An iPhone-wielding DJ’s best friend?

An iPhone-wielding DJ’s best friend?

12 September, 2008 | 3.00AM

• Written by: francispreve
• Filed under: Music News: apple, apps, bpm tap tempo

In recent weeks, we’ve showcased a couple of notable iPhone drum machines, namely iDrum and IR-909.

This time around, we’re taking a quick look at an app that should appeal to both producers and DJs, regardless of their preferred media format.

The aptly named BPM Tap Tempo (iTunes Link) is an applet that does one thing very well: Calculate tempo based on finger tapping.

Savvy iPhone App Store customers may have noticed that there’s another app – TapTheBeatFree (iTunes Link)– that appears to do the same thing, but looks can be deceiving.

BPM Tap Tempo not only displays the BPM of your tapping, it also includes the time (in milliseconds) for the most common note values to one decimal place.

The purpose for this?

Setting delay times for tempo-synced echoes.

TapTheBeatFree includes a similar feature, but with fewer options and less resolution.

Synth programmers will be especially interested in another unique and useful feature.

BPM Tap Tempo also includes the frequency information for each of the various note values – in Hertz.

This is an incredible addition as it allows the exact setting of LFO rates, so that electro wobbles and techy filter effects can be perfectly synced to a track’s tempo.

To hear a practical example of this type of programming, check out BSOD’s ‘Choplifted" (Original Mix)’.

While BPM Tap Tempo may not give you the right to collaborate with Deadmau5, it’s an undeniably cool resource with a lot of applications.

For a buck.

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