LayR-Multi Timbral Synthesizer

V. 1.2 is utterly shocking. I hooked my iPad Pro up to my audio system and dug in. As I poked around the new features and presets, I found myself slack-jawed with the old “deer in the headlights” look hanging on my face. The audio quality is so good (even when generating massively dense and complex sounds) it will make you consider going celibate just to spend more time with this instrument. I was so stunned that I just had to put it away (for a few minutes, anyway). Once I caught my breath I got right back into it. Imagine having something like 24 (or more) Yamaha CS-80s all stacked up and under your direct control. Yeah ...that’s about what its like. Did I mention the sound quality ...oh ...yeah. I did. In one way, this is a complex beast. But in another, it is fairly simple. The complexity comes largely from the duplication of basic synthesizers into layers and layers into performances. It is easy to get overwhelmed with what happens when you begin combining all of these elements. But ultimately the synth voice architecture and the way LayR manages its various levels is eminently logical and clear. The new performance features are fantastic. Patch management is easy and logical. Modulation matrix adds new flexabilty. The arpegiator was already great; now it’s better. The new manual is a great addition and finally, labeling the individual synthesizer controls was a feature that was badly needed. With all of these new additions, LayR is basically uh ...well, I guess I have to say it: a perfect keyboard synthesizer. Is there a way to award 10 stars on the ap store?

This is the only synth app on iPad that allows separate midi channel input for each string. You can set up 6 identical layers on 6 channels and use the Fishman Triple Play pickup in mono mode. Beautiful rich synth engines with so many possibilities. I limit each channel to the note range of each string as well. This is the missing piece to the Fishman Triple Play Connect. Just start the triple play app in the background to initialize mono mode and run LayR over it. Tracks beautifully.

It’s like Lego of synths. You create a sound using one layer, then another, and another... they can then all play together creating a completely different new sound. You can duplicate layers which is useful if you want to slightly tweak the copies. Each layer is a synth and I love that all synth controls (of individual layers) are entirely on single page. You don’t need to have like a 100 of synths to make something good sounding, even a single one can sound great. But this layering allows you to create something that’s impossible anywhere else. You basically build sound character piece by piece. Experiment with adding different textures, maybe add percussive elements, or more spacious pad-like feel. There’s a mixer so you can solo/mute and adjust volume for each. It’s not as complex as you might think. There are a LOT of features but you can learn them as you go. No need to learn everything before you can begin making great instruments. Everything can be controlled by midi, like external controller or another app. So for example, you could modulate some knobs using Rozeta app or ApeMatrix app, etc. I mean, if you want some *extra* modulation options, each synth already comes with 2 LFOs. And of course I have to mention sound fidelity. A synth should sound good with all fx off. Then when you add fx on top it’ll sound even better. No matter how much I mess with LayR I keep getting more and more original sounds that can actually be used in my tracks. Very thankful for such an amazing musical instrument! To the dev: Only one request, please make the presets rearrangeable. They use slots, and when you revisit an instrument you’ve been working on and make a variation of it so you have additional preset but it’s similar to original, it would be very nice to have them next to each other.