What is DimSong?

DimSong, available for free on the iPhone and iPod Touch, is a reactive and adaptive application that creates customized remixes of music based on your input, movement and surroundings.  Control the intensity and density of a song in real-time, and experience a new way to interact with music.

How much does it cost?

DimSong is FREE… as in, totally, completely free.  You might as well get it right now.  What do you have to lose?

Can you give me some examples of ways that I can use DimSong?

DimSong lets you actively adjust the music to suit your mood, or you can let the app to react to your environment and adapt the audio accordingly.  Try some of the following uses:

•In Shake mode, try dancing with your phone and listen as the music follows your motions.  Alternate between slow, sustained movement and faster motions.

•In Light mode, place the device on a table in your living room with the camera facing up, and then walk around turning lights off and on.  Listen as the music reacts instantly to changes in lighting.

(For best results, Calibrate before using Light mode in a new environment.)

•In Shake mode, place the phone in your pocket while you work out or run.  The music will pick up its pace to match your workout, and then settle into a calmer state as you cool down.

•In Touch mode, be the DJ as you build up and break down the track with a flick of your finger.

Will your app work on my device?

DimSong works on any iPhone or iPod Touch with iOS version 4.0 or later.

How do I enable and use Touch Mode?

At the bottom of the main screen, tap the “Select Input” tab and choose “Touch”. 

Touch mode allows you to adjust the intensity of the music via an on-screen slider. When the fader is low the music is calm, and as the fader rises the music increases in intensity.  You can slide the fader up and down, or tap on the fader path to jump directly to a specific intensity level.

How do I enable and use Shake Mode?

At the bottom of the main screen, tap the “Select Input” tab and choose “Shake”.

Shake mode allows you to control the intensity of the music based on the movement of the device. When the device is motionless the music is calm, and as the phone is shaken more and more the intensity rises.  Shake input is very sensitive – try slow, subtle motions as well as fast and aggressive input.

You can adjust the responsiveness of Shake mode in the Settings screen.  From the main screen, tap the button in the top left corner, and choose Low, Medium, or High under Shake Sensitivity.  Each mode responds differently and is ideal for various activities.  Text descriptions underneath the buttons on the Settings screen provide detailed information.

How do I enable and use Light Mode?

At the bottom of the main screen, tap the “Select Input” tab and choose “Light”.

Light mode allows you to control the intensity of the music based on the amount of ambient light in your environment.  This mode uses the camera on your device (front-facing camera on the iPhone 4, rear camera on all other devices) to measure brightness.  In relative darkness the music is calm, and as the amount of light increases the intensity rises.

Light mode is especially fun in a room where you have control of the ligh ts (either through a dimmer switch, or by turning off and on various lamps).  In fact, the name of the app (DimSong) derives from the working title of the first prototype (“The Musical Dimmer Switch”).  For best results, set the device down with the camera facing towards the ceiling.  Then, adjust the lighting in the room to medium brightness and tap the “Calibrate” button.

You can adjust the responsiveness of Light mode in the Settings screen.  From the main screen, tap the button in the top left corner, and choose Low, Medium, or High under Light Sensitivity.  Text descriptions underneath the buttons on the Settings screen provide detailed information.

How do I change songs?

At the top of the main screen, tap the “Choose Song” button to pull down a list of available songs.  Tap a song from the list to select it.

How do I get more music?

To access the music store open the song list by tapping “Choose Song” at the top of the main screen, and then tap the “More Songs” button in the top right corner.

The music store allows you to preview short clips of the songs before you purchase by tapping the play button to the left of the song name.  Songs can be purchased by tapping the purchase button (with price) to the right of the song name.  All purchases are charged to your iTunes account.

The DimSong store is updated frequently with new music and special deals.  Follow us on Twitter or like us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with the latest news and specials!

Can I use my own music?

Song importing is not supported at this time.  There is a variety of music available in the music store.

I am an artist.  How do I get my music into DimSong?

If you are an artist interested in providing your music in DimSong, feel free to reach out to us at info@venlabsla.com.  Please provide links to your music; do not attach MP3 files.  Note that in order to license your music to us you must own all of the master and publishing rights for your song.

I love [Artist X].  When are you guys going to get some music by them?

We are constantly working to add new music to DimSong, and we strive to get high-quality content in a number of different genres.  If you would like to suggest an artist for our consideration, please email us at support@venlabsla.com.

I’m not hearing any audio.  What’s going on?

Let’s start with the basics… Make sure that you have pressed the Play button in the bottom left corner of the screen and that the volume slider, located along the bottom of the screen, is up (to the right).  Also, make sure that your device volume is up, using the physical volume buttons along the side of the device.

For best results, we recommend using headphones or plugging the device into external speakers.  The internal speakers on your device will work, but they can be difficult to hear in noisy environments, or when you are moving the device around in shake mode.

Please note that we do not support background audio playback (see below) so the device must be unlocked and the app must be active to hear audio.

Do you support background audio playback?

DimSong actively polls the device for input, and uses that input to assemble the audio output in real-time.  Unfortunately, this type of processing is not supported in the background and we are unable to take advantage of the multi-tasking functionality.  The app must be active, and the device unlocked, to hear audio playback.

Background playback is one of our most requested features, and we will be working towards supporting it.

Do you support [insert feature here]?

We are constantly seeking ways to improve the DimSong experience, and we strive to please our fans.  If you have a feature suggestion, please email us at support@venlabsla.com.

My question isn’t answered here and I still need help. How can I reach you?

Please email us directly at support@venlabsla.com with your question and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.