I'm just getting into iOS music, I have a few apps on my phone for now and looking to get an iPad soon. This looper wasn't the first I came across, but has the best features for me, with the ease of doing different song sections. So I'm glad I found it before buying one of competition's products!
There's a recording mode I'm missing that some other loopers have, and it's the one I'd nearly always want to use. I'd like to be able to set the tempo (with tap or entering a value as normally), have a pre record count-in, but no set loop length. So my recording could start as expected, but could I could stop recording whenever I felt like it. GTL would continue recording to the end of that bar, and then go into loop mode. If that could be added I'd be super happy! It provides some structure but also flexibility that I often need when playing live.
I've only just been experimenting a little tonight for the first time, but can you confirm a behaviour, which I think is happening? Can I record a new loop in a new group without having to stop the recording of a loop in the previous group? For example, I record some chords for a verse group, but then want to record some chords for a chorus group without having to manually stop the first loop or group first? I was trying this with fully manual and it seemed to work. But without syncing to a tempo it wasn't ideal, and would be no good if I had a rhythm track playing in another app.
Thanks for making such a good looper, I just wish it had that recording mode! Also with that I could basically use the same preset for multiple songs, just changing the tempo to suit.
Hi @SimonSomeone, yes I can see how a recording mode like that would be useful. Maybe individual CUE in and CUE out options. I will add it to my list although it’s rather long so I can’t guarantee anything soon I’m afraid.
The master group plays throughout your song, so over each section. You could record to the master group while group 1 is playing, then when you’re ready, move the new loop to group 2(the verse group). To move loops around hold press and drag and drop over an empty loop space.
I was never interested in a looping app until I pulled the trigger on this, GTL. FRIGGING FANTASTIC! What a breath of fresh, motivational app air. This is helping me to be more creative and is great with speeding up my workflow. Thanks a million.
Plus 1 for individual recording cues from within playing groups. Makes sense.
I don’t know if it’s possible but effects automation, auv3 and or internal would be good. I always think the more control the better.
@Morgman73 said:
I was never interested in a looping app until I pulled the trigger on this, GTL. FRIGGING FANTASTIC! What a breath of fresh, motivational app air. This is helping me to be more creative and is great with speeding up my workflow. Thanks a million.
Plus 1 for individual recording cues from within playing groups. Makes sense.
I don’t know if it’s possible but effects automation, auv3 and or internal would be good. I always think the more control the better.
I Thought I'd add my feature request to this list officially, though Jack did say he'd probably add it soon.
That is the ability to ignore Ableton Link tempo when hosting GTL in AUM or similar, but send link tempo out, after having set tempo with the first loop. This would add lots of live flexibility.
Great news that my feature request in the post above made it into the beta (I'm not sure about how public releases are rolled out when you're on the beta), thanks very much, I'm loving that
I'm wondering if state saving is likely? Is it a big deal to implement it?
I always use GTL in AUM, but I'm wondering about maybe getting Audiobus too, as it seems to have some advantages in some areas. State saving would be great. I'm missing that desktop OS thing where you open a project and everything is as you left it!
If you went AU I know that would cover it too, but I also understand AU is a bit of a nightmare for some developers, and that apps that record audio can run into memory limitations. So I imagine that's not an immediate prospect. Is Audiobus state saving an easier task?
Thanks @SimonSomeone, have you had much chance to use the new feature? I'd appreciate any feedback you may have.
Yes Audiobus state saving is certainly possible, AUv3 not so much. It would be a big job to port GTL unfortunately, in fact I'd probably prefer to start from scratch... As you pointed out, there are some big differences between apps and audio units.
Well, as yet I'm not using the iPad for any live music or serious projects, though I do plan to. But, basically, I've been playing around with it quite a bit. I'm mostly a guitarist, with some keyboard skills, so all my work involves guitar into AUM, into an amp sim, plus various other drum/synth/Ep/organ apps, all potentially routed to GTL. But mainly guitar into GTL. The output goes back into AUM, and I usually have a reverb send on it, I don't tend to use any FX within GTL.
I don't like starting things to a click, or a drum pattern, so the ability to set tempo kind of organically, like I was starting a tune with a real band, is something I've been wanting to do ...
And the upshot is, it seems to work flawlessly. I set the tempo with my first loop (usually a rhythmic thing in the master channel but sometimes a few chords in group 1). then I can overdub or set up a basic track in 2 or 3 groups, and go from there. I can bring in drums a bit later (usually soft drummer) at some point, usually muting/unmuting it, as starts right after setting the first loop, which is not always what I want.
So that simple dialogue I see when I launch GTL, asking whether I want to set or follow tempo, just seems to work really well. It's a great app, and I appreciate the new feature.
Is there any way of increasing the amount of loops per group that can be recorded? Currently its 4. Can it be as many as the user wants? I like to build up a loop with small independent parts and dont like to merge to free up space.
@Sirt said:
Is there any way of increasing the amount of loops per group that can be recorded? Currently its 4. Can it be as many as the user wants? I like to build up a loop with small independent parts and dont like to merge to free up space.
I'm afraid not at the moment. I'd recommend overdubbing rather than merging. It's quicker and you can always undo layers or re-record them. Tracks can be quite expensive cpu wise so it's always better to overdub if possible especially if playing live.
ok thanks, i dont use the app for playing live but recording songs with lots of backing vocals and guitar parts. i just want to go back and edit one of the loops in the future if i dont think it fits.
@Sirt said:
ok thanks, i dont use the app for playing live but recording songs with lots of backing vocals and guitar parts. i just want to go back and edit one of the loops in the future if i dont think it fits.
Thanks for your suggestion. How exactly would you like to edit a loop? You can undo overdub layers by swiping left on a loop. You can also re-record by pressing the X, then "re-record".
Hi Jack,
Loving the app ;-)
I dont know about anyone else, but I have the need to move sessions between iPads and its a bit of a faff. I currently have to go to Files app, find GTL folder then copy the files to iCloud in a new GTL folder for later import to 2nd iPad. It would be awesome if both iPads looked at the same folder syncing from the cloud?
So my request is fairly simple (he says!):
Choose where you want to save sessions or Export function
or
Add iCloud, Dropbox or Onedrive support?
@ZEDOS said:
Hi Jack,
Loving the app ;-)
I dont know about anyone else, but I have the need to move sessions between iPads and its a bit of a faff. I currently have to go to Files app, find GTL folder then copy the files to iCloud in a new GTL folder for later import to 2nd iPad. It would be awesome if both iPads looked at the same folder syncing from the cloud?
So my request is fairly simple (he says!):
Choose where you want to save sessions or Export function
or
Add iCloud, Dropbox or Onedrive support?
Hi Zedos, iCloud support has been noted.
In the meantime, it might be quicker to use AirDrop. Drag left on the session then tap "Export". On the next screen make sure to select "Export session file" and "Share" as below:
Then you should be able to send the session via airdrop to your other device.
Hi Jack, I just learned about this app, it’s awesome! Meets my needs for live looping on guitar and building full songs.
Great work!
I’ll likely post some questions and feature requests, but for now ... one thought is, would you be open to a minor update just for some color options? My only immediate desire is actually purely aesthetics. I’m not wild about looking at mostly green and red tracks all the time. They are sort of monotonous primary colors, and they keep reminding me of Christmastime the whole session.
Would it be hard to either (a) give the app colors an overall freshen up, or (b) let the user pick from a few color themes that include the current default, or a few others?
As an example, I really love the modern pastels of the Loop On app, where each track has a different color.
Thoughts?
Here’s the Loop On app look below. I like the look, but the app isn't great ;-)
@Nolefinity said:
Hi Jack, I just learned about this app, it’s awesome! Meets my needs for live looping on guitar and building full songs.
Great work!
I’ll likely post some questions and feature requests, but for now ... one thought is, would you be open to a minor update just for some color options? My only immediate desire is actually purely aesthetics. I’m not wild about looking at mostly green and red tracks all the time. They are sort of monotonous primary colors, and they keep reminding me of Christmastime the whole session.
Would it be hard to either (a) give the app colors an overall freshen up, or (b) let the user pick from a few color themes that include the current default, or a few others?
As an example, I really love the modern pastels of the Loop On app, where each track has a different color.
Thoughts?
Here’s the Loop On app look below. I like the look, but the app isn't great ;-)
Haha, I must admit it's not nice to be reminded of Christmas in spring!
Thanks for your suggestions re colours, that app does look good. Unfortunately I'm bogged down in another project at the moment and have a list as long as my arm for GTL improvements so I can't see a UI refresh coming anytime soon.
I'm certainly keen although GTL is a little different in the way it uses colours. They represent a state, i.e. red for record, green for play and orange for cue. It would be difficult to change this without altering the fundamental way things work. I designed GTL at first for live performance so I felt knowing the state of each loop was more important.
Glad you're enjoying the app and thanks for the feedback.
Thanks for the good reply, Jack, and I totally understand! I can definitely appreciate the purpose of those colors having true meaning as to their purpose.
I’m excited and appreciative of your work, and I’ll post a video soon of a live composition using the app.
@Sirt said:
ok thanks, i dont use the app for playing live but recording songs with lots of backing vocals and guitar parts. i just want to go back and edit one of the loops in the future if i dont think it fits.
Thanks for your suggestion. How exactly would you like to edit a loop? You can undo overdub layers by swiping left on a loop. You can also re-record by pressing the X, then "re-record".
i suppose im looking to be able to actually edit the waveform recorded, to put silence over a note or to move the phrase back or forwards say 1/4 beat to see how it sounds.
having at least 6 loops per group would help as well.
@Sirt said:
ok thanks, i dont use the app for playing live but recording songs with lots of backing vocals and guitar parts. i just want to go back and edit one of the loops in the future if i dont think it fits.
Thanks for your suggestion. How exactly would you like to edit a loop? You can undo overdub layers by swiping left on a loop. You can also re-record by pressing the X, then "re-record".
i suppose im looking to be able to actually edit the waveform recorded, to put silence over a note or to move the phrase back or forwards say 1/4 beat to see how it sounds.
having at least 6 loops per group would help as well.
Ah I see, we could do with an inbuilt editor in GTL. One day...
Hi Jack,
Discovered your app last week. This is really great stuff!! Nice design and it works so easy. What I would desire is to have the possibility to add a fade-out effect. So I can add a last group with a fade-out effect added, with the possibility of changing the fade-out time.
Love to have a Send Loop to a Simple Waveform editor that had:
• A Fade in and Fade out slider on the front and back of the waveform displayed
• A highlight waveform section for ability to pitch up or pitch down highlighted section (because sometimes I hit that one off note on an otherwise perfect take);
• And added ability to make silence anything in highlighted section (for when I want to not hear a note I played I may not like later)
Extreme wishlist feature:
• Elastic audio and Quantize audio.
Have to mention I Freakin' Love the features GTL has and does right now. Allows me to stay in a creative zone much longer and has increased my songwriting brainstorm ideas dramatically. ❤️❤️❤️
OH! I forgot also like to have it on my M1 MacBook Air. It honestly would run just as great without the touch screen features. Midi & Key Binding are more than enough to replace the touch features along with the M1 MBA's large trackpad.
Seriously it would be amazing to have the ability to create in GTL on the M1 MBA and to use my Apollo Solo and Logic Pro all on one device! Drag and Drop Logic loops directly on to GTL. ❤️🥰❤️
@ObscadeD said:
OH! I forgot also like to have it on my M1 MacBook Air. It honestly would run just as great without the touch screen features. Midi & Key Binding are more than enough to replace the touch features along with the M1 MBA's large trackpad.
Seriously it would be amazing to have the ability to create in GTL on the M1 MBA and to use my Apollo Solo and Logic Pro all on one device! Drag and Drop Logic loops directly on to GTL. ❤️🥰❤️
Got ya, thanks for the suggestions.
A simple audio editor has been on my wish list for awhile now...
Hopefully I'll be able to add M1 Mac compatibility in the future too, fingers crossed!
Hopefully I'll be able to add M1 Mac compatibility in the future too, fingers crossed!
Yeah that is The Main Reason I went with an M1. It simplifies technical challenges and integration using GTL and Logic together when I live stream my whole song writing creation process. Outputting audio from my iPad Pro to my Apollo introduces annoying computer noises in to the signal chain, plus other technical challenges (which I did finally iron out working within my specific hardware limitations). I'll have to find a photo and share it with you. I feel you would find it interesting to see what is also possible to do with your app 🙂.
I side loaded GTL before Apple removed that ability. It mostly works already on the M1. What doesn't work is moving a loop from one cell to another. Also noticed that with every new launch of the app, the Key Bindings resets to "off". I thought maybe it was a result of the side load but it also behaves this way on my iPad Pro.
I would love to share more of my experiences using GTL on Apple Silicon with you. I Sincerely Love your program. It's the Best Money I've ever spent on an app! ❤️
I side loaded GTL before Apple removed that ability. It mostly works already on the M1.
Oh, and wanted to add, when you do finally make it available for the M1, I will purchase it again if required. It's important to me you get your money that's owed to you for all the hard work you've done and are still doing. ❤️❤️
Thanks for the info @ObscadeD, very interesting to hear your findings. I had a go myself on an M1 machine yesterday. Surprisingly there are quite a few changes that would need to be made, not just a simple port unfortunately
Most things seem to just work, however there's quite a bit to do on the UI. GTL is only optimised for the various different iPhone and iPad screen sizes and as MacOS allows us to make the window any aspect ratio, GTL can end up looking pretty funky!
Most things seem to just work, however there's quite a bit to do on the UI ... GTL can end up looking pretty funky!
Lol, Oh Yes I forgot about that! I'm so use to using programs when they're not working properly and dealing with it I clean forgot about that, Lol! It does look odd at first, Group 1 hard left and Group 2 hard right. When using it if the UI behaves funny I just resize it till works, like when the settings menu doesn't fully disappear when I close it, Lol.
I'll create a video and show you how I've learned to use GTL on an M1. Maybe seeing something I do can help aid you in making a streamlined MacOS app version. ❤️✌🏻
Comments
I'm just getting into iOS music, I have a few apps on my phone for now and looking to get an iPad soon. This looper wasn't the first I came across, but has the best features for me, with the ease of doing different song sections. So I'm glad I found it before buying one of competition's products!
There's a recording mode I'm missing that some other loopers have, and it's the one I'd nearly always want to use. I'd like to be able to set the tempo (with tap or entering a value as normally), have a pre record count-in, but no set loop length. So my recording could start as expected, but could I could stop recording whenever I felt like it. GTL would continue recording to the end of that bar, and then go into loop mode. If that could be added I'd be super happy! It provides some structure but also flexibility that I often need when playing live.
I've only just been experimenting a little tonight for the first time, but can you confirm a behaviour, which I think is happening? Can I record a new loop in a new group without having to stop the recording of a loop in the previous group? For example, I record some chords for a verse group, but then want to record some chords for a chorus group without having to manually stop the first loop or group first? I was trying this with fully manual and it seemed to work. But without syncing to a tempo it wasn't ideal, and would be no good if I had a rhythm track playing in another app.
Thanks for making such a good looper, I just wish it had that recording mode! Also with that I could basically use the same preset for multiple songs, just changing the tempo to suit.
The master group plays throughout your song, so over each section. You could record to the master group while group 1 is playing, then when you’re ready, move the new loop to group 2(the verse group). To move loops around hold press and drag and drop over an empty loop space.
Thanks!
I was never interested in a looping app until I pulled the trigger on this, GTL. FRIGGING FANTASTIC! What a breath of fresh, motivational app air. This is helping me to be more creative and is great with speeding up my workflow. Thanks a million.
Plus 1 for individual recording cues from within playing groups. Makes sense.
I don’t know if it’s possible but effects automation, auv3 and or internal would be good. I always think the more control the better.
Hi @Morgman73, glad you're enjoying the app!
Yeh, effects automation would be great. It's possible but a fairly big job. One day!
I Thought I'd add my feature request to this list officially, though Jack did say he'd probably add it soon.
That is the ability to ignore Ableton Link tempo when hosting GTL in AUM or similar, but send link tempo out, after having set tempo with the first loop. This would add lots of live flexibility.
Great news that my feature request in the post above made it into the beta (I'm not sure about how public releases are rolled out when you're on the beta), thanks very much, I'm loving that
I'm wondering if state saving is likely? Is it a big deal to implement it?
I always use GTL in AUM, but I'm wondering about maybe getting Audiobus too, as it seems to have some advantages in some areas. State saving would be great. I'm missing that desktop OS thing where you open a project and everything is as you left it!
If you went AU I know that would cover it too, but I also understand AU is a bit of a nightmare for some developers, and that apps that record audio can run into memory limitations. So I imagine that's not an immediate prospect. Is Audiobus state saving an easier task?
Thanks @SimonSomeone, have you had much chance to use the new feature? I'd appreciate any feedback you may have.
Yes Audiobus state saving is certainly possible, AUv3 not so much. It would be a big job to port GTL unfortunately, in fact I'd probably prefer to start from scratch... As you pointed out, there are some big differences between apps and audio units.
Cheers.
Well, as yet I'm not using the iPad for any live music or serious projects, though I do plan to. But, basically, I've been playing around with it quite a bit. I'm mostly a guitarist, with some keyboard skills, so all my work involves guitar into AUM, into an amp sim, plus various other drum/synth/Ep/organ apps, all potentially routed to GTL. But mainly guitar into GTL. The output goes back into AUM, and I usually have a reverb send on it, I don't tend to use any FX within GTL.
I don't like starting things to a click, or a drum pattern, so the ability to set tempo kind of organically, like I was starting a tune with a real band, is something I've been wanting to do ...
And the upshot is, it seems to work flawlessly. I set the tempo with my first loop (usually a rhythmic thing in the master channel but sometimes a few chords in group 1). then I can overdub or set up a basic track in 2 or 3 groups, and go from there. I can bring in drums a bit later (usually soft drummer) at some point, usually muting/unmuting it, as starts right after setting the first loop, which is not always what I want.
So that simple dialogue I see when I launch GTL, asking whether I want to set or follow tempo, just seems to work really well. It's a great app, and I appreciate the new feature.
Hi @Sirt,
I'm afraid not at the moment. I'd recommend overdubbing rather than merging. It's quicker and you can always undo layers or re-record them. Tracks can be quite expensive cpu wise so it's always better to overdub if possible especially if playing live.
Cheers!
ok thanks, i dont use the app for playing live but recording songs with lots of backing vocals and guitar parts. i just want to go back and edit one of the loops in the future if i dont think it fits.
Hi @Sirt,
Thanks for your suggestion. How exactly would you like to edit a loop? You can undo overdub layers by swiping left on a loop. You can also re-record by pressing the X, then "re-record".
Hi Jack,
Loving the app ;-)
I dont know about anyone else, but I have the need to move sessions between iPads and its a bit of a faff. I currently have to go to Files app, find GTL folder then copy the files to iCloud in a new GTL folder for later import to 2nd iPad. It would be awesome if both iPads looked at the same folder syncing from the cloud?
So my request is fairly simple (he says!):
Choose where you want to save sessions or Export function
or
Add iCloud, Dropbox or Onedrive support?
Hi Zedos, iCloud support has been noted.
In the meantime, it might be quicker to use AirDrop. Drag left on the session then tap "Export". On the next screen make sure to select "Export session file" and "Share" as below:
Then you should be able to send the session via airdrop to your other device.
Great work!
I’ll likely post some questions and feature requests, but for now ... one thought is, would you be open to a minor update just for some color options? My only immediate desire is actually purely aesthetics. I’m not wild about looking at mostly green and red tracks all the time. They are sort of monotonous primary colors, and they keep reminding me of Christmastime the whole session.
Would it be hard to either (a) give the app colors an overall freshen up, or (b) let the user pick from a few color themes that include the current default, or a few others?
As an example, I really love the modern pastels of the Loop On app, where each track has a different color.
Thoughts?
Here’s the Loop On app look below. I like the look, but the app isn't great ;-)
https://is3-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Purple113/v4/2f/c2/49/2fc249a4-1f1b-d06c-f1e2-3d3abf0ecf80/pr_source.png/300x0w.jpg
Haha, I must admit it's not nice to be reminded of Christmas in spring!
Thanks for your suggestions re colours, that app does look good. Unfortunately I'm bogged down in another project at the moment and have a list as long as my arm for GTL improvements so I can't see a UI refresh coming anytime soon.
I'm certainly keen although GTL is a little different in the way it uses colours. They represent a state, i.e. red for record, green for play and orange for cue. It would be difficult to change this without altering the fundamental way things work. I designed GTL at first for live performance so I felt knowing the state of each loop was more important.
Glad you're enjoying the app and thanks for the feedback.
I’m excited and appreciative of your work, and I’ll post a video soon of a live composition using the app.
Take care.
i suppose im looking to be able to actually edit the waveform recorded, to put silence over a note or to move the phrase back or forwards say 1/4 beat to see how it sounds.
having at least 6 loops per group would help as well.
Ah I see, we could do with an inbuilt editor in GTL. One day...
Multiple outputs would be so useful. Please!
I concur!
Hi Jack,
Discovered your app last week. This is really great stuff!! Nice design and it works so easy. What I would desire is to have the possibility to add a fade-out effect. So I can add a last group with a fade-out effect added, with the possibility of changing the fade-out time.
Love to have a Send Loop to a Simple Waveform editor that had:
• A Fade in and Fade out slider on the front and back of the waveform displayed
• A highlight waveform section for ability to pitch up or pitch down highlighted section (because sometimes I hit that one off note on an otherwise perfect take);
• And added ability to make silence anything in highlighted section (for when I want to not hear a note I played I may not like later)
Extreme wishlist feature:
• Elastic audio and Quantize audio.
Have to mention I Freakin' Love the features GTL has and does right now. Allows me to stay in a creative zone much longer and has increased my songwriting brainstorm ideas dramatically. ❤️❤️❤️
OH! I forgot also like to have it on my M1 MacBook Air. It honestly would run just as great without the touch screen features. Midi & Key Binding are more than enough to replace the touch features along with the M1 MBA's large trackpad.
Seriously it would be amazing to have the ability to create in GTL on the M1 MBA and to use my Apollo Solo and Logic Pro all on one device! Drag and Drop Logic loops directly on to GTL. ❤️🥰❤️
Got ya, thanks for the suggestions.
A simple audio editor has been on my wish list for awhile now...
Hopefully I'll be able to add M1 Mac compatibility in the future too, fingers crossed!
Yeah that is The Main Reason I went with an M1. It simplifies technical challenges and integration using GTL and Logic together when I live stream my whole song writing creation process. Outputting audio from my iPad Pro to my Apollo introduces annoying computer noises in to the signal chain, plus other technical challenges (which I did finally iron out working within my specific hardware limitations). I'll have to find a photo and share it with you. I feel you would find it interesting to see what is also possible to do with your app 🙂.
I side loaded GTL before Apple removed that ability. It mostly works already on the M1. What doesn't work is moving a loop from one cell to another. Also noticed that with every new launch of the app, the Key Bindings resets to "off". I thought maybe it was a result of the side load but it also behaves this way on my iPad Pro.
I would love to share more of my experiences using GTL on Apple Silicon with you. I Sincerely Love your program. It's the Best Money I've ever spent on an app! ❤️
--Jason ✌🏻&❤️
Oh, and wanted to add, when you do finally make it available for the M1, I will purchase it again if required. It's important to me you get your money that's owed to you for all the hard work you've done and are still doing. ❤️❤️
Thanks for the info @ObscadeD, very interesting to hear your findings. I had a go myself on an M1 machine yesterday. Surprisingly there are quite a few changes that would need to be made, not just a simple port unfortunately
Most things seem to just work, however there's quite a bit to do on the UI. GTL is only optimised for the various different iPhone and iPad screen sizes and as MacOS allows us to make the window any aspect ratio, GTL can end up looking pretty funky!
Lol, Oh Yes I forgot about that! I'm so use to using programs when they're not working properly and dealing with it I clean forgot about that, Lol! It does look odd at first, Group 1 hard left and Group 2 hard right. When using it if the UI behaves funny I just resize it till works, like when the settings menu doesn't fully disappear when I close it, Lol.
I'll create a video and show you how I've learned to use GTL on an M1. Maybe seeing something I do can help aid you in making a streamlined MacOS app version. ❤️✌🏻