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Want Logic Pro for $160? (or any app for 20% off…)

by David D. on January 8, 2012

Best Buy is offering iTunes gift card at a 20% discount for a limited time (i.e., hurry up!). In addition to music, videos, books, movies, and rentals, the digitally delivered cards can be used for software purchases in the Mac App Store. Since Apple rarely discounts its products, here’s a chance to save some money.

For example, Logic Pro sold for $499 before it was offered as an App Store download for $199, and can now be had for $160 with the purchase of two $100 gift cards at the discounted price of $80 each.

via The Verge

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MMT: Top Eleven Things from 2011

by David D. on December 31, 2011

The year of Apple, artists, and unanswered questions

As we reflect on 2011 through the lens of MMT statistics, it’s not surprising to see that Apple dominated the year from multiple angles. Apple’s iCloud service was the subject of this year’s most popular post, and 6 of the top 11 stories had ties to Apple services, apps, or devices.

With the introduction of Spotify in the US, and the integration of multiple music services into Facebook, 2011 was a breakout year for streaming music. And even if you get your streams from MOG or Spotify instead of iCloud, chances are good there will be an Apple computer, tablet, phone, iPod, or other device in the mix.

Another topic high on the list is artist compensation. Apple shows up here, too — whether they are being praised, thanked, blessed, or cursed. Steve Jobs keeps popping up in our Music 2.0 series, where Pete Townshend expressed a desire to cut off his balls and Jon Bon Jovi personally blamed him for “killing the music business“.

In a few hours, 2011 will slip away — just like Steve Jobs, Napster and a disheartening number of artists. Thanks Steve, thanks sleepy cat, and thanks to all of the musicians who left us their songs, compositions, and performances.

Thanks and Happy New Year to all our MMT readers, and special thanks to guest authors Zoe Keating and Chris Taylor for writing the #4 and #7 things on our list for 2011.

Zoe KeatingPhoto: Jeffrey Rusch

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Animoog: Editor’s Choice – Best Synthesizer App for the iPad

by David D. on December 25, 2011

Capsule Review: Buy it — NOW!

originally posted 10/19/2011

Christmas 2011 Update: Moog Music Inc. now offers Animoog for iPhone at an introductory price of $0.99, and has put the iPad version on sale for $9.99 (regularly $29.99).

A year ago, we wrote about the mixed reviews for Moog’s first iOS app: Filtatron. Our main complaint then was about the performance interface. What a difference a year makes. We are picking Animoog as the MMT Editor’s Choice for Best Synthesizer App for the iPad.

Animoog outshines Filtatron in every respect, but has blindingly better performance controls. There is a keyboard with adjustable spacing, and each key can act as a slider to adjust user-selected parameters — providing effects similar to aftertouch on a physical synth keyboard. And the X/Y pad is both a visual and auditory treat. There is a lot of movement in these sounds, and you can see and control it by dragging a green dot around the 8 x 16 grid.

We usually save the video until the end, but go ahead and press play to listen to the demo while you read the rest of the post.

A Tour of Animoog from Moog Music on Vimeo.

Sounds pretty good, eh? Here’s what Wax808 had to say in their 5-star review from the iTunes Store:

First of all let me say that I am a hardware purist, I hate using computers for making music. I also own a Moog Little Phatty, a DSI Mopho, and have owned a few other analog synths in the past. At first glance this appears to be a whole new type of interface and way to modulate classic synth sounds. The reality is that this is an incredibly deep and beautiful sounding instrument. Use the iPad as a sound module and reap the rewards of the continued work of Bob Moog and Steve Jobs. Absolutely stunning offering.

Now for the big news: Animoog is selling for an introductory price of $0.99 for 30 days only (it was introduced on 10/17/2011). After that, the regular price is $29.99.

We especially like the options for both preset and user-defined scales, and the built-in recording module. Additional features are listed below, or go to the Moog site for more info.

Key Features:

• Anisotropic Synth Engine (ASE) – An exciting new Moog technology that allows the user to move dynamically through an X/Y space of unique timbres to create an expressive and constantly evolving soundscape.

• Timbre page – Assemble unique sounds in the X/Y space from timbres of a wide variety of vintage and modern Moog synthesizers and pedals. Note: this is NOT simple sample playback.

• Polyphonic Modulation – Simply slide your fingers to control multiple modulation parameters in Animoog right from the keys.

• Polyphonic Pitch Shifting – Easily manipulate the exact pitch of each note in a chord by rotating or sliding your fingers.

• Delay Module – A classic analog style ping pong delay.

• Thick Module – From bit crushing to unison voice detuning and drive, this module adds depth, edge and character to Animoog’s already massive sound palette.

• Moog Filter – The classic four-pole Moog ladder filter with High Pass, Low Pass and Band Pass modes.

• Record Module – Record your performance and overdub new layers, or play along live. Transfer recordings between Animoog and any other apps which support AudioCopy/AudioPaste

• Path Module – Direct ASE through Animoog’s X/Y space to create new expressive and shifting sounds that will blow your mind!

• Orbit Module – Control the rate of orbit in the X/Y space around the path you created for subtle to insane voice manipulation.

• Flexible Modulation Matrix – Amp, Filter and Mod Envelopes, LFO with infinitely variable wave shapes and sync, and four super flexible and assignable modulation slots.

• MIDI in/out – Use your Little Phatty or any other MIDI controller to control Animoog.

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Google Music stays free – adds music store and artist pages

by David D. on November 17, 2011

Google just launched their music store in the US, and sent a message to Google Music beta users (excerpted below):

Dear Music Beta user,

We’re excited to announce that Music Beta by Google is officially graduating from beta today! Google Music will remain a free service, and you can continue to store up to 20,000 songs in your personal music library.

All of your purchases are automatically stored on Google Music for free (and don’t count toward your 20,000 song limit). You can even share a free full play of any purchase with your friends on Google+.

For Google Music users with Android phones and tablets running version 2.2+, you will automatically receive an updated version of Android Market with the music store over the next few days. You should also receive a system notification with the Music app update sometime today, but you can always download it immediately.

— The Google Music Team

The big news here is that Google’s digital music locker stays free for up to 20,000 songs. Apple includes a locker for 25,000 songs with their iTunes Match service for $25 a year. Amazon gives you 5 GB of storage free, and is now offering unlimited music storage with any Cloud Storage plan, starting at $20 per year for 20 GB. None of the services count music purchased from their stores against your limits.

If you haven’t tried Google Music, you should. They have lots of free music to check out, and you can easily upload your iTunes library and keep it in sync (for free!). Since all your music (well, 20,000 songs at least) is really in the cloud, you don’t have to worry about keeping things in sync. Or about music taking up space on your devices and computers. Or about backups. Yay Google!

The new store fills a big hole for Android users, and iOS users can purchase the gMusic for easy access to the Google locker on their iPhone, iPod, or iPad. Overall, there’s a lot to like, especially for a product that just launched.

What’s to like:

It’s free!
Music downloads are 320 kbps (highest quality MP3 files)
Lots of free music to sample
Easy upload of iTunes library
Automatically syncs with iTunes
Available on all devices and computers, even your friend’s
Great for Android users

What’s not to like:

Catalog missing Warner Bros. and some independent labels
Needs good internet connection for smooth playback
Requires paid app for best operation on iOS devices
Available only in the United States

Google Music for Artists

Google also introduced Artist Pages (or Artist Hub, or Google Music for Artists — choose one.) For a one-time $25 setup fee, independent artists get a page in the Android Market to tell their story and sell their music with the following features:

Set your own price, including limited-time specials and album-only purchases
Artist gets 70% paid monthly, Google keeps 30%
Unlimited track/album uploads
No annual fee
Sell on YouTube with a buy link in your music videos

Note: Links to iTunes and Amazon are affiliate links.

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I want my iCloud!: a step-by-step guide to iTunes in the Cloud

by David D. on November 11, 2011

UPDATED for iTunes 10.5 and iOS 5

Download [Name of Song] for Free!

Let’s start out assuming you have an iPhone and a Mac or PC running iTunes. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Upgrade to iTunes version 10.5 – Open iTunes and select iTunes > Check for Updates.

2. Get a compatible device – After you get your Mac or PC updated, you will need one of the following* to use iCloud and set up automatic downloads of new purchases:

iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 or 4S
iPod touch (3rd and 4th generation)
iPad, or iPad 2

3. Update to iOS5 - You’ll need to plug into your computer for this one. (If you’re already on iOS 5, you can upgrade to 5.0.1 over the air, but you’ll need to plug in to power first.)

4. Set up or turn on iCloud - After the update, follow the onscreen instructions to setup iCloud, signing in with the Apple ID for the purchases you want to sync. Want to use a different ID?

If you skipped the setup process, or want to change your settings, go to Settings > iCloud. Choose the items you want to backup and sync with iCloud.

5. Configure Automatic Downloads - go to Settings > Store.

With automatic downloads set to ON, downloads on one computer or device will show up on the others.

6. Download purchase history and selectively download purchases not set on Automatic.

For songs, go to Music > Store (button at top left) and press the Purchased icon. (That’s where iTunes is hiding in iOS 5.)

Press Music again, then Not On this iPhone, and select All Songs, Recent Purchases or an individual Artist. Finally, press Download All or the cloud download icon for individual tracks.

For Apps, go to App Store > Updates and press Purchased.

Select Not On This iPhone and press the cloud download icon for any apps you want to install.

*The fine print from Apple:

iCloud requires iOS 5 on iPhone 3GS or later, iPod touch (3rd and 4th generation), iPad, or iPad 2; a Mac computer with OS X Lion**; or a PC with Windows Vista or Windows 7 (Outlook 2007 or 2010 or an up-to-date browser is required for accessing email, contacts, and calendars). Some features require a Wi-Fi connection. Some features are not available in all countries. Access to some services is limited to 10 devices.

Music features of iCloud require iOS 4.3.3 or later on iPhone 3GS or later, iPod touch (3rd and 4th generation), iPad, or iPad 2; iOS 5 on iPhone 4 (CDMA model); or a Mac or PC with iTunes 10.3.1 or later. Download iTunes 10.5 free.

**The fine print from MMT: MobileMe users will need OS X Lion to migrate their Macs to iCloud, but the iTunes features of iCloud are working fine for me with Snow Leopard.

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11 tips for getting the most from MOG and Spotify

by David D. on September 19, 2011

If you sign up for MOG or Spotify and leave everything at the default settings, you could be missing 50% or more of your music. That’s because Spotify defaults to ~96 kbps on mobile devices, and 160 kbps on the desktop. The settings outlined below will bring your Spotify mobile streams up to 160 kbps, and desktop streams up to 320 (for tracks available at the higher bit rate).

MOG on mobile starts out much worse (but gets much better). MOG defaults to an anemic 64 kbps for mobile streams, but can be kicked up to 320 kbps when using Wi-Fi.

NOTE: Information in this article is based on Mac desktops and iOS devices; your device may vary. You will need a premium account to get the 320 kbps streams from Spotify, and paid accounts to stream to mobile devices on either service. If you’re wondering why you should care about the kbps, check out part 3 of Hi-Fi 2.0: Let’s do the math!

Getting the most from Spotify

Spotify offers 320 kbps streams to premium subscribers, but will default to 160 kbps. From the desktop menu, select Spotify > Preferences. Under playback, check High quality streaming.
While you’re there, make sure Set the same volume level for all tracks is unchecked. This will let you hear the music’s full dynamic range.
Over on your iOS device, start up Spotify and press the Settings icon on the lower right. Next to Stream, select High Quality.
Next, go down to Sync, and select High Quality again.
Premium subscribers need to use the desktop app to get the higher-quality 320 kbps streams. If you want to send that audio to your home stereo and you’re not close enough to plug in, check out Airfoil from Rogue Amoeba. Airfoil will send audio from any desktop app to AirPort Express or AppleTV.
Oh, and now you’ll want a remote control for Spotify — try Remoteless.
Getting AirPlay going on the Spotify iOS app is much easier. Tap the info button while a song is playing. Then tap the AirPlay icon to the right of the volume slider and select an output.

Getting the most from MOG

Start up MOG on your iOS device, swipe to the second page, and select Settings. Next to High Quality Streaming, select ON.
Next, set High Quality Downloads to ON.
AirPlay is built-in the to the MOG desktop app for Mac, and the icon is always at the bottom right of the window, so that’s easy. Getting AirPlay blowing on the iOS app is a bit trickier. From any screen, press the volume + or – button on the side of your iThing. The AirPlay icon will reveal itself to the right of the volume slider — tap it and select an output.
For the very best sound (well, as good as you’re going to get from an MP3) use a dock that bypasses the low-quality DAC in your iPod, iPad, or iPhone. The MMT Editor’s choice is the iD100 from Cambridge Audio. [affiliate link] For more info, see Part 1 of Hi-Fi 2.0: Getting good audio in the iPod age.

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Mega Music Meta-Battle: MOG vs. Spotify Reviews

September 18, 2011

Spotify’s July launch in the US quickly heated up the market for music on demand. Existing players Rdio and MOG both announced free service tiers last week, where previously they only offered free trials. And this week, they’re all going to the ball with Facebook. MOG, in particular, is on fire. They introduced a slick [...]

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Hi-Fi 2.0: Getting good audio in the iPod age (part 1)

July 17, 2011

After decades of continual improvements in audio recording and playback technologies, the average 21st Century listener will hear most music at lower fidelity than before the millennium. How did this happen, and can anything be done about it? While audio technology continues to advance, the listening experience for most consumers, especially those just entering the [...]

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Adele: Live at the iTunes Festival – London 2011

July 9, 2011

Coming up: Foo Fighters, Raphael Saadiq, Swedish House Mafia & more… If the Adele concert you planned to attend was postponed, cancelled, sold-out or otherwise just not happening, here’s a chance to see her close up, on your own schedule, and for free! Gracious and charming throughout, her voice settles down around the 15-minute mark [...]

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