Ambient pads are the easiest and least expensive way to fill in the sound of your worship band. There are a large variety of ways you can play pads in worship. In this article, I’ll give you a step-by-step process for playing pads on an iOS device. You’ll learn about a free app that will give the ability to loop and crossfade your pads.
Step 1 - Download free ambient pads at www.churchfrontpads.com.
My friend Boomer Bate, a music producer and keyboardist for Red Rocks Worship, created a bundle of free warm pads exclusively for the Churchfront Community. Hundreds of worship leader are using Churchfront Pads in their ministry, and they love how pads enhance the sound of their band.
Visit churchfrontpads.com, complete the form, and I’ll email you instant access to the Dropbox folder containing the free pads.
Step 2 - Install the free Dropbox app on your phone and sign up for a free account.
Dropbox is the easiest way to store and transfer your free worship pads. Search for the Dropbox app in the App Store, download, install, and create a free account with your email address and password. When Dropbox is installed, you are ready to download the free pads.
Step 3 - Open up the email from me with the subject line, “here are your free pads” and click the download link.
By now you should have received an email from me containing a link to your pads. Click the link, and it will bring you to where the pads are hosted on Dropbox.com. Select the MP3 folder. We make pads available in WAV format, but MP3 will take up less space on your mobile device and sound just as good. You may need to login to Dropbox again in the web browser. Click on the download button and select “add to my Dropbox.” Now the pads have automatically been added to your Dropbox account, and you will see them when you log into your Dropbox app.
Step 4 - Download the “Soundboard Studio Lite” app on your iOS device and import your free pads.
Now that you have your free ambient worship pads, you will need an app that can play them back with crossfade and looping capability. Soundboard Studio Lite is the best free app for accomplishing this. When you open the app, the first thing you need to do is import your pads from Dropbox. Click the “+” icon in the upper right to add an audio file to your soundboard. Select Dropbox and then navigate to the MP3 pad files. I recommend importing all twelve keys of pads onto one soundboard.
Step 5 - Customize the app setting, so they are optimal for leading worship.
Click the gear icon at the top of the Soundboard Studio app, select “track default settings” and enable “loop.” You want the tracks to loop so that you never have to worry about a pad track ending on you. Our free pad files are 10 minutes long, which are long enough for every worship song. But if you have back to back songs in the same key, it will be crucial to have a looping pad, so you don’t have to worry about enabling the same pad file again.
Under setting in the app, you can adjust crossfade time between the pads on your soundboard. This feature is essential for creating smooth transitions in worship. You do not want you ambient pads to suddenly stop and start. I recommend setting the fade time to 2.5-3 seconds long.
Step 6 - Turn of the silence mode on your iPhone or iPad and turn on airplane mode.
Once you have these settings adjusted, go back to your soundboard and give it a try. Make sure your phone’s silent switch is disabled or else you will not hear any audio. Also, make sure to keep your phone in airplane mode during a worship service, so you do not have interruptions from phone calls or text notifications.
Now you are up and running with ambient pads in worship for free! Everything shown here applies to both an iPhone and iPad. Soundboard Studio Lite is compatible with both.
Don’t forget to download our free ambient worship pads by clicking the button below!