The iRig

[Rip Topaz]

Originally Posted by Duke21

I think you could connect an iDevice right into a power amp. I do it at home. But it is a bit easier to control the volume with a small mixer

This. Without the mixer you've got to control your levels from inside the app, and this can get weird really fast if you're switching between presets.

[Duke21]

Originally Posted by Rip Topaz

Crap. I had hoped it would stay this time. I guess that PM I got from IK was just lip service.

I basically restated the same thing we've been telling IK all along. I don't even get too harsh on IK, but I DID mention their competitors.

Indeed, and we where very careful this time. But I guess referring to recordings done on other apps and naming other apps is too much for them....
How the hell can we discus their product without comparing it to other products?? Specially products which are better????

[Rip Topaz]

Exactly. How are they supposed to stay current when they bury their heads in the sand?

Oh well. It's moot, anyway.

[HeavyDuty]

Thanks for the info, guys!

[4to5to6]

I bought the first iRig off the shelf when they were first introduced along with all the software upgrades.

I found the sound quality really poor even using very expensive in-ear monitors. It was difficult to get a good bass / mp3 blend and you had to import every song although I believe they fixed this on a later upgrade of the software.

I ended up giving it away with no regrets.

Novel idea, especially for the price, but more of a toy as someone described it above. This was basically the first thing like it out there but there are much better interfaces out there now for apple products although they are more money. Take my advice and search around. It's more enjoyable playing your electric bass unplugged along to your iPhone than using one of these.

I ended up getting a Raven Labs PHA-1 head phone amp that runs on batteries or plugs in but sadly they are discontinued so only available used. It's great for practicing in the hotel room and I used it when studying with Jeff Berlin for a week. The Raven Labs headphone amp has great bass tone even with average head phones and there is an 1/8 jack to plug in an iPhone or any other MP3 player or recorder. The levels can be easily blended and your bass EQed and songs easily selected or a YouTube video... the best of all worlds and simple.

My 2nd choice was a Phil Jones bass budy and I also considered a Cafe Walter HA-1 head phone amp built in Seattle, WA.

[Rip Topaz]

They've actually come quite a long way since the Irig was first introduced. The actual Irig interface is most definitely crap, but it got the idea going and it has gone in some great places.

[steve_rolfeca]

Originally Posted by HeavyDuty

Another likely positively stupid question from the old fart (get offa my lawn!).

Is the audio level out of an iPhone or iPad sufficient to directly drive a power amp or is a preamp needed?

...Would sticking a DI between the iPad and power amp do it?

It's not a stupid question at all, and the answer is, it depends- but mostly, no.

Especially if you're using clean tones, it's hard to get a lot of drive out of an amp sym without breakup. A DI will give you impedance matching, and a balanced output for reduced noise, but it doesn't give you any extra gain.

Power amps vary pretty widely in terms of how much level it takes to achieve full output power. You might be able to drive the effects return of a bass amp to achieve full power, but with a lot of rack mount power amps, you'll need a mini mixer or a mic preamp, to boost the signal.

[HeavyDuty]

Hmmm. Using effects return might be the best thing to try. Thanks!

[Duke21]

Originally Posted by steve_rolfeca

It's not a stupid question at all, and the answer is, it depends- but mostly, no.

Especially if you're using clean tones, it's hard to get a lot of drive out of an amp sym without breakup. A DI will give you impedance matching, and a balanced output for reduced noise, but it doesn't give you any extra gain.

Power amps vary pretty widely in terms of how much level it takes to achieve full output power. You might be able to drive the effects return of a bass amp to achieve full power, but with a lot of rack mount power amps, you'll need a mini mixer or a mic preamp, to boost the signal.

While we often know the answer (roughly out of just trying stuff), but you always have the engineering knowledge, great to have you we us Steve!

Running into the effect return or even the Aux is the way of bypassing the preamp on a bass head. This is what I do at home:

Running the signal into my Aux/ mp3 socket bypass the preamp and make my Ibanez bass combo sound like something else, totally

With my band I used to connect into the main board, even with my sansamp. Much easier to control the volume with a mixer then right into a power amp.

[Duke21]

Originally Posted by Rip Topaz

Exactly. How are they supposed to stay current when they bury their heads in the sand?

Oh well. It's moot, anyway.

And after the last update AT will not run on my iPad 1, I could re-instal it, but then, I am not going to do so until IK comes with a serious update which is aimed at us.
Right now it seems like they are putting more effort in deleting posts then compiling bass amps for iOS!

[Rip Topaz]

I'm really disturbed by this latest group of deleted posts, because three days ago it was suggested that a special area be set up for us bassists on the IK forum. After two days I gave up and started the area myself.

Once again, when asked about bass gear and customer relations, IK pays lip service and nothing else.

AT is still on my iPhone, but not working. I've got too much invested in it to just get rid of it, but until a fix makes its way into the App Store, Amplitube will remain as it is now. I'm not doing the delete/reinstall out of fear of losing my in-app purchases (again).

The funny part is that it really doesn't effect me at all. Jamup and Loopy are taking up all of my time anyway!!

Today I'm gonna try to put all the amps in the bass expansion pack through the paces in the PA. Haven't really been able to crank it up over the weekend, but today is gonna get loud.

[Duke21]

I think Peter want only to have us there if we talk about wishes regarding bass gear where we do not mention anything else then AT iOS, and rather positive aspects....
If we can not bench AT iOS against the opposition then it is obviously no point to discuss anything with them. They did like us to compare AT iOS to other products before, but back then AT iOS was THE benchmark.... now when AT iOS is not the benchmark and comparing is not allowed...

[Duke21]

I doubt strongly that if we will come to the IK MM forum and talk about how bad is Ampkit or Jamup, THESE post will not be deleted.

The IK multimedia forum is turning out to be even stricter then the Rickenbacker forum, and that says something.

[Rip Topaz]

Originally Posted by Duke21

I think Peter want only to have us there if we talk about wishes regarding bass gear where we do not mention anything else then AT iOS, and rather positive aspects....
If we can not bench AT iOS against the opposition then it is obviously no point to discuss anything with them. They did like us to compare AT iOS to other products before, but back then AT iOS was THE benchmark.... now when AT iOS is not the benchmark and comparing is not allowed...

This. They don't want us showing the proof that AT is no longer on top.

I agree that if we went on there and talked about how great AT is, they'd probably create a sticky for us!!

I'll be interested in seeing if they release a bug fix this week.

[steve_rolfeca]

Originally Posted by Duke21

I doubt strongly that if we will come to the IK MM forum and talk about how bad is Ampkit or Jamup, THESE post will not be deleted.

This is simple marketing 101.

Vendors use forums at least in part, to do market research. If guitarists fawn over their latest creations and turn out to be an easy, appreciative audience, and bass players turn out to be a bunch of cranky SOB's, they're going to go where the money is.

BTW, I thought Rip's opening post was too confrontational in the first place, which was why I tried to follow it up with something less likely to make waves.

[Rip Topaz]

Originally Posted by steve_rolfeca

This is simple marketing 101.

Vendors use forums at least in part, to do market research. If guitarists fawn over their latest creations and turn out to be an easy, appreciative audience, and bass players turn out to be a bunch of cranky SOB's, they're going to go where the money is.

BTW, I thought Rip's opening post was too confrontational in the first place, which was why I tried to follow it up with something less likely to make waves.

I agree that my post was slightly confrontational, but after my PM's with Peter from IK, I was left with the impression that they were finally going to allow us to speak our minds without the fear of being deleted. I made it very clear to Peter that it wasn't possible to have a discussion about making music on iOS without discussing options other than Amplitube. He agreed.

So when I posted the first post, I knew what I was up against. But at the same time, I wanted to set the stage for an open-minded discussion of ALL iOS options. IK obviously is afraid of their competition, and they should be. They've already lost at their own game.

[Duke21]

I honestly have no idea what we should say in the IK Multimedia forum. I've praised their product here on TB and on the IK multimedia. On TB I've praised them very often.
I also made wishes for additional bass gear and ideas for improvement. My first post on the IK multimedia with a wish for more bass gear is maybe from 1.5-2 years ago. But since then nothing happened. Well, we got the B15R, but as always IK MM response is in the form of "thanks for suggestions, we will forward these t out developers".
I'm really fed up by the same type of response, here on TB or on the IK forum. It is of course totally their right to ignore us, but it is also my right to be critical and to stop digging their app. And I did dig it for a long time. As Paul say, they lost at their own game.
I'll not buy the Hendrix pack, something I would have done earlier.

[Duke21]

You know, when I created the Amplitube iOS bass group on soundcloud I've send them a massage about the group, and that they are welcome to follow us. I never heard anything from them!! This, and deleting or posts/ threads, ignoring us etc. made me loose faith in their product, much more then the product by itself.

[AaronMB]

[Long-time lurker--though very much part of the choir!--in this thread coming out of the wood work.]

I feel ya guys. And I totally agree with what's been said in just about this whole thread; as suggested above, I've been watching this thread for some time. It's been a motivator for me to try different aps: AT, GK, AK, JamUp. I was/am attracted to AmpKit the most, even after appreciating the recorder in AT (the only plus for me). JamUp looks cool, but I'm invested in AK and my iTunes budget is short for getting the bass pack in JamUp. Maybe next month.

But with that said, my fellow bassin' brethren, we need to move on. What started as a legitimate gripe/FYI to IK has turned into something worse and it's not, in my opinion (forgive me, please), reflecting well on us, here. We're beating a dead horse and pissing on it, now. I love ya guys and this place but it's time to move on.

Let's start a generic thread for Apps and the Settings that we like and leave this specific IK thread to itself; we can return when we have something positive to say about IK: any press for IK is good press, even if we're whining. If IK wants to bury their heads in the sand we should let them and help by letting this thread go; it's run its course. IK isn't making the effort so why should we waste ours?

New thread time!?

[Duke21]

Agree!

About time to move on.
Some like "The iOS bass player" could be the a right name for a new thread. This thread will not be limited by its name by any means.