one in the above process somehow) and imported the remaining 5 into Audacity to work with which only included duplicating and reversing two of them for the creation of my piece which I call 'Transparency 53'. Though I indicated turning off reverb on some of the loops I did use the Cathedral set stock which is heavy and dark in this. Instruments were oud, wood flute, hand drum, table surface and plastic cassette case and my voice. I have posted for your listening and thoughts up on Box.net at
http://www.box.net/shared/6fyxpntzrf .
I also have bought another app called iSample that I'm still evaluating and trying to see if there might be a live option. StompVox seems so far aproduction tool and not live but I may change my mind on that. So far as the former it's pretty cool.
Jim
