Capo touch is the iOS version of Capo, an amazing Mac app that lets you slice and dice a song, slowing it down so you can learn it on guitar or another instrument.
Developer SuperMegaUltraGroovy added some great new features to Capo touch version 2.5. If you’re a long-time user, you’ll appreciate the interface tweaks, the Apple Music support and the new audio-scrubbing engine. If you never used Capo, and you play a guitar, you should buy Capo touch right now.
Capo touch slows down music
Capo touch is an amazing tool for learning songs. Essentially it lets you load a song and play it back at any speed without changing the pitch (unless you want to), so you can loop a passage over and over as you transcribe it. The app also analyzes the music, determining the key, the time signature, and the chords it contains. This last feature often can seem like a miracle, but it is just as often wrong. If I’m transcribing a strummy, chord-based song, I’ll usually edit the chords myself.
Apple Music support
Photo: Cult of Mac
The headline new feature (although maybe not the best new feature) is Apple Music support. Because Capo touch performs time-stretching and analysis tricks on your tracks, the software can’t use your DRM-protected Apple Music tracks. Previously, you’d need to go to the iTunes Store, purchase and download the DRM-free version of the song, then return to Capo to load it into a new project (all while hoping that Capo would notice the newly added track). Now, you can browse your entire Apple Music library. And if you select a song you haven’t already purchased, you get a link that takes you directly to the song in the store, ready to buy. This is a huge improvement, and makes getting music into Capo much easier.
Audio scrubbing in Capo touch
Photo: Cult of Mac
The best new feature in actual use, though, is the new audio-scrubbing engine, brought over from the latest Mac version. To use it, just use a finger to grab the track and move it over the playhead. The music will be played at whatever speed you move your finger.
In previous versions of Capo touch, the slowed-down audio sounded rather grainy, but serviceable. Now, it’s smoother and easier to hear. More importantly, if you stop scrubbing but keep your finger on the screen, the current note will keep playing, frozen in time. If you ever tried to loop a single note to work out its pitch, you’re going to totally love this feature. I already love it, and I hope it means that my guitar teacher will stop making me hum the notes out loud.
Extras
There are a lot of other tweaks in this version. The project view is now much more iPad-friendly, with large thumbnails of your existing projects (Capo touch is a universal app, so it also works great on the iPhone). You can also create a project by importing music from iCloud Drive and Dropbox.
And — finally! — you can jump to the beginning (or end) of a track just by double-tapping on the left or right of the screen.
In addition to the above, the updated Capo touch comes with an intro sequence to teach you about all the new features. Grab it now, grab your guitar, and spend the weekend learning some new songs.
Price: $10
Buy from App Store: Capo touch
