Sean Fairchild | ToneControl

ToneControl

A mobile app for electric bassists and guitarists developed along dual paths for both Android and iOS, mated to a Bluetooth-equipped modular hardware solution.

Product Design

iOS/Android

Know More

As a passionate participant in the prosumer audio industry and product reviewer for Bass Gear Magazine, I've developed rewarding relationships with top brands in this space, allowing me unique access to influence product design and development.

The ToneControl project comprised a Bluetooth-enabled “omni controller” for electric basses and guitars, to help modernize their electronics and serve their players with new and exciting options and abilities.

My Role

-Marketplace research
-Product design & planning
-UI design & testing

Tools

Problem

The technology that comprises electric bass and guitar electronics hasn’t significantly changed in 100 years. Modern players needed modern, mobile app-powered solutions!

Solution

Working with Musical Instruments (MI) industry leaders, I designed and developed dual platform, native iOS and Android control interfaces to deliver modern conveniences and capabilities to these players.

FIVE Ws

Who

Guitarists and bassists using a new product that mates with their existing electronics and controls all signal routing wirelessly.  

    
What

Changing pickup wiring configurations electronically and remotely; Changing preamp parameters (pickup gain, master volume, EQ); Storing and recalling presets of these combinations.  

    
When

When musicians are actively engaged in practicing or performing, or when setting up an instrument in advance for a show or recording date.

Where

Anywhere musicians have their instrument and mobile device; from the bedroom to the studio, stage, rehearsal space, van/tour bus, and other locales.

Why

To allow for an entirely new level of control over their tone and settings, with never before experienced digital precision and accuracy.

FIVE Ws

Who

Guitarists and bassists using a new product that mates with their existing electronics and controls all signal routing wirelessly.  

    
What

Changing pickup wiring configurations electronically and remotely; Changing preamp parameters (pickup gain, master volume, EQ); Storing and recalling presets of these combinations.  

    
When

When musicians are actively engaged in practicing or performing, or when setting up an instrument in advance for a show or recording date.      

Where

Anywhere musicians have their instrument and mobile device; from the bedroom to the studio, stage, rehearsal space, van/tour bus, and other locales.      

Why

To allow for an entirely new level of control over their tone and settings, with never before experienced digital precision and accuracy.

Concept

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

Being an entirely new category of product, there were no direct competitors to investigate and analyze.

I studied three mobile apps that presented similar functionality to determine what types of interface controls and UI design language the intended audience would be familiar with: Android Sound Assistant, Auto Slow Downer, and BOSS GX-10.

Design

USER FLOW & DESIGN

After the initial market and user research was concluded, I began the UI design process with user flow determinations and diagramming. Using a Lean design methodology, I first developed paper wireframes and employed them in a rapid prototyping process, iterating on and honing the designs through additional research and A/B testing.

WIREFRAME EVOLUTION: LoFi - HiFi

Results

FINAL DESIGN

Borrowing from the Apple Store’s aesthetic, high end photography retailers’ functionality, and many other sources of inspiration; all while taking user feedback and testing results to heart in order to produce the best product and experience possible for them; PXL’s final form was born.

INTERACTIVE FIGMA PROTOTYPE

Final Thoughts

RETROSPECTIVE

ToneControl succeeded in bridging hardware and software with a musician-focused approach, earning praise from both internal and beta users for its visual clarity and tactile feel. Collaborating closely with hardware engineers helped refine interaction timing and responsiveness, though aligning technical feasibility with user expectations required constant negotiation.

One area that I feel I could improve is onboarding—some advanced features weren’t obvious enough for first-time users. I’d approach future iterations with a tighter onboarding loop, perhaps including contextual tips or a brief interactive tutorial.