Developer Harmonicdog has released an update to MultiTrack DAW, its digital audio workstation for the iPad.
Updates in MultiTrack DAW 3.4 include Inter-App Audio, AudioBus 2 support and support for up to 16 inputs.
Here’s what’s new in MultiTrack DAW 2.4:
- Inter-App Audio – effects can be chained on each track, on the Bus return, and the Master out (*).
- IAA Generators – on the Input to each track.
- Audiobus 2.0 – Can be used as a sender for any track or master out. Supports saving and restoring state.
- New graphics for iOS 7 – improved look is cleaner and less confusing.
- Clean waveforms – rendered without blockies on retina displays.
- 64-bit support – with Neon optimizations and high resolution audio processing.
- Dithering – applied automatically anywhere in the signal chain when bit width gets reduced.
- Reduced filespace usage – up to 16 tracks before caches kick in on 64 bit devices.
- Compressor – new dB reduction meter help you adjust threshold and ratio controls.
- Completely rewritten audio engine – takes advantage of the best features of your hardware.
- Supports up to 16 inputs simultaneously (USB hardware required).
- Loop Points – changing loop points in realtime is now immediate.
- Snapping – now you can snap to other regions, loop markers, and punch points, as well as Ruler lines.
- Snap helpers – red vertical lines display exact snapping placement.
- Song Menu – you can now drag song icons to reorder them.
- IN Meter – now displays up to 8 input VU meters on iPad, or 4 on iPhone/iPod touch.
* IAA effects currently support only 1 instance at a time, system wide. In other words, you can’t chain the same effect more than once.
MultiTrack DAW is available in the App Store for US $9.99.
Very cool! Great to see this updated. It’s been my preferred mobile sketch pad simply because it was clean and fast to use.
I think MTD has potential, but the interface is pathetic. The popup menu thing not only means extra steps to do everything, but the menu still popups off screen when near the edge in this update. The colors and look is ancient and not fun to work with, and yes, perception is everything. Also, there is no scale on the meters which means you are left clueless about actual audio levels. It is snappy and I trust the code is very optimized as per the developers claim.
I fail to see why this app has been so popular compared to the many incredible modern DAW type apps available. Use Auria for about 10 minutes and you will understand where I am coming from. In summary, I think the $9.99 I paid for MTD was a waste of money, and the $24.99 I paid for Auria on sale is money well spent, and Auria actually is almost 100% of what desktop users need in a DAW. The upcoming Auria update will surely make all iPad DAW apps even more a joke. I am in no way endorsing Auria, but when you look at the facts it really is an amazing app and the only iOS DAW worth looking at (if you are a musician).
Errmm, actually you are in every way endorsing Auria. Why deny?
I don’t endorse any companies, just using the undisputable facts to make a point.
Oh, if you didn’t understand the definition of “endorse” you should have said so in the first place.
Auria, to me, represents a fantastically terrible interface in a couple of ways. I admit the MTD interface can be a bit fiddly, but it’s easy and to the point, which is what counts when I am on the go. But here’s my main reasons for choosing MTD over Auria, or something else.
1- I don’t want to emulate decades old mixers and tape decks, so having that structure to me is ridiculous when screen space and layout could be more focused and modern
2- There are too many fiddly buttons and knobs and such in Auria that are pretty hard to conveniently get a hold of
3 – I don’t want a full DAW replacement on my iPad. I just want a clean scratch pad that uses minimal system resources to capture multiple tracks into from various apps and microphone sources, which can then be bounced as files and moved into Ableton for real song development. Also, sometimes I like to just free form jam on an app and capture what comes out, and then later chop out a few tasty bits in Ableton. MTD is leaner on resources and super easy to use for all that.
4 – MTD runs on both my iPhone and my iPad. Auria is iPad only.
5 – You made a price/value comparison between Auria and MTD, but you left out all the micro transaction add-ons for Auria. Counting those, Auria does indeed gain a huge amount of functionality over MTD (assuming that’s what you want), but it comes at a cost that is easily into the three figures. MTD was 10 bucks and works on two platforms.
Totally cool if you want to use Auria. I am open to that myself if my mobile needs swing in the direction some day. But the bottom line is that your needs are not exactly equal to every else’s needs. Workflows and intentions are different, and that’s why there are a lot of apps to choose from. For me, who uses an iPad/iPhone primarily as an inspirational scratch pad, nothing beats MTD and Loopy.
About number 4- there seems to be a bug on iPhone – IAA doesn’t show up….
Bummer! Mtd shows and runs on my iPhone 5 w/iOS 7.1
Runs, but no IAA. Are you saying you can open apps through IAA? Lots of people can’t, including me( iPhone 5s)
Go ahead and downvote this, you downvotahs…..
A lean mean recording machine. Get’em dog!
Woof
… and it still can’t auto quantise … 🙁
WTF?!
Or am I missing something…
What would it quanitze? It’s never recorded MIDI data. And it’s not really geared towards beat-making. Other apps are better for that.
I was hoping for automation. Maybe next update.
Alway loved this app. Simple but very useful.
Jus upgraded iPad mini to OS 7.1, new MTD looks like it’ll work. Loved the previous MTD on iPad running 6.x except equalizer knobs Drove Me Nuts! No knob would rotate (clockwise) past about 1:00 position. Looks like new equalizer still erratic but wider range at least (keep up the good work harmonicdog)