AudioKit core-team member Jeff Cooper has released a series of single Oscillator apps. They’re great for layering thick sounds in your iOS DAW and favorite AUv3 host. One of them is even free to download: The Triangle app. Jeff is an enormously talented audio developer. Read below for his excellent advice for music app developers.
INTERVIEW WITH AUDIOKIT Core-Team member Jeff Cooper:
What was your inspiration for making the app?
I wanted to have some building-block type apps I could use to explore what can be done focusing on a small set of parameters. I also wanted a testing ground to try out some of the new code I have been working on for AudioKit.
What were the biggest challenges?
The biggest challenge was completely starting from scratch. I’ve made a few plugins before and I tend to try new techniques, iterating and learning from what I’ve done each time. For this one, I threw all the iteration out the window and started with a blank slate, trying to apply what I’ve been figuring out over the past year.
Any advice for developers who may want to make plugins using AudioKit (or other frameworks)?
Humble yourself. Accept that you, and what you’ve been told, might be wrong. Don’t hesitate to ask for help. If you don’t get that help, dig deeper on your own. Always try to go to the source, if possible.
If the official documentation available on the web seems sparse, a super handy trick is to check the header file in X-Code itself (right-click the name of the thing you want help on, and choose ‘Jump to definition’). A lot of the ‘missing’ documentation is actually right there in the headers!
What did you learn from making the app?
I learned that there are about a million ways to skin a cat (apologies to our feline friends). You might work for a month on one technique just to realize there’s a better way…I’ve learned to keep code modular, so I can just replace small pieces instead of entire ecosystems of code.
What’s next for audiokit pro apps?
We’ve got some pretty exciting LE apps coming down the pipeline, plus some fresh takes on some of our classics. We’ll be using techniques and code I’ve learned from this Oscillator series to improve stability and utility in all our apps.
Thanks Jeff Cooper!
Download the first four Oscillator apps:
Available for iPhone & iPad, AUv3 & Standalone
