GarageBand 2.0's clean and illustrative interface makes it a breeze to use. You can add as many as 255 tracks -- if your system can handle it.
RRP AU$119.00
Good: Easy to learn and use, Can record as many as 8 tracks at once, Supports as many as 255 tracks simultaneously (depending on system), Includes more than 1,000 loops plus a large variety of software instruments, Lets you add a variety of effects to any loop or instrument, Makes the iLife suite an incredible bargain.
Bad: Can't edit tracks at the sample level, Need a powerful system for completely satisfying performance, Full package (GarageBand plus all Jam Packs) takes up a ton of drive space.
Mac users with even a minor interest in music will be pleased with GarageBand 2.0's user-friendly interface and ample feature set.
GarageBand 2.0 installs automatically and quickly with iLife, which requires 4.7GB of free space, and there are no setup steps. You simply add tracks once you open a new project at start-up. If you want to add the various (and recommended) Jam Packs -- Instruments, Loops, and Effects; Remix Tools; Rhythm Section; and Symphony Orchestra -- they will cost you AU$149 apiece and take up 3GB, 4.5GB, 5GB, and 10GB, respectively, on your hard drive. In case you weren't counting that's a whopping 27.2GB to install the entire GarageBand 2.0 package. It would have been preferable to have the option of selecting specific Jam Pack audio files à la carte, as is the case with Adobe Audition, instead of having to copy the entire disc over to your hard drive. As it stands, the Jam Packs integrate seamlessly with the program, which is nice for usability, but we'd recommend that you forgo installing them unless you have the space and a need for more loops.
GarageBand 2.0 is undoubtedly one of the simplest -- if not the simplest -- of the music-creation tools that we've used. A quick read of the Getting Started guide that's found in the Help menu is all you'll need to be on your way to making your own unique groove, and the software-savvy can likely figure out the basics with a bit of exploring. The start-up interface is a two-tone grey window with a ruler scale across the top; a large track arrangement section in the middle; and a zoom slider, shortcut keys, playback buttons, the timer display, and the master volume control lining the bottom. When you open the Loop Browser or the Track Editor, the bottom of the window slides up to reveal either the selections by instrument or an editing grid, respectively. There are plenty of keyboard shortcuts for speedy navigation.
More than 1,000 high-quality loops come with GarageBand 2.0 and are segmented into instrument sets such as Brass, Synths, and Beats, as well as moods such as Cheerful and Dark. Within these, you're treated to a variety of affected loops such as Bongo Beat 01 and Orchestra Brass 03. Each of the Jam Packs adds more than 2,000 loops related to its individual title, in addition to a selection of new software instruments. Using the loops within GarageBand 2.0 is the quickest and easiest way to create a song; via this method, we were able to produce this track in just a few hours. But thanks to the program's ample feature set, you aren't limited to just loop-based tunes. You can hook up real instruments to record into the program, and GarageBand 2.0 provides several preset effects that you can also tinker with to your liking. There's even a built-in tuner. Alternatively, you can use the embedded software instruments, which you play with your keyboard, your mouse (a piano-key tool pops up on the screen for this method), or a MIDI keyboard. There are 15 software sound kits -- for example, organs, synth basics, and horns -- and each of these has a selection of instrument types. As with real instruments, you can adjust these with various effects, such as Distortion, Flanger, and Track Echo.
While audio pros won't be satisfied with GarageBand 2.0 alone, the program is a good choice for novice music production. In addition to the features mentioned above, there's a basic mixer for each track that lets you adjust the left and right balance as well as fade the volume in and out. You can also import audio files (AIFF, WAV, MP3, Apple Lossless, and unprotected AAC) and MIDI files by dragging and dropping them into the interface, and GarageBand 2.0 has the ability to display recordings in full musical notation. The app also lets you edit individual tracks, but we were unsatisfied with the level of editing; you can't get down to the audio sample level. Pick up a separate audio-editing tool such as Bias's Peak if you need this functionality.
As one would expect, GarageBand 2.0's performance varies based on the system. We tested the program on a G4 iBook with a 1GHz processor and 256MB of RAM, an admittedly modest configuration for running digital A/V apps. Apple recommends 512MB of RAM and requires that you have Mac OS X 10.3.4 or later. Initially, performance was a bit sketchy, with the app skipping and halting with as few as four tracks playing. Luckily, the Help menu includes tips for optimising GarageBand 2.0 (for example, not running apps in the background and locking individual tracks), and once we utilised a few of these tricks, we experienced few problems. All editing and effects processing happens in real time, with little if any delay. However, we had some latency issues when previewing loops while consecutively playing back tracks that were already laid down. Results varied, but there was always a noticeable delay between clicking the loop and the playback of that preview; occasionally, the main tracks would stop playing completely. As such, we found it more useful to drag loops into the interface and listen to them there; sometimes, we noted a lag between dropping the loops and their actually showing up.
In addition to the tips found in GarageBand Help, Apple has a GarageBand support Web page. Here, you'll find community forums for each program in iLife, as well as software updates and an extensive list of linked support topics.
