The free Novation’s Launchpad for iPad app is designed to complement the various launch family products, and the Camera Connection Kit lets you use the loops, sounds, and effects of Launchpad S, Launchpad Mini, Launchkey, or Launchkey Mini control all with the iPad.

Loops and Samples on-board

More interesting though, the app already comes with quite a few pretty usable loops and sounds across the genres of electro music from hip hop, dub step, drum’n’bass to trance. All loops and samples play immediately in the right timing and with a variety of filters and effects, a little DJ performance can be conjured up. In fact, you can have a lot of fun with it. Through in-app purchases, the sound library can be expanded. Your own performance can be recorded and shared via Soundcloud, Dropbox or Email.

Using own loops and sounds

Since the last update, the desire of many users has come true, to equip the iPad version with their own sounds and loops. In addition, however, a paid audio import upgrade for currently € 5.99 is required. This will allow wav or aiff samples stored in the dropbox to be assigned to any pad in the app. The price for this feature is fine in my opinion. What I do not like it, however, is the Dropbox compulsion. Novation should allow its customers at this point already the opportunity to determine themselves, where the samples are and on which service or server they are to be retrieved. A clear improvement would be at this point, for example, the import of their own music library on the iPad, so that can be played on iTunes Mac Loops and sounds on iTunes – like normal songs otherwise. Then the access via Launchpad can then be done without Internet access and Dropbox upload.

av 01.11.2013