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.
Synth Questions...AAH!
Well I have been looking at different Synth apps and have made up my mine to only limit myself to two.
I have been looking at the following...
1.Thor
2.Z3ta+
3.Nave
4.Grain Science
Now as for the type of music I want to make, mainly Rnb, Hip Hop and sometimes some synthy smooth electronic stuff. With that said which do you think would be best for me. I know all that I listed are considered good but I am not rich enough to buy all four of them right now and get the Pro pack for Alchemy lol.
Also can someone break down Grain Science and whats so cool about it? I know some people like it but I'm not familiar with Glandular synthesis.
I also would like some one to explain Nave and if you can bring your own synths into that one as well.
Thank you guys!
Comments
@MarkySo said:
I think PaulB is probably the best person to explain how this works...
Okay, what about the other questions?
From your style of music and your choice of synths, Thor and Nave, but have you considered replacing Thor with TERA, not Micro Tera although thats good too. Nave is a good choice though.
Another good option is Animoog, thats the only synth I prefer to play with the iPad rather than a midi keyboard.
So many great synths, it seems a shame to limit yourself to just two, but I do see your point from a workflow perspective, it becomes impossible to get anything done, too many apps and not enough time :-)
For Hip Hop and R&B, I think iMini and Thor would be a good combo. Though it depends on what sort of beats you make of course.
If you look up 'granular' synthesis on wikipedia and youtube you'll see what people are excited about with grain science.
Grain Science is the most powerful Granular synth for iOS because have two Grain Units and a similar modulation capability as Mitosynth.
There are some type of Synthesis discovered from 1982 at today, all sample based and all after the advent of microprocessor.
The first is FM synthesis (Frequency Modulation) : Thor
The second is Wavetable Synthesis : Nave
The third is Granular Synthesis : Grain Science
and some other type of synthesis like Waveshaping : Z3ta+ - Addictive : Cube - Anisotropic : Animoog - Vectorial : Mitosynth - WaveGuide : Tera
The Granular Synthesis scan through a single waveform like Wavetable but in different way: It read undred of little pieces of audio that you can manipulate in different way.
I don't have Nave or Grain Science, but would take Z3ta+ over Thor, especially in a R&B/hip hop setting. Some of the basses in Z3ta+ are so sick, but I've also combed through over 15,000 3rd party patches for it and hand-picked all of my favorites. Just talking about stock presets they might about equal.
@richardyot said:
No sweat...
@PaulB said:
That wouldn't be a very good synth, then.
@Sinapsya FM synthesis was around a lot earlier than 1982...
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency_modulation_synthesis#History
@PaulB Yes I know but in 82 the first synth with FM came out : DX7
This is a great lecture that seems to indicate otherwise:
I saw this guy play the GS1 and the GS2 along with a CS40M when he played a warm up gig with some other Yamaha musicians in the student union bar when I was at music college in the early 80s. They had John Etheridge playing guitar, which was very cool, since I was a Soft Machine fan.
Sunrizer. Don't forget Sunrizer, y'all.
@thesoundtestroom said:
I never heard of Tera, Thank you. I will look into this and see if I could see it in action via you tube.
Also I own Animoog, NLog Pro(I hate it), Alchemy(I want to get the pro update), Imini and Sunrizer for the record everyone. I guess I should have put that in the OP!
Edit:Terra is a nice app. I just saw your video and it does sound unique! I like it. Now this makes my decision even tougher. Then again Terra is a cheaper app for only 9.99 I think so I might get it as well as two other ones lol.
@syrupcore said:
You mean Imini when it works correctly right? Cause these days Imini is like a girlfriend. Filled with love sometimes, but other times you relationship could be filled with arguments and disputes lol.
Why would you choose Thor over the others though?
@Sinapsya said:
Thanks for breaking this down in your post. I really appreciate it!
@Coloobar said:
Thanks you for mentioning Z3ta, makes me definitely want to get it after hearing it being used. The sound seems amazing!
I think it might be one of my choices unless someone has a reason why I should get one of the other three over that one.
@PaulB Is Grainscience good for hiphop or RnB or more so electronic music(like on the experimental side)?
@CalCutta said:
Lmao why you said that bro!
@MarkySo said:
Why?
@fjcblanco said:
Gives off a weak thin and tiny metalic sound to me and it overall sounds kind of dull. It's not for what I want to create.
@MarkySo said:
Too much talcum
@MarkySo said:
Yeah, iMini can be a shit depending on your workflow. I tend to use it, sample it and move on and it's fine for that.
Thor over all of the others because it has the widest sonic palette. It can get weird but basically keeps things straight as compared to Grain Science or Nave.
Yeah.
@syrupcore said:
Yeah Imin could be a pain. What do you mean by it keeps things straight? Do you mean the sounds don't get too out of control or clashy as easily?
Also do you think Z3ta is good?
@Coloobar said:
Where'd you find those Z3ta+ presets? I haven't been so lucky.
@Coloobar said:
Although I admire your effort trawling through that many presets, I have to say it might be quicker to make your own :-)
@johnfromberkeley said:
Fess up!
Thought someone should say (a nerd like myself perhaps) Thor isn't a FM synth, it offers an FM pair oscillator among 6 other oscillator types including wavetable, analog and phase mod -
The FM synths I like on iOS are t7, and the DXi, a deceptively modest and low cost but fantastic emulation of the Yamaha dx7 mentioned above. Could be cool for Hip Hop tracks...
Z3ta would be especially cool for you if you could do the Virus Mod on the iOS Z3ta + that available for the vst Z3ta + (though not for the Z3ta 2).
Z3ta + (the pre 2 vst can be had as freeware - legal - http://www.fruitytuts.com/Downloads/vst-plugins/z3ta/)
The Virus mod, from KVR: http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=356650
Animoog and Sunrizer would also be worth considering for type of music you mentioned
@Littlewoodg said:
Thanks I will look into Z3ta a bit more than.
I almost made up my mind on Thor and Nave a few minutes ago.
@RedSkyLullaby said:
Thanks but I own both of those already and love them!
By straight I guess I meant movement within the sound. Nave is similar tech to Animoog in that it uses wavetables. Part of the 'magic' in both of those synths is dancing around the wavetable in various ways. Thor, while it has plenty of modulation possibilities, is generally, er, straighter. I guess I also mean generally more useful in straight up boom bap beat making. For sure, Animoog and Nave can do more straight up synth sounds but I'm not sure that's playing to their strengths.
But really, with your current set of synths, you have a lot of sonic territory covered. Maybe a better question is: what is it that you find yourself reaching for and not getting from what you already have?