Until now, most music Web apps have been little more than fun distractions, great for making noise, but not very good for serious music production. Audiotool changes that. While it probably won't lead you to ditch Ableton Live, Logic or even Garage Band, it does show how powerful Flash can be in the right hands.
Audiotool has a surprising amount of depth for something that exists in a browser window. In fact, digital music novices will likely be intimidated by the array of inputs, outputs, mixers, effects pedals, and drum machines at their disposal. Audiotool offers very little guidance for how to assemble a track. Visitors should know that in order to use the Moog-esque virtual synth, they will either have to use the note sequencer (hidden by default), or connect it to the Tenori-On-like Tonematrix module with virtual cables. Those widgets must then be connected, via another virtual cable to a mixer, that must then be connected to the Output Master -- the only module displayed when you launch Audiotool.
We spent some time getting familiar with Audiotool, and, while we weren't anywhere near composing this summer's radio anthem, we were able to compose a perfectly serviceable (if slightly cacophonous) electronic ditty. That task would have been much more difficult if we didn't have some experience with virtual synthesizers and recording equipment.
All of the modules are given original names, but are clearly modeled after classic equipment such as the TB-303 bass line synth, and TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines -- staples of electronic and hip-hop studios everywhere.
Audiotool has a surprising amount of depth for something that exists in a browser window. In fact, digital music novices will likely be intimidated by the array of inputs, outputs, mixers, effects pedals, and drum machines at their disposal. Audiotool offers very little guidance for how to assemble a track. Visitors should know that in order to use the Moog-esque virtual synth, they will either have to use the note sequencer (hidden by default), or connect it to the Tenori-On-like Tonematrix module with virtual cables. Those widgets must then be connected, via another virtual cable to a mixer, that must then be connected to the Output Master -- the only module displayed when you launch Audiotool.
We spent some time getting familiar with Audiotool, and, while we weren't anywhere near composing this summer's radio anthem, we were able to compose a perfectly serviceable (if slightly cacophonous) electronic ditty. That task would have been much more difficult if we didn't have some experience with virtual synthesizers and recording equipment.
All of the modules are given original names, but are clearly modeled after classic equipment such as the TB-303 bass line synth, and TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines -- staples of electronic and hip-hop studios everywhere.
