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The British Library is fighting to save endangered sounds
For most of us, thinking about museums and archives will conjure up images of physical relics; faded books, paintings and trinkets discovered beneath the soil. But now, the British Library is fighting to preserve something more elusive: sound. With £9.5 million in fresh Lottery funding, it hopes to digitise and release 500,000 rare and at-risk recordings over the next five years. The challenge is that some audio snippets are currently held on old formats, such as wax cylinders and magnetic tape. They're slowly decaying to a point of irreparability, and the equipment required to play them is becoming harder to source. The British Library estimates that 1 million UK sound collections could be lost in the next 15 years, so in January it started a "Save our Sounds" campaign to preserve them.
Microsoft's super-stable video recording arrives on PCs and phones
Microsoft's Hyperlapse is now more than just a clever idea in a research lab -- the folks in Redmond have released apps that help you record and produce super-stabilized videos on Android (in preview form), Windows and Windows Phone. Much like Instagram's software, the algorithmic tools whittle down your shaky footage into high-speed, smooth clips that your friends are more likely to watch. The big differences are in the amount of control you get. You can zip beyond Instagram's 6x speed limit, for example, and the desktop app (Hyperlapse Pro) uses 3D modelling to steady the footage from GoPros and other common action cameras.
The Xbox One's built-in video editor just got a lot more powerful
Microsoft has been touting its Upload Studio since before the Xbox One launched, but until now, the video editing suite only offered a few options for gamers. Now its first major update is bringing a ton of new features -- it can splice together recordings to run for up to 30 minutes, drop in text overlays and toss in tons of new effects and transitions including many styled for games like Forza Horizon, Halo and Call of Duty. The biggest change, however, may be the ability for players use the Kinect camera to drop themselves into the video, using green screen effects without the need for an actual green screen backdrop. According to Major Nelson, the system can see your body and pick it out of the background, but we've seen enough camera glitches and voice commands missed to be skeptical until more people have tried it out. There's a demo video laying out the new Upload Studio experience embedded after the break (plus a clip I tossed together with the new tools), and if you have an Xbox One the update should be live right now for you to try out.
Hal Leonard PlayAlong has wealth of interactive sheet music
Hal Leonard PlayAlong is an interactive sheet music app that provides powerful tools for learning, playing and recording a wide variety of music. Everything from Adele to Frank Sinatra to the Frozen soundtrack is available in the integrated Sheet Music Direct store. Plus, once you have your music ready, the app is ready to guide you along the music as you play and offer a multitude of customization options to help you perfect your sound. The app is free for iPad with in-app purchases. First things first, if you have a Sheet Music Direct account, I recommend logging in or perhaps creating an account to stay organized and in sync. Otherwise, tap "Sign in as a guest" to jump into getting started. The app includes 15 demo songs and all together it's a pretty good selection to start, from oldies but goodies like "Another One Bites the Dust" by Queen to "You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban and of course, "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri. Each demo comes with a handy audio preview as well. Tap the song you want to learn to open the sheet music. The demos only include the first page of the song. The Record button is up at the top, but to the right there are a number of customization options to play around with. The first icon is for recording with sliders for the backing track and microphone, plus four others - reverb, delay time, delay length and delay amount - if you insert headphones. Under Audio Settings, you have further sliders for the backing track, click track, speed and options for the count-in. There's also a slider for the pre-recorded instrument, which is cleverly dynamic for each song. For "A Thousand Years" it's the violin. Song Settings has some basic options like note size on the display and transposition. Finally, the last two icons are for creating annotations anywhere on the page or going full screen with the sheet music and eliminating the toolbars. When you're ready to record the piece, tap the Record icon and a cursor moves along the sheet music to help time each note perfectly. There's also options for playback and repeating specific sections of the score of your choosing. When you finish a recording, it saves under the "My Recordings" tab on the main screen. At the bottom of the screen are icons for adding the music to a set list if you're playing more than one song and additional tools like a metronome and tuner. The music and recording tools are plentiful for most casual users. It lacks any type of professional editing, but PlayAlong isn't geared toward that type of use anyway. If you're a professional, chances are you're already looking elsewhere. The icing on the cake is really the breadth of music in the store, both new and old. Browse by type of instrument, artist, genre, best sellers and more. It's superb. Audio only is an in-app purchase of US$0.99 and the full score with audio is $4.99 - some solid pricing for what you get. Hal Leonard PlayAlong is perfect for the average musician looking to get some recording done on an iPad. The tools and options are sufficient, music selection is excellent and the pricing is right. I'd like to see the app get an update soon with a visual overhaul more akin to iOS 7 and iOS 8, but feature-wise it's effortless to recommend. The app is free with in-app purchases for iPad.
This stunning 4K video was captured with an iPhone 6
The iPhone 6 twins are 4K capable, but so far the apps that claim to record video in such an ultra-sharp resolution have fallen a bit short of perfection. This clip, captured with the ProCam 2 app and a steady hand, is the best iPhone 6 4K video we've seen yet, and it's sitting on YouTube for you to enjoy. Shot in a wooded area with a stream and plenty of detail to take in, the footage looks remarkably crisp thanks to a minimum of movement, which is important as the app is only capable of recording in 30fps or less. ProCam's app description notes that it doesn't actually capture in full 4K (3840x2160), but rather in 3264x1836 which is then upscaled approximately 17% to reach the desired resolution. Still, it's hard not to be impressed with the level of video clarity that can be achieved with your tiny little iPhone these days. Note: At 4K resolution, the video can take a while to load from YouTube, regardless of your connection speed, so be patient.
Voice Jam Studio offers professional vocal looping, effects
Voice Jam Studio is a powerful vocal recorder for iPad with dozens of professional effects, looping, fine tuning and even video recording so you're able to produce high quality audio and get creative with the process. The app includes four tracks to record your loops and layer them, plus other advanced tools like undo/redo, a tap-enabled metronome and more. The standard price is US$19.99, but it's currently on an introductory sale for $9.99. The app requires iOS 7.1 or later and also recommends you use it paired with headphones or a PA system. Apple's GarageBand is typically the go-to app for most people when it comes to any task related to audio production, but two areas where it falls short are loops and effects. Voice Jam Studio picks up the slack, focusing on these two features with a fine level of detail that GarageBand lacks. I'm especially impressed by the number of voice effects. They offer dozens upon dozens of ways to enhance the sound of your voice for different scenarios on top of just enabling fun and creativity. Plus, the app plays your voice back to you live as you're recording with the effect. This live processing is nothing short of superb. Another important feature is the metronome because it plays multiple roles throughout the app. For one, it of course sets the tempo. Using the arrows to control it is standard, but what's even more incredible is the app actually pays attention to you tapping out your own tempo a few times on screen and sets the beats per minute according to your taps, fairly accurately I might add. The lock icon next to each track acts a synchronizer to keep your loops in time with the tempo. This can unlock depending on your preference, but for the most part you probably want some level of synchronization. There's so much to go through in Voice Jam Studio because it offers so many features - multi-level undo, level and pan controls, on-demand note sustainability, to name a few - that the tutorial at the beginning has 80 slides. When I saw that number at the bottom I was a bit intimidated. This might entice you to just skip the tutorial altogether and learn the ropes on your own, but I don't recommend this. Yes, the tutorial could probably use some streamlining, but the app has a multitude of controls and they're all powerful. Plus, you just spent $10 if not $20 on it so you might as well get a free how-to lesson out of it. The last bit that's of great to use to a certain group of people is the video recording. Voice Jam Studio can film you using the front-facing camera of your device as you sing and use the app, doubling as a screen recorder to show your audience how you're manipulating the sound. Voice Jam Studio a remarkably well-rounded app that does a phenomenal job with vocal processing and editing. Make no mistake that albeit its intuitive design and creative nature, the app is probably best suited for professionals. Not a single feature strikes me as half-baked. At its current sale price of $9.99, Voice Jam Studio for iPad is a bargain.
The iRig HD-A equips Android users for mobile guitar recording
IK Multimedia's iRig series of mobile recording wares have long be an option for the iOS faithful, and now its guitar-minded add-on is prepped for Android. The iRig HD-A is a $100 accessory that allows you to plug your axe into a mobile device track riffs while on the go. Just like previous efforts, this Android version is very much a plug-and-play setup for guitarists to use the company's AmpliTube amplifier and effects simulator app to toy with sounds and virtual rigs. It packs in a 24-bit 48kHz analog to digital converter, and can be paired with a computer via USB when you're stationary for a while. As you might expect, other entries in the iRig line can be used alongside the HD-A for a more robust mobile arsenal. However, there's one important caveat: the device only works with gadgets running Samsung Professional Audio. This means that the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge can sort the goods now, and compatibility for the Galaxy S5, Note 3 and others is said to be on the way. The aforementioned AmpliTube is available as a plug-in for Samsung's SoundCamp app, so you can record tunes with whatever setup you come up with while toying around.
Saloote is a flawed attempt at online music collaboration
Saloote is a free app for iPhone that enables musicians to get creative with each other through the power of the Internet. Film yourself jamming out to your favorite tune, then create mashups with strangers around the world to collaborate and form an online band of sorts. Choose your contribution, let others join in and allow the app to provide the tools necessary for crafting a unified music video. Saloote requires iOS 7.0 or later. When you launch the app you're immediately going to see a flood of very unfamiliar faces. That's because these are users of Saloote that have already created their own mashups. The way I've come to see it, there are three important aspects of the entire app that also involve the way you most likely use it: viewing mashups from other users, recording your own video or creating a mashup. The main feed is a scrollable list of video mashups with multi-user collaboration. Tap any one to play it. The videos are somewhat clever. Every few seconds the view switches to someone else producing their own sound and gives an appropriate impression that more than one person is working to produce the entire sound you're hearing. To avoid confusion about who does what, the recording process requires you to select a musical contribution. This is clearly labeled once its uploaded so others looking to create a mashup know what parts they can bring to the table. The options are ample: bass, dance, DJ, drum, guitar, visual, horn, keyboard, percussion, violin, vocal or other. Saloote sounds like a fun, creative app in theory but unfortunately it doesn't come without its flaws - some of them rather significant. For starters, the app in its current state is very buggy and prone to crashing. It crashed more than once on me for seemingly no reason and when it's not crashing, chances are I'm encountering some sort of UI bug. It doesn't get much better from there. The performance throughout the app is truly dreadful. Upon attempting to create my own mashup using a few user videos, I couldn't even get through to the creation process. A few times it would just load slowly at a consistent pace and test my patience, while other times it would load quickly but then hang at a certain percentage. Either way, I was never able to create my own mashup. Additionally, playing videos and mashups is just as difficult. For some reason the videos never load at the speed they should. I spent more time than I should have sitting through the video buffer after only 10 or 15 seconds in. I went to other apps like YouTube to test video and even switched Wi-Fi networks as a test and the problem was isolated within the app. It's a shame I had to spend so much of this review describing the difficulties I had with Saloote, but they honestly feel like deal breakers at this point. It has huge potential. The market isn't huge - music enthusiasts who have a desire to collaborate with strangers - but it's a great idea nonetheless with poor implementation. Hopefully the issues get patched in a future update. Saloote is a free iPhone app in the App Store.
Apogee Duet and Quartet audio interfaces for Mac and iOS
Apogee's Duet (US$495) and Quartet ($1395) are the respective steps up from Apogee's ONE, a single input interface with a built-in condenser mic. You can check out the review of the ONE here, but suffice to say it's a high-quality interface for those looking for a compact and portable recording solution. With Apogee's premium reputation and price, I wanted to put the Duet and Quartet through a real-world recording environment test, with people who really know what to expect when it comes to recording audio. To help me do this I enlisted the help of three professionals who work in the music business day-in and day-out. Jonathan McMillan, a Canadian born, London-based mix and mastering engineer based at Blue Pro Mastering. Matt Weeks, London-based session musician and producer at WeeksWeeksWeeks. And finally, Paul Evans, a London-based session drummer, producer and programmer. With these three guys, there are years of professional recording experience in hand. The four of us spent the morning at Smokehouse Studios to see just what the Duet and Quartet have to offer. Hardware Where the ONE is a sturdy and solid piece of kit, there's no doubt that the Duet and Quartet take things to the next level. Both interfaces look and feel professional and premium. Where the ONE is made from plastic, the Duet and Quartet are encased in aluminum akin to Apple's Mac lineup. Via breakout cable, the Duet has 2 inputs (XLR and 1/4") and left and right (1/4") outputs. The inputs operate at 24-bit/192kHz recording. There's also a headphones output directly on the Duet interface, totaling 4 outputs with independent speaker and headphone outs. This multitude of outputs can be controlled and customized in Apogee's Maestro App. For example, a drummer could send himself a click track while sending the backing track to the front-of-house. All the spec details on the Duet can be found on Apogee's website, here. The Quartet has 4 inputs ((XLR and 1/4") and an additional 8 channels of digital input via optical connection (ADAT/SMUX), if you have an additional analog-to-digital converter kicking around. The Quartet has 6 balanced (1/4" TRS) outputs, which means you could hook up three different stereo monitor sets. All the spec details on the Quartet can be found at Apogee's website, here. Both interfaces have MIDI input via USB -- which the ONE missed out on -- high resolution OLED displays, assignable touch pads to speed up your workflow, and USB 2.0 connectivity, which Apogee says provides more than enough bandwidth to handle the talk between interface and Mac. Both interfaces use Apgoee's ESS Sabre32 32-bit Hyperstream DAC with Time Domain Jitter Eliminator technology, which Apogee says "offers unequalled dynamic range, ultra low distortion, and unmatched audio clarity free from input jitter." You can learn more about the technology here Finally, as with the ONE, both interfaces are iOS compatible, bringing Apogee's high-fidelity recording to the world of iOS. Both interfaces come with the required connectors and adaptors to connect to older and newer iPads and iPhones. Performance The goal of our test was to see how well the preamps and converters of the Duet and Quartet faired against a reference benchmark, which was Smokehouse Studio's Cadac E-Type console preamp running into a Radar iZ Corp. We ran the Duet and Quartet directly into Macs and the Cadac preamp went into the Radar converter. We recorded a vocal and guitar take through each of the interfaces using a Nuemann u47 for the vocal and a Nuemann u87 on the acoustic guitar. We then listened to and compared the results through the studio's monitors. At times it felt like we were splitting hairs, but we could all agree on the following conclusions: We found that while the Duet held up well as a 2-input interface in its price range, the Quartet produced noticeably better results. We found the Quartet had a clearer and more detailed quality than the Duet. Of course, the Quartet is more than double the price of the Duet, so in some respects that makes sense. However, we were disappointed to find that the Duet wasn't simply a 2-input version of what the Quartet has to offer. That being said, in no way did the Duet produce a sub-par sound. It's just that the Quartet had more to offer when it came to audio fidelity. As expected, against the studio's Radar converters and Cadac preamps, the Quartet didn't quite match up. However, there was discussion at length as to just how much of a difference there was and the different kinds of sounds that were produced. Naturally, the Cadac and Radar are world-class hardware, where as, as Apogee states, the Quartet is a class-leading product. Conclusion There's no doubt that the Duet and Quartet are fantastic recording interfaces that work seamlessly with OS X (and iOS). Both Matt and Paul said they'd happily use either on a recording project, where as Jonathan was a little more picky. However, out of the two we all agreed that we'd go for the Quartet on a project if we had the choice. If you're in the market for a 2-input interface, the Duet is a fantastic sounding and beautiful looking interface that produces high-quality results. It's super easy to use and has a wonderful on-board control and metering system. For those looking for two extra inputs and three stereo outputs for monitoring, the Quartet is steep in price, but worth every penny. We were truly impressed by the sound produced by the preamps and converters found in the Quartet. Coupled with the enhanced on-board control and metering option, the Quartet is a stand out interface. Honestly, you could get more inputs for less, but you'd likely struggle to match the quality the Quartet offers.
Apogee ONE: An audio interface and microphone for Mac and iOS
Apogee's revamped ONE (US$349) is a 2 IN 2 OUT USB audio interface with a built-in microphone for Mac and now iOS, too. This means you can plug the interface into your Mac or straight into your iPhone or iPad (via Apple's newer Lightning connector or the legacy 30-pin dock connector) to record audio. The ONE's built-in microphone means that you can get to recording straight away, without the need for additional cables or mics. Apogee is a name synonymous with high quality mic preamps, AD/DA converters and clocking found in its high-end studio products, like the Symphony. These products are used by professional musicians and studio engineers around the world. Does the ONE live up to the renowned name and reputation of Apogee? Read on to find out. Hardware The revamped ONE (2013) replaces Apogee's first generation ONE (2009), which had just the single input and was not compatible with iOS devices. The original ONE was USB 1.1 compatible, Mac: bus powered, had a 24 bit, 44.1/48kHz sample rate and cost US$249. The new ONE beats its predecessor in all aspects, except price -- it'll cost you a $100 more. Aside from that, it offers low-latency USB 2 speeds, it's DC mains or battery powered (in addition to Mac: bus powering) and, finally, the new ONE has a 24 bit, up to 96kHz sample rate. The ONE is constructed with a die-cast aluminum body, which feels strong and sturdy. It's not heavy, and it's not particularly large (though taller than the original ONE), which is a good thing since it's intended to be extremely portable. The molded rubber base doesn't allow the ONE to go slipping off of surfaces either. There's just a single, large dial on the front of the ONE, which is used to operate all aspects of the device, though all operations can be carried out via Apogee's Maestro app for Mac and iOS, too. Above the dial is an LED input / output level meter and above that an LED input / output indicator (internal mic, external mic, instrument and volume). When using the ONE's built-in mic, it was particularly useful to have the level meter on the front of the device to reference input levels, instead of looking to my Mac or iOS device to see if things were peaking or too low. On the top of the device is a microphone / instrument input (expandable via breakout cable), a micro USB input (to connect to a Mac or iOS device) and a DC power input. All cables and the power supply are included with the ONE. The bottom side of the device has a 1/8" stereo output for headphones or powered speakers. The ONE's breakout cable gives you a 1/4″ instrument IN and an XLR IN. The devices allows you to have 2 simultaneous inputs: the instrument IN and the XLR mic IN or the built-in mic with the instrument IN. Of course, you can just use the ONE's built-in mic without the breakout cable attached. On the rear of the device is a battery compartment for two AA batteries, though these were not included. Powering the ONE with batteries eliminates the power supply from the mix when using the ONE with an iOS device, which dramatically adds to its practicality in a portable context. One glaring omission is MIDI input, especially for a device that's iOS compatible. With so many apps designed for MIDI use on iOS, it feels like the ONE's missing a trick. Performance on iOS Connecting the ONE to my iPad was just as easy as connecting it to my Mac. However, the first hurdle was power. iPads and iPhones won't power the ONE like a Mac does, so I opted to use the included power supply (though I could have gone for the battery option had I any to hand). On the plus side, using the power supply with the ONE meant that my iPad was charging instead of draining away. The next step was downloading Apogee's Maestro app, which is required for Mac as well. The app allows you to control all features of the ONE as well as improving latency issues. Once Maestro was installed, I launched GarageBand and got to adjusting settings. It took me a little while to get a good level because I was unfamiliar with the Maestro app. I found myself repeatedly switching between GarageBand and Maestro, trying to get a level that didn't peak, but wasn't too quiet. I found this process cumbersome, but once I was a bit more familiar with Maestro, things seemed to improve. That being said, The Maestro app does feel like a bit of a third wheel. The interface is akin to its desktop counterpart. Although that may be a comfort to those who've used it on the Mac, it doesn't feel at home on iOS. Buttons and sliders are small, for example, particularly on the iPhone. It's still workable, but a Maestro app designed solely with iOS users in mind would go a long way to improving the experience. Performance on OS X Really, there's not much to say here. If you've used an Apogee interface with a Mac, you know it's a solid combination. The ONE felt right at home with my Mac. I can't put my finger on it -- maybe it was simply familiarity -- but everything worked as you'd expect it to. The Maestro app is still required, but it does fit much better in place on OS X than iOS. Results Once I got to some recording, I was really surprised with the results. Using a Rode NT 2000, I found I was getting some fantastic results for the first time on my iPad. Similarly, things sounded great on OS X running Logic. But for me, the big surprise was actually the ONE's built-in microphone. It admirably handled whatever I threw at it. Once I realized how compelling the built-in mic was, the ONE began to make sense to me. You see, there are many external mics for iOS out there, but the ONE's mic in combination with Apogee-designed preamps and digital audio converters makes it a compelling package for recording audio on iOS (or Mac). You really can just plug in and record. There's no need for additional cables or mics. And you do get a fantastic sound out of it. Conclusion Plugging the ONE straight into my Mac and putting something down at a moments notice is a real plus, especially when the quality of the audio sounds this good. More so, for those moments where it's easier to grab your iPhone or iPad, the ONE produces the same results. The revamped ONE carries Apogee's name well. For its class, it's got stand-out preamps and converters and a built-in mic that really impresses, with expandability if you need it. And all of this in a highly compact and portable form factor. If you're looking for that kind of convenience, but without skimping on quality, the ONE is a solid choice.
Gibson has crammed a digital recorder inside a guitar cable
When I was an aspiring musician a few years back, I'd always forget new guitar licks that would arise from just messing around at rehearsals. Well, Gibson is looking to remedy that, and has partnered up with Tascam to do so. The result is the Memory Cable: a 1/4-inch instrument cable for guitar, bass, synths, drum machines and keyboards with a built-in audio recorder. Capable of capturing up to 13 hours of tunes, the accessory tracks to a micro SD card in CD-quality 44.1kHz/16-bit resolution which can be easily uploaded to recording software -- should the need arise. Uncrate reports that the add-on will be priced at $100 when it arrives in the US on May 15th. This rate includes the 16-foot cable with a 4GB micro SD card, but we're not seeing any official word from Gibson just yet. Of course, you'll be able to record your entire gig to see just how bad you messed up. So there's that.
Ultrakam lets your iPhone capture higher resolution film-like video clips
While Sony and Samsung are busy making phones with 4K recording capabilities, one developer has worked its pixel magic to get more from iPhone cameras. Ultrakam is the first iOS app capable of recording "2K" resolution with a film-like 24p frame rate, letting iPhone 5s owners shoot 2240 x 1672 pixel video (around 75 percent more pixels than regular HD) to output higher-quality footage than the default camera app. There's support for the iPhone 5 and 5c, as well as the the iPad mini and iPad with Retina display, but the app is limited to high-definition and "2K" at 20fps on less-equipped devices.
DoubleTwist's new app lets you save iTunes Radio tracks to your PC
The folks at DoubleTwist are at it again. Over the past three months they've crafted Android and OS X apps to help penny-pinching users save the music they hear on iTunes Radio, and now they've gone and done the unthinkable: they made a version for Windows PCs, too.
iRig Mic HD brings a hand-held option to iOS and Mac recording for $99
We've seen our fair share of mobile recording gear, and IK Multimedia is certainly no stranger to the fray. For those who prefer a more hand-held approach to tracking with an iOS device, the outfit has outed the iRig Mic HD. The digital condenser microphone is capable of handling your best attempt at Freddie Mercury's vocals, instruments and good, ol' spoken word with a 24-bit digital converter and a shape that will sit cozy in standard mic stands. There's also a built-in preamp and LED status indicator to keep levels in check -- similar to what we've seen on some of the company's previous releases. Of course, the main selling point is the unit's compatibility with the iPhone and iPad via Lightning connector (an improvement over its predecessor), but the device also plays nice with Mac thanks to added USB connectivity. As you might expect, the iRig Mic HD works with IK Multimedia's stable of apps like AmpliTube and iRig Recorder for those mobile captures. If you're still sporting older iOS wares, a 30-pin cable can be purchased separately when the $99.99/€79.99 accessory arrives next quarter.
Bossjock Studio: A podcasting powerhouse (Updated)
Last month I went on a short vacation, and decided I'd try to record the Daily Update podcast during my time off. My tool of choice at that time was GarageBand on the iPad, since it provides some great editing tools that work pretty well via the touch interface. Well, unfortunately one day into the trip I received an email from a reader who said that the recording was cutting off about two-thirds of the way through. Sure enough, I recorded another podcast and it did the same thing, so I knew I needed to fix the problem. A quick search through the App Store brought up Bossjock Studio (US$9.99, universal app) and within minutes I was downloading the app to give it a try. While traditional recording apps like GarageBand are designed to let you record snippets of sounds, layering them, making cuts (to get rid of coughs or mistakes) and doing transitions, that's not the idea behind Bossjock Studio. It's designed to record your podcast as if you're doing a live radio show, meaning that you can have a bunch of "carts" (cartridges) loaded with intro and outro music, advertisements, interviews, you name it, and then meld all of the carts together with your live recording. You can have either eight or 15 carts on the iPhone or iPod touch, or 20 or 35 carts on the iPad. Extensive settings let you change the amount of time for fade-ins and fade-outs for carts, and the app even provides automatic ducking -- something that was removed from GarageBand in the last update. The app also has automatic gain control to make sure you're not clipping the sound by overpowering the sound input from your mic; I found that it worked well to record about 10 seconds of sound ("testing, testing, one two three four...") to have the app set the mic level properly -- I then cut that extra noise later on. Recording is simple. You tap a large, red record button and Bossjock Studio begins capturing input. To enable the microphone, you tap on a large bar at the bottom of the screen. At any time, you can insert one of your carts by just tapping the cart button. The sound bite is played and recorded, and a timer on the cart shows just how long is remaining in the cart playback. While all of this is going on, there are easily viewed sound level meters showing exactly what's happening in your mix on both channels. There's also a big slider for adjusting volume going into the recorder from your mic, your carts or your overall mix. Once your recording is complete, it is saved on your device and you have a choice of what you can do with it. Exports can be done in MP3, M4A, WAV or AIFF formats; mono or stereo; and overall level can be adjusted as well. The exports can be shared to email, FTP, AudioCopy, SoundCloud, Dropbox or iTunes Share, or the file can be opened in another app. I found the FTP option quite simple to set up, and within minutes I was blasting files to Libsyn for publication. When you're doing the exporting of your file, you can also add a picture and description for the sound file. My only complaint about Bossjock Studio is that it has no built-in editing tools. If you wish to get rid of your pre-show level checks, remove sneezes or giggle fits, or cut curse words to help you maintain your "Clean" rating in iTunes, you're going to have to edit the sound file elsewhere. At this time, that means sending it to a Mac and using some other app like... GarageBand... or Audacity to do your cleanup. Unfortunately there's no way to "Open in GarageBand" on the iPad or iPhone, or you could do your cleanup work there. Update: Dave Mansueto of Bossjock let me know that there is a way to move recordings to GarageBand for editing using Audio Copy in Bossjock, then pasting the sound into GarageBand. There's a video here that shows how to do it, and also how to open GarageBand-created content in Bossjock. Awesome! If a future version of Bossjock Studio adds an editor, it will be the perfect podcasting tool. Right now, it's pretty amazing for doing off-the-cuff podcast recordings; an editor would make it the go-to tool for all podcast recording. Simply stated, if you're a podcaster who loves to do on-the-fly recording sessions with little or no editing, then spend your $10 today and buy Bossjock Studio. You'll be very happy that you did.
Producing a podcast entirely with iOS is easier than you might think
Podcasting is something typically done at a desk with fancy microphones and editing software, but as Fraser Speirs -- co-host of the Out of School podcast -- details on his blog, it's something that can also be done quiet smoothly using iOS exclusively. The process isn't necessarily as slick as it can be with a professional setup, and as Speirs admits, the options for shining up sketchy audio aren't as robust as they are on a desktop, but it's definitely doable. Speirs uses a Samson Meteor mic (US$69.99), Skype (free) and the Auria LE app ($24.99) to record his casts while on the road with just his iPad and iPhone. If you're wondering why GarageBand isn't the go-to option for recording software, it's because the iOS version of the program only supports recordings of up to 10 minutes. Check out the full rundown of the process on the original blog post.
IK Multimedia unveils the iRig Pro digital audio interface for iOS and Mac, ships this month for $150 (video)
Looking to capture some vocals or record a few guitar riffs while you're out and about? Well, IK Multimedia has yet another gadget that looks to lend a hand. The outfit's iRig Pro serves up a digital audio and MIDI interface that connects to the full gamut of iOS devices and Mac machines via USB. Battery-powered and quite diminutive in stature, the device wrangles microphones, guitars, MIDI devices and other Hi-Z instruments for mobile recording -- with those audio and MIDI inputs able to be employed simultaneously. The connected phone, tablet or laptop actually powers the add-on, but that internal 9V kicks it when needed to provide phantom power to a mic. A smattering of the company's apps come packaged with the unit including AmpliTube, SampleTank and iRig Recorder. Folks with older Apple devices shouldn't worry: the iRig Pro ships with cables compatible with Lightning, 30-pin and USB connections. If all of that sounds too good to pass up, $149.99 will be the required investment later this month. For now, venture past the break and take a quick look at the setup in action.
PS Plus not required to record & stream PS4 games, says Yoshida
Sony Worldwide Studios boss and Twitter info desk Shuhei Yoshida revealed PS4 owners won't require a PlayStation Plus subscription to access the system's game recording and streaming functions. After yesterday's news that the Xbox One's Game DVR recording is tied to Xbox Live Gold, several Twitter users asked Yoshida if Plus was needed for the PS4's similar functionality. Yoshida not once, not twice, but thrice replied in the negative. When approached, A Sony Computer Entertainment UK spokesperson told Joystiq a PS Plus subscription doesn't confer any extra functionality regards recording and streaming games. As confirmed to CVG, the PS4 can continually record 15 minutes of gameplay in the background, which users can edit and publish online, as well as stream video.
djay 2 now available, on sale for limited time
Djay is perhaps one of the best apps ever. The later video-based version, vjay is nothing short of an incredible feat of software engineering. I got a peek at djay 2, a standalone new app for iPad and iPhone/iPod touch, and it blew me away. I also got to meet the creators, and now that I understand how the original djay was created by someone who has actually worked as a DJ, I appreciate the small touches in the software all the more. djay 2 is a reworking of the original app, but the largely skeumorphic look remains. Details are amped up in places, but overall the app works mostly the same: you put records on one of two turntables and you commence to mixing, scratching, looping and making beats. The new touches add up to a whole lot, however. Beats in a song that are matched can now adjust and remain locked over the duration of the entire song. It's easier than ever to lock in on a particular riff and jump back to it over and over again. Albums appearing on the turntables draw grooves to match the duration of a song, so you can actually see a realistic representation of a vinyl album in the interface. That last part is of no consequence to amateurs who futz around, but if you've ever used a real table and real albums, it's really cool. Then there are the waveforms. Whereas most waveforms show you the shape of the sound, typically the dynamics (volume levels, more or less) of a song, djay 2 has introduced color waveforms. The colors are interpolated using the sound, so percussion areas might map to pink and softer string portions to green. I didn't coax a secret formula from the developers, but when you use it, you will immediately understand how much easier this is when it comes to finding portions of a song. It's now easier than ever to jump to a beat at any point in any song. All of this is also in HD and looks amazing on a Retina iPad. djay 2 continues a tradition of simplifying the work of a DJ's tools, while also giving pro DJ's a powerful instrument with which to play. Since the App Store doesn't do upgrade pricing, djay 2 (a separate, new app from djay v.1) is now available for US$4.99 on iPad and $.99 on iPhone/iPod touch. After a week the price will go up. We'll have a review from a real DJ in the coming days, so stay tuned.
Drums! gets redesigned for version 3.0
There are quite a few "drum simulator" apps on the iPad and the iPhone -- it's one of the first ideas a lot of developers had when the touchscreen devices became available, and lots of devs carried that idea out to release. But Drums! is one of the most popular of these apps -- it's gotten plenty of feature space from Apple, and has even been included in Apple Store demos for a while now. Just recently, Drums! was updated to version 3.0, and the app has been completely redesigned. The drums (which you just tap on to activate) are now represented with Retina display graphics, the drum sounds have been remastered and the app now has a music player, to allow you to play along with your own music. You can still record your work, or you can now record both drums and music, and then send that track out to email, WiFi or other popular file-sharing services. There are also now more drums available via in-app purchase, and you can do drum tricks like hit a rimshot just by tapping in a certain spot on the drum. Drums! is one of many drum-playing apps on the store, but it's a solid choice for sure. You can pick it up right now for just US$0.99. [via App Advice]
