Apple GarageBand 2
Digital Audio Workstation
Apple GarageBand is the famous recording software contained in the Apple Mac operating system. It is a streamlined version of Logic but is still plenty capable, and the onboard sounds are very good.
In addition to be able to record up to eight audio tracks at the same time, GarageBand 2 offers "instrument" tracks with synthesizer-based and sampled sounds.
Also available are hundreds of very well-programmed audio and MIDI loops.
Stream all audio examples below:
| Sound name | My comments |
| Bass | |
| Deep Round Synth Bass | Nice, fat synth bass |
| Fingerstyle Electric Bass | Realistic electric bass |
| Fretless Electric Bass | Expressive fretless bass |
| Muted Electric Bass | The classic muted technique |
| Slapped Electric Bass | Very good slapped bass, with velo-switch emulating sliding |
| Sub Synth Bass | Very deep |
| Tight Synth Bass | Cool "liquid" synth bass |
| Trance Bass | Excellent sequence-bass with on-board delay |
| Upright Jazz Bass | With realistic slide and noise fx |
| Drum Kits | |
| Dance Kit | Classic House-type drums |
| Hip Hop Kit | The classic Roland TR-808 drum machine and other samples |
| Jazz Kit | Realistic jazz drumset |
| Pop Kit | Realistic drum set with tightly-tuned velo-switch snare |
| Rock Kit | Standard drum set |
| Techno Kit | Powerful Techno-style drums |
| Guitars | |
| Big Electric Lead | Huge and realistic distorted guitar solo |
| Classical Acoustic | Beautiful, expressive classical guitar, with gorgeous slide effect triggered by velocity-switch |
| Clean Electric | The classic Fender Stratocaster, without effects |
| Electric Tremolo | Electric guitar with beautiful tremolo effect |
| Nylon Shimmer | Very nice acoustic guitar with effects |
| Steel String Acoustic | |
| Horns | |
| Dub Horns | cool reggae brass, with GarageBand's delay |
| Horn Section | nice brass section, with velo-switch "fall" |
| Live Pop Horns | A bit thin but ok |
| Pop Horn Section | Good for '80s |
| Trumpet Section | Okay |
| Mallets | |
| Aurora Bell | Very digital-sounding, FM-like bells |
| Church Bell | Classic bells |
| Music Box | Okay |
| Organ | |
| Jazz Organ | realistic Hammond with simulated Leslie (again, GB's own effects) |
| Cathedral Organ | Beautiful patch with nice rotary effect |
| Classic Rock Organ | Typical "heavy" organ with Leslie of the 1970s |
| Pop Organ | Chorused organ, very nice |
| Smooth Dance Organ | Cool organ with plenty of modulation FX |
| Pianos and Keyboards | |
| Electric Piano | expressive Fender Rhodes, with nice "Suitcase" style tremolo (GB effect) |
| Grand Piano On Stage | Beautiful grand piano program, optimized with a "stage" reverb and feel |
| Grand Piano Punchy | Yep |
| Grand Piano | Great-sounding, standard grand piano patch |
| Smokey Clav | quintessential Hohner |
| Smooth Clav | Classy Clavinet sound |
| Swirling Electric Piano | classic 1980s treated electric piano |
| Whirly | Okay Wurlitzer electric piano. Nice tremolo effect |
| Strings | |
| Hollywood Strings | Full strings |
| Lunar Strings | Fantastic, beautiful string pad |
| Orchestral Strings | live string orchestra |
| Reflective Strings | Very good "Tangerine Dream" style string-pad |
| Synth Basics | |
| Circuit Dialog | Moving S&H style synth pad |
| Constellation | Ravishing, classic 1980s synth pad |
| Laser Shot | Yup |
| Martian Lounge | Classy electric piano, very beautiful |
| Modern Prophecy | Fat, classic 1980s synth comp |
| Planetarium | Wide, classic 1980s synth pop style |
| Sequence Element 1 | typical sound-to-be-sequenced |
| Sequence Element 2 | Solid analog comp-style synth |
| Space Harpsichord | Digital bell |
| Star Sweeper | Fat comp reso synth |
| Synth Leads | |
| Arena Run | Classic Minimoog-style lead synth |
| Blip Side | Analog synth |
| Cheerful Trance | Classic Trance "SuperSaw" style lead |
| Future Flute | Nicely fx-treated flute |
| Moonbeam | nice 5th synth lead |
| Ominous Dancefloor | Yep |
| Riffy Fifths | Skinny synth |
| Solo Star | Nice synth with delays |
| Synchro Nice | Typical oscillator-sync type of sound |
| Synth Pads | |
| Angelic Organ | Delicate "liquid" pad |
| Aquatic Sunbeam | Marvelous, quintessential soft analog fluffy pad |
| Cloud Break | Beautiful analog-style pad |
| Cosmic Reflection | Sublime, melancholic distant pad - perfect for Ambient music |
| Ethereal Sunrise | Elegant digital sound |
| Falling Star | classic resonant synth pad |
| Floating Embers | a very nice, moving pad |
| Hovering Machine | VA (Virtual Analog) style |
| Mercury Wash | nice digi-pad |
| Metropolis | nice LFOed sound, very 1980s |
| Silicon Strings | gorgeous anastrings |
| Swirling Droplets | Good |
| Synth Textures | |
| Imperia Pad | Powerful, modern "Access Virus-trance" VA style synth |
| Berneray Chill | Digital and powerful |
| Bondi Breath | classic "Fairlight style" vox pad |
| Boscobel Blips | nice velo-switch bouncy reso pad |
| Casuarina Cascade | Entrancing, beautiful sweeping synth pad |
| Cleopatra Chord | Modern dance synth |
| Coronados Brass | plenty of fx on this brass |
| Devja Delays | Cool bouncy synth |
| Fiji Afterglow | Interesting vocal-style synth |
| Fontelina Fifths | The Digital Empire. |
| Gorai Atmosphere | Very nice atmospheric synth, perfect for ambiences |
| Inhaca Pulse | Zingy synth |
| Ithaca Vox | Nice synth vox |
| Izmir Ambience | Gorgeous ambient drone, perfect for soundtracks / sci-fi / horror |
| Kotu Chords | Happy dance synth |
| Lalaria Pad | Beautiful analog string pad |
| Manori Stabs | nice VA style sound |
| Molokai Melodies | Nice |
| Muscat Pluck | nice synth bass, a bit in 4-operator Yamaha FM style |
| Mykonos Movements | "Scary" fx synth |
| Nakamal Bass | classic analog synth bass |
| Negril Bass | a nice dancey synth |
| Negril Sweep | very nice resonant filters |
| Ornos Brass | '80s synth brass |
| Patara Echoes | Sweet echoed synth |
| Rawaii Riffer | Superb dance synth |
| Rotuma Bells | Nice distant bells |
| Samoa Sweep | Fabulous reso pad |
| Sandoway Ricochet | classic "Paradise style" nature pad |
| Sanur Shimmer | Outstanding evolving ambient pad |
| Serena Swirl | another great ambient pad |
| Skye Breath | Marvelous voxy pad |
| Solomon Sync | a bit 1990s |
| Temae Delay | Very nice delay synth |
| Tonga Surround | Nice Paradise-style nature pad |
| Tula Bass | solid dance bass |
| Veradero Shimmer | Nice digital shimmering pad |
| Versova Pad | wide '80s analog pad |
| Zanzibar Chords | classic 1990s "envelope pitch up" chordal synth |
And here are some of the Apple loops available in GarageBand:
| Loop name | My comments |
| Classic 1980s synth brass line | |
| Typical Simon & Garfunkel-style loop | |
| Typical ballad-style acoustic guitar | |
| Nice bass line played with the pick | |
| Quintessential Blues-Rock guitar | |
| classic | |
| nice and fast | |
| nice | |
| nice dance synth loop | |
| slower drum beat | |
| yep | |
| nice distorted guitar pattern | |
| solid House pattern | |
| Nice reverberation on the claps | |
| yup | |
| Gorgeous ambient synth line | |
| useful | |
| the typical Hohner Clavinet through wah-wah / filter | |
| they liked it | |
| Modern synth arpeggio | |
| Modern synth arpeggio variation | |
| nice and flanged House beat | |
| lively | |
| awesome | |
| overdrive! | |
| Nasty distorted synth | |
| classic slap | |
| Fantastic 1990s loop | |
| nice | |
| reminds of 1970s Progressive Rock for some reason | |
| the classic electric guitar through wah-wah pedal | |
| nice and groovy | |
| yeah | |
| excellent percussion loop | |
| funky, funky | |
| typical mid-tempo jazz drum loop | |
| nice and deliciously 1960s | |
| nice medieval flute riff | |
| nice oud | |
| powerful and in a nice room | |
| typical guitar riff | |
| variation | |
| variation | |
| Typical Motown-style rhythm of the 1960s | |
| another typical Motown-style rhythm of the 1960s | |
| nice 6/8 beat | |
| nice | |
| famous sample | |
| nice | |
| melancholic string pattern | |
| useful | |
| wonderful "Mamas & Papas" style '60s guitar | |
| typical '70s style piano man riff | |
| very nice and useful for several genres | |
| yep | |
| a bit in the vein of Radiohead | |
| country | |
| yep | |
| Superb, classic spy sound of the 1960s | |
| useful! | |
| yeah | |
| standard and useful | |
| Techno style | |
| standard and useful | |
| excellent "Stevie Ray" style pattern | |
| nice! | |
| Excellent reproduction of the classic breakbeats of the 1960s and 70s | |
| nice breakbeat! | |
| cool... | |
| super-useful , classic loop | |
| nice | |
| perfect to add to any loop | |
| awesome percussion loop |
Resources:
| Features at a glance | |
| Year of release: | |
| Polyphony: | |
| Sound generation method: | |
| Preset memories | |
| MIDI: | |
| Sound expansion capabilities: | |
| Sequencer | |
| Arpeggiator | |
| Effects | |
| Touch sensitivity | |
| Aftertouch | |
| Multitimbrality | |
| Sound Layering | |
| Keyboard Split | |
| Number of Oscillators | |
| Portamento | |
| Unison | |
| Miscellaneous | |
| SITE | Type of resource | DESCRIPTION |
| home site | ||
Apple GarageBand 2 review with audio demos - December 30, 2009