Apple GarageBand '08

ARRANGEMENT WINDOW

Since longtime GarageBand users have presumably graduated to more complex arrangement techniques, Apple now includes the ability to organize and label sections within an arrangement, so you can easily manipulate and edit your song’s structure. The new process requires just a few mouse clicks and some typing (if you’re a stickler for labels, like many advanced users). First, activate the arrange track, then select each section of your song, designate it as a section and label it. From there, you’re pretty much ready to go. Want to copy another verse after the first chorus, then modify the instruments that play that verse? No problem. All of your grouped tracks are ready to be dragged, copied, rearranged, whatever.

VISUAL EQ

One of my longtime gripes about GarageBand was its plain-Jane user interface for important effects like EQ. Seriously, the previous version’s few generically-labeled sliders were a real pain in the you-know-what to work with for anything other than groove doodles. That gripe is over with the new Visual EQ feature. Just like the big boys, GarageBand users can cut and boost by simply selecting a frequency range in the EQ graph and dragging the curve into place. What’s more, there’s a frequency analyzer — similar to the one found in Logic — that actually allows you to see the signal’s spectrum as you make your adjustments. This is surprisingly pro-level stuff for a “consumer” app.

EFFECT AUTOMATION

Older iterations of GarageBand had volume and pan automation only, which forced users to be extremely creative if they wanted to create professional-sounding effect transitions and electronica-style morphs. Sure, there were a few workarounds [such as those detailed in Francis Preve’s book, Power Tools for GarageBand. —Ed.], but there’s nothing like the real thing, baby. This latest version now offers control over pretty much every effect parameter. Even cooler, this automation also extends to third-party AudioUnit plug-ins. For many users, this feature alone will be worth the price of admission, as it really delivers a much more polished sound if you’re willing to take the time to tinker with your mixes.

One wrinkle though — since third party AudioUnit synth parameters can be automated, I fully expected the GarageBand synths to have full automation as well. Strangely, they’re not. Some instruments include individual automation control over parameters, like the attack and release of the sampled string instruments and several elements of the tonewheel organ. Others, like the included analog and digital synth instruments, offer control over volume only. Apple says they’ve reproduced this bug, and are already working on fixing it in a future update.

MULTI-TAKE RECORDING

One of the most frustrating aspects of creating a credible demo using live instruments is nailing the perfect take. In previous versions of GarageBand, the approach was to create a several-minute-long repeating arrangement, let the track run while playing the part over and over, then cut and paste the best performances as needed. Now GarageBand simplifies that process greatly via the aptly named multi-take recording function. Here, you simply select a region to loop, activate the function, jam until your spouse bangs on the door, then sift through the various takes to find the right one. You can even comp multiple takes quickly, by splitting a take into two segments, then selecting the best take from each segment. This is probably the easiest method of comping a performance that I’ve personally ever used.

MAGIC GARAGEBAND

At the opposite end of the spectrum is a brand-new feature called Magic GarageBand, which is targeted directly at newcomers with only a rudimentary knowledge of the music-making process. In a nutshell, when you select Magic GarageBand mode, the interface dumbs down to a graphic of a live stage, on which you select and place instruments in order to create a multitrack song or loop that’s based on one of nine styles, including jazz, funk, rock, and country, but no electronica or classical.

Once you’ve selected your style and instrumentation, you can then switch to GarageBand’s arrangement timeline to finesse the results. This feature could be valuable for video and radio producers looking for semi-custom background music, or just folks at home making iMovies. For beginners, it’s also a great way to visually associate instruments onstage in a band (something with which everyone has at least a passing familiarity) with the basic concepts behind multitrack recording (something which few people outside of the musician community know anything about). If you have much musical experience at all, though, it’s unlikely you’ll use it more than once. Why? While the inclusion of dead-on graphic renderings of the Minimoog, Nord Lead, and Simmons drums may draw a smile, you half-expect that an animated paper clip will pop up and ask irksome questions about your musical objectives. (To be bonehead-clear: That doesn’t happen!)

CONCLUSIONS

Is GarageBand ’08 worth the iLife purchase price of $79? The answer, as with previous versions, is a resounding “Hell, yeah!” Especially if you’re using an Intel-based Mac with at least 1GB of RAM, because that combination of hardware muscle and increased software functionality make GarageBand ’08 a serious contender for more than just radio jingles and casual songwriting. Between GarageBand and Logic Studio (reviewed Jan. ’08), the competition has got to be sweating bullets. Even if $79 only got you GarageBand without the other iLife apps, the bang-for-buck here is extraordinary, and absolutely Key Buy-worthy.

CLAIM CHECK

Apple tells us, “Anything we’d have to add to this review would come off like corporate spin compared to the words of an unbiased reviewer. So instead, we’d like to take the opportunity to mention a handful of the many famous GarageBand users out there: T-Pain, Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco, Seal, Erykah Badu, Barenaked Ladies, and Donald Fagen of Steely Dan, and many others.”

SPECS

Full-featured consumer DAW for Macs.

PROS
Full automation of effect parameters. Assisted comping of multiple takes. Visual EQ and frequency analyzer. Utterly affordable.

CONS
Not all instrument types offer parameter automation. Magic GarageBand is strictly for beginners.

$79, as part of iLife ’08
Apple, Inc. www.apple.com