MIDI Guitar App Turns Your Axe Into A Guitar Synth

MIDI Guitar

Jam Origin’s MIDI Guitar is a new app for iOS that is designed to translate the sound of any guitar into a polyphonic guitar-synthesizer or to record tablature by playing it.

MIDI Guitar is an iOS app that can transcribe guitar playing into MIDI. The transcription runs in real-time, and latency and accuracy – according to the developer – are comparable to hardware MIDI guitar solutions.

In order to use MIDI Guitar you need a iPhone 4 or newer, iPod 4th generation, or any iPad. You also need a guitar interface for best results. The developers recommend the iRig and are currently testing other interfaces.

MIDI Guitar uses WIFI-MIDI to communicate with digital audio workstations or Cable-based MIDI for lowest possible latency. It also drives other iOS synth apps using Apple’s virtual MIDI standard.

Here’s a demo video:

Note: The app is freely available in the App Store for evaluation with built in piano sounds. MIDI output (WIFI-MIDI, Virtual-MIDI and Cable-MIDI) is offered as an in-app purchase.

While some readers dislike in-app purchases, in this case, it seems like a good way to let you see how well the note recognition works for you, before you pay anything.

16 thoughts on “MIDI Guitar App Turns Your Axe Into A Guitar Synth

  1. I just picked this up. It is pretty darn cool. Don’t expect it to work like magic though, there is some latency, and note tracking issues. I had a lot of luck running it through Ableton’s arpeggiator, that was fun. Def worth the $5 to get the midi control.

    1. I also picked this up. It might actually work better than my Sonuus i2M Musicport, but I need some more time with it to say for sure. The i2M definitely doesn’t to polyphony, so that’s a plus for this app.

  2. Fretted Synth Junction – free
    If you’re interested in this kind of plugins check fretted synth, he made a lot of fun guitar controlled synths

      1. From what I saw it just sends midi to a DAW, so there’s no need to use iOS in between. Unless it’s all about using iOS and audio->midi is just another excuse?

        1. It can send MIDI to an instrument, such as an instrument on your iPad.

          An excuse for what?! To be able to use an iPad to, um…play music?

  3. there are some cases where an app is developed for osx but would be cooler on ipad. i think its clear that this would be more useful in the studio if it were developed straightaway for osx/win.

  4. A GIANT STEP FOR MANKIND!
    Totally amazing. Very good latency with the midi output via camera connection kit into Logic.

  5. Its great. The test piano is working almost perfectly for me on the bridge pickup with iRig. I wonder if wifi midi will add too much latency, but this app makes me go get a midi interface.

  6. Just picked it up and tested it with my acoustic guitar (fishman pickup) and Animoog. Works surprisingly well given my very limited setup (plugging guitar into headphone input). I’m curious to see how it works with my electrics.

    I could not get it to route through StepPolyArp, but I’ll keep trying – still don’t quite get how to route midi within the iPad. I suspect I will still be getting the Fishman Triple Play when it comes out, but this is a pretty nice app in the meantime.

  7. Even though I have an iPad (can’t d/l from appstore ATM because am in dispute with Apple over $2.75) I’d prefer to have this available on Windows to plug straight in Ableton rather than going through IOS.

  8. Tried it with a new iPad + Line6 Mobile In and a Gibson LP. Useless. 🙁
    Virtually no tracking at all. Perhaps not working well with Line6 Mobile In. Tried both pickups with various settings but nothing helped.

  9. I have just downloaded “MIDI app” from the apple store. I was looking for an app that can translate my guitar chords into actual printable notation. Haven’t got it to work yet as I am using Garage Band. I don’t see the translation from this app to Garage Band. What am I missing?

    Darryl Arenson

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