Here are this weekends deals from 4Pockets. The offers end November 6th.
- Helium MIDI Editor – $12.99 to $7.99
- DigiStix 2 – $12.99 to $8.99
- Progressions – $9.99 to $6.99
- Chameleon – $9.99 to $6.99
Helium
Helium is a lightweight AUv3 MIDI sequencer plugin designed specifically for AUM. It supports up to 16 tracks of unlimited length with the ability to direct output to 16 channels on up to 16 MIDI output ports.
One of the great features is the ability to import and maintain libraries of MIDI clips using Helium’s ‘Media Bay’. These clips are freely available all over the internet and may contain individual chord sets, chord progressions or drum tracks. You can quickly build a song by dragging and dropping your MIDI clips from the media bay onto your timeline. You can also save your own clips directly to the media bay to create your own personal MIDI clips libraries. Long press on a clip to preview its contents using the currently selected MIDI device.
Helium now ships with a library of over 7000 MIDI clips, consisting of every chord and chord progression you could ever need.
Helium allows many different ways to import additional MIDI clip libraries. Simply drag and drop your ZIP collections directly to your PC/MAC web browser and they are automatically unpacked into the clips library folder. You can also drag and drop files between the Media Bay and the iOS Files app.
Helium supports a sync mode called ‘Remote Looping’. This was something we recently introduced into our MultiTrack Recorder plugin and is very useful for breaking down the timeline into sections. You can define up to 12 loops which can be used to specify the locations of say the intro, verse, chorus, and outro within your song, then trigger these loops seemlessly in sync with the host tempo. Once captured, these loops can then be triggered by incoming MIDI notes.
A new addition to Helium is the ability to piece together loops into songs, so you just concentrate on creating a single verse, chorus, bridge etc. and piece everything together without the headache of having to re-arrange your timeline.
DigiStix 2
This new version of DigiStix brings some distinct advantages over its predecessor, most notably the ability to host up to 64 samples per drumkit with 5 layers per pad. The interface has been drastically redesigned for iPad to make better use of full screen mode, allowing a popular MPC style 4×4 pad layout with 4 banks of samples. Digistix 2 also allows greater control over the multi-sample layers, with the ability to individually control the volume levels and pitch of layers as well as global pitch and tune settings all from the new sample window.
Previously, each pad had effect sends for the internal reverb and delay effects, but this can now be routed to external busses 9 and 10 for processing using external effects.
The controller editing is now build into the main display and can be edited in place without the need to scroll the interface. It also now supports extra effect controllers. A new context aware control window allows you to quickly change pad settings without the need for popup windows.
DigiStix 2 now supports GM and original DS drum kit layouts, and includes a sophisticated multi-layer Auto Sampler, capable of recording new GM compatible drumkits automatically from your hardware. It is 100% backward compatible with the original app, and can be used as a drop-in replacement.
Drag and drop support now allows you to directly drop samples on specific layers, as well as preview and edit them directly. You can create new kits by simply combining banks from existing kits into one mega kit, or use our non destructive referencing to include sounds from other kits.
The randomize feature has been enhanced so you can randomize individual instruments or within specific banks. The new continuous MIDI learn mode makes custom mapping a breeze.
Patterns can also be exported as MIDI stems for use in other packages including a direct import to Helium clips. You can also export patterns as audio in the latest version.
The auto sample feature allows automated recording of GM compatible kits directly from hardware drum machines. The slice editor can also be used for MPC style slicing of audio clips.
Progressions
Progressions is an AUv3 MIDI plugin for your favourite DAW. It can be used to generate a unique set of chords that are unrelated to traditional scales, which become predictable and repetative over time. Instead, Progressions uses a unique way of mathermaically generating a series of related chords using only a root note and mode (major or minor). Chord sequences are limited by the selected complexity and freedom levels, which mimic the way traditional composers of old would wander away from tonality and back again.
The complexity level start off at Basic, which uses only the most common chords (I, IV, V and relative minor ii, iii, and vi triads). As you progress through the levels, you can add parallel majors and minors, sus and dom chords etc. At level 3 we start to introduce 6th and 7th chords, and then 9ths chords, all the way to 11ths, 13ths, Quartals and all their variations.
The freedom level allows us to specify how far to drift away from tonality (the root), even allowing you to create never ending randomized soundscapes.
Progressions allows you to quickly randomize a toolbox of chords, that can be played in a variety of modes (block chords, arpeggiated, or strummed). These can be synced to a host application, triggered remotely or pieced together into a song.
Song mode allow you to change play modes on the fly as well as being able to control many features of the app in real time.
Progressions supports open and closed chords with selectable voicings. It has an intelligent algorithm that attempts to align top notes of chords, add additional bass, and open chord padding to give equal weight to chords with only 3 notes. You can even play with rootless voicings.
The Humanize section allows you to control chord and note timings, as well as set velocity variations to ensure things don’t get too robitic.
Progressions also features an integrated arpeggiator and strummming pattern editor. You can load up to 6 arp and 6 strum patterns at the same time and seemlessly switch between them manually, remotely, or using song mode.
If you run multiple instances, Progressions allows you to sync your chord pads, song chain, arpeggiator / strum patterns between instances.
Progressions can be loaded as a MIDI plugin or as an Instrument for those programs that don’t support MIDI plugins (such as GB). Additionally when loaded as an instrument, you can use either internal sounds (soundfonts) or send MIDI directly to other MIDI instruments.
Chameleon
The program can run as a standalone app in order to record audio samples from the internal microphone or professional audio interface. It also supports incoming Inter-App Audio connections for sampling directly from other iOS applications, however it is primarily intended to be used as an AUv3 Instrument plugin for applications such as Cubasis, AUM, Auria, Meteor, Gargeband etc. The plugin can additionally be loaded as an AUv3 effect in order to record audio passing through it from other AUv3 Instrument sources, which makes it a very versatile and useful tool.
So what is a sampler? A sampler is a device that allows you to imitate other instruments with just a few short audio snippits. Although it comes with a library of presets it also allows you to create your own. You do this by recording multiple audio clips and mapping them to the notes on a MIDI keyboard and Chameleon does the rest using a sophisticated pitch shifting algorithm to fill in the blanks. Recorded samples can either be layered or mapped freely over a 7 octave range and saved as individual presets. Presets are then organised into custom categorised banks which can be exported and shared with others.
Just think, you can sample all your favourite synth sounds and carry them around on your iPhone/iPad without the inconvenience of lugging heavy gear around with you. Sample anything from musical instruments to vocal snippits, drum machines or ambient noises. The possibilities are endless.
Recording is incredible easy. Just create a New Patch and press record. Chameleon will wait for you to play a note before recording begins. Once recorded press the LEARN button and tap the note range on the virtual or MIDI keyboard to map the sample. Repeat this as many times as required, tweak the settings and save your patch. Additionally you can setup loop points with the ability to apply crossfade. If all that sounds too complicated, just press auto sample and let Chameleon do all the sampling for you.
Chameleon also has a quite sophisticated arpeggiator which allows you to create complex mixtures of notes and chords with glide, hold and re-triggering options.
On board reverb, digital delay and chorus effects are available to give your samples a more polished touch. We also include 4 touch pads for quickly dialing in on a sound or for easy effect automation. Configurable touch ADSR and modulation options are available too.
Chameleon can also import audio samples using iOS Files integration or you can make use of Copy / Paste to quickly drop one of more samples into a patch. You can also freely edit samples using the built in tools such as normalise, fade in, fade out, crop, clear options etc.
You can run Cameleon as a standalone app and map external MIDI keyboards (Bluetooth MIDI support also included) and perform audio sampling outside of your DAW. This is provided for convenience since you can’t record input when hosted as an AUv3 Instrument plugin.
Yes some DAW’s have built in samplers which only have the ability to playback libraries provided with the software. Chameleon allows you to built your own libraries of sounds and share them with others. There’s a budding rapper in you dying to get out and we have just the tool!
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