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Soundwell Studio
On this page
  1. Studio
  2. Sound controls
  3. Current mix
  4. Presets
  5. Session timer
  6. Timer Live Activity
  7. Background playback
  8. System Now Playing
  9. Siri and Shortcuts
  10. Local storage
  11. Pricing and tips
  12. Accessibility and appearance

Overview

Features

A reference to the controls, playback options, presets, and system features in Soundwell Studio.

Studio#

Soundwell Studio is an iPhone soundscape studio with seven generators: Binaural, Isochronic, Drone, Noise, Rain, Crackle, and Rumble. You can use each generator by itself or combine multiple generators in one mix.

Studio shows the generators and global effects included in the current mix. Customize Mix lets you add or remove components. The bottom controls set the master volume, open the Session Timer, and start or pause playback.

Sound controls#

Each sound source has its own enable control and volume. Opening a source shows the parameters used to generate its sound.

  • Binaural has Base Tone and Beat Rate.
  • Isochronic has Tone, Pulse Rate, Pulse Shape, and Pulse Width. Pulse Width appears when Pulse Shape is set to Sharp.
  • Drone has Pitch, Waveform, Modulation Rate, and Modulation Depth.
  • Noise has Color, Brightness, and Resonance.
  • Rain has Intensity, Drop Size, Brightness, Drop Detail, and Irregularity.
  • Crackle has Activity, Body, Brightness, Pop Detail, and Clustering.
  • Rumble has Depth, Body, Movement, Pace, and Width.

Two global effects shape the complete mix. Reverb has Amount, Length, and Brightness. Tone is a three-band equalizer with Bass, Mid, and Treble controls. Turning an effect off preserves its settings.

The master volume changes the level of the complete mix without changing the volume saved for each source.

Current mix#

The current mix contains its generator and effect membership, enabled states, parameters, channel volumes, effect settings, and master volume. Soundwell stores the current mix on the iPhone and restores it when the app opens again.

The current mix remains separate from saved presets. Changes to the current mix do not change a preset.

Presets#

A preset is a saved copy of a mix. Soundwell includes bundled presets. You can also save the current mix as a custom preset.

Applying a preset copies its settings into the current mix. Built-in presets cannot be changed or deleted. Custom presets can be renamed or deleted.

When the current mix is not empty, Soundwell lets you apply the preset, save the current mix first, or cancel.

Session timer#

The Session Timer accepts durations from one second through 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 59 seconds. Its countdown is independent of playback, so pausing the timer does not pause the sound.

When the timer ends, Soundwell stops playback. Fade Out can lower the volume over the final 30 seconds. For a timer shorter than 30 seconds, the fade lasts for the full timer duration.

Soundwell stores the selected duration and Fade Out setting. An active countdown is not restored after the app is terminated.

Timer Live Activity#

A timer shorter than eight hours can appear as a Live Activity on the Lock Screen, in StandBy, and in the Dynamic Island on supported iPhones. The Live Activity shows whether the timer is running or paused and displays its remaining time.

Expanded Dynamic Island controls can pause, resume, or cancel the timer. Cancelling the timer does not stop playback. Opening the Live Activity takes you to the Session Timer in Soundwell.

Timers of eight hours or longer continue to work in the app without a Live Activity.

Background playback#

Soundwell can continue playing while the iPhone is locked or another app is open. If the active audio output disconnects, Soundwell stops playback.

An audio interruption can pause playback. Soundwell resumes only when playback was active before the interruption and iOS indicates that it can resume.

System Now Playing#

After playback starts, Soundwell appears in the system Now Playing interface on the Lock Screen and in Control Center. It shows Soundwell artwork, the enabled sound sources, and the current playback state.

If the current mix matches a saved preset, Now Playing uses that preset's name. Otherwise, it uses Current Mix.

Now Playing supports Play, Pause, and Toggle from the system interface, supported headphones, and other media-control accessories. These controls operate on the existing current mix. They do not select a preset or enable a sound source.

Siri and Shortcuts#

Soundwell provides two actions for Siri and the Shortcuts app:

  • Play Preset applies a built-in or custom preset and starts playback.
  • Play Preset for Duration applies a preset, starts playback, and starts the Session Timer.

If applying a preset would replace changes in the current mix, the action asks you to continue or cancel.

Local storage#

Soundwell generates and processes audio on the iPhone. Mixes, presets, preferences, and app behavior stay local to the device.

Soundwell has no account, proprietary backend, analytics, advertising, or tracking. It does not use the microphone or recordings to create its sounds. Apple processes optional tip purchases.

Pricing and tips#

Soundwell is free and fully featured. Optional consumable tips support continued development.

Accessibility and appearance#

Soundwell offers Light, Dark, and Auto appearance. Monochrome is the default, and you can choose Blue, Violet, Green, Teal, Orange, or Pink as the accent. Appearance preferences stay local and are separate from mixes and presets.

Soundwell supports Dynamic Type, VoiceOver, Voice Control, Reduce Motion, and Reduce Transparency.

Sliders show their current values and support VoiceOver adjustment. Controls use text or symbols in addition to color to identify their state.