Road to buy an iPad

[thorrild]

I can't find a way to do it as a batch. Thorrild?

I don't see it either. I think it is worth repeating: The iPad app is amazing for what it can do in such a confined work environment, and several important features from the desktop version have been added since it first appeared in the app store. However, it is not even close to Notion 4 yet, in terms of features. Anything like keyboard shortcuts (such as the one Emilio asked about) runs counter to the whole iPad user interface, so all these things have to be re-thought and added to the app gradually. I suspect it will take quite a while for Notion Music to make the app as capable as the desktop application.

And I haven't even mentioned anything about NTempo or the ability to use sound libraries other than Notion's...

Best,
Thorrild

[elerouxx]

Thanks again! I really hope they add something like hitting '=' in the context menu when selecting a bunch of notes.

Currently, I see there's Transpose and a few other options in this menu.

I'm leaning towards an iPad4 32GB. Maybe w/o 4G connection because I can still connect using my celphone as a wifi-3G router (hopefully). the ipad4 64gb and 4g is too expensive...

poor me... still not rich. But that's also a project...

[choirguy]

At this point, I would not recommend the purchase of an iPad 2 or an iPad Mini. If you can get one used at a great deal, then that would be fine...but not new. The iPad Mini actually runs faster then the iPad 2, but the iPad Mini will be updated this fall, and the iPad 2 will probably go away. Avoid the 3rd Generation iPad as it did not have a speed bump versus the iPad 2 (it actually ran a little slower!)

The iPad to buy right now is a 4th Generation iPad with 32GB or larger. I have a 64GB 4th Generation iPad, but I bought it before the 128GB model hit the market. For my personal use, my next iPad will be the 128, unless a device with more storage larger is offered.

If you live in Brazil and the issue is device cost, I would find a friend that is traveling to the USA and ask them to buy an iPad for you (obviously, you would give them money to do so). There can be import taxes, but a single iPad can certainly fly under the radar.

Thorrild is a great resource here on the forum...listen to everything he says--he bats about 1000%.

[thorrild]

...listen to everything he says.

Thanks for the kind words.

Best,
Thorrild

[elerouxx]

I listen to every word!

You guys have been invaluable to me so far. Thanks a lot!
I'm arguing a lot with myself so I don't buy another toy in a compulsive way.

I'm sure the iPad is a toy worth having, not only for notion but also for carrying around score music and other documents, and the almost infinite uses it has. I'm waiting for a chance to buy it in the U.S. or at least in Peru (it's about 30% less than here, and a friend of mine is an Apple dealer there, he can get me an additional discount).

Of course I understand Notion for the iPad has reduced functionality if compared with the Desktop versions. What I expect from an iPad version is that, while it could not have all the functions and sounds, it should allow me to write music as fast, is not faster than the desktop version. I think this is the most logical premise thinking on a portable, touch-driven device, and it was kind of frustrating when they first launched the app with a piano-only note entry. I was unsure about the design premise behind the Ipad APP.

But it now has changed with the introduction of touch/pen entry.

In the meantime, I use this old tablet pc, which is a bulky notebook with a pen, but which allows me to install a full version of Notion and use the interface I created using strokesplus which I love so much... (The crude video showing this is in www.strokesplus.com main page. Sorry, I didnt had the time to edit a new one). That would do the full trick for me!

So, I am also trying to predict the future of windows 8 tablets... I'll think more clearly in a month or so I guess.

[Jaws75]

Hi Emilio,



My first iPad was an iPad 2 with 64 GB storage. I have to admit I was slightly disappointed with Notion on it. Especially the limited number of instruments the processor could handle without stuttering annoyed me.

With best wishes,
Thorrild

Hi Thorrid,

Just out of interest how many instruments did it stutter on?
I use ipad2 and compose on it...however i don't own notion desktop so never tried to import a large template from to ipad

Never run into serious problems yet.

What benefits would i notice on an ipad 4? Doesn't seem like ipad 5 is gonna be released anytime soon.

Thanks

[choirguy]

The 4th Generation iPad brings a significant speed boost (overall), and of course, the retina screen. Retina doesn't seem like a big deal until you have used it, and then see a non-retina iPad. The 4th Generation iPad also has the lightning adapter...I know a lot of people are unhappy about the change, but the lightning adapter is so much better than the 30 pin in term of daily use (you can plug it in either way, and it actually holds in, unlike many 30 pin adapters, such as the iPad to VGA adapter).

The 3rd Generation iPad has the Retina screen, but actually ran slower than the iPad 2. I'm pretty sure that Apple was unhappy about that, and that is why the 4th Generation device came out only six months after the 3rd Generation.

Look for the 5th Generation iPad this fall..October/November with a slightly different shape. The screen will be the same size, but the bezel will look like the iPad Mini (There have been enough part leaks at this time to verify this).

If you can wait 4 months, it is probably worth waiting...if not...you can't go wrong with a 4th generation iPad.

[thorrild]

Hi Jaws75,

If you haven't run into problems yet, then it seems to me you have nothing to worry about. That said, the Notion app has a warning message that appears with larger files. It says that the maximum number of simultaneous sounds is 14-16, and that would apply to your iPad 2.

The iPad 4 has a higher limit, maybe somewhere around 25 sounds. But these numbers are not very useful to me, since I have never really think of music in terms of simultaneously struck notes. Below is a link to another forum topic, where I posted a score file some time ago (Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture). It plays back perfectly on my iPad 4. You can download it and see how it fares on the iPad 2 — note that the file requires the expansion sound pack.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3475&p=13518#p13518

I won't go into ChoirGuy's amazing access to the crystal ball that shows Apple's future plans, but one thing seems certain: the longer we wait, the faster and more capable these tablets become. The only problem with that is — we'd be waiting...

Best wishes,
Thorrild

[Jaws75]

Thanks ChoirGuy, for your time and effort in explaining the ipad tech...I will wait till fall and in a nutshell i'll tell you all why.

Ok Thanks Thorrild, you've made my decision easier too.

I listens to Tannhauser audio file you kindly shared...then i ddl'd it to my ipad 2. Ha! i counted maybe 10 split- second audio crackles in all...and that was only at the tutti sections of the piece...
Conclusion is ipad 2 is more than enough for my needs. But will upgrade to a new ipad come the fall...just to future proof myself in case Notion becomes more intensive with updates.

Questions again.

You say you used the expansion sounds...my ipad notion played the whole score. Sounded like the audio file...or at least as nice...hardly tell the difference??

Maybe i'm getting confused here...but if i buy the desktop version...why do i have to pay lots of $$$ for it to sound like the ipad expansion sounds?
I looked at the expansion sounds...basically you have to pay for every section and technique? If that's the case...what on earth are you getting for free with the $99 offer at 8gbs worth? Doesn't add up.

Thanks for all the help again!

p.s im wondering if i even need the desktop version...seems a bit pricey for the samples..and it would help to know what the notion comes bundled with...

[thorrild]

You say you used the expansion sounds...my ipad notion played the whole score. Sounded like the audio file...or at least as nice...hardly tell the difference??

Maybe i'm getting confused here...but if i buy the desktop version...why do i have to pay lots of $$$ for it to sound like the ipad expansion sounds?
I looked at the expansion sounds...basically you have to pay for every section and technique? If that's the case...what on earth are you getting for free with the $99 offer at 8gbs worth? Doesn't add up. [...snip...] im wondering if i even need the desktop version...seems a bit pricey for the samples..and it would help to know what the notion comes bundled with...

The Notion app comes with a basic set of sounds and allows you to make "in-app purchases" to add more instrument sounds to the app. If you did this at some point (I bought the enire set, I think it was $30, but I can't remember for sure), then you are all set for playback of my file. Instruments like woodwind and brass sections (Flute Section instead of Flute, for instance) are expansion sounds.

The same scheme applies to desktop Notion, but the price is higher, and there are good reasons for that: there is a slightly better sound quality, and the market for desktop sample libraries fetches higher prices than iPad samples in general. The iPad is, after all, not considered a true professional music production tool — yet. In addition, the desktop version has many, many features and conveniences that the app doesn't —yet. Notion for desktop computers is still quite inexpensive compared with the competition, if it has any, and Notion's expansion sounds are among the least expensive on the market, and a decent-sounding collection (which was my initial point with the Wagner file!).

Am I repeating myself? If so, I apologize. But a file like the Wagner could not have been created on the iPad. The agony of putting in a slur alone would have driven me to drink... Also, the file contains hundreds of hidden dynamics and swells. Again, not yet possible on the iPad. I am only scratching the surface here. There is SO much more to desktop Notion than to their amazing and lovely little iPad app.

Best wishes,
Thorrild