Music Studio
by Steinberg
Long-running iOS DAW with 124 instruments, sequencer and MIDI import
Jun 7, 202019 minWatch on YouTube ↗
Jade demos the newest music apps as they land.Subscribe and see them first ↗
Jump to
- 3:41The main screen, keyboard against pads, and the twelve chord slots
- 4:55The instrument list, and the Inter-App Audio button that brings others in
- 6:37A MIDI file imported and its instruments swapped before saving back out
- 8:32The 16-bit limit, and the buzz it caused next to GarageBand at 24-bit
- 9:41iSymphonic hosted here across all sixteen MIDI channels as an orchestra
- 16:20The MIDI clock setting in the setup tab, synced to a GarageBand project
What it does
A standalone iOS DAW from the platform’s early years, pairing a playable keyboard and pad surface with a sequencer and a large built-in instrument set, from orchestral strings and brass through band guitars and drum kits to world instruments. Twelve chord slots sit above the keys, tracks hold MIDI or recorded audio, and MIDI files import, get re-voiced and export again.
In the demo
Jade treats it as a front end for GarageBand rather than a destination, importing a MIDI file, swapping its instruments for ones that survive the trip and saving it back out. Her main use is hosting iSymphonic over Inter-App Audio, where sixteen MIDI channels give her a whole orchestra instead of one sample set.
Worth knowing
It never moved past 16-bit, so running it alongside GarageBand at 24-bit gave Jade a buzz on an iPad Pro. There is no AUv3, and a free Lite version covers a few instruments and channels.
More daws and multitrack recorders
All daws and multitrack recorders →
33 minKalimba: Pocket Synth
Ruben Terron RodriguezFree, $3.99 unlock
Touch strip kalimba with pluck, sustain and wavetable engines
57 minVascular
Nuno Zimas$3.99
Canvas instrument where tapped nodes become generators, processors and a signal path
27 minHALion Sonic Play
Steinberg$19.99
Workstation instrument with 2,000 sounds, layers, arpeggiator and chord pads
20 minSAND
Matteo CaldariFree, $9.99 MIDI unlock plus $9.99 audio unlock
Grid sequencer and AUv3 host with audio tracks and clip editing