“DroneLab Pro" with AUv3 and MIDI - Public beta available now

DroneLab_app

It has finally happened, after many DroneLab users requesting AUv3, I am creating an all-new app, DroneLab Pro, with AUv3, MIDI, and everything else I could think of to go along with it. The sounds are based on analog multisamples. There’s an onscreen keyboard with scale mode, so you can jam right away with just an iPad.

The release is planned for the end of March.

You can find out more, with video and audio, at dronelab.app

I'm going to be doing a public beta at some point, I'm still figuring that part out. I want to start small, with very few testers, to focus on bugs and host compatibility. When it gets closer to the release date, I'll probably open it up to just about everyone who wants to try it.

UPDATE; The public beta is now available to all who are interested:
https://testflight.apple.com/join/yPVbqqq8

(requires iPadOS 18 and A12 Bionic chip or later)
Thanks for trying it out!

lasselu

Interesting...

cuscolima

Yeah it sounds great

FizzyLizzy27

Looks cool. If you’re interested in a beta tester I’ve got experience as a software tester and am willing to help out.

DroneLab_app

@FizzyLizzy27 said:
Looks cool. If you’re interested in a beta tester I’ve got experience as a software tester and am willing to help out.

@FizzyLizzy27 Thanks! I've sent you a PM.

Wrlds2ndBstGeoshredr

Nice app. I use it a lot. Looking forward to a connection-enabled update.

DroneLab_app

The public beta is now available to all who are interested:
https://testflight.apple.com/join/yPVbqqq8

(requires iPadOS 18 and A12 Bionic chip or later)
Thanks for trying it out!

You can email me at [email protected] with feedback/bugs,etc.

Thank you very much to offbrands and enkaytee for their help testing earlier versions!!

royor

Love the original.. a shame this one can’t run on lower OS’s + chips..

Poppadocrock

Awesome! Thanks @DroneLab_app

A member made a video, posted it in a separate thread, and the app sounded great, can’t wait to test it out. Cheers!

Poppadocrock

Dang can’t use beta on my iPad…

What’s minimum requirements ?

Nevermind, just read the requirements in previous post.

Any chance it’s coming to iPhone?

Synthi

could you lower os requerimients?

DroneLab_app

Sorry, I know the OS requirement won't work for everyone. It is unlikely that will change before release, but there have been a lot of requests for iPadOS 17. As for the phone, I think it's unlikely this specific app will support the iPhone, but a future, similar app possibly will, and it might also include AUv3 capability.

skiphunt

I don’t get what the “layers” are doing. I change the notes of each layer but I don’t hear any change.

Can someone explain how the layers are to be used?

Also, will users be able to add their own sound sources for any of the sections?

skiphunt

So, there’s A and B. You can select one or the other but not mix them together?

skiphunt

Can’t tell a difference when drone is turned on or off.

I looked at the site and watched the 30sec overview video. Still no clue

Edit: Ah! Didn’t realize the play button had to be hit at the top. I thought that was only for playback for recorded sessions. Starting to make more sense now. Still a bit confused on the 4 layer parts for A/B though

Gavinski

@skiphunt said:
So, there’s A and B. You can select one or the other but not mix them together?

They are set up to receive on different channels! Bizarrely, imo, the user is not able to set them to be played from the same channel, it seems. AUM keyboard sends midi on a specific channel, so this means AUM keyboard can only play A or B at one time. Really weird...when I pointed this out to the developer, he suggested using 2 instances of the app when using it in AUM. It seems clear to me that the way this is set up will mystify many AUM users, it should be changed for sure.

skiphunt

@Gavinski said:

@skiphunt said:
So, there’s A and B. You can select one or the other but not mix them together?

They are set up to receive on different channels! Bizarrely, imo, the user is not able to set them to be played from the same channel, it seems. AUM keyboard sends midi on a specific channel, so this means AUM keyboard can only play A or B at one time. Really weird...when I pointed this out to the developer, he suggested using 2 instances of the app when using it in AUM. It seems clear to me that the way this is set up will mystify many AUM users, it should be changed for sure.

Yeah… mystified a bit for sure. At this point, I’m just trying to understand it enough to decide whether to buy or not

Poppadocrock

@DroneLab_app said:
Sorry, I know the OS requirement won't work for everyone. It is unlikely that will change before release, but there have been a lot of requests for iPadOS 17. As for the phone, I think it's unlikely this specific app will support the iPhone, but a future, similar app possibly will, and it might also include AUv3 capability.

Right on. iOS 17 would be great for me, that’s where my iPad 6 from 2018 cut off. Like 17.7.5 or something

skiphunt

@DroneLab_app

A few questions…

1. I get that the 4 layers of A/B each have an assignable note/tone, but when I press each layer buttons 1-4, it sounds like the volume and attack change. What exactly is happening when you press/select each layer button?

2. In the SFX section, I can’t tell any difference between hitting the play/start button, and activating the SFX Drone button. What’s the difference?

3. No matter which SFX source I choose, I can’t tell any discernible difference when I change the modulation settings. How is the modulation in the SFX section supposed to work?

4. I actually like and own your Drone Lab 3 app too. It also runs on iPhone. It’d be nice if Drone Lab 3 was AUv3 compatible too. Any chance of that happening? I can see buying Drone Lab Pro, but ALSO keeping Drone Lab 3 installed. They seem different enough to justify having both installed.

5. Lastly… any plans to make either of your Drone apps native macOS compatible?

Synthi

@DroneLab_app said:
Sorry, I know the OS requirement won't work for everyone. It is unlikely that will change before release, but there have been a lot of requests for iPadOS 17. As for the phone, I think it's unlikely this specific app will support the iPhone, but a future, similar app possibly will, and it might also include AUv3 capability.

Thanks, please try to lower the requerimients, at least ios17 but 16 or even 15 would be great for the backup iPads too. None of my 5 devices (except my iPhone!) are on 18

jwmmakerofmusic

Just bought it. Can't wait to have a go with Dronelab Pro tonight.

skiphunt

Wish it had background audio

Wish that you could direct an external midi source to A and B independently in standalone, and each play independently without being limited to only the one that’s selected

jwmmakerofmusic

@skiphunt said:
Wish it had background audio

Wish that you could direct an external midi source to A and B independently in standalone, and each play independently without being limited to only the one that’s selected

What counts for me is if it works in Cubasis 3 (static Ambient production) and AUM (live Ambient production). But, hopefully @DroneLab_app is still keeping tabs here. Between this and Bleass Tides, I'm gonna have a fun Ambient session tonight. 😁

Edit: Tomorrow night. 😂 Finished work on an EDM piece instead.

skiphunt

@jwmmakerofmusic said:

@skiphunt said:
Wish it had background audio

Wish that you could direct an external midi source to A and B independently in standalone, and each play independently without being limited to only the one that’s selected

What counts for me is if it works in Cubasis 3 (static Ambient production) and AUM (live Ambient production). But, hopefully @DroneLab_app is still keeping tabs here. Between this and Bleass Tides, I'm gonna have a fun Ambient session tonight. 😁

I don’t think he is. Didn’t reply to a few questions I had. I messaged him privately too with no response.

It’s ok, but the file size is kinda large for what it is. Seems a bit limited and I started getting bored with its sound after a couple days. Wish you could import your own sounds to use.

Ultimately passed on it. Not bad for $4, but I didn’t like some of the interface choices and some of the limitations. I almost bought it simply because it’s cheap and kinda decent… but have decided that I have to stop buying apps just because they’re cheap and more or less a bargain. My iPads are littered with apps like that, and never get used after the new app smell wears off.

I can see why it’d be appealing to some though. Just not for me. I may revisit it later if it continues to evolve, and I still like his original DroneLab. Maybe a little better tbh

jwmmakerofmusic

@skiphunt said:

@jwmmakerofmusic said:

@skiphunt said:
Wish it had background audio

Wish that you could direct an external midi source to A and B independently in standalone, and each play independently without being limited to only the one that’s selected

What counts for me is if it works in Cubasis 3 (static Ambient production) and AUM (live Ambient production). But, hopefully @DroneLab_app is still keeping tabs here. Between this and Bleass Tides, I'm gonna have a fun Ambient session tonight. 😁

I don’t think he is. Didn’t reply to a few questions I had. I messaged him privately too with no response.

It’s ok, but the file size is kinda large for what it is. Seems a bit limited and I started getting bored with its sound after a couple days. Wish you could import your own sounds to use.

Ultimately passed on it. Not bad for $4, but I didn’t like some of the interface choices and some of the limitations. I almost bought it simply because it’s cheap and kinda decent… but have decided that I have to stop buying apps just because they’re cheap and more or less a bargain. My iPads are littered with apps like that, and never get used after the new app smell wears off.

I can see why it’d be appealing to some though. Just not for me. I may revisit it later if it continues to evolve, and I still like his original DroneLab. Maybe a little better tbh

This is fair. Me, I plan to make a couple Ambient pieces as a break from the beat-based music I've produced the past couple of months. An AUv3 version of Dronelab for a fiver is a steal for me, even if it can't import user sounds. I plan to use this in conjunction with Bleass Tides (and other Bleass apps) to see how it stacks up to my usual arsenal of Ambient-specific plugins. 😁

skiphunt

@jwmmakerofmusic said:

@skiphunt said:

@jwmmakerofmusic said:

@skiphunt said:
Wish it had background audio

Wish that you could direct an external midi source to A and B independently in standalone, and each play independently without being limited to only the one that’s selected

What counts for me is if it works in Cubasis 3 (static Ambient production) and AUM (live Ambient production). But, hopefully @DroneLab_app is still keeping tabs here. Between this and Bleass Tides, I'm gonna have a fun Ambient session tonight. 😁

I don’t think he is. Didn’t reply to a few questions I had. I messaged him privately too with no response.

It’s ok, but the file size is kinda large for what it is. Seems a bit limited and I started getting bored with its sound after a couple days. Wish you could import your own sounds to use.

Ultimately passed on it. Not bad for $4, but I didn’t like some of the interface choices and some of the limitations. I almost bought it simply because it’s cheap and kinda decent… but have decided that I have to stop buying apps just because they’re cheap and more or less a bargain. My iPads are littered with apps like that, and never get used after the new app smell wears off.

I can see why it’d be appealing to some though. Just not for me. I may revisit it later if it continues to evolve, and I still like his original DroneLab. Maybe a little better tbh

This is fair. Me, I plan to make a couple Ambient pieces as a break from the beat-based music I've produced the past couple of months. An AUv3 version of Dronelab for a fiver is a steal for me, even if it can't import user sounds. I plan to use this in conjunction with Bleass Tides (and other Bleass apps) to see how it stacks up to my usual arsenal of Ambient-specific plugins. 😁

Yeah, it’s decent source to send into other apps. On its own it sounds way too generic and sterile to me. But, pump it into something like Igor Vasiliev’s killer/edgy NoiseSpace or Stellarvox apps, and you’ve got some ambient that’s no longer so sterile. It comes alive with more organic grit and depth.

I’ll likely come back to DroneLab Pro at some point… just isn’t quite grabbing me yet.

Gavinski

Yeah, the thing is, you can make a million times more interesting and alive drones than this by quickly making mpe samples on the fly with Salome and droning away to your heart's content far more expressively. This is fine for what it is, it has its place, some people will dig it, it doesn't appeal to me much tho

Optahealth

@skiphunt said:
I don’t get what the “layers” are doing. I change the notes of each layer but I don’t hear any change.

Can someone explain how the layers are to be used?

Also, will users be able to add their own sound sources for any of the sections?

1-4 are VELOCITY layers. Only apply to the drone. Midi keyboard and on screen keyboard have their own velocity