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MOD Duo X review: A do-it-all music box with potential
The MOD Duo X is a one-of-a-kind desktop effects processor that has the potential to do even more. It's excellent for building virtual pedalboards, but its synth features still feel unfinished. If you’re looking for an all-in-one device that can be a multi-effects unit, a direct recording box, a headphone practice amp and a live sound mangler the Duo X is a solid choice, as long as you’re willing to spend the $749.
Griffin Stompbox -- a pedalboard for your virtual effects pedals
You wouldn't necessarily associate Griffin Technology with the latest and greatest in music technology, but having teamed up with Frontier Design Group -- developers of the iShred LIVE virtual guitar effects app -- Griffin has released one of the first accessory pedalboards to complete your virtual guitar effects setup. With the advent of virtual guitar effects on mobile devices, it was only a matter of time before a foot controller pedalboard arrived (logically imitating the traditional setup), allowing your feet to do the effects switching and leaving your hands on the guitar to get on with the business of playing. Before I jump into the review of the Griffin Stompbox (US$99.99), allow me to briefly explain how a traditional electric guitar setup works for those of you who aren't guitarists. First, you have your electric guitar. This guitar is plugged into an amplifier. However, many guitarists enjoy, love, desire and lust after guitar effects that improve and alter the tone and sound of their guitar. These effects come in the shape of digital and analogue pedal effects, or more effectionately referred to as pedals or stomp boxes. They are called pedals because they are turned on and off using your feet -- naturally, your hands are too busy playing the guitar. Traditionally, these pedals are expensive, and when many are used together, they are placed on a "pedalboard." Because many guitarists love to have as many pedals as they can get their hands on, these pedalboards are heavy and rather large. That's where devices like the iPad and iPhone come in. Virtual guitar pedal effects apps have been developed to mimic these traditional pedals, at a fraction of the cost and physical space and weight of traditional pedal effects. However, one problem with these virtual pedals has been that they are, well ... virtual. You've had to use your fingers to turn on and off these effects when traditionally you'd use your feet. You can't stomp your iPad with your feet! As a result, users of virtual effects have had to stop playing their guitars to change their virtual pedal effects -- this is a bad thing for guitarists. That's where Griffin's Stompbox comes in. Design The Stompbox itself feels sturdy and well constructed. It rests solidly on the floor and is easily pushed around, but it stays in place when you're using it as intended. It's plastic feel doesn't imbue a sense of high quality, but neither does it feel cheap or like it's about to fall apart. I have no doubt that it will be able to handle its fair share of knocks, drops and bumps. The four foot switches are metal and pleasing enough to push, but they don't click in or out. It's just a downward compression that pops straight back up again. Four accompanying LEDs light up brightly and clearly to indicate when a switch is activated. A 1-meter cable leads from the Stompbox to connect to your iPad's dock connector (I used an iPad for my review, but of course you can use a compatible iPhone or iPod touch). The cable is durable and strong. On the back of the Stompbox is 1/4'' input socket for a volume or expression pedal. Accompanying the Stompbox is Griffin's GuitarConnect cable ($29.99), used to connect your guitar to your iPad's headphone socket. A nice touch on the GuitarConnect cable is that the output socket, for an amp or headphones, is at the guitar end, not the iPad end. Meaning you have less wires crossing over your guitar, particularly if you're using headphones. Performance Connecting the Stompbox and GuitarConnect cable to my iPad and guitar was easy enough. However, straight away I noticed two problems. First, while the GuitarConnect cable solidly plugged into my iPad, if I knocked it or moved it just a bit it produced an unsavory crack and pop in my speakers, suggesting that perhaps something wasn't as tightly wired as it could be. However, this could be a one-off problem that just happened to be in my review unit. That aside, I didn't notice any undue hum or buzz. Overall, everything sounded very clear and full-sounding. The second problem I encountered is that you can only use iShred Live (the app designed to work with the Stompbox) in portrait mode. It doesn't work in landscape mode. Thinking of using the Stompbox in a musical setting, I immediately went to place my iPad on a music stand in landscape mode. You can imagine my disappointment when I realised it didn't work. And obviously, the iPad won't rest upright in portrait mode with a rather large dock connector cable plugged into the bottom of it. So that leaves two options, place the iPad on a flat surface like a table or the floor (not ideal) or buy the Griffin (or other brand) iPad mic stand mount. (Editor's note -- the IKMultimedia iKlip for iPad/iPad 2 ($39.99) attaches the iPad securely to a mic or music stand.) It's not a huge problem, but surely when most other apps work in both portrait and landscape mode -- including other virtual guitar effects apps -- you'd expect iShred Live to be able to do the same. That aside, the StompBox performed well in conjunction with the iShred Live app. With four banks each containing four channels, totalling 16 fully customizable presets, I had no difficulty working my way round iShred Live's selection of effects, metronome, tuner, recorder and song selector using my feet. There was a short learning curve involved. To activate a bank, simply hold down the respective foot switch. To turn on or off a channel, simply tap the respective foot switch. To exit a bank, hold down the foot switch for the bank you wish to enter next. Just make sure you tap that foot switch dead on and with a consistant pressure. I found that the Stompbox was quite particular about activating a foot switch. A light tap won't do it; you need to be firm and precise, which is probably a good thing. One thing that I wasn't expecting was the intelligent use of the Stompbox's LEDs, which was a pleasant surprise. Of course, they light up when you activate a channel or bank, but enter something like the tuner and those lights become a whole lot more significant. With the tuner turned on, the LEDs indicate if a string is flat or sharp by only lighting up on the left or right side of the Stompbox, and the two center LEDs shine consistantly together to indicate that you've hit the right pitch. Once I got my head around the Stompbox, I'm pleased to say my attention focused on playing the guitar, with the Stompbox simply getting the job done with no distractions. While the Stompbox draws its power from the iPad's battery, I'm happy to say I noticed no dramatic increase in the loss of battery charge. However, with the Stompbox plugged into the iPad, there is no way to charge the iPad. If you're planning a day long rehearsal, it goes without saying that you should make sure your device is fully charged. Other Applications Griffin's website says that the Stompbox will work with other Stompbox compatible apps. However, it doesn't say what these apps are. I know that the Stompbox is compatible with QScript, a text prompter app, but aside from that, I've not seen anything else. I'd love to see the Stompbox working with other virtual guitar effects apps, but whether that will happen is anyone's guess. It would be disappointing to see each major music software developer introduce their own unique pedalboard accessory, tying the users pedalboard to a specific app. Conclusion At $99,99, the Griffin Stompbox isn't particularly expensive -- in fact, it's one of the cheapest virtual effects foot controllers out there -- but when users are paying less than a dollar to buy a pedal effect on their iDevice, it's a big jump to fork out a hundred bucks for an accessory. But then again, the Stompbox does complete the guitar setup circle, bringing pedal effects back to your feet where they should be. Is the Stompbox worth getting? I think if you're a guitarist who has invested in the virtual effects setup on your iDevice, you'll be extremely pleased with what the Stompbox has to offer. If you're a guitarist running a traditional setup and have been holding off getting involved with the mobile device effects scene while waiting for a pedalboard like the Stompbox, I think you'll be intrigued by the Stompbox. You might want to hold off and investigate the next generation of pedalboards to come. For more information on Griffin"s StompBox, visit the Griffin website here. For more information on iShred Live app, click here.
Griffin's StompBox available to order, virtual guitar shredding now a go
Remember that Griffin-made StompBox we showed you back in January? Well, it's finally hit the market, so you can free up those virtuoso hands and get to pedal-pounding wicked sound effects. The four button foot controller works with Frontier Design's iShred LIVE app for iOS, connecting your instrument via an included GuitarConnect cable to a 1/4-inch jack. The device is "designed to work with... a guitar, bass guitar, electric violin and keyboard," so your virtual jam band session is all but guaranteed. This musical f/x dongle is available to order now for $99.99 online, or you can just head to one of Apple's boutiques to snag it. Sadly, the effects switcher doesn't come bundled with a copycat of Slash's hat, but that shouldn't stop your credit card from indulging in this latest bout of Gear Acquisition Syndrome.
SoftStep KeyWorx controls your PC with your feet, turns browsing into DDR (video)
The SoftStep KeyWorx is primarily being sold by music shops and, while the PC pedal board certainly has a number of uses when it comes to music production, Keith McMillen Instruments has grander visions -- like aiding amputees and RSI sufferers. The 10 pressure-sensitive buttons and directional pad can be used to control almost any function on a computer, and it can store up to 100 customized commands for everything from launching apps, to strafing opponents while getting your deathmatch on. The foot control peripheral is available now for $290 and you'll find both a demo video and some PR after the break. Now, someone get Rick Allen one so we can challenge him to a round of Call of Duty.
Griffin StompBox brings guitar effects app to your feet, lets your hands play
With the arrival of virtual guitar effects on portable devices like the iPhone and iPad, many guitarists are re-thinking the way they set up and play their electric guitars. For the average player, an almost endless array of varied tones and effects are now available in high-quality virtual form at a fraction of the cost and weight of their real-world counterparts. It's not surprising that many guitarists are turning to virtual pedal boards for practicing, band rehearsals and the occasional gig, too. One of the biggest problems with virtual effects pedal boards is that they are, well, ... virtual. They're on a screen near your eyes and hands instead of being within reach of your feet as they should be, keeping your hands free to play while your feet manage effects. Thankfully, with four assignable foot switches, a 1/4" effects pedal input jack and a meter long dock connector cable, Griffin (in conjunction with Frontier Design Group) has taken the bold step (no pun intended) of bringing the pedal board back to where it should be with the StompBox pedal controller for iPad / iPhone and iPod touch. The Griffin StompBox will work seamlessly with Frontier Design Group's iShred Live virtual guitar effects app (sold separately), but (from what we understand) the StompBox "... can act as an assignable controller for other foot-switch-compatible applications," according to Griffin's website. However, we doubt the StompBox will have seamless compatibility with other virtual guitar effects apps at this stage. There's no doubt in our minds, though, that some of the other big players will follow suit shortly with their own version of a foot-switch controller. The StompBox is priced at US$99.99 on the Griffin StompBox website and will be available February / March. [Via Engadget, Pocket-lint]
Griffin StompBox pedal board brings authenticity to iPad rocking
Users of the iShred Live iOS app (no relation to this thing) now have a pedal board to do the job of, well, a pedal board. Up until recently, the app allowed players to connect their electric guitars to an iPhone or iPad, and use said device as an amplifier, with a near endless array of pedal effects at their fingertips. Looking for a way to make the experience more authentic, Griffin teamed with the folks at Frontier Design Group to create the StompBox, which, according to Griffin's website, "effectively recreates the experience of an actual pedal board." It features four separate foot switches, which can be assigned particular effects by the user, and connects to the iPad or iPhone with a 1-meter-long dock connector cable -- guitar connection cables are sold separately. Now the future Peter Framptons of the world can scale back on setup time and concentrate on making their guitars talk.
