At the TechFellow event on Friday, we had the opportunity to demo a musical mobile app that lets you beatbox on your iPhone. Developed by Dutch startup Monodomo, bChamp is $0.99 at the app store. The video gives you a clearer idea of how the app works.
bChamp will translate sounds you make into the iPhone’s microphone into beatboxing sounds. bChamp will recognizes three beatbox sounds: Snare (say “k” as in “cabbage”), Kickdrum (say “b” as in “bogus”), Hi-Hat (say “t” sound with your teeth closed). When you make those sounds into the microphone, they will be translated into dfferent drum-like sounds. You can also adjust the pitch of your beats by using the app’s interface to change the pitch. bChamp’s app includes some visual graffiti effects.
For $0.99, the app is a simple way for those of us who are challenged in the beatboxing department to pretend that we have some skills. Our demo was particularly effective because the founders of Mondomo hooked the device up to an external speaker. Using headphones or the iPhone’s speaker may not be as much fun when it comes to bChamp’s sound. Other iPhone apps that let you simulate beatboxing sounds include Milky App’s Beatbox Live and BtBx.
Don’t you think that is just as hard?
Hardly beatboxing for you! That looks like a hell of a lot of effort!
Not much easier I guess. Maybe it just sounds a little better, but the alternation between b p and k is just as hard.
I`m not familiar with this
I have the app and it’s not really that great. No matter how many times I make the T sound, I can’t seem to get the hi-hat noise. It seems to alternate between snare and kickdrum no matter what noise I make.
Not really worth $.99, even if it did work.
As an a cappella enthusiast and singer (as well as a beatboxer), this is cool… yet total crap.
The problem is it doesn’t sound like beat boxing.
Humans are capable of sounding like drums better than this app. — He also should have gotten someone with better rhythm to do the demo.
suggestion: make a demo with a user with mad rhythmic skill. It will sell your product.
Good luck!
I completely believe the future will find us making musical instruments out of our mobile units that exist in the same space as a guitar or turntable.
Maybe not this generations mobile, but definitely soon.
I hate to say it, but this app fails. It does the opposite of what would be fun: I’d like to speak and make sounds into my mic, have the device recognize/pick up on consonant sounds and do some cool tricky looping/sequencing using those sounds — putting no burden on me to form the rhythm of the app. Instead, all it does is take what could be interesting vocal sounds and dump them into 3 sample categories — that’s it. You’re on your own if you want it to sound cool, but don’t plan on using more than those 3 sounds only. So when he says “bChamp makes it easy,” he’s being a bit misleading, because all it does is translate something like your vocal “pfft” into a standard bass kick (or snare, or hihat). The pitch shifting is an interesting add-on functionality-wise, but if you’re good enough to do complex beatboxing while using your finger to modify the sound in real-time, you probably don’t really need this app to “help” you.
To make things worse, there’s no exit from their info screen — just quit the app and start over?
It has potential but falls flat in my opinion. I sort of want my $1 back.
Thanks for all suggestions and I’m sorry to hear bChamp does not live up to the expectations for some.
I’d like to clarify that bChamp is meant for people who want to be beatboxers, not for experienced beatboxers. Real beatboxers only need a microphone, not sure what an iPhone app could add for them.
Obviously, we will continuously add new features. E.g., think of looping, tutorials more sound effects and more sounds. Expect the first new features t be released later this summer.
You can actually help us making bChamp better. I encourage you to send me your thoughts, comments on the app and app description via twitter @monodomo or email (ronald at 1uptoys dot com). However, keep in mind that we have a small team and we might not be able to add the features as fast as we would somtimes like.
bChamp should be able to recognise the kick, snare and hi-hat sounds flawlessly and with no learning. In cases where bChamp does not recognise a certain sound, a little practice will do wonders. For example, the hi-hat you make needs to be fast and high in pitch.
For examples and inspiration (including a beatboxing Woz) see: http://monodomo...bchamp-gallery/
Looking forward to hear your thoughts and suggestions.
Ronald Mannak – monodomo, developer of bChamp
Congratulation bChamp! It is great to see how my “Dancing Drum” from one-girl-shop standing side by side with Monodomo’s “bChamp” at iphone events.
I would like to say Monodomo overcomes significant technical challenges in iphone audio frameworks and brings these experience into fun colorful interface. Audio framework is the most undocumented areas in iphone SDK. We shall celebrate the innovative development here.
I’d like to dance more than talking to the iphone microphone. My “Dancing Drum” takes advantage of Accelerometer and Touch to beat the full drum set with 5 drums, 2 Hi Hat, and 4 Cymbals: Hi Tom, Mid Tom, Floor Tom, Bass Drum, Snare Drum, Opened Hi Hat, Closed Hi Hat, Ride Cymbal, Crash, Cymbal, Splash Cymbal, and China Cymbal.
I encourage anyone to send your thoughts, comments on my “Dancing” app via Twitter @bayareaparty.
I can see bchamp can jam with my “Dancing Drum”
A side note. These guys from Europe are super cute. I would say they are the cutest looking iphone developers in music category. They look like Rock Stars!
I hope you guys land the right investors, move and stay in Silicon Valley. We may form a iphone band and perform together. Never say never?
For those of you who wish you could beatbox, this iPhone app is for you. Happy beatboxing!
Is this the killer application for the iPhone?
iPhone used to be cool, but soon having an iPhone will indicate you have a low IQ or never got over the age of a 12 year old.
Just bought it and… it sucks.
Really. It fails to properly recognize sounds and it sounds like crap. Ok I’m already a beatboxer, but still, I don’t see how such an app could help anyone to get used to beatboxing.
This is an interesting iPhone app. I’m definitely planning on trying it out. Do people have other music-related apps to recommend?
The thought of beatboxing with my iPhone as a mic is amusing. The danger is getting spit all over your iPhone.
One important caveat: the app itself is horrible. I just downloaded it and, after a good 10 minutes of trying to get it to work, it still just makes random interpretations about 90% of the time.
Bought it last week, does not recognize the sound and I agree with jake “it still just makes random interpretations about 90% of the time”