TRAX 4+

I have tried ALL of the other backing track apps for my restaurant piano business. TRAX is absolutely right for my needs and is a stunning testament to the developer’s skills and the entire iOS design model.

I can easily see where I am in a song; each section is labeled just as I want it, and I have progress bars on each section to know how far I am into them. The app has crashed periodically but never shut down while playing my tracks over 100+ gigs, and I think I trust it more than I would trust a computer to run my backing tracks.

However: here’s a potential dealbreaker. There is absolutely NO import/export functionality, and there is no cloud storage for tracks.

This may sound small, but not if you have any kind of a sizable setlist. Here are just a few situations in which it matters:

-you want to have a backup iPad (totally reasonable given the type of app this is)

-you get a new iPad

-you spent 6 hours customizing your tracks in the free version of the app, assuming there was an export function or “restore purchases” functionality to activate the app upon purchase (neither exists)

-Marzipan comes around and you want to run this app on a Mac

We’re all paying for iCloud Drive storage and the files involved here are tiny. Competing apps (such Loop Community Prime which is FREE) store every element of every track in the cloud and some even provide free cloud storage space!

The developer is clearly INCREDIBLY GOOD at what they’re doing. The concept of this app is incredibly good and it’s generally very well executed, with no fat and clear visuals.

But it’s not worth spending 2-3 performances worth of time MANUALLY lifting EVERY detail of my massive setlist over to the exact same app because basic data management practices aren’t integrated. When Marzipan arrives, this sort of snag will be an even bigger deal.

Features I’d like to see implemented:

-better time indication overall, such as labels on each block so I can tell if they are 1 bar long or 64;

-better time metrics and indicators throughout to help me conceptualize where I am in the tune and my set

-better integration and visibility of metadata and song notes

-multiple audio track/stem support

-fade out button and other useful large action buttons

-more ergonomically friendly layout (larger buttons or controls like pan, etc, better ability to get to a song’s info panel while playing without having to poke at a tiny i icon when a miss could stop the music completely) and

-clarity and consistency about what happens when another song is chosen while one is currently playing (it should highlight with some sort of “next” or “pending” graphic like the looped sections have and should auto-load and/or begin when user presses arrow button at bottom or when current song ends)

-customization and flexibility around audio file start and end

-MIDI sync or external display support so bandmates can see where we are in the song and what’s next

-some sort of live sync to another iPad for redundancy

This app changes everything for me, I can use it exactly how I was using my old RM1X Sequencer in pattern mood and song mood. This is what I have been searching for and I can play my tracks the same way I have been playing them, just waiting for the up scroll button update,and hopefully a midi features 5⭐️’s 🎶🎸🎼 for me.

Top 40’s wedding band here. This app is THE app to use for looping, playing back, seamlessly going from one song to next, etc. I don’t want to knock other app creators as they all serve their purpose and I’m sure they worked on them really hard - so let’s just say I’ve tried them all and this one beats them all!