Audiobus: Use your music apps together.
What is Audiobus? — Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.
Download on the App StoreAudiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.
Let's discuss the QUALITY of the software synths available on the iOS platform
I'm not sure how to start this, but it has been bothering me for a while. Sure, we have a lot of synths available for iOS. Sure, we have it better than any other mobile platform. But I want to talk about the quality of the synths that are coming out. We have very flexible modular synthesizers available, so I'm not talking about features, but rather the quality of the components. For example, how good are the filters, how good are the oscillators, etc. While I don't want to disuade anyone from talking, I think that those who have experience with both hardware and desktop plugins, as well as most of the iOS synths available now will be best to contribute to this topic (since they likely know the level of quality I'm talking about). I'm VERY picky when it comes to the quality of the sound of synths. I own hardware, I own many desktop synth plugins, and I own just about every synth on the iOS platform. Last night, I purchased the new modular synth, Tera, and was not disappointed with what it was able to do (it's a very well made modular and it can do A LOT), but was rather disappointed with the over all sound quality. Yes, it's one of the better synths available, but still, it is not equal to the sound of my hardware or many of my high quality desktop plugins. In fact, few of the synths we have available meet that level of quality. Many of us have sung praises about the Arturia synths and how great it is to have that quality of sound on an iPad (myself included). But if you are a member of hardware or desktop plugin forums, they are not held in high esteem for their sound quality. Please don't get me wrong....I look forward to getting the next Arturia app probably as much as any of us, because it's among the best that we have available. However, I think we should be aiming higher as a platform. To this day, only two synths really meet the sound quality that I am referring to: Sunrizer and Animoog (and maybe a couple of others: Nave, WaveMapper, WaveGenerator, Thor, etc...). But seriously, each new synth that comes out is trying to trump the others in features and capabilities, but what we end up with, is 30 synths that all sound quite the same, with nothing really special to them. What I think we really need is quality and character. I would much rather have a more limited synth that is aimed for a particular purpose that has a different character and very high quality of components (ie filters, oscillators, etc), than another synth that tries to do everything and does it all ok, but not superbly. Very, very high quality synths, targeted to specific purposes, each with distinct character to the sound, is what we really need today. Has anyone heard the sound demos from the latest Beepstreet synth? The developer spent 3 months on the filter alone! Oh, and the sound!!!! This is what I'm talking about!! I think the BeepStreet developer is doing exactly what I'm talking about! Check out the sound quality of the desktop software plugin, Diva. That's the sound quality I'm talking about. Diva is a monster, and the iOS platform doesn't have that kind of processing power yet, but look at what Beepstreet is doing. This is obtainable. This is what we need!
Sorry for the long rambling post, but I hope I was able to express my feelings in such a way that everyone--especially developers--will understand. Let's discuss! :-)
Comments
By definition, it's subjective. The very fact that you picked Animoog as one of the only two iOS synths that are of high quality proves that- Animoog makes interesting sounds, yet I find it kind of harsh and lacking in "quality".
I usually pick out iSEM as an especially good sounding synth, and many people seem to agree, not that that makes us "right". I think iMini is quite good also (sound wise- it still has some usability issues).
I'm pretty impressed with Tera too. Check out the DoubleSync patch 014 in the Lead category- really beefy.
Well said!!!
I do not retain hope that the iOS "community" will actually listen to what you have said, though...
iOS apps have conveniently skipped the whole part about so called "function" and instead jam 1000 features that only a few would need...
That's where desktop software is now, except that most of it works. And it's weathered 20+ years of real world trial...
@Zymos Yes, Animoog is subjective, and I was reluctant to include it, but did anyway. :-) However, Beepstreet's work is pretty objective as the audio samples show. It may not have the character that one likes, but the filter examples are exceptional! This is what I'm referring to--the high quality of the individual components, rather than a huge quantity of mush. That's why I mentioned that synths targeted for a specific purpose or audio palette "sound" might be preferable. As for Tera, I am not dissing Tera for what it is--it's a good modular synth--heck, it's a great modular synth. It will no doubt be able to excel and something (ex. your DoubleSync patch 014), but will it be able to do everything that it's capable of well? What I'm saying is that I think it is time for developers to focus on the quality and character of their synths rather than focusing on their synths being able to do everything. Does that make sense?
@Dubhausdisco said:
Agreed, but if we start talking about it, then more developers might start listening. :-)
@Zymos said:
There is a point at which "it's subjective" just doesn't cut it. There are objectively great sounding synths (hard and soft) out there... How can you compete with your peers when you claim that these app synths sound "subjectively" good?
@Audiojunkie said:
Yeah, well I did say something. When this forum had just started. Of course I got railroaded and flamed out because I was against progress or something....
There is a high chance that the iPad will have a newer and faster processor this fall. With how quickly the iPad processor speed is improving, the capability is starting to get to where some really, really superb sound quality can be achieved. I know we have it good now, but the bar needs to be raised. We should not accept mediocrity. We may have the best mobile platform, but it is time to start comparing quality to the desktop world and to synth hardware.
@Dubhausdisco said:
Well, I'm not going to flame you out! :-) It is now time for us to aim higher. Have you heard the filter demos of the new upcoming Beepstreet synth? Currently, the synth is going to be monophonic, because the processor usage is so high, but OH DOES IT SOUND GREAT!! If every developer started focusing on the individual quality of each component in the synth chain, and develop a unique character or purpose for a synth, we could be achieving hardware quality on our mobile synths, and we could be doing it now.
Here is the link to the sound examples. Remember, these samples are not meant to be musical, but to show off the quality of the filter component:
How can you make an "objective" assessment of audio samples you listened too? You could look at audio on a scope or analyze the spectrum and pick out some objective measures of something, but really all you are saying is that you think they sound good. And I might well agree, though a few months ago people were all excited about Beepstreet's new project, and the only samples I could find were not at all interesting or even pleasant to me. Do you have a link handy- is it their Soundcloud? [edit- you beat me to it while I was typing- thanks]
Nothing wrong with encouraging developers to make their products better, and I definitely agree that it isn't just the list of features that make an app good- the way it sounds is crucial.
Looks like we crossed in our postings. :-) My link is above your post. :-) Remember, these examples are NOT meant to be musical in any way, but to demonstrate the components (ie filter, oscillator, etc). It will be when the synth is used in a musical way, and not in a demonstrative way that you will likely see the difference between what mush we have now and what this synth offers. This approaches hardware in quality.
After the main audio example plays on the link above, there will be some additional samples available to listen to. Remember, these samples are demonstrative of the quality and capability of the components, and NOT meant to be musical.
I have a feeling what you are getting at by "quality" is how close can something come to sounding like an analog synth. As you said -"approaches hardware in quality". Which is a fine goal if that's what you want, but I don't think it should be the only goal, or that synths that are not even attempting to do that are somehow of lower quality.
Not necessarily "analog" at all. The above synth was just an example, and it was modeled after a digital synth (not analog). The point is the quality of the components. I mention hardware only because, aside from Diva, hardware is generally held as the gold standard of sound quality. :-)
Well, maybe BIAS is an example in amp sims. It is generally regarded as having the highest sound quality (on iOS at least), and it does concentrate on doing one thing well: simulating amps only, no effects.
edit: come to think of it, there are quite a few stand-alone effects that are better than the ones inside some DAWs or amp sims. And how about the Fabfilter plug-ins for Auria, ported straight from the desktop versions?
I can well imagine someone coming along with improved synth components, if the demand is there, and it eventually will be with more powerful CPUs and, hopefully, more memory in upcoming iPads/iPhones.
If it's a question of iOS mobile apps versus what is possible in theory or in reality on a desktop processor with a much faster processor, then yes, I think you can objectively say that the possibilities are much greater for "richer" or more "complex" sounds without the hardware limitations of most of the iOS devices people actually own. But I'm not sure where you go with that. All of us were drawn to making (or just playing) music on iOS for some reason - be it convenience, portability, or even low cost. To be fully honest, I didn't have any clue how a synthesizer worked or what an "808" was before I "discovered" those sounds on iOS and then learned more about them.
But I think it's absolute "never-ending valley" constantly obsessing over the next best sound at the expense of just using and appreciating what we have already. This is not to say that I don't buy way too many apps (I do), or that developers should continue pushing the limits of what the new devices can do to make better "stuff" (they should). But the quality of stuff we already have is absolutely good enough to make quality music now, and having better "stuff" won't inherently change that experience.
Comparing synths from brand to brand seems impossible to me. I come to this discussion as an amateur guitar player. There are dozens of variables that go into the sound a particular type of guitar might make, including playing style, string gauge, amplifier type and settings, gain control, and tone/EQ settings. But if you play me a recording of a clean $2,000 Fender Stratocaster, there's a good chance I could identify that sound, or at least tell it apart from a Telecaster or guitar with humbuckers. What's more, I could probably approximate something very close to that sound with my $150 Squier Stratocaster.
But what the hell classifies "Sunrizer" versus "Magellan"? These are apps with hundreds of factory presets, not to mention settings that allow for all types of filters and effects within each particular "sound". The instrument of the synthesizer itself is really more akin to the entire signal chain (and all of its variables) of what produces the final amplified sound of a guitar. And I have no idea how to tell you what a particular synthesizer "sounds like", unless maybe you used the exact same type of synthesis on two different apps and used identical settings to try and create the same sound. Then you might be able to have a "contest" between the two, and people would probably STILL be split as to which is better.
The question I ask about our synths is how well they actually function within the ecosystem/workflow we use them in. Analog equipment isn't inherently "better" than digital, but the former doesn't suffer from "buffer under-run". I'm no expert, but the sound I hear in my headphones when monitoring a quality iOS synth sounds like the real thing to me. If anything, I think the end experience is held back by: (a) insufficient processing power on some devices; and (b) inadequate interfaces that degrade the quality of that sound once you try to get it off the iPad and into something else.
I can say as a hardcore mobile musician in the past and as a very new Mac user i can agree. The sound quality i get out of Diva, Omnisphere, Alchemy, Zebra etc. is far behind what's there on iOS. But f. e. Diva can bring an i7 quadcore down easy. The zero feedback filters and all those stuff are high on cpu and iOS is not made for this and it will be always behind a desktop "workhouse". Hardware is another game too and very expensive. When i play with all those iOS synths i think Nave has the best quality in sound. There are a lot others which are great like Sunrizer, the Virsyn stuff etc. and things which are made for touchscreens like Animoog. My favourite iOS synth is still Mitosynth, not because it has amazing filters etc. but it's unique in iOS and desktop world for me and it get me inpired to try things i even didn't think about before.
Now that i'm working with iOS and OSX i can say that i would prefer the desktop synths but i would like to control them via my iPad (like in Logic Pro X... but more advanced please). I wonder why there are not more remote (or far more advanced) remote apps out there. It's just what i now see as future. The combination of this worlds seems just perfect.
There will always be a place for iOS synths in my workflow, especially since it will be more and more easy to include this into a desktop DAW. I was fighting so long for the mobile world.... but at the end it was the best choice to look forward and don't limit me anymore so much.
Even when the cpu and ram will increase again, it's still so far away and the desktop world is not sleeping as well. My Macbook Pro cost me "just" 2X the price of my iPad Air and instead of buying every year a new iPad to get a bit more cpu and/or ram i see more sense in buying every 2 year a new Macbook Pro.....or in 3-4 years a Mac Pro. I have the same feeling in general with tons of my iOS apps. They might be cheap but they cost me hundread of bucks and i still can do a lot more with 2-3 Audio Units for the same money. For a short instead buy iOS apps are nice but when i think about it for a serious workflow and a long time use, i feel better to spend bucks for desktop software instruments or awesome libraries which are not available for iOS.
Indeed, i'm really not impressed of the demos from beep street... is it a mono synth. Well, i'm not that "everything must sound analog" guy. Omnisphere is at the moment my favourite software instrument from all because i love these mix of organic and synthetic sounds and the sound sources are just what i want for my kind of music.
I also was very surprised from "Sculpture" in Logic Pro X. I think it's an old synth but i seldom (or never) heard such organic sounds created without samples.
I will always be in the iOS world too but i really gave up the dream to wait for all the goodies there because it will not happen soon.
I was able to create some fantastic Audiobus 2 presets which sounded so huge etc. but the ram and cpu (and iOS itself) in the iPads it's not made for it.
Just my 2 cents.
@Audiojunkie said:
But Diva is admired precisely because it is considered to sound so close to analog hardware.
Isn't the processing power in current iPads at least as much as is found in a typical digital or VA synth? I feel that there are at least several iPad synths already that would be indistinguishable in a blind test against hardware VAs.
I guess I have a hard time separating the elusive "quality" from "an accurate analog emulation". I think what you were asking for in your first post is going to happen anyway. There are so many synths available, it's hard to imagine someone working on yet another do-everything VA type of synth- the next Sunrizer or Magellan. Which leaves emulations of existing gear, new or under represented types of synthesis or, as you mentioned, an app that tries to do a specific thing exceedingly well, whatever that thing may be.
It's surprising that others been thinking about this, this has been in my mind for some time now. When you look at developers in the iOS world, they develop a synth, release it with all the hype and then that's it for most of them. They seems to forget about further development on their app.Look at Thor for example, I know a lot of people love Thor , when last we seen an update to Thor with some simple features that users been asking the development team since it's release.
Things like midi mapping, better library of sorting presets. I honestly expected better from the development team of Propellerheads Apps.
What bugs me is that you try to contact some of them and they don't even answer you back, but they already collect our money.
I love the sound of Alchemy and the developers are listening to their user base, also when you
contact them they quickly respond to you.+1 for the developers of Alchemy.
I also have an issues with the sound quality of lots of these apps, they like the forget about their audio engine in the apps.
Let's hope the developers are reading these post and would do something about these issues.
^ completely agree with that comparison of those two developers. But then again, Thor IS what I consider a great sounding synth- nothing wrong with its audio engine itself, just needs those things you mentioned.
@djjuniorpops: I think that most of the iOS apps like Thor, Z3Ta+, Alchemy and a few others are more made for that little extra money and to get people interested in the desktop versions.... well, In my case they catch me with Alchemy
Another thing which i'm tired about since a while is in general all the emulations. It's nice to have a few but i'm looking more for complete new things.
Things like Synthplant, Mitosynth, Hybrid-Synthesizers, Modular Beasts.... yeah that's what i want.
@Zymos I agree Thor is a great sounding synth, I just made the comparison to show where developers go wrong.
We could also look at Figure, users been asking for a iPAD app since it's been release, I for one use a dock with my IPAD and it's a pain that their is no landscape mode for some of these apps.
@Cinebient every time I fire up Alchemy whether it's the desktop or IOS versions I always enjoy playing with it.
Support certainly is a factor in the overall quality of a developer, but the thread is about the quality of the audio engines inside the products themselves.
In my mind there is just so much more to this conversation than "audio quality" if we compare iOS to desktop. Overall quality includes ease of use, organization of functions, management of the hardware's resources, support, and the trump card for iOS: touch performance implementation.
In particular, I've seen very little innovation making use of this supposedly magical M7 motion processor introduced in all the 2013 devices. I mean we are supposed to have this highly accurate motion detector sending data directly to the processor... hmm, sounds like a huge opportunity. We should be seeing things like highly accurate drum pad and note velocity simulation and better accelerometer funtions at the very least.
So, while I'm quite happy with audio quality on the few synths I have chosen carefully, I agree with the OP that there is lots of room for growth in iOS synth quality, especially in the areas that could actually set it apart from desktop.
Sorry to get off-topic if you guys want to focus on audio. carry on ;-)
@mmp it was just a comparison to show that if they some of them don't even support , develop their Apps then the Audio engine in some of these apps also suffer because some of them don't communicate with their user base so how would they know that the Audio sounds like SHIT. Or may be they just don't care since the already collected our money.
@Hmtx that's why I made the comparison of support and further development of the Apps on the IOS Platform.
I find it very hard to define good for sound. I have a few hardware analog & digital synths, lots of vsti's and most iOS synths too.
Some synths sound amazing on their own (or with a few effects) but some how needs a lot of mixing for it to fit in the mix (all depends on the style of course). But I agree that sounds (synth or not) need to feel "organic", living, with a soul of it's own. Oscillators, filters and modulation possibilities are a big part in this organic feel. Sometimes a nice oscillator can do with a bad filter, or the opposite, but it needs something special somewhere to make us enjoy the sound it produces.
I think that is why we like iSEM , animoog and others. I often test synths (actually it's one of my favorite hardware tricks for mono synths) by playing twice the same thing, and pan out the two recorded tracks. It can really bring out all the little chaotic things in the sound.
I also have the same problem with piano sounds... But that's the same story with just as much mess
Anyway, more power, more time and more money and we'll still find reasons not to be making great music
Just wondering if one could tell the difference in a band mix... after it's played among all of the other music instruments and been EQ'd, filtered, compressed, reverbed, and mastered? Lot's of fidelity gets cut out during that process and the tone becomes implied or extrapolated by the human ear. By itself, ya.
@mtyas said:
I enjoy the discourse overall, but this line was worth quoting.
@Coloobar said:
Excellent point. I've found this to be true of iOS and VST guitar-modeling software. A case for appealing to devs' work with post-production apps, perhaps?
@Cinebient When Alchemy 2.0 came out I buy the desktop version too