“I found my old PS4 controller collecting dust in a drawer and I had an idea”: MIDIpad transforms your gamepad into a musical instrument and MPE controller – and there’s a free version

Developer Steve Mitchell has released MIDIpad, a genius app for macOS that turns a PlayStation controller into a musical instrument, working as both an MPE-compatible MIDI controller and a standalone synth and drum machine – and there’s a free version too.

MIDIpad is built around two distinct instruments: Chords is described as a “guitar-like chord machine” and Drums is a “gestural drum machine”. In the Chords mode, the controller’s left stick can be pointed towards one of six chords on a wheel in the centre of its interface, and that chord can be strummed using either the right stick or the touchpad, with the chosen chord laid out vertically across six “strings” in a guitar-style voicing.