Apple GarageBand, £2.99/$4.99
Compatibility: iPhone (3GS or later,) iPod touch (3rd gen or later) iPad (requires iOS 5.1 or later)
There’s no doubt that iOS music making has come on leaps and bounds in the past year or so.
While, given their nature, Apple’s mobile devices still can’t compete directly with Macs and PCs in music making terms, they’ve certainly become viable platforms for producers and musicians to work with. Especially since arrived – allowing compatible apps to be routed into and through one another – the iPad in particular has become a viable tool for sketching ideas, making basic recordings and working on tracks.
But just as with any production platform, if you want to piece a track together, you’re going to need a DAW-like application to act as your ‘hub’. Here are some of our favourite options – listed in no particular order – starting with the big one…
GarageBand for iOS may look and feel very similar to its Mac counterpart, but the mobile version of Apple’s entry-level DAW is really its own entity. The app combines simple but effective Touch and Smart instruments, guitar amps and effects and an eight-track sequencer.
Since its launch, the addition of MIDI editing, Jam Session sync and, more recently, Audiobus support has made GarageBand even better. Now the app can act as a hub for an iOS music setup encompassing various different instruments, effects and even multiple iDevices.
At less than £3 (or $5) it’s a bit of a no-brainer.
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