Hokusai is a multitrack audio editor for iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Record or import a track, and make it sound the way you want it to: not just trimming the ends, but full cut, copy, paste and delete, and a suite of filters and special effects available.
"Hokusai will convince you that audio was meant to be edited with a touch screen — it's just so natural within this app that you’ll find yourself consistently coming back to it." — iOS Music And You
Edit many tracks side-by-side, mix them together, and export to Wave or MP4 format — then transfer them to your computer, send them to another app on your device, or upload to cloud services.
Hokusai is streamlined to give you a clean, clear view of your tracks. Use the familiar pinch and swipe gestures to zoom right in and fiddle with fine detail, or step back to see the big picture. Select pieces of audio. Live "scrubbing" means you can hear the sound under your fingertip as you make your adjustments. And you needn't fear a bad edit with our full undo/redo support — even after closing your project.
Hokusai comes free with a set of useful tools such as fade in/out, normalise volume levels, reverse time, and basic synthesis. If you need more power, you can upgrade from inside the app to add new tools and effects, including: Per-track volume/mute/panning, selecting across multiple tracks at once, presets and favourites, grain synthesis, noise gating, time-stretching, pitch-bending, echo, reverb, modulation (AM & FM), resonance, distortion, grunge, vocal levelling, monster voice, high/low/band-pass/notch-cut filter and more — many of which can be previewed live.
What's New
Version History
2.2.7
• Updated for compatibility with new device screen sizes • Various additional user-experience improvements
2.2.6
• Compatibility and user-experience improvements.
2.2.5
This update addresses some performance and stability issues.
In version 2.2:
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.2.4
This update addresses some issues related to selection scrubbing and pasting audio into a new track.
In version 2.2:
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.2.3
This update addresses some issues related to live-previewing effects.
In version 2.2:
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.2.2
This update addresses an issue with sending files to Hokusai from other apps.
In version 2.2:
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.2.1
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.2
New for paying customers:
• New: Play back previews of projects at different speeds • New: Input gain control during recording (for devices which support it) • New: Import/export effects presets (for making backups & sharing presets with others) • New: Export Selection command now has choice of .wav or .m4a formats • New: Commands and keyboard shortcuts to adjust the selection range to sound or silence. • New: When changing a project’s BPM, Hokusai offers to resample or time stretch the project to the new tempo • New: Click Track can match its BPM to the project’s
New for all users:
• New: Warns when your device is low on storage space • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically to follow your finger when you drag the selection near the edge of the screen • New: Option to scroll the screen automatically during playback to follow the Play Head • New: Keyboard shortcut to jump to Play Head • New: Sort projects by name or size (as well as the original, sort by date) • Accessibility: “Magic Tap” gesture to play/pause audio playback • Improved some visual elements, including alerts and menus • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.1.6
Various small fixes and improvements, including a compatibility fix for monitoring live audio through headphones on certain devices.
2.1.5
• Various small fixes and improvements
2.1.4
• Various small fixes and improvements
2.1.3
• Various small fixes and improvements
2.1.2
• Various small fixes and improvements
2.1.1
• Various small fixes and improvements.
Previously in v2.1:
New for paying customers:
• Set a tempo for your project, display beats instead of hours/minutes/seconds on the Time Bar, and snap selections to them. • Ripple Tracks command automatically aligns the start of each selected track with the end of the previous one. • Mini pan indicators for tracks that have been panned, but have been zoomed too small to fit the regular dial.
New for all users:
• Drag and Drop files between apps (requires iPad with iOS 11) • Enhanced support for Apple Pencil • Additional accessibility gestures. • Various other small fixes and improvements.
2.1
New for paying customers:
• Set a tempo for your project, display beats instead of hours/minutes/seconds on the Time Bar, and snap selections to them. • Ripple Tracks command automatically aligns the start of each selected track with the end of the previous one. • Mini pan indicators for tracks that have been panned, but have been zoomed too small to fit the regular dial.
New for all users:
• Drag and Drop files between apps (requires iPad with iOS 11) • Enhanced support for Apple Pencil • Additional accessibility gestures. • Various other small fixes and improvements.
2.0.11
Compatibility improvements.
2.0.10
• New: Shortcut access to Favourites • Improved: Noise Reduction sensitivity and sound quality • Various other small fixes and improvements
2.0.9
The last update had a problem that could prevent folks from importing tracks from their Music Library. Sorry about that! This update fixes the issue.
2.0.8
• New: Double-tap on slider handles to enter precise values • New: Haptic feedback (on compatible devices running iOS 10) • Improved Bluetooth support for devices running iOS 10 • Reliability improvements
2.0.7
• New: Support for recovering damaged audio from certain kinds of uncompressed audio file • Reduced memory usage when performing long-running tasks (such as applying effects to large amounts of audio at once) • Improved “snapping” behaviour for tap-to-insert • General reliability improvements
Note: If you’re working with very large audio files (for example, if you are recording podcasts or audiobooks), you might want to check out another app, Ferrite Recording Studio — it was designed from the outset to efficiently handle very big projects!
2.0.6
Fixes and accessibility improvements.
2.0.5
• Reliability improvements
2.0.4
Compatibility and reliability improvements.
2.0.3
v2.0.3 brings reliability and accessibility improvements.
- - -
Thanks for your patience while Hokusai 2.0 was created — the biggest ever update to Hokusai. Hokusai 2 has been completely rewritten, using Swift and other new technologies to bring you an app which is faster, more reliable and easier to use!
Don’t worry — your favourite features are still there — you’ll feel right at home. And, if you purchased any upgrades for Hokusai 1, they’re still valid for Hokusai 2!
HIGHLIGHTS
• Completely rewritten for speed, reliability and ease of use • Clean, modern design • Redesigned Time Bar includes a new “scrubbable” play head for easy fast forward/rewind, adding audio anywhere in a project, and more • Many effects can now be previewed live, instead of having to wait for them to apply first • New Play/Pause & Preview bar right inside the effects panel makes previews easier to use too • Hokusai’s “zooming sliders” have been redesigned so precise adjustments are a breeze — just “pinch to zoom” • Many more FX parameters can be varied automatically • Your project is always saved, not just when you remember to • Undo/Redo works even after you close the project (or app!) and re-open it • Hokusai always supported Dropbox, now you can also easily import/export from a variety of other cloud services — iCloud, Google Drive and more are just a tap away inside the Import panel(1) • Bluetooth compatibility(2) • Quickly search/filter your projects list • Re-order the tracks in your project • Mini-keyboards can now be scrolled to access the full 88-key piano range • New to the iPhone: Use in Portrait as well as Landscape. And the Undo/Redo buttons from the iPad are now available on iPhone too. • New to the iPad: Use in split-screen(3). And in full-screen, a new spacious layout for applying effects. • It’s now quicker to set FX parameter start/end points with dual slider handles • New curve editor makes it easier than ever to apply complex changes • Many effects have been upgraded with either better sound quality, more features, or both • Keyboard shortcut commands
OPTIONAL EXTRAS IN HOKUSAI 2:
As well as all the upgrades from Hokusai 1, all of the following can be unlocked with a single purchase:
• Select and apply edits & effects across multiple tracks at once • Non-destructively pan tracks to the left or right • Volume controls always available, not just when vertically zoomed • Found the perfect settings for an effect? Save them out as a new preset to re-use whenever you need it • Many effects now include handy factory presets too • Mark effects and presets as favourites for fast access • Export projects as an archive of separate tracks, for easy importing into desktop DAW software • Create zip files containing complete archived projects (including Undo/Redo history) so you can restore them later and continue editing • New effects including Noise Reduction, Autopan, and Mid-Side Decoding for converting audio made using high-end field recorders
(1) Requires the appropriate app to be installed on your device (2) Playback only, due to technical limitations of Bluetooth audio (3) On devices compatible with split-screen mode
2.0.2
v2.0.2 restores the ability to record/play while using other apps, adds Home Screen shortcuts (for 3D Touch-compatible devices) and has a number of improvements to compatibility, performance, stability and VoiceOver accessibility.
Thanks for your patience while Hokusai 2.0 was created — the biggest ever update to Hokusai. Hokusai 2 has been completely rewritten, using Swift and other new technologies to bring you an app which is faster, more reliable and easier to use!
Don’t worry — your favourite features are still there — you’ll feel right at home. And, if you purchased any upgrades for Hokusai 1, they’re still valid for Hokusai 2!
HIGHLIGHTS
• Completely rewritten for speed, reliability and ease of use • Clean, modern design • Redesigned Time Bar includes a new “scrubbable” play head for easy fast forward/rewind, adding audio anywhere in a project, and more • Many effects can now be previewed live, instead of having to wait for them to apply first • New Play/Pause & Preview bar right inside the effects panel makes previews easier to use too • Hokusai’s “zooming sliders” have been redesigned so precise adjustments are a breeze — just “pinch to zoom” • Many more FX parameters can be varied automatically • Your project is always saved, not just when you remember to • Undo/Redo works even after you close the project (or app!) and re-open it • Hokusai always supported Dropbox, now you can also easily import/export from a variety of other cloud services — iCloud, Google Drive and more are just a tap away inside the Import panel(1) • Bluetooth compatibility(2) • Quickly search/filter your projects list • Re-order the tracks in your project • Mini-keyboards can now be scrolled to access the full 88-key piano range • New to the iPhone: Use in Portrait as well as Landscape. And the Undo/Redo buttons from the iPad are now available on iPhone too. • New to the iPad: Use in split-screen(3). And in full-screen, a new spacious layout for applying effects. • It’s now quicker to set FX parameter start/end points with dual slider handles • New curve editor makes it easier than ever to apply complex changes • Many effects have been upgraded with either better sound quality, more features, or both • Keyboard shortcut commands
OPTIONAL EXTRAS IN HOKUSAI 2:
As well as all the upgrades from Hokusai 1, all of the following can be unlocked with a single purchase:
• Select and apply edits & effects across multiple tracks at once • Non-destructively pan tracks to the left or right • Volume controls always available, not just when vertically zoomed • Found the perfect settings for an effect? Save them out as a new preset to re-use whenever you need it • Many effects now include handy factory presets too • Mark effects and presets as favourites for fast access • Export projects as an archive of separate tracks, for easy importing into desktop DAW software • Create zip files containing complete archived projects (including Undo/Redo history) so you can restore them later and continue editing • New effects including Noise Reduction, Autopan, and Mid-Side Decoding for converting audio made using high-end field recorders
(1) Requires the appropriate app to be installed on your device (2) Playback only, due to technical limitations of Bluetooth audio (3) On devices compatible with split-screen mode
Version 2.2.7
• Updated for compatibility with new device screen sizes • Various additional user-experience improvements
Ratings and Reviews
4.0 out of 5
124 Ratings
124 Ratings
Colton Lee Clement
It’s good but it needs improvement
I’ve been using this app for quite a while and so far, my only complaint is that you can’t just simply edit audio from a video on your phone. I always have to download my sounds and music off the internet with another app so I can turn it into an audio file. I shouldn’t have to worry about it when the app should be taking care of this. Also, there is a files app that apple has made where you can move videos to it and it works with Hokusai, but whenever I try to select what I want to edit, the thumbnail is faded and wont let me select it. The app is well organized and is easy to use, but if you can’t edit anything you have on your phone, then what’s the point in downloading the app?
Colton Lee Clement
It’s good but it needs improvement
I’ve been using this app for quite a while and so far, my only complaint is that you can’t just simply edit audio from a video on your phone. I always have to download my sounds and music off the internet with another app so I can turn it into an audio file. I shouldn’t have to worry about it when the app should be taking care of this. Also, there is a files app that apple has made where you can move videos to it and it works with Hokusai, but whenever I try to select what I want to edit, the thumbnail is faded and wont let me select it. The app is well organized and is easy to use, but if you can’t edit anything you have on your phone, then what’s the point in downloading the app?
jeffry-s
Does what I need
“Destructive editing” may not sound good, but it is clearly more useful than what GarageBand offers when you have to split regions to delete audio and then deal with them sliding around. When it comes to adding reverb however, this app is limited by its need to write the “reverb” into the waveform, not allowing for later alterations. The scrub is for real. Unlike the scrub in Music Studio, you can hear all sonic components (e.g. the scratch of my fingernails on the guitar strings) and thereby make more seamless edits. The notch filter effect is well implemented, a little piano keyboard gets you honed in on the exact pitch of a woof note.
jeffry-s
Does what I need
“Destructive editing” may not sound good, but it is clearly more useful than what GarageBand offers when you have to split regions to delete audio and then deal with them sliding around. When it comes to adding reverb however, this app is limited by its need to write the “reverb” into the waveform, not allowing for later alterations. The scrub is for real. Unlike the scrub in Music Studio, you can hear all sonic components (e.g. the scratch of my fingernails on the guitar strings) and thereby make more seamless edits. The notch filter effect is well implemented, a little piano keyboard gets you honed in on the exact pitch of a woof note.
Diana.McCall
This is THE one
Hidden behind the arcane name is a wonderful app. It will do what you need, even in the free version. It can import/export (uses Files), cut/paste, and lots more. There's a full user manual on-line and pdf, so there are no mysteries. You can expand the track and use audio scrubbing for precise trimming. A minor limitation is that it only saves as m4a (or wav), not mp3. I don't need the full version, but I'd pay a couple of bucks just to give the author a boost. May there should be a tip jar or a minor upgrade available for a lower price.
Developer Response
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Hello Diana! Thanks for your kind words, I'm glad to hear you're finding the app useful. If you're serious about wanting to throw a tip into the jar, that's very generous of you! We have another app Hexterity which includes a tip jar you can use, if you like (http://itunes.apple.com/app/id293342071), or if you know anyone who needs the Pro version, it's always appreciated when folks pass along recommendations to their friends!🙂
Diana.McCall
This is THE one
Hidden behind the arcane name is a wonderful app. It will do what you need, even in the free version. It can import/export (uses Files), cut/paste, and lots more. There's a full user manual on-line and pdf, so there are no mysteries. You can expand the track and use audio scrubbing for precise trimming. A minor limitation is that it only saves as m4a (or wav), not mp3. I don't need the full version, but I'd pay a couple of bucks just to give the author a boost. May there should be a tip jar or a minor upgrade available for a lower price.
Developer Response
Hello Diana! Thanks for your kind words, I'm glad to hear you're finding the app useful. If you're serious about wanting to throw a tip into the jar, that's very generous of you! We have another app Hexterity which includes a tip jar you can use, if you like (http://itunes.apple.com/app/id293342071), or if you know anyone who needs the Pro version, it's always appreciated when folks pass along recommendations to their friends!🙂
