So to a first approximation all an ableton push 3 is is an ipad with some buttons glued on and an integrated audio interface.
Which for me thinking…has anyone actually made an enclosure for an ipad that boxed it all up nicely?
My primary reason for not using the Ipad, despite its wealth of software, is the need to get the audio interface out, set up the ipad on a stand, get a hub so I can connect some control surface, wire everything together, and then, inevitably run into some inexplicable problem, etc you get the idea.
Now, if someone bundled an audion interface, some tactile controls that could be swapped out or configured by the user, and the software workflow could be polished, I’d beg that person to take my money.
I think I could probably create a fairly janky prototype for the enclosure/mounting of all the pieces, but i was hoping someone with more mechanical design experience than me had already solved this. Am I on my
own?
Wow, I totally forgot about the irig. I think I actually believed it was discontinued.
Those are great, but imagine you could have an enclosure that supported an ipad and some amount of configurable accessory space. They make chainable midi modules now, so in this utopian vision you could have pads for working with drums, or a small keyboard for melodic lines.
My problem with the irig is it’s too cumbersome. Something more ableton push sized built around an ipad seems doable, but i imagine companies consider it to niche a need.
But things like the akai force and the push 3 are basically just crappy ipads with good hardware. An ipad pro will run circles around the intel nuc, so it really just needs a competently designed accessory to eliminate their raison d’etre. (well, unless you need ableton )
There’s an old alesis iPad dock thing but I don’t think it’s compatible anymore
iPad’s change shape quite often , i don’t think it’s commercially viable if the main shape changes every year , unless it’s just a groove on a device with a cable that can change .
The alesis thing was 30 pin , then it all changed to lightning connection and now it’s usbC
I think it’s safer to get a usb controller that isn’t tied to iOS / iPad . They’ll change shape again in six months .
usb c is here to stay, and since he way i imagine it working would all be through usb c, think it will lprobaly break before usb c is gone.
Basically you could design it like the framework laptop, where the use usb c connectors to provide modular units to the laptop. Shape, sure, but nothing you can’t fix with some adjustable spacers.
Again, i want to reiterate that for me, the primary annoyance is having to repeatedly configure a bunch of components, then disassemble them, ad nauseum. Well, actually the primary annoyance is the lack of tactile buttons, but that’s covered by he need to attach them.
edit: re your point about choosing generic components, there’s always a trade off between genericity and speed. I could do all of my music on computer, but that doesn’t do it for me
There was a company making stick on encoders a few years ago , unsure if they made it to market or they might’ve been kickstarter / shown at a synth show
Controller software wise I have used midi designer pro years ago , it was good too , I think it’s still getting updates .
There’s a user on here that has six or 7 iPads for his setup , perhaps he’ll contribute when he sees the thread .
No, I don’t get the idea because I have solved every one of these problem having used iPads for music for the past 15 years. My iPad integration is seamless and trouble free. It’s no more involved than turning on my laptop or my MPC.
My iPad has a 61 key keyboard, 16 drum pads, a 64 pad midi controller, and 8 channel fader/encoder controller all permanently attached to the iPad which is mounted to a VESA arm sitting between my two computer monitors. So no shortage of control over the iPad.
It has a keyboard, a mouse. A dedicated audio/midi interface. No need to set anything up or go through any type of hassles.
I have my MPC, a Mac mini with a DAW, and my iPad all hooked together on my desk. I figure I could get everything up and running in 2 minutes or less - MPC default project open, AUM with a saved template, and Ableton open and running. If it took longer or require setting things up I’d be pissed off by the time I even started.
Edit - this is a made for iPad keyboard I bought 14 years ago that’ became obsolete once the form factor changed.
Using an iPad as the heart of a studio setup doesn’t seem any different than using a laptop. I have a thunderbolt dock under my desk hooked up to the monitor, audio interface, midi controller, and anything else I need. I just have to plug in one Thunderbolt cable.
If I had a modern iPad Pro with Thunderbolt, I could hook that up instead.
Another option is the OP-XY. Audio interface, keys, knobs, and all over one USB-C cable. It’s a good partner for the iPad.
I’ve tried a lot to get on with an ipad/iphone and a controller. It is amazing what you can do but wasn’t for me ultimately. Fiddling around with tiny menus trying to map midi controls etc… sometimes you just want a piece of hardware that does exactly what it needs to do and no fussing.
That said I can recommend the SMC mixer and pad controller which are both battery powered and bluetooth, so no wires required and they work well.
like mentioned above, the iPad rig has become easier with USB C and USB hub. Recent developments in V-Mount batteries with USB C output makes this rig mobile as well. Any device can be implemented, be it controller or synth. QuNexus keyboard, Exquis keyboard, Seqtrak. The Seqtrak functions also as an audio interface. Small synths like Volca Modular or Make Noise 0-Coast can therefore be implemented, too.
I still use an iPad 2 from 2012 with a Tascam iU2 interface as a digital effect device, and another iPad 2 with an iRig MIDI interface as a sequencer. But these two iPads stay in the studio, are integral part of my Eurorack and Formant modular systems.
A third option is an iPad Pro 2017 with Camera Connection Kit and USB hub, where an old iCon QCon motorfader controller can be used with Cubasis and Auria Pro, and also a UA Volt 476 audio interface. But most of the time I use the QCon and 476 with a laptop.
Want to also add that a lot of controllers these days are Bluetooth-capable, even the cheap ones. You can also get a wireless USB gaming headset that doesn’t have the lag that a lot of plain bluetooth headsets do.
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