FiRe 2: A Look at the Recording App for iOS

FiRe 2: Recording App for iOSI’ve long been on the lookout for a great recording app for my iPhone. Not for multi-tracking, because Garageband on my iPad has me 100% sold for that stuff, but more for recording quick ideas, recording rehearsals, concerts and so on.

I recently tried out FiRe 2 by Audiofile Engineering, and after just a few short hours, I’m already impressed with the sound quality of the recordings (most importantly) very impressed with the edibility of the recording before syncing or sending the sound file out (as an AIFF, WAVE, CAF, AAC, Apple Lossless, Podcast, Ogg Vorbis or FLAC file).

I’d never tried the first version of the Fire app, so I don’t know how it compares with this new version. Audiofile Engineering, who made the app, bills it as an “industry leading field recorder created for audio professionals by audio professionals”. No disagreement here.

When you launch the app, the first thing you’ll want to do is to click the Audiofile logo in the top left corner to access the manual. My only complaint is that finding this was not very intuitive. I’ve found myself referencing the manual over and over again, and I’m starting to internalize the way the app functions, and I’m also discovering how powerful, well considered and thorough they’ve made this small iPhone app.

Not only can you monitor your input (and output) levels while recording but a live waveform display is also present while you are recording. The post-recording features of the app is what makes FiRe 2 really stand out over the other apps like it. By turning your iOS device to landscape orientation, you are immediately converted to editing mode, with a full featured audio editor and exporter as well – all of the way down to meta-tag information, SoundCloud and DropBox integration. Here, you can apply and adjust fades, EQ filters, dynamics, compression, as well as loop playback and select sections, normalize regions… it does so much!

If you’re looking for a recording app for iOS, this one is highly recommended. FiRe 2 is available on the app store for $5.99.

FiRe 2 Specs:

  • Record in mono and stereo, 16-bit, 48 kHz
  • Live waveform view including rectified view
  • Live overview for easy navigation
  • Scroll waveform with touch
  • Navigate waveform via double-tap with configurable behavior
  • Moveable Playback Head
  • Tap Playback Head handle to add markers
  • Editable Markers and Regions
  • Preference to add markers at time intervals
  • Overdub mode with playthrough
  • Beautiful and accurate VU Input Meters
  • VU meters change to output in playback
  • Configurable time units display
  • Tag Recordings, Markers and Regions with location data
  • Pause gracefully when interrupted by phone call
  • Countdown with gorgeous graphics
  • Record for/until/over threshold… settings
  • Preference to automatically move to end and/or add marker when recording starts
  • Preference to limit recordings to 2GB
  • Screen rotates 180 degrees for better control of the iPhone’s internal mic
  • Broadcast WAVE metadata
  • Searchable recordings list
  • Sorting options for the Recordings List
  • Ability to lock recordings
  • File export via iTunes File Sharing, FTP and browser access
  • SoundCloud (http://soundcloud.com) and DropBox (http://dropbox.com) integration
  • Choice of export file formats: WAVE, AIFF, CAF, AAC, Apple Lossless, AAC, Podcast, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC

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Leave a Reply to Cole Robinson Cancel reply

  1. How does this compare to a Zoom H1 or similar device? Do you recommend an external mic?