I thought he was awesome. Bravo!!!

“Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being.” – Apple.com

For more info: apple.com

The new iPhone is upon is. You shouldn’t care if the number five is part of it’s name because it’s a nifty upgrade. The thing that has me the most interested is Siri. If it works accurately and quickly it could be as big as a step as multi-touch was. Talking and touching think about it. The future is creeping up around us. Will we be saying, “Load sequencer. 4 bar loop…” soon?

“Siri on iPhone 4S lets you use your voice to send messages, schedule meetings, place phone calls, and more. Ask Siri to do things just by talking the way you talk. Siri understands what you say, knows what you mean, and even talks back. Siri is so easy to use and does so much, you’ll keep finding more and more ways to use it.” – Apple.com

For more info: apple.com/iphone/features/siri.html

With the Magma ExpressBox 3T there really is little reason to buy a Mac Pro. Use your PCIe cards with an iMac. This is great news for musicians wanting to upgrade old tower macs but keep their DSP and interface cards.

“ExpressBox 3T provides an ‘outside-the-box’ solution for using PCIe® cards with Thunderbolt-equipped computers. High-performance flows are possible by connecting a Thunderbolt equipped computer to a Magma ExpressBox 3T containing PCIe cards such as video capture, media transcoding, audio processing, and fast data storage. And because Thunderbolt is also based on DisplayPort technology, you can daisy chain a high-resolution display with your Magma ExpressBox 3T.” – prweb.com

For more info: magma.com/thunderbolt

RealBeat Demo by thingstocome

This morning I’ve been playing with the newly released RealBeat. It’s for iOS AND Mac. Upon launching the app it has sequence blocks set up. You hit record on a few sample slots and everything starts playing. There are a few effects on Kaosillator type pads. You can edit the samples and sequences. RealBeat is a slick and fun audio app. What you hear above took less than a minute with my own voice. Recommended.

“Record your voice, your fridge, your neighbour’s dog or let your iPhone or iPad speak and make rhythms out of the sounds immediately. RealBeat concentrates on simplicity and fast results. No steep learning curve or cluttered screens! Get creative in an instant!” – apps.piringer.net

For more info: apps.piringer.net/realbeat.php

Now I can upgrade to Lion.

“We’re pleased to announce the release of Live 8.2.5, the latest Ableton Live 8 version. Live 8.2.5 now officially supports Mac OS X 10.7 Lion – please make sure to check that all of your third-party plug-ins and audio/MIDI hardware are Lion-compatible before upgrading your OS.” – ableton.com

For more info: ableton.com/osx-10-7-lion…

Sometimes I make a post on this blog just to mark an event that happened. Surely I can’t add much more text to Steve Jobs resigning. The truth is no one really knows what Apple will look like in five years. I will say it’s been thrilling to watch his run. I hope the rest of his life no matter how long or short is peaceful and he gets to reflect on what he did.

“I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.” – Steve Jobs

For more info: www.apple.com/24Steve-Jobs-Resigns…

I recently bought a new Macbook Pro. The new Thunderbolt port wasn’t a feature that had me excited. The only reason was I had no idea how fast it was. I was listening to Andy Ihnatko speak on the Macbreak Weekly podcast and in passing he mentioned it was 15 times faster than Firewire 800. It’s so fast it’s similar to having a PCI card or chip directly inserted into the motherboard of your computer. I know we don’t need more power but now I am looking forward to a new UAD, RME and large external SSD all with Thunderbolt.

“Thunderbolt I/O technology gives you two channels on the same connector with 10 Gbps of throughput in both directions.” – apple.com

For more info: apple.com/thunderbolt

Garageband for iPad was announced along with the iPad 2 yesterday. It could be considered the first mainstream DAW to go tablet. I like that Apple is pushing the creation/full computer side of the iPad with it’s own apps. Garageband for iPad is in decent company along with iPad versions of iMovie, Pages, etc… You have to wonder if Ableton has a team working on iOS software.

“GarageBand for iPad gives you all the tools you need to lay down fresh tracks and record music anywhere you go.” – apple

For more info: apple.com/ipad/garageband

For some reason I should be more excited about the Mac App Store than I am right? I thought it was strange that it’s not integrated into iTunes. I looked for Mac apps there for 10 minutes before I figured out the new store launched from the Apple menu or dock. In a way I’m happy about that because iTunes is way too clunky already but the new Mac App Store’s home is inconsistant. Ok getting past that… the desktop SoundCloud app is the launch winner as far as music stuff goes. It’s nice, new and makes sense for some although I think I will simply keep using the website. The only music software I download after the big one (Ableton) are plug-ins and those are a no go so… I bought the update to iMovie which is the only thing I wanted out of new iLife. It’s a start.

“You can browse Mac apps by category, such as games, productivity, music, and more. Or do a quick search for something specific. Read developer descriptions and user reviews. Flip through screenshots. When you find an app you like, click to buy it.” – apple.com/mac/app-store/

For more info: apple.com/mac/app-store/

Last night i picked up an Amplitude iRig from Best Buy (about $40). It wasn’t too long until I had some old gear going through any music Apps that allowed input. The photo above shows a Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-110 into the Moog Filtatron app. iRig works as advertised and I was very impressed with Filtatron. I think that Moog hired some good coders because it sounds right. I also think it was smart of them to release this on touch devices and not as a plug-in that you would have use a mouse with. This thing begs to be played with. The feedback and tape delay effects are great. I tried to plug a Shure SM58 directly into the iRig but I think I need a pre-amp to get my signal much hotter before it will be of any use.

“Simply plug the iRig interface into your mobile device, plug your instrument into the appropriate input jack, plug in your headphones, amp or powered speakers, download ‘AmpliTube FREE’ version for iPhone or for iPad, and start rocking!” – ikmultimedia.com

For more info: ikmultimedia.com/irig