Transcribe! vs Amazing Slower Downer vs VLC vs Others

[greentext]

Wondering if any Basschatters have any experience with software that allows you to slowdown (but not pitch) audio to make it easier to learn by ear? 

I've been going back and forth over which one I would like to commit to, Transcribe! seems more feature rich with the ability to do audio and video but thought i'd get the scoop from the brain trust before committing. Also if there are any I am missing please let me know as I'm open to anything. 

It also seems like Spotify stopped SDK support so you are unable to use it in conjunction with third party apps such as Amazing Slow Downer which is a real bummer, if it still had that I would consider it more. 

Also I haven't committed to any free trails as I will forget to cancel it and get charged, been stung before ahaha

Sidenote, there is a petition on change.org for compatibility for Amazing Slow Downer and Spotify you can sign here if anyone is interested; 

https://www.change.org/p/keep-spotify-and-amazing-slow-downer-compatible?recruiter=77579368&recruited_by_id=d12ebe10-86de-11e3-b99e-ed0201252b73&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=share_for_starters_page&utm_medium=copylink

Cheers everyone 🤘

[mcnach]

If you have the files yourself (i.e: not streaming) you could use the free RiffStation. 

It allows you to alter speed, loop sections, change key, and save the result if you want to. And a lot more.

 

https://riffstation.software.informer.com/

[greentext]

I have not come across RiffStation so will take a look, im streaming most of the time, but I can just rip the tracks i want to learn anyway straight from Spotify, thanks  

Edited February 22, 2023 by greentext

[Oomo]

I've used Transcribe for 13 years now for hundreds of transcriptions, couldn't be happier with it. Mostly like the slowdown capability, but also the ability to pitch shift, and change EQ to make bass clearer.

 

It's also useful as it lets you loop bits of songs, so helpful for learning sections. There's even foot pedal support so you can start/stop playback without having to hit the keyboard/mouse.

 

The maintainer is also really nice, he's responded personally to questions/problems I've had in the past.

[greentext]

1 minute ago, Oomo said:

I've used Transcribe for 13 years now for hundreds of transcriptions

Great to hear, yh from what i've reviewed online, Transcribe seems to be the go to as its very feature rich. The foot pedal thing is also awesome, have you used that your self? if so what pedal do you use? I always find having to take my hands off the guitar to replay bits ruins the flow of learning. 

 

For anyone that is interested and reviewing this thread, Levi Clay did an awesome video that includes a lot of the features mentioned above. 

 

[MartinB]

So let's assume you've accepted that Spotify are never going to restore support for ASD, and you're going to have to start using local copies of the songs you want to work on instead of trying to stream them.

I really like Transcribe - it's got everything I need (looping, speed change, EQ, transposition, section marking, spectrum analyser). It's absolutely possible to do all of this in any DAW (e.g. Reaper, £0), but I find that a dedicated app makes for a simpler/faster workflow. For me, the price was affordable, and it's a one-time payment rather than an exploitative monthly subscription.

[Oomo]

13 minutes ago, greentext said:

The foot pedal thing is also awesome, have you used that your self? if so what pedal do you use?

Yeah, I used to, but in the middle of re-organising my practice space so haven't got it set up yet.

 

Think I've got: https://www.amazon.co.uk/INFINITY-USB-FOOT-PEDAL-IN-USB-2/dp/B002MY6I7G

 

(or maybe an older version, something that looks like it anyway!)

[greentext]

4 minutes ago, MartinB said:

For me, the price was affordable, and it's a one-time payment rather than an exploitative monthly subscription.

Very good point, better get it before someone changes there minds! haha thanks for the input my dude

[greentext]

3 minutes ago, Oomo said:

Think I've got: https://www.amazon.co.uk/INFINITY-USB-FOOT-PEDAL-IN-USB-2/dp/B002MY6I7G

Awesome thanks for sharing, I assumed it was something like that but wanted to be sure before I ordered! 

[miles'tone]

I use Amazing Slow Downer - I just find the tune I want on YouTube then copy the url of it and Google for a YouTube to mp3 converter.

Easy fix to the problem. 

Edited February 22, 2023 by miles'tone

[greentext]

4 minutes ago, miles'tone said:

I use Amazing Slow Downer - I just find the tune I want on YouTube then copy the url of it and Google for a YouTube to mp3 converter.

Easy fix to the problem. 

yh the Roni Music website recommends using Soundloaders as you can pump in a Spotify URL and it will download it as an MP3, check it out i've used it an it works great so good little work around as long as these service are available

 

https://www.soundloaders.com/

[MartinB]

It's always a good idea to grab* a local copy of anything that you might want to listen to again in the future anyway. Things vanish from Youtube all the time due to copyright claims, accounts being closed, etc. And they also disappear from Spotify et al, due to (I assume) record label dickheadery.

* Assuming, of course, there's no legit way to obtain a copy in your territory in a way that supports the artist 😇

 

[greentext]

6 minutes ago, MartinB said:

Things vanish from Youtube all the time due to copyright claims, accounts being closed, etc. And they also disappear from Spotify et al, due to (I assume) record label dickheadery.

Agreed, the amount of music that is on and off of Spotify is insane. I assume its the same for Youtube but don't know first hand. 

[Mike]

10 hours ago, Oomo said:

I've used Transcribe for 13 years now for hundreds of transcriptions, couldn't be happier with it. Mostly like the slowdown capability, but also the ability to pitch shift, and change EQ to make bass clearer.

 

It's also useful as it lets you loop bits of songs, so helpful for learning sections. There's even foot pedal support so you can start/stop playback without having to hit the keyboard/mouse.

 

The maintainer is also really nice, he's responded personally to questions/problems I've had in the past.

Came here to say pretty much exactly this!

[Bassfinger]

I know its hardware and not software, but I'm a huge fan of the olde Tascam GB10 which allows music to be slowed while maintaining original pitch. Its all simple button presses to operate, no in depth menus. 

 

I do about 2/3 of my learning from sheet music, but where it can't be easily sourced or is of questionable accuracy (which seems to be increasingly frequent) I use the GB10 and do it by ear.  It's very handy, sometimes I'll play a track at half speed, wedge on the headphones, and listen while I'm doing chores like doing the washing up or vacuuming the house.

[Gwilym]

Don't think it's been mentioned already, but you can run YouTube videos at slower speeds, but it plays the audio at the original pitch.

[greentext]

23 minutes ago, Bassfinger said:

Tascam GB10 which allows music to be slowed while maintaining original pitch

Good call, my old bass teacher used an Akai U40 which does a similar thing, might be worth considering

[miles'tone]

Kind of counter intuitive, but I sometimes shift the pitch up high on ASD as it makes some difficult to distinguish basslines pop out really well. 

It all goes very Pinky and Perky but a useful hack occasionally! 

[greentext]

5 minutes ago, miles'tone said:

Kind of counter intuitive, but I sometimes shift the pitch up high on ASD as it makes some difficult to distinguish basslines pop out really well. 

It all goes very Pinky and Perky but a useful hack occasionally! 

Never would of thought of that tbh, will have to give it a go! 

[Mike]

1 hour ago, greentext said:

Never would of thought of that tbh, will have to give it a go! 

 

1 hour ago, miles'tone said:

Kind of counter intuitive, but I sometimes shift the pitch up high on ASD as it makes some difficult to distinguish basslines pop out really well. 

It all goes very Pinky and Perky but a useful hack occasionally! 

 

 

I do this a lot when helping students transcribe basslines, stick it up an octave and sometimes you can figure out those hard to hear notes!

 

[MartinB]

On 23/02/2023 at 09:04, miles'tone said:

Kind of counter intuitive, but I sometimes shift the pitch up high on ASD as it makes some difficult to distinguish basslines pop out really well. 

It all goes very Pinky and Perky but a useful hack occasionally! 

Yeah this is a great trick - especially where something's been down-tuned or played on a 5-string. Adjusting the left-right balance or setting the channels out-of-phase can sometimes yield useful results as well, depending on how a track has been mixed.

[Quatschmacher]

Audiostretch iOS app. I used to use Transcribe years ago. 

[SteveXFR]

I used to use amazing slowdowner but now use Reaper instead (any DAW will do it) because it also allows me to record and play back with the original track and apply an eq to either boost the bass part or cut it and mix the levels of my bass with the track.

[mantekka]

I made an online tool to practice by making loops in YouTube videos. 
Heavily inspired by ASD but you can just paste in a youtube link and do it in the browser. 

 

I also worked on the team who made Riffstation mentioned above

 

Working on an improved v2 of LoopTube at the moment. 
Hope you find it useful

 

LoopTube https://www.looptube.xyz/