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.
Bias FX July 4th Sale
Now on sale for 20.99 Euros/Dollars.
Comments
For US$10, I would try. I have no (intellectual) objections to the higher prices that they're asking; I understand that cheap apps are not sustainable. But I've already bought JamUp Pro, several IAPs, and two versions of Bias Amps (iPhone and iPad). It adds up.
Yonac was really smart (or just really mean) when it put Tonestack's Motherlode package on sale for $10. Now that Tonestack has IAA, I don't have a compelling reason to get Bias FX, apart from curiosity. I might scratch that itch yet, but the prospect of repurchasing the various IAPs I bought for JamUp makes it easy to ignore for now.
Well on the one hand it's pretty cheap for what you're getting, and the quality really is good, and a step up from Jamup for sure.
On the other hand if you already own Tonestack with the Motherload then this isn't really bringing anything new or better to the table IMO. Of course I haven't seen the new IAPs that are coming to BIAS FX next week yet, maybe they'll offer some compelling new options.
I'll wait unti it's 4.99 the week after it's 19.99 the week after it's 9.99...curious company. I haven't touched ios amp modeling in quite a while, no particular reason I just haven't. Could have to do with being a bassist and realizing that the subtleties between different models gets lost on bass I the mix? I don't know, just rambling on my day off...
I don't blame Positive Grid for trying to move iOS pricing in a sustainable direction. If I didn't have JamUp (with IAPs) and Tonestack (with IAPs) and Flying Haggis already, I'd be jumping on this.
Your recordings command respect. Forgive me if you've said this elsewhere, but what makes this one special? Features? Quality? Workflow? Part of me is thinking, "This is less than most Behringer pedals. Why are you hesitating, and WHY are you talking about it?" Another part is saying, "You already have more than you can use right now. More gear != more music."
I'll buy Bias FX when it's on sale. Hopefully that'll happen when the new FX packs go up.
The only time I'd buy Bias FX and the new IAPs is when it's on sale - at a substantial amount off. Regarding 'sustainability', it seems that doesn't apply to their older apps - JamUP, for example.
Yonac's very shrewd ploy of reducing their Motherlode package when Bias FX came out created a satisfied customer in my case !
What's the main difference between Bias FX and Jam up pro ??
BIAS FX just sounds better. A lot better IMO. Personally I've never really liked the tone from Jamup.
I'm in the process of getting my first guitar and I like Tone Stack because you get the iPhone version with the iPad for one low price (I got them on sale). I'm probably going to get a Squier or an Epiphone. The HSS start looks good because you get a humbucker along with two single coil.
Get the one that feels and sounds right to you -- I had the same idea going in, but changed my mind when I actually started trying guitars in the store. I haven't tried the cheaper Epiphones, but even the cheapest Squiers, with their crude tuning machines, are playable and fun. It's a nice time to be a musician.
If you get the cheapest guitar you can find and can solder, you should think about swapping out the pick-ups for aftermarket pick-ups from China, new from ebay.
I agree with @Flo26. Perhaps adding a few € (or $) to buy a guitar with better pickups, better tuning machines... well better hardware in general, will help you have better times on your instrument. You'll learn faster and won't be disappointed when you'll start playing bend notes or barre chords because you won't have to "fight" with your guitar.
By the way, it's true that some Squier models are good bases for cheap but interesting updates. I think of the vintage modified or classic vibe series...
Required Viewing:
"I want it to be a struggle.."
Thanks guys. I'm looking at 3 Squier strats that range in price from $129 to $249. What I want to know is the middle or top model is worth the extra cash. I can use the money I save for plugins for Ableton.
I don't want to solder anything at this point but use it as is. If you don't mind taking a look at the links below I would appreciate it. Thanks!
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BulletHtBSB
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/StratAffM2Sb
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/StratSVMR3T
The only difference that I can see between the $130 and the $250 models are the pick-ups. A pair of Humbuckers on E-bay used to be about $30. Not sure about HSS.
I love that documentary, it's really good.
Often cheap guitars can be harder to play, and also have tuning problems as you go down the neck, but things are a lot better nowadays than they used to be.
@mkell424, if you want to stay in this price range (~$250), I think you should look towards the Yamaha's Pacifica which are (at this price, and IMHO) much better, confortable and easy to play than the Squiers Bullet or Affinity...
Out of you 3 choices go for the vintage modified. They are in the same class as the squier classic vibes. You'll outgrow the other two very quickly. Changing pickups won't help if the guitar won't stay in tune or the fret ends are cutting your hands. Listen to Flo - he knows what he's talking about.
Avoid the Bullets with tremolos. "You get what you pay for" holds true. The higher priced Squier (Classic Vibe) stuff equals or surpasses the lo
Oops. Equals or surpasses the lower - mid priced Fender stuff.
If at all possible, try them in person. The tuners on the Bullet feel cheap. They won't break, but it's harder to make fine adjustments. The neck -- for my hands -- was surprisingly comfortable. The Affinity has noticeably better tuners. I don't remember why I liked the Vintage Modified better than the Affinity, only that I could hear and especially feel a difference. When I compared the VM with a made-in-Mexico Fender, I couldn't find a difference that mattered to me. (This was in February; maybe I could tell the difference now.)
This afternoon I was playing Squier Telecasters. I wanted to say that the US$180 Affinity sounds just as good as the $380 Classic Vibe. Unfortunately, the more expensive guitar is actually better in every way, not just cosmetically.
This describes my experience in the mid-80s, when I bought a cheap Yamaha electric that would not stay in tune. Thirty years later, the same money (adjusted for inflation) will buy you a much better instrument.
I thought I was going to get one of these, but when I tried one in person it was a strain to play. That's not a reflection on the guitar at all, just a fact of my personal anatomy. It didn't put me off the brand, but it convinced me that I couldn't rely on reviews; I had to play the instruments in person.
Heavy strings!! Power Slinkys and a very thick pick.
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One of my first guitars was a Japanese Squier Strat and it was brilliant - wish I'd never sold it. I've got a 'proper' strat now and though it's better than the Squier - not by very much.
If I was buying a guitar I'd go for a second hand Japanese Squier - the first ones they made were brilliant
That IS the most important thing to choose an instrument : try as many as you can.
Sorry OP, we're way off topic. I agree with solador78 in that heavier strings can give single coil guitars a meatier tone. Strat pickups and tremolos were designed for strings that we would now consider very heavy. There was no such thing as a set of 10s or 9s. Lighter gauge strings are easier on your fingers and a boon to beginners. Your fingertips will bleed anyway but you can play longer before they do. As you develop callouses you can move up to heavier strings if you choose. Most folks nowadays stick to 10s which is the new 'medium gauge'. Stevie Ray Vaughn re awakened the masses to what a Strat with heavy gauge strings could sound like.
On your guitar hunt...
You'll get a lot of advice (some conflicting). Here's my advice, as someone who has played electric guitar for over 35 years:
Go for something that is comfortable to you, heavy guitars can be (literally) a pain in the neck !
Is the neck comfortable ? the fingerboard, the cutaways etc.
Even pretty cheap guitars these days are half-decent, saying that it's always wise to pay up to what you can afford.
I bought a Yamaha Pacifica 112 over 15 years ago and while I've changed pretty much all the hardware, it was still a good guitar in the first place.
Pick-ups are a bit moot if you're just starting out, you can pay a fortune on 'high-end' pickups, which may not have a readily apparent difference to someone starting out.
Regarding strings, heavy strings (011 top E) will stay in tune but will be harder to play - particularly for bending strings.
I owned loads of guitars over the years - American / Japanese strats / Gibbo Les Paul Deluxe / Yamaha SG 1000 etc,
but my favourite guitar is my Korean Tokai Les Paul copy. On a last note, there's a lot of talk about American being best, then Japanese, then Mexican, then chinese, personally I'd take it all with a pinch of salt
Hey guys sorry I didn't reply sooner because I'm on vacation. I really appreciate the advice! I'm going to try them out at the store but I'm glad I'm getting some good Intel before I go in. :-) @donb720 thanks for the string advice. My job requires typing on a keyboard so I have zero caluses. ;-)
I know what you are saying about the more expensive guitars @Flo26. The salesman tried to sell me a $500 Mexican Strat, but I am not really to put that much money into it when I want to build up my Ableton setup. I'm sure in the future if I get into it I'll get something more expensive.
It sounds like the Yamaha has one vote for it one against. The big winner on the forum seems to be the Vintage Modified HSS. I found an article about it. Check it out if you have the time. Thanks again.
http://magazine.dv247.com/2012/02/29/squier-vintage-modified-hss-stratocaster-review/#prettyPhoto
+1 - I usually buy natural finish guitars so I can see what I'm buying. I stripped the laquer off a black Les Paul copy once and it was like a jigsaw puzzle
I really wasn't voting against the Pacifica, just reporting my experience: namely, that it didn't fit me physically. But it might fit you. Try as many guitars as you can, and don't limit yourself to Strats. When I was 14, someone who was trying to sell me his used guitar told me that guitars were like girlfriends: extremely personal. I didn't buy his guitar, but he was right about instruments. You really can't predict what you're going to gel with. This fall, I drove 100 miles to the nearest Guitar Center to play a Korg MS-20. I liked it well enough, but the synth that really captured my attention that day was the cheaper, one-oscillator Microbrute.
You might also try some guitars that are out of your price range -- even way out. If the salesman suggests that you to try a $1000 Strat, don't say no. Play it and learn what it feels like. As I mentioned earlier, I couldn't tell the difference between a Squier VM and a Mexican Standard, but when I tried a $1000-model, the differences were apparent. The $1000-Strat was just nicer. Thing is, the nice things weren't worth $750 to me, at my current level of interest and skill. This had the result, surprisingly, of making me happier with the guitar that I did buy. I knew what I was getting, I knew what I wasn't getting. What I was getting seemed (and still seems) a lot of instrument for the money.