The problem with strobe apps
Search for "flashlight music" and you get strobe apps. They listen through the microphone, detect loud moments, and switch the LED fully on and fully off. Three things go wrong. The microphone hears the room, not the track, so the light lags and misfires. Full-off flicker in the 3–30 Hz range is the range associated with photosensitive reactions, so a strobe is the least safe thing you can do with a light. And the LED heats up until iOS shuts it down.
A lamp, not a strobe
Room Light in MP95 does it differently. The app already analyses the audio it is playing for its visualizers. Room Light takes the envelope of the low frequencies (the kick, the bass line) and writes it to the torch about twenty times a second with a fast attack and a slow release. The light swells on each kick and sinks between beats. It never goes below a floor of about sixteen percent, so it never blacks out. It is a lamp wired to the bass amp, not a strobe.
Because the source is the audio itself, not the microphone, it is exactly on time and it works with headphones on.
How to use it
- Play a track in MP95 on an iPhone (or an iPad with a flash).
- Tap the small flashlight button in the top row of the player, next to the FX chip.
- The first time, a warning plate explains what it is and what it is not, and asks you to acknowledge it.
- Put the phone face down on a table with the flash pointing at the ceiling, or stand it against a wall. The room follows the music.
It switches itself off when you pause, when the app goes to the background, when iOS reports the LED is too warm, and after thirty minutes regardless. It never turns on by itself: every session starts with the light off.
Safety, honestly
Keeping the light from ever going dark avoids the full-off flicker range, which is why Room Light is designed the way it is. But any moving light can be uncomfortable for people who are sensitive to it. MP95 shows a warning before the first use and we would rather you left it off than found out the hard way. If you or anyone in the room has photosensitivity, do not use it.
On iPad
The button only appears on devices that have a flash. iPads without one do not show it.
Frequently asked questions
Can the iPhone flashlight flash to music?
Yes, with an app that drives the torch. MP95 Room Light drives it from the bass of the track you are playing, as a breathing lamp rather than a strobe.
Is it bad for the phone?
iOS disables the LED if it gets too warm, and MP95 listens for that and stops. It also stops on pause, in the background and after thirty minutes.
Does it use the microphone?
No. It reads the audio the app is playing, so it is on time and works with headphones.