Loopy Pro: Create music, your way.
What is Loopy Pro? — Loopy Pro is a powerful, flexible, and intuitive live looper, sampler, clip launcher and DAW for iPhone and iPad. At its core, it allows you to record and layer sounds in real-time to create complex musical arrangements. But it doesn’t stop there—Loopy Pro offers advanced tools to customize your workflow, build dynamic performance setups, and create a seamless connection between instruments, effects, and external gear.
Use it for live looping, sequencing, arranging, mixing, and much more. Whether you're a live performer, a producer, or just experimenting with sound, Loopy Pro helps you take control of your creative process.
Download on the App StoreLoopy Pro is your all-in-one musical toolkit. Try it for free today.
Comments
I have a lot of apps that are gathering binary dust, but I don't have many that I regret buying. The entertainment, educational, and/or musical value is in many that I've owned.
To allow myself some perspective, if I see a new app that seems interesting, I turn directly to whatever app I have which is similar and spend the time making sure that it doesn't already do what the new app claims to do.
If I can't legitimately determine how the new app is actually better, there's a high chance that it probably isn't, or will require more effort than I'm most likely willing to put it in to take advantage of it.
In terms of iOS, I compare any new app to what I can already do in Logic on my MacBook, or what I could do in Logic if I spent some time understanding more. That time spent learning is worth more than any amount of money I can throw at a new app hoping it will solve my problems.
"To allow myself some perspective, if I see a new app that seems interesting, I turn directly to whatever app I have which is similar and spend the time making sure that it doesn't already do what the new app claims to do."
This saves me typing. Now get out of my head.
Sorry, haven't read a single word in this thread. But to answer the topic, yes. Everything. You need to collect it all!!
I'm using a 16GB Air 2, so I'm keeping it pretty minimal right now. I like doing everything in GarageBand actually. The guitar modeling isn't the best, but it's workable and everything can be changed later in Logic.
It's absolutely the case that you can become paralyzed by a large volume of apps. And it's absolutely true that I haven't created or recorded much in recent months, even as I've continued to "collect" more apps.
But it's an oversimplification to say that "x" caused "y". I had a newborn a few months ago, so there's both a time factor and a guilt factor that comes with needing to spend large amounts of time staring at an iPad with headphones on instead of spending time with my daughter or helping her get to sleep. So if that's the superseding excuse for not being "productive", along with my day job, then those are pretty good excuses.
Collecting apps and getting excited about the new cool thing is a hobby in itself, and one that I can enjoy intermittently throughout the day by checking this great forum, and loading up an app for 5 minutes here and there. The apps will still be there if I have the time to use them, and I might even have a faster iPad then to use them with
You also have to take a long view of these things. I started playing guitar in the mid-90's as a teenager. I was obsessed with it then, but I hit a wall, and through college and grad school, I basically never touched it. Then, I got a new amp around 2009, and slowly started to pick up the instrument again. I fell in love with guitars and guitar music all over again, and launched into a very fun (but expensive) hobby of fixing up cheap guitars and collecting pedals.
iOS music apps, by comparison, are a much cheaper hobby. I got into it because of the guitar apps, but given that I knew nothing about synthesizers, drum machines, and DAW's 2 years ago, it's been really fun to learn about those things through iOS apps.
There seems to be an assumption that the only worthwhile goal of music is to create and record new music. That's just not really me. I think you can be a very musical person, but not necessarily very creative, and there's nothing wrong with that. Noodling around with music apps for an hour here and there and experimenting for amusement can be an end in itself, and I see nothing wrong with that.
The problem for me is it is too easy. With hardware or regular DAW software, price is still a regulator on the rate of acquisition. With iOS the rate of accumulation can far exceed the rate at which you can become competent with them or fully exploit them. Especially if you work 40-50hrs a week and have a family.
I take the points about music app collecting and having fun. But if I'm honest, that's not what I'm doing this for. I want to compose, arrange, engineer, record, mix, master and release the best quality music I can. The apps, the synths, the fx, the PC etc are the hammers and the chisels, nothing more. Of course , I want it to be fun, but deep down I want to do something with my time that is more meaningful than the day job.
So to get good results, I believe it comes from really getting to know your tools. And that is never going to happen if you don't find a way to regulate the rate of accumulation. I have apps that were essential to my plans, that I've had for weeks and barely spent an hour on. Next week, I'll get going with that one...Oh but this is out now....
But as I say, it is too easy. Get in from work, slump in the chair with an aching back and a head full of hornets. Turn on the iPad, check this forum, follow the link, hit download.
When's the next meeting?
If you hang around a barber shop long enough, you'll get a haircut (one app at a time Brother...
Guilty of GAS here. But, hey, it's sale season.
I usually get around to using what I buy eventually. Some pieces of equipment have sat in my closet for years before I finally put them to use so I imagine the same will be true of these apps.
if we had the right ecosystem where we had a standard daw that they all fed into without any midi hassles etc..etc.. i would say yes...
but as the platform is still delveloping and has some major midi and audio issues i would say no for me as most of my time is spent faffing around trying to get things to work.
This is why i am trying to settle with one app...Korg Gadget.....for now at least...
Well with speculation about the iPad 'Pro' abound, the rumours of an OSX-iOS hybrid, that would probably open up options that have resided in desktop territory for years, but Apples MIDI implementation with regard to AU plugins is a real pain, with VST's it's better.....Should be fun with iFunbox though...mmmmm.
+1 to what @DaveMagoo said...
I was very productive output-wise for a while when Gadget was completely closed to external audio, but now it accepts samples in (and i've discovered NandoStudio as a similar alternative) I do find myself spending more time faffing around with lots of different apps and hooking up audio and midi.
But then I would say I was getting a bit bored with the closed architecture of Gadget. So although I was productive, I hope my output will now be more interesting that i'm exploring different apps again.
I think it really depends on how you use it. For myself, iOS music making is about augmenting my hardware and making sample food for my sampler. I try not to buy apps that cover other ground, but if there is a feature or sound that intrigues me, I don't worry about it much.
One of the reasons I transitioned from software to hardware tho was because of having too many options. Limited to 2-3 things I am much more likely to actually complete something. Lately I've been scaling everything back and forcing limitations and getting more from the experience.
I think there is the potential for App hoarding/collecting akin to collecting stamps, model trains or
Pokemons. Just have to try and keep that balance between forum and youtube time and actually making music. Everyone should try and keep track the next week of how much time they spend on forums and researching apps vs time spent making music. I am thinking I prob spend less time making music. Even if I never bought another app I would still have hundreds more musical tools than I had starting out making music.
I've got lots of vst plugins and i have to keep my vst folder culled and organised but an effective method i use with my desktop plugins is to limit what i use per project. I try and choose the vsts and samples i'll use at the outset. That can change or add stuff but it helps me to stay focused on the track during the initial stages and not get too distracted. Like the idea of not yet though. I have my apps organised into folders by type
But cause of the inherent midi issues with ios i'm working with audio, keeps things simple and a good flow going, i'm enjoying it! I'm still going through a phase of learning the platform so i'm sticking to what i know i can do with it such as integrate it with my DAW or get an idea down quickly. Bought Figure during the sale and it's great but i could lose three hours just jamming around with it or open it in AB and start sampling sounds into Loopy then add stuff from other apps.
The iPads great for jamming and coming up with ideas, that's something i find hard to get into with a keyboard and mouse which is why i use Maschine which when combined an iPad is a great setup but for actual music production the desktop wins out cause of the reasons oultlined above.
As it is i'm addicted to music, ios enables me to buy really good quality apps like Nave and Egoist for the price of a few beers and i don't drink so... But as long as i'm putting those apps to good use i don't feel i have too many (yet), some stuff gets used more than others and each time i buy something new it might supercede an older app (ooh shiny syndrome :P) and it's hard to find time to use them all.
@Accent said:
Good point. I'd been going the other way. I'd been working for years with hardware set up built around four synths, a mixer and two effects racks. This is run through an old PC with a lite version of Cubase which can't handle too much in terms of VSTs. Everything has a specific role:
Drumstation for beats
Superbass Station Rack for Bass
Yamaha AN1x for lead lines
Roland RS5 for pads and SFX
Stereo rack compressor
Delay and reverb rack fx
The iPad journey was born in an attempt to be more productive enabling me to work on music projects in otherwise deadtime when I can't get in the studio.
Since I got an iTrack dock I have been bringing the iPad synths into the hardware set up, which is good. Sequencing from the PC gets over the hit and miss MIDI on iOS and I'm feeling I'm starting to get the best out of the synth apps.
Funny, I was hoping for the Auria IAP sale, but then it turned up and I haven't really felt further investment was necessary right now and have not bothered.
Guess that could be the first green shoots of recovery!
As far as the Auria IAPs go, I'd recommend picking up ProQ if you don't already have it, at the very least. Pretty much any FabFilter is going to give a pretty good return on your investment. I abuse ProC, love proG, and probably misuse proMB a good bit. Still, proQ and proC are tools I don't know how I'd live without now.
Sorry for running ot.
Personally I see time spent on this forum as part of making music too (kindof).
I've leant an awful lot about music making here. I'm sure it's actually saved me time getting me where I want to go musically, rather than setting me back.
I wonder if Albert thought he was wasting time when he hoped on to that train travelling at the speed of light, instead of doing some mathematics.
@Matt
Couldn't agree more. There is real value in a community that can share knowledge, where you can get help shortcutting problem solving, learn about technique and listen to what other creative minds are producing.
@xen absolutely spot on, but there is something about how much we invest in 'our apps' that makes it more of a worth to us, kind of like the harder a mountain is to climb, the more beautiful the view from the top.