Apple today introduced the iPhone 4 – an update to its innovative series of mobile computers.
Now – every time I mention the iPhone or the iPad on this site, it brings on the hate.
We’ve got a few readers that don’t give a damn about mobile gadgets, think we’re complete Apple fanboys and that we should rename the site to iPadTopia.
We know where you’re coming from. You love synths and electronic music, not the iCrap.
But mobile computers are rapidly becoming essential tools for musicians, and the new iPhone 4 is the best of the bunch.
And spending a couple of hundred bucks on an iPhone could be just as important to your music as getting a new soft synth, effects pedal or synth module.
Here’s why.
Five Reasons Musicians Should Get An iPhone 4
- The iPhone is the leading mobile platform for mobile music making. There are more music apps for the iPhone than for any other mobile music platform. There are drum machines, MPC-style workstations, synth, 24-track recorders, audio editors and more. These apps range from fun ways to pass some time to sophisticated musical tools. With the iPhone 4, mobile music apps are only going to get better, because the new iPhone has a higher-resolution screen, more sensors and a more capable processor. And development of music apps for the iPhone is only going to accelerate, because the iPhone is currently the most profitable platform for mobile developers.
- The iPhone lets you connect with friends and fans from almost any location. Social networking has become an essential tool for musicians. If you look at some of the most savvy electronic musicians, they’re using social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube to update their fans all the time. The iPhone has apps for updating fans and friends on these platforms from your car, your most recent gig, from your studio or from wherever you happen to be. Need to update your website on the road? There’s an app for that, too.
- The iPhone 4 gives you access to the de facto industry standard for digital music. Apple succeeded where other companies have failed in building the iTunes music store and turning it into the top music store in the world. iTunes is just another app on the iPhone – but it’s an important one and one that you won’t get with other phones. That means you can access the world’s largest library of music, download any podcast and do a quality check on the placement of your own creations, right from your phone.
- The new iPhone lets you shoot good looking HD video and upload it to YouTube. Is it as good as an HD video camera? No – but it?s still pretty amazing. And Apple also announced iMovie for the iPhone, which lets you edit HD video. It’s a little insane that you’ll now be able to shoot and edit HD video on a $200 (plus the service contract) phone ? which means that you can video blog videos wirelessly to YouTube, without worrying about digitizing video, copying files to your computer or any of that junk.
- iPhone 4 features the world’s most sophisticated mobile computing platform, iOS 4. iOS 4 features intelligent multitasking that won’t run down your battery, threaded email, folders for organizing apps, Facetime video chat and the iBook digital book platform. iBook now reads PDFs, too, opening it up to all sorts of documents. iOS 4 is, arguably, the most advance mobile computing platform around, but also manages to be one of the most intuitive. Other mobile platforms have their relative strengths, but iPhone’s iOS 4 excels at just about everything it can do. Why does this matter? Because it opens up a lot of options for you – you can record demos anywhere, upload tracks to SoundCloud, carry your latest video in your pocket and more.
Over 2 years, an iPhone will cost you more to own than cheap cell phones that don’t do much.
But your time is worth something. And using your spare time to make music, update your fans, video blog and update your website – not to mention getting directions, reading your mail, maintaining your schedule and making phone calls – could make that iPhone look like a bargain.
What do you think of the value of the iPhone 4 for musicians? Is it an important tool – or just another piece of iCrap?
Leave a comment with your thoughts!
iPhone 4? Meh. I'm an Apple user and still cannot understand the fuss. Sure, I'd love something I could fit in my pocket and write music on any time I pleased. But the iPhone just isn't it, and never will be. A touchscreen will never be anywhere near as tangible or tactile as buttons or knobs, and for me, that's something that matters.
PS – For all the people raging on this article, Peter Kirn does a really good counter-article here: http://createdigitalmusic.com/2010/06/09/reality-…
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No true musician would use Wikipedia.
Groves' FTW.
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The iPod Touch (not an iTouch) will run most of the music apps, with no recurring costs or contracts required. All you lose is reason 4 from the list. Do your video with a inexpensive digital camera.
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You're right about one thing; the tactile quality of dedicated devices is certainly preferable (it's why I bought a Tascam DP-008 for multitracking on the go) but unfortunate truth is, for portability's sake, things that are size of a phone that HAVE knobs and sliders generally sound like $&!%, and you'll be needing a duffel bag full of' em to get the kind of variety that you'll get out of one device like the iPhone. It's a trade-off, IF your goal is to have a really portable solution to creating electronic music on-the-go. If that's your aim, the iPhone is the best option. There's really no denying it.
I Personally use an iPad in tandem w/ the DP-008, and I can do just about anything I want to, on my lunch break, in the car. The only other solution is a netbook, and I'd MUCH rather use the multi-touch screen on the iPad, than a crumby track-pad or portable mouse.
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i guess you also carry a camera along with the phone and the mp3 player and uh ..the at least book sized laptop. That makes 4 devices. For sure the laptop is the netter creative device..but a bit bulky too..is'nt it? Portability matters and the convenience of having multiple things in one device..that's what the i phone is all about.
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Listen up all you modular moog and PD/Max geeks! You might not like her music but it doesn't take away the fact that she is now a professional musician and you're not. Enjoy your day at work tomorrow! http://www.tuaw.com/2010/06/14/iphone-playing-gir…
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I have seen the PROS and CONS of the Ipod Touch and Ipad, and Iphone. I think there has to be a couple of distinctions made here. I have been producing for 8 years and Djing for 12 Live. The current generation of folks out there are strictly DAW and USB Controllers – which I fall into. This generation runs on not paying for Music really, and downloading everything before they buy it. Do tools like the Ipod Touch , Iphone – cheapen the value of Music?! Well it depends on who you ask.
Old school Studio Heads are pretty straightforward in saying that the sheer flood of Music, ranging in quality from homemade shit with little effort – to extreme production quality amazing Music- is watering down Music all together. It certainly is Music overload out there right now. What im finding is that guys are making great tracks, but not paying attention to how it sounds – mastering – mixing – etc.
There is also a group of lazy Musicians who just cut and paste loops, do no composing , randomly mash sounds together- and that is what alot of these apps do. Infact many of them thrive and advertise on having little to no Musical Knowledge, some programs are even constructing entire tracks now using Logical Based Algorthym that can randomize beats on the fly and literally make the Music for you. I dont care how you cut it- that is not talent- stealing someone elses sounds and mashing them together does not make you worthy of being signed to a label.
The Mac Products like the ipod, ipad, and iphone are innovative and have a place in live performance. They could be used as cool tools, or something to jam on – say as a trigger pad- but they are absolutely not capable of running DAW programs like Ableton, Reason, or FL Studio- not to mention the more intensive hogs like Cubase, Logic or Pro Tools. however, with that being said- there is nothing wrong with using it as another tool in your kit. But dont expect to become Deadmau from using an Ipod Touch program..because it wont happen.
From spending many years in Clubs, the Ipad – will take a massive beating in a club. Humidity, Moisture and its seemingly bare minimum specs – 256 megs of ram- would make it a tool – not a standalone piece of gear. Besides, who would pay to watch someone goof off on a 10 inch screen>?!
It seems like as more producers are getting involved, there is portion of them that seem to want technology to do more and more work. It will get to the point where the Terminator 2 prophecy will be fulfilled, and guys will just stand around while Computers and Ipads do all the work. What do you then?! Sign an Ipad to a record Label?
I think the reason why alot of Producers roll their eyes as these ‘must have ‘ items is that they are NOT must have and do in some way cheapen the value of music. Bashing out some loops on a 3 inch screen doesnt make you Liberace or Slash, at some point you will have to transfer that to a Wav file and port it into a DAW to make use of it. The MAC craze is just that, Steve Jobs is incredibly good at getting people to believe in Mac products like a religion.
Macs are – no better or less- then any PC available. It will always come down to the tools you have – and what YOU do with them as a producer. Infact, the insides of even the most modern Mac laptops are not that impressive- Macs excel at doing more with less. However, the price tag is also – paying more for less.
I bought a Toshiba Satellite Laptop to replace my nearly 9 year old Satelite that still works but the screen has gone green. For 500 flat, I have a a dual core 2.6 ghz machine that has 4 gigs of ram, a 500 gig hard drive- the point is – that is more then enough for a live show. The cheapest Mac doesnt start until at least $1000.00.
Nothing is a substitute for hard work, and creativity. I see these devices as Batman sees the toys in his belt, tools for a larger picture- but not the whole picture- if you think you can become an accomplished musician with portable devices like the ipad or iphone- you are smoking crack.
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I agree with you, to a point… but the notion that you're only as good as your tools is bupkis. It's only the finished product that counts for @#$%, and frankly, REAL innovation comes from working w/in the constraints of a limited set of tools. Steely Dan had to run down the hall of the studio w/ tape spools on metal bars to achieve a particular loop effect…… Lennon had to have a tech rewire a Leslie to achieve his vocal sound on "Tomorrow Never Knows". In any case, you're either innovative or you're NOT. I knew a kid who was a real prodigy….. Guitar, bass, drums, kb, vocals…. you name it. He was a virtuoso on everything. You know what? NO amount of production could save his work from sheer mannerist conventionality. I heard his demo… Like Richard Marx on Nitrous. Horrible. I had to lie to him.
In any case, my point is that you can create a Frankenstein of a finished track on an iPad that will fly….. IF you're really creative. I have Baby Bird demos that beat the @#$% out of 90% of big studio-generated dreck. Home Slice was rockin' a Tascam and a $40 sampling keyboard.
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Yes – like it or not, your tools do affect your results. Monitors are a great example of that.
I think a lot of the hate for iPad/iPhone music software, though, comes from that fact that most of the people that demo them are more geeks than musicians.
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I don't care for phones… but I would love an updated iPad – once they add the features of the new iPhone.
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All of this is available on the 3gs so don't really see how this makes a good argument for buying a 4?
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no mention of the long latency of the iphone…. stick to a netbook or intel i7 laptop and you will run everything without 15ms of latency………. in fact the i7 chip will run 32 tracks audio with fx and rewire with no hiccups………
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OMG, I can't believe how narrow minded people are. Music and Tech are niw VERY integrated and to have a device like the iphone is F….kin amazing…..Folks… use the tech…. this is an awesome generation of tech, people, ideas and music develops form that. I could ramble on for ages… no……. ?I don't have an apple laptop, no I don't own lots of apple gadgets…. BUT I did buy an iphone recently and .. even with a MS laptop is fkin amazing… honestly… the amount of apps I brought for just a few and I mean a few $$$ are less than my cheapest pc piece of SW, tech, kit or mic….. incredible value, The iphone for me is:
a guitar tuner
metronome
mixer
sequencer
voice recoreder
notes idea taker
humm and record
digital radio
records DAB
and much much more
Nerver been an Apple fan but Wow the iphone rokcs.. oh and i'm only talking about the 3gs… haha
piece dudes
Chilli
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If it is iCrap then why is it that all the major studios and most musicians use what you are referring to as iCrap. hmmmm .. let me hear your music? let me see why your voice matters
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This is not advertising, it is reporting. Facts are being given … shut the !#%@#% up. Oh and you don't have to love ?, you just have to acknowledge that ? puts out the best devices to use to record your music. Wheteher it be a mac mini, an iMac, a MacBook … MacBook Pro … an iPhone, an iPod Touch … an iPad, or my personal fav. a Mac Pro.
I have an iPhone and i goof around with the music apps, no i don't use them seriously at this time but that might change.
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good or bad, this article is just advertising. by answering to this you are yourself a mean of publicity. Just ignore the whole deal.
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For a look at the opposite view, see 5 reasons musicians don't need an iPhone
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So, to you Jordan Rudess is not a real musician?
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Guys, I think the only one of these points that really holds water for me is the first – that the iPhone platform is currently the most profitable market for mobile app developers, hence more and better music apps.
The rest (aside from the iTunes store, but really – who on earth downloads their own songs and checks 'placement' there regularly enough to need it on their phone?) is padding and, honestly, applies to just about any smartphone on the market.
I'm interested in the coverage you provide of iPhone/iPad apps, because I think they're interesting and obviously relevant to a music making audience. But reasons you 'should' get an iPhone is a little much. I have a HTC phone which is better than the iPhone in the above listed ways except for music applications. Maybe you should have just focussed on those!
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Good answer. You have great arguements!
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This is shameless advertising. I hope the money they pay you justify the stank.
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Indeed. Stinky Apple.
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If you know anything about Apple, you know that they don't exactly reach out to indie Websites!
Got anything constructive to add to the discussion?
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I was gonna say that lol.
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In fact, the iPod Touch (which has a relatively reasonable price compared to the iPhone) finally managed to replace my Yamaha QY22 Music Sequencer. (Anyone here still knows the QY series?)
Noteworthy apps that I'd judge the best are: Intua BeatMaker, Xewton MusicStudio, and iSequence.
"Loopy" and "Everyday Looper" are great for realtime jamming or capturing ideas that you wanna sing using the supplied headset microphone. Better than a Boss Looper in some aspects.
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iPhones shoot good looking HD movies? are you serious? so a proffessional musician is expected to make a music video with their phone and be taken seriously?
you just sound like you’re being paid to talk about this. especially the “iPhone let’s you communicate with friends and fans” bit.
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It takes fantanstic HD video compared to your car keys.. (something that's always in your pocket..)
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YAWWWWWWWWWWN.. everywhere you go it's the "screw apple" vs "apple is the universe" debate over and over and over and over again…….soooooooo tired of it….
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You don't need to get desperate / aggressive, I hope you've seen the other article, "5 Reasons Musicians Don’t Need An iPhone"…
I guess you're right about the ultra portable laptop though, you can find far better DAWs and VSTs, not some colorful kids toys called "music apps"…
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I've yet to find any music app I'd WANT to run on my atom powered netbook.. I get constant issues.. Old stuff that doesn't require a high end processor and gobs of memory won't work (when I bought it, was counting on just running a bunch of old school apps..) and the stuff that does run, runs poorly.. hard to whip out of your pocket as well. ASIO4ALL can get really picky with my acer netbook, so even audacity is a stretch.
Something the writer should note is that you don't have to have an iphone.. you can get a 32GB 3rd gen ipod touch for $250 it runs as fast as the 3GS.. and the ipad, which has the iphone 4 processor (but not the OS yet) is the worlds most amazing touch interface for 1000 different uses.
We all have lot of $250 gadgets in the studio.. this is the one that can transform itself into nearly anything.. and ride along with you anywhere you want to create.
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my midi controller and kaossilator beg to differ on the comment "finger is the worst input device ever" I'm not sure what you play your synth with.. My nose is a very poor performer on the xy pad..
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IMPORTANT NOTE HERE The atom is listed as a 1.6Ghz device, but performs like a 900Mhz celeron. If you choose a netbook, GET THE ONE WITH THE 900MHZ CELERON like this guy did.. it's not any slower, and will run your old apps… One of these days I'll get rebirth working on an SD card..
Another thing that works PRETTY good on a netbook is the hobnox dot com audiotool.. it's flash based, so.. flaky at times depending.. but a lot of fun..
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1. the only way android can catch up is to pay apple for patents for true multi-touch (not laggy pinch zom, 5 fingers) 2. obvious, but his point is "all that and a bag of chips. 3. Bigger is better, when you want to sell stuff. Biggest market share, biggest installed base, easiest purchase methods.. this all = $$. 4. which other smartphones do video editing? 5. Which mobile (by which I mean, in your pocket everywhere you go) platform IS best for musicians? Apple's multi-tasking is a DREAM.. crashless, I can play thumbjam over pandora tunes and switch to guitar or ishred, fllip over to safari pull up some tabs.. iOS supports audio copy and paste between music apps like looptastic and bassline.. iOS supports midi in and out and line in and out–there are some great realtime FX apps to connect with your guitar.. Android doesn't even support stereo line in at all–but there are half a dozen options for iOS.
The keyword, in most critcle comments of iOS, is the "AFAIK" because.. frankly, if you knew the device and it's potential.. you'd have nothing to say. The "limits" you speak of simply no longer exist.. Seen the Akai Synthstation 25?
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cont:
When you lead the pack, there's nothing to 'keep up' with. Ipod has dominated since day 1, the mac is the worlds favorite platform for creative industry, and iOS is lightyears ahead of android.
OK so now you know the truth.. the truth is, you're missing out.. I remember just playing.. toying around with my SR16 back in the day when I bought it.. It slept on the pillow next to me.. now I can break off a full song in beatmaker layin' in.. beats watching crap on TV.. (no pun intended..)
Final note: remember, it's not just the slick ui and platform, but the killer, super smart devs who make these things happen… These devs are making their dreams real on the only platform that can support it. I can't thank them enough for making a little hardware device transform magicaly into 1000 different instruments on a whim. Feels like I'm living in the future.. (but, who am I.. just a fanboy, just dismiss me before you even bother reading.. )
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Is jordon rudess a real musician? Just asking, he seems to be the go-to guy for new and interesting instruments. His ipad app is AMAZING.. PS, I haven't played ps3, wii, xbox or pretty much.. watch any tv since gettnig an iphone 2 years ago.. playtime can now be creative time. Did you know that thoughts and patterns can be moved from one device to another? I'm fairly sure a lot of us out there use a portable keyboard to knock out ideas with, am I right? meh..
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I don't NEED much of anything,. but I WANT just about everthing reviewed on this site.. am I atypical on that? This is synth porn here.. and yes, that is an iphone in my pocket.
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yeah come on you know what I mean. Touch screens of that size are great for many things, but totally suck when you need to be precise… (or do you think Jasuto Pro on the iphone is a pleasure to interact with?). Of course the finger is not the the actual input device either, it's the touch screen, or the keys on a controller and so on… I was just borrowing from Steve Jobs' statement "the finger is the best input device".
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haha actually your point is a load of rubbish for alot of people the quality of the work that can be done on the device is more important that the size. Yes the convenience of having something like an iphone to do the basic versions of those things all in one package is great but for alot of us having a jack of all trades, master of none device doesn't cut it.
I, on a (work day) daily basis carry this
an iphone and an ipod classic (because the iphone is a rubbish mp3 player)
a 17" MBP (try rendering out 3d animations on an iphone)
a wacom pad because the iphones equivalent app is not up to scratch and its too small
a d300, 85mm lens and battery grip because the no phone camera is worth me using
and all the power and connection leads associated with them….if the iphone was good enough to use for any of these applications i would not have or use the others. it doesn't do anything particularly well yet and as such makes it a toy for anyone with standards above the lowest level of consumer to pro.
the weight isn't important as i'm not small and weak, but weight can be minimised elsewhere and still allow you to retain the quality.
i could have a
mbp 13", leica m9, wacom bamboo, and the iphone and ipod. which would cut my weight in more than half but still retain the quality.
there are many cheaper and light options if that would be an argument for you, i'm just talking about the limitations of what i would personally want to be using.
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whoops misread, my apologies
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Gotta love R KELLY reference…hat tip to Juice and Dave C.!
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Man, this is your point-of-view because you guys lies on countries where the iPhone do not cost too much. Here in Brazil one of this costs more than U$1200(in R$ it is ~R$2400). So, we have to make "mobile music" on ower own… Using some Symbian softs, making ower softwares to self usage… But, i have to agree, the iPhone is a great phone to make music and to "support" a musician's life. =)
Good bye!
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I'm not agree with this post I have a reason for musician don't need the Iphone.
1 Windows Is The Top Mobile Platform
2 iPhones are expensive and musicians are poor.
3 Real Musicians Play On Real Instruments.
4 We Live In The Future And The Internet Is Awesome
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I'm a songwriter but I can't play any instruments. Now imagine what it was like for me before the iPhone came along. I had to tediously write music with notation software before being able to hear it. With my iPhone and an app called Guitar I can compose chord progression and play them on the fly, wherever and whenever I want. I'm actually playing guitar even though I can't play a real guitar. It may seem that it's too small and cumbersome to do all the things you can do wit a real instrument, but I really think with practice anyone would be able to pull of amazing things with it. So saying that these apps are toys is just not true at all. If you don't have a problem using midi controllers, then you shouldn't have a problem accepting the iPhone or iPad as an instrument or input device. Just think about it. You play an instrument on your iPhone/iPad, you choose sound fromy our DAW or plugins, or you add effects to the apps own sound (eg. guitar effects using Logic's amps and stompboxes etc), and you record straight into your DAW.
Sure there are crappy toy-like apps, but that doesn't mean there aren't any good ones. The point about the iPhone or iPad is that it's a hardware and software platform with the potential to do things other devices just can't. If Nokia or RIM came out with this device I'd be singing their praises, but they didn't. So, unfortunately, my praise has to go to the iPhone/iPad.
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the iphone/ipad they are just the beginning , to think that before them phones were.. well, just that
small unreliable devices to make phone calls.. and to think that Apple again has changed the world in such a short time.. this is just the beginning
My iphone has pretty much replaced my laptop for most daily tasks
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Great post .. indeed
i remember those days people complained about computers being used for music , those with the brain used it as a tool an evolved with them . the iPad/iPod situation is similar but with greater potentials. You want to ignore it because you dislike Apple (for whatever strange reason you have) your choice, one day developers are going to stop writing applications for computers because the iDevices are going to be powerful and much cheaper to develop
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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rubbish….you clearly don't know the device at all
and the data plans start at $15 which btw you don't need if you don't have an iphone
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If legitimate companies like korg, propellerhead, akai, etc., are all making apps for ipads/iphones, don't you think that maybe they see these devices as legitimate platforms. and see the potential they can bring. Maybe the iPad isn't a serious DAW competitor for right now. And I think the connectivity is something that can be improved overall. But give it time. All you silly haters will be toting around iPads before you even know it.
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Good for sound creation or capture on the move as well as all the other smartphone things. Good solid developer base, stable. Love it or hate it, no diff.
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