And they say the PSP doesn’t have a killer app. PSP Rhythm, the homebrew drum machine software for Sony’s portable game console, is getting updated at an astounding rate. New in version 3.0: start/end points for drum samples (a critical feature), warped drum sounds with a reverse feature, and wave file output. Audio output is particularly cool, because you can create drum loops on your PSP, then come back to your computer and dump them onto Ableton Live, Sony ACID (hello, Sony, you listening to this?), or another program. I hope the execs at Sony who said they wanted to squash homebrew development are kicking themselves.
Check out the audio output — not bad for a portable game system. This is a direct wavefile output from the PSP (using the new 3.0 feature):
The creators describe PSP Rhythm 3.0:
Inspired by classic drum machines such as the Linndrum and Roland TR-series, PSP Rhythm has been created to use the simple, yet effective 16 step style drum sequencer. PSP Rhythm incorporates the use of audio sample playback instead of drum synthesis. PSP Rhythm has been directly influenced by one of our favorite modern drum machines, the Elektron MachineDrum. The most significant is our use of “parameter locks” (as used by the MachineDrum). Parameter locks enable you to change the pitch, volume, balance, start and end time per step to create moving, changing melodies and effects. This control over your sounds will give you much more creative freedom and allow you to not only use drums, but to use instruments in your music.
Supported PSP firmware is 1.0, 1.5 or 2.0.