Use a Touch Instrument, microphone or a guitar and instantly record a performance with support for up to 32 tracks. Use the Sound Library to download additional free instruments, loops and sound packs. Audio Unit Extensions in iOS 14 allow you to play, record and mix third-party instruments or effects directly in GarageBand.
In this tutorial, I'll explain to you how to go about adding samples to your music in Garageband. It's a fairly simple process with just a few steps.
First things first, there are a number of ways of creating samples. For one, you can download them from places online, or you can simply make your own.
Whenever I use a sample, I typically make it by myself, usually through YouTube videos.
It doesn't make a lot of difference how you find samples but for the sake of brevity, I'll explain how I get samples.
- Apple announced Audio Units for iOS and iPadOS in 2015. Audio Units (Apple's answer to VSTs) have been extensively used in music production since the mid-'90s. These self-contained virtual instruments, or effects processors, run inside of DAWs like GarageBand or as separate apps. An audio unit running inside GarageBand eliminates latency.
- With Audio Unit Extensions, you can play or record a studio-sized collection of musical instruments and effects right inside GarageBand and other compatible music-creation apps. Choose from among apps that have been expertly tailored to re-create classic hardware and those that envision the future—all right from your iPad or iPhone.
For the most part, nearly every song that you could ever want is on YouTube in some way or another. Moreover, you can access all kinds of other content for sampling, including stand-up routines, TV shows, movies, and so on and so forth.
Terraria download android. My favorite person to sample is the comedian, George Carlin (RIP), so whenever I need content to sample, the first thing I do is I go into YouTube and select what part of his routine that I want.
I'm going to show you how to take an hour-long stand-up special, grab the part that you want, and then upload it into Garageband and use it for your music.
Without further ado…
How To Create Samples And Upload Them To Garageband
For this tutorial, I'm using the clip from Carlin's routine, 'Saving The Planet,' from his show in, I believe, 1999.
1) First things first, you want to find your clip, assuming that it's on YouTube.
2) Grab the URL for the video.
3) Now take your link and copy and paste it into the input bar on YouTube to Mp3 converter at https://ytmp3.cc/
4) Download the Mp3 file. Depending on how long your file is, it could take a few seconds or a few minutes.
5) Open up Garageband, and select Software Instrument.
6) Drag and drop your Mp3 file into the DAW's workspace.
7) Make sure that you turn off the metronome once it's in your DAW, otherwise, when you go and try and use this clip later, the metronome will be playing in the background, and that's no good.
8) Select the part of the clip you want to use. You can either use the (Command – T) function, to isolate the desired part, or you can shorten the track using the Resize Pointer.
9) Export the track as an AIFF or WAV file. I usually just keep it simple and export it as a WAV file to my desktop, that way I can see it in case of a problem later.
10) Open up Garageband and open up a software instrument track.
11) Go into your Plug-ins down in your smart controls.
12) Choose AU Instruments.
13) Then Choose Apple.
14) Then click on AUSampler.
15) Choose Stereo, and this should bring up the Sampler which looks like a regular old MIDI Keyboard in your DAW's top-left-hand corner.
16) Click on the little gear icon on the bottom of the Sampler.
17) Click on Add Sample.
18) Upload your WAV file into the sampler, and voila! You can now play your sample at a different pitch and so on.
19) The last thing you need to do is click on the check-mark beside where it says 'Sine 440 Built-In' because it's going to play the sample as well as the keyboard at the same time and you don't want that.
20) Another way of doing this is just highlighting 'Sine 440 Built-in' and then hitting the 'subtract' symbol below.
Important Things To Note
- Bring up your MIDI keyboard using the (Command-K) option and make sure you can play your sample through your computer's MIDI controller. Make sure the AUSampler is playing your sample through the use of the MIDI keyboard, otherwise, it won't record when you try and make a track.
- You need to 'Enable Audio Units' within the Garageband preferences. They're usually disabled by default for whatever reason.
- You may run into a few different hiccups on the way, including the fact that, if your 'Count-In' button is selected, and you start recording the sample before the counter has reached 0.4, you'll find that it won't actually record. It has to be at beat 1. Or similarly, you could just turn off the count-in button and start recording right away. However, I like to use the count-in for keeping the beat.
- When sampling music, it's essential that you figure out the beats per minute of the track, that way you can create a drum track and other instruments for it later. You do this through counting along to the song by bobbing your head or hitting the table and then matching the metronome with the speed at which your moving your head or hand. This will make creating accompanying music so much easier.
In my article, 16 Editing Tips For GarageBand (That Actually Work) (Link Here), I explained how to set your sample to the proper BPM that way you can add drum tracks and other instruments and have everything sound perfectly in time.
How To Enable Audio Units in Garageband's preferences.
1) Go into Garageband's preferences.
2) Click on Audio/MIDI
3) Check the box, 'Enable Audio Units.'
This should take care of this common problem that users run into.
About The AUSampler
Whenever I use the AUSampler, typically, I'll hit the (Command-K) function, bringing up Garageband's MIDI Keyboard. I'm pretty sure that you have to use this keyboard if you want the DAW to actually record the sample.
There are a few knobs in the AUSampler, like 'Tuning,' 'Pan,' and 'Global.'
'Tuning' adjusts the pitch of the sample.
The 'Pan' knob adjusts on which speaker the sample is heard through. If you pan it to the right, you'll hear from your right speaker headphone, and through the left speaker and headphone if you pan it to the left.
And the 'Global' volume adjusts the total volume of the sample. I usually just leave these knobs as they are, but you can adjust them and play with them at your will.
You can adjust the octave at which you're playing through arrows on the left-hand and right-hand side of the keyboard.
Another popular feature that DAW users like to use the AUSampler for, is uploading other people's drumkits and using them as your own.
For example, you'll see online that a lot of producers sell their own drum kits, and in my experience, they usually just come in a Sample format, and you have to upload each one of them into your DAW and through the Sampler.
To do this, it's essentially the same process as uploading the sample that I showed at the beginning of the article, except you don't have to change the file format.
Tip: One of the cool things about using the AUSampler and loading drumkits into it, is that you can adjust the pitch of a hi-hat or a snare, creating an entirely different effect. You can really get creative with this method.
Use a Touch Instrument, microphone or a guitar and instantly record a performance with support for up to 32 tracks. Use the Sound Library to download additional free instruments, loops and sound packs. Audio Unit Extensions in iOS 14 allow you to play, record and mix third-party instruments or effects directly in GarageBand.
In this tutorial, I'll explain to you how to go about adding samples to your music in Garageband. It's a fairly simple process with just a few steps.
First things first, there are a number of ways of creating samples. For one, you can download them from places online, or you can simply make your own.
Whenever I use a sample, I typically make it by myself, usually through YouTube videos.
It doesn't make a lot of difference how you find samples but for the sake of brevity, I'll explain how I get samples.
- Apple announced Audio Units for iOS and iPadOS in 2015. Audio Units (Apple's answer to VSTs) have been extensively used in music production since the mid-'90s. These self-contained virtual instruments, or effects processors, run inside of DAWs like GarageBand or as separate apps. An audio unit running inside GarageBand eliminates latency.
- With Audio Unit Extensions, you can play or record a studio-sized collection of musical instruments and effects right inside GarageBand and other compatible music-creation apps. Choose from among apps that have been expertly tailored to re-create classic hardware and those that envision the future—all right from your iPad or iPhone.
For the most part, nearly every song that you could ever want is on YouTube in some way or another. Moreover, you can access all kinds of other content for sampling, including stand-up routines, TV shows, movies, and so on and so forth.
Terraria download android. My favorite person to sample is the comedian, George Carlin (RIP), so whenever I need content to sample, the first thing I do is I go into YouTube and select what part of his routine that I want.
I'm going to show you how to take an hour-long stand-up special, grab the part that you want, and then upload it into Garageband and use it for your music.
Without further ado…
How To Create Samples And Upload Them To Garageband
For this tutorial, I'm using the clip from Carlin's routine, 'Saving The Planet,' from his show in, I believe, 1999.
1) First things first, you want to find your clip, assuming that it's on YouTube.
2) Grab the URL for the video.
3) Now take your link and copy and paste it into the input bar on YouTube to Mp3 converter at https://ytmp3.cc/
4) Download the Mp3 file. Depending on how long your file is, it could take a few seconds or a few minutes.
5) Open up Garageband, and select Software Instrument.
6) Drag and drop your Mp3 file into the DAW's workspace.
7) Make sure that you turn off the metronome once it's in your DAW, otherwise, when you go and try and use this clip later, the metronome will be playing in the background, and that's no good.
8) Select the part of the clip you want to use. You can either use the (Command – T) function, to isolate the desired part, or you can shorten the track using the Resize Pointer.
9) Export the track as an AIFF or WAV file. I usually just keep it simple and export it as a WAV file to my desktop, that way I can see it in case of a problem later.
10) Open up Garageband and open up a software instrument track.
11) Go into your Plug-ins down in your smart controls.
12) Choose AU Instruments.
13) Then Choose Apple.
14) Then click on AUSampler.
15) Choose Stereo, and this should bring up the Sampler which looks like a regular old MIDI Keyboard in your DAW's top-left-hand corner.
16) Click on the little gear icon on the bottom of the Sampler.
17) Click on Add Sample.
18) Upload your WAV file into the sampler, and voila! You can now play your sample at a different pitch and so on.
19) The last thing you need to do is click on the check-mark beside where it says 'Sine 440 Built-In' because it's going to play the sample as well as the keyboard at the same time and you don't want that.
20) Another way of doing this is just highlighting 'Sine 440 Built-in' and then hitting the 'subtract' symbol below.
Important Things To Note
- Bring up your MIDI keyboard using the (Command-K) option and make sure you can play your sample through your computer's MIDI controller. Make sure the AUSampler is playing your sample through the use of the MIDI keyboard, otherwise, it won't record when you try and make a track.
- You need to 'Enable Audio Units' within the Garageband preferences. They're usually disabled by default for whatever reason.
- You may run into a few different hiccups on the way, including the fact that, if your 'Count-In' button is selected, and you start recording the sample before the counter has reached 0.4, you'll find that it won't actually record. It has to be at beat 1. Or similarly, you could just turn off the count-in button and start recording right away. However, I like to use the count-in for keeping the beat.
- When sampling music, it's essential that you figure out the beats per minute of the track, that way you can create a drum track and other instruments for it later. You do this through counting along to the song by bobbing your head or hitting the table and then matching the metronome with the speed at which your moving your head or hand. This will make creating accompanying music so much easier.
In my article, 16 Editing Tips For GarageBand (That Actually Work) (Link Here), I explained how to set your sample to the proper BPM that way you can add drum tracks and other instruments and have everything sound perfectly in time.
How To Enable Audio Units in Garageband's preferences.
1) Go into Garageband's preferences.
2) Click on Audio/MIDI
3) Check the box, 'Enable Audio Units.'
This should take care of this common problem that users run into.
About The AUSampler
Whenever I use the AUSampler, typically, I'll hit the (Command-K) function, bringing up Garageband's MIDI Keyboard. I'm pretty sure that you have to use this keyboard if you want the DAW to actually record the sample.
There are a few knobs in the AUSampler, like 'Tuning,' 'Pan,' and 'Global.'
'Tuning' adjusts the pitch of the sample.
The 'Pan' knob adjusts on which speaker the sample is heard through. If you pan it to the right, you'll hear from your right speaker headphone, and through the left speaker and headphone if you pan it to the left.
And the 'Global' volume adjusts the total volume of the sample. I usually just leave these knobs as they are, but you can adjust them and play with them at your will.
You can adjust the octave at which you're playing through arrows on the left-hand and right-hand side of the keyboard.
Another popular feature that DAW users like to use the AUSampler for, is uploading other people's drumkits and using them as your own.
For example, you'll see online that a lot of producers sell their own drum kits, and in my experience, they usually just come in a Sample format, and you have to upload each one of them into your DAW and through the Sampler.
To do this, it's essentially the same process as uploading the sample that I showed at the beginning of the article, except you don't have to change the file format.
Tip: One of the cool things about using the AUSampler and loading drumkits into it, is that you can adjust the pitch of a hi-hat or a snare, creating an entirely different effect. You can really get creative with this method.
An important thing to remember is that if you accidentally delete these sample files, they'll disappear from your DAW. You can't upload them, save them into your DAW, and then delete the file. It doesn't work that way.
Where Do I Find Samples?
Sample packs are incredibly useful for beat-makers. You can find all kinds of sounds like bass drums, hi-hats, claps, snare drums, and other percussive instruments.
In many cases, they come with noise samples, like the sound of fire, rain, or the noises from out in the street; synth notes, piano chords, and old jazz and blues songs.
Through the combination of unique elements, you can create your own particular sound that no one else has. Producers who are just starting out can make plenty of use of samples, including drum loops and so on.
Online Websites
Like I mentioned above, there are other places you can find sample packs. You can also find sample packs within Garageband's Apple Loops.
Try out these websites:
musicradar.com
bedroomproducersblog.com
freesound.org
hiphopdrumsamples.com
YouTube
Pretty much every song that you could ever want is available on YouTube, as well as movies, stand-up routines, and more. YouTube is definitely a great resource for people looking to find samples.
If you're going to get samples from YouTube, you just have to use a standard converter website that turns YouTube videos into Mp3 files. It's not difficult. A simple search in Google will likely bring a site up right away.
Old Music Collection
The very first producers in the hip-hop scene created samples through the use of vinyl records. This method laid the foundation for rap music sampling.
Although some people like to say that using samples is like 'cheating,' some of rap's most iconic producers would likely disagree, including Kanye West, for one.
One of my favorite producers, and perhaps one of the most underrated, Nujabes, used all kinds of super unique samples that I think sound amazing.
You can go to your local record store, ideally a thrift shop, and find an old-school house, jazz, metal, rock, or blues records. I wouldn't recommend going to a formal record chain, because these places charge like $40 for a vinyl LP or $25 for a CD.
After listening to your new albums, you can rip them to your computer, cut and copy the parts you want, and organize all of the files into some kind of folder or library.
This takes a lot more time to do, but you'll find some serious gems this way, rather than relying solely on sample packs created by others, who, in many cases, might even charge you money.
Many producers worry about the use of samples, but that's not a big deal for the average producer or even professional producers.
According to DJPain, who I get most of my music industry advice from, clearing samples so they're permissible for commercial purposes is the record label's responsibility, not the producer's.
Thus, in the case that you write a hit song that has a sample in it, the record label is actually responsible for getting the permission to use it, rather than the producer.
Admittedly, however, using samples will decrease potential earnings, in comparison to a 100% original song.
Field Recording
Another great way of recording samples is to do it on your own with a Zoom H2 or the Apogee One, which has a great reputation for its size and the quality of sounds recorded. The Apogee One is an audio interface that you can connect right to your iPhone.
There are producers out there who have created entire albums using just field recordings, whether it's the sound of rain, the subway, or the sound of a combine taking corn off in the fields. You can make music out of almost anything through the use of a DAW and a recorder.
Through the use of the AUSampler in Garageband, you can adjust the pitch of the sample, thus, turning it into an entirely different and new sound.
For instance, you can record the sound of a car, drop it down a couple of octaves, and it sounds like a bizarre low-end sound that is practically impossible for someone to imitate.
Think about it, if you record the sound of something that's unique, that no one else has recorded, a producer can have their own sounds that are completely different to what everybody else is doing.
YouTube Video Tutorial
Conclusion
Anyway, that's all for now. I hope this article was helpful to you. Make sure to share this article on social media if you found it helpful.
Check out my recommended gear page for more products that will help you create music.
Free Download: GarageBand for iPhone and iPad Is Essential
Free Download: GarageBand for iPhone and iPad Is Essential: GarageBand began life on the Mac in 2004 and quickly rose to prominence as a simple yet feature-rich music-making app. Almost two decades later, GarageBand for iPhone and iPad continues to impress. It's s completely free, totally user-friendly, and offers hours of fun.
Free Garageband Audio Units
What Is GarageBand?
GarageBand is a digital audio workstation (DAW). Most DAW software is pricey, complex, and demanding, from a hardware perspective. GarageBand is free, approachable, and runs on any modern iPhone or iPad. You'll find it in Apple's App Store. It's available for Mac, too, but we love the touch-based iPhone and iPad version most of all.
Garageband Audio Input
You can use GarageBand to make music quickly, without any prior knowledge of musical theory or practical skills. Apple simplifies the process of playing instruments to the point where you can conduct an entire string section with your fingers. A whole library of loops is also ready to be used if you're in need of inspiration.
Unlike other DAWs, GarageBand focuses primarily on being user friendly. As a result, it lacks many of the advanced features you'd find in software like Ableton or Logic Pro. Despite these limitations, GarageBand has been used by producers like Steve Lacy (Kendrick Lamar, The Internet) and Grimes.
Justice produced its entire Cross album using GarageBand (including the song below), while Rihanna's smash hit 'Umbrella' uses one of Apple's royalty-free loops for the drumbeat. Even if you don't use GarageBand to produce and mix an album, it's still one of the easiest ways to get music out of your head and into a digital format.
Because the Mac, iPhone, and iPad versions of GarageBand are interchangeable, you can save your projects in the cloud and resume them from any device. GarageBand projects are also natively compatible with Logic Pro X, Apple's pricey professional DAW.
But you don't need to be a producer or a songwriter to get a kick out of GarageBand. Not only is it useful, but it's also a lot of fun. It could be the perfect teaching tool for musical theory or a jumping-on point for anyone who's ever wanted to make music but lacks the budget and practical skills.
Play Virtual Instruments
GarageBand includes a broad range of virtual instruments, including pianos and keyboards, guitars and bass, drum kits and drum machines, and an assortment of world instruments.
It's possible to interact with these instruments in a myriad of ways. The easiest of these is Apple's 'smart' instruments like the Smart Keyboard and Smart Guitar. These allow you to play chords and variations of those chords simply by tapping and dragging your fingers on-screen.
You can choose the chords you want, then record anything you come up with to the timeline. More basic controls are also included like a regular old keyboard and the ability to display only particular musical scales. If you're already familiar with keyboards, you can plug in a MIDI keyboard and play GarageBand's varied instruments that way instead.
Chief among these is the Alchemy Synth, Apple's virtual polyphonic synthesizer. You can also play with plenty of other classic 'analog' synths, dreamy pads, dominant leads, and a whole category of weird and wonderful 'FX.'
One of the most impressive 'instruments' is the string section, which allows you to conduct your own mini-orchestra. You can choose which instruments to include (violins, violas, cellos, and basses), and create orchestral swells by mimicking the movement of a bow. It's a lot of fun, even if you're not composing a masterpiece.
While many of us lack the skills to use these instruments in the real world, GarageBand makes it easy to experiment and use them in interesting ways.
Build Songs Using Free Samples
Apple Loops bolster the already impressive possibilities provided by virtual instruments. These royalty-free samples can be used throughout your projects to add beats, basslines, and texture to your music.
Tap the 'Apple Loops' button (it looks like a loop) in the 'Timeline' view to browse the catalog. You'll need to narrow it down by instrument, genre, or descriptor because there's so much available. You can download even more sound packs direct from Apple, no purchase required.
Some of these loops have been arranged into full-blown soundboards by Apple, which you can use by tapping 'Live Loops' on the instrument selection screen. This provides you with a big grid of loops to start and stop at will. You can even create your own Live Loops soundboards using loops you have recorded or imported yourself.
This effectively turns GarageBand into a groove box. You can record your own loops, or import others through the Files app. You can even import DRM-free music from the Music app. (No, it doesn't work with Apple Music.)
Record and Process Your Own Sounds
Guitarists can use GarageBand as a virtual amplifier and effect processor. All you need is a guitar, a cable, and some sort of iPhone- or iPad-compatible audio interface. The iRig 2 is one example, but any digital audio interface that works with iOS/iPadOS will work. (Avoid analog inputs if you want crisp audio.)
With your guitar connected to your iPhone or iPad, you can choose from a range of virtual amplifiers and record directly into your GarageBand timeline. Amps and effects pedals are designed specifically for electric guitars and bass guitars, but just about any amped instrument could work.
This provides you with access to virtually thousands of dollars worth of equipment and effects processors, with the only price being a small amount of latency. They might not sound the same as the real thing, but for free it's hard to complain, especially when there are so many premium apps dedicated to the same task on the App Store.
You can also record directly into your device with a microphone (including your iPhone's microphone) and then process that recording through several filters.
Use GarageBand with Other Apps
Not only does GarageBand contain a music department's worth of virtual instruments, it can also be used to record and process audio with third-party apps. For this, you can use Audio Unit extensions, Inter-App Audio, or good old copy and paste.
Apple announced Audio Units for iOS and iPadOS in 2015. Audio Units (Apple's answer to VSTs) have been extensively used in music production since the mid-'90s. These self-contained virtual instruments, or effects processors, run inside of DAWs like GarageBand or as separate apps. An audio unit running inside GarageBand eliminates latency and allows you to control everything from a single interface.
Audio Units arrived as a replacement for Inter-App Audio, which is still supported by iOS but will be going away at some point in the future. Apps are routed through a virtual audio interface into GarageBand but exist as separate processes. This means you need to switch back and forth between apps you want to use (like synthesizers and drum machines) and GarageBand.
Lastly, some music-making apps support basic copy and paste. You can mix down a drum beat or record a bassline in your favorite synth, copy it to the clipboard, then double-tap the GarageBand timeline and select 'Paste.'
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A Drummer in Your Pocket
If you're a guitarist, bassist, or simply want to jam along to a beat, then GarageBand might be the perfect practice tool. In addition to virtual drums and drum machines, Apple has added a virtual drummer that you can tweak to your liking.
Each 'drummer' has a unique name, style, and sound. You can manipulate the beat by dragging your finger around an XY pad to select between simple or complex and loud or soft beats. Customize which samples or drums are triggered by toggling specific drums or samples. Options also are included to control the frequency of drum fills and the swing to 'humanize' the sound.
Record drum beats directly into the timeline and use them in projects, or simply let the drummer run while you jam and practice. It's a lot more fun than just using a metronome to keep time.
Jam with Your Friends
For a real twist on jamming, why not sync multiple iPhones and iPads for a wireless jam session? Under GarageBand settings, you will find the 'Jam Session' option, which allows you to host or join a virtual jam. Up to three other band members can play along, with song settings like tempo, key, and overall song composition synchronized with the bandleader.
With devices in sync, you can record multiple parts into a song simultaneously. These recordings will be wirelessly transferred to the band leader's device once you stop recording. If you're feeling particularly talented and you have the hardware available, you can sync multiple iPhones or iPads together and control the whole 'band' by yourself.
Getting Used to GarageBand
If you've used other DAWs in the past, GarageBand should be pretty easy to pick up. Even to newcomers and non-musicians, the app should be self-explanatory enough to get started making music.
Perhaps the most confusing aspect of GarageBand is the way the timeline is split into sections, rather than being an overview of the whole song. You can add, remove, and change section lengths under the 'Song Sections' settings by tapping the plus '+' button in the top-right corner of the timeline view.
The best way to get started is to download the app and play around with it. Create a new song and record a few chords and a drum beat. Experiment with Apple's loops to add texture and color to your song. Record rough lyrics using your iPhone's microphone. (You can always rerecord later.).
Once you're up to speed with GarageBand, you might want to check out more apps and hardware for making music with an iPhone or iPad.
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