Roles
UI/UX Designer
Product Designer
Tools
Figma
Deliverables
High-fidelity Designs
Design System
Product Concept
Duration
2 weeks
About
SplitKit is a conceptual AI-powered mobile app that enables users to isolate the drums from any song and independently adjust the levels of individual kit elements such as the kick drum, snare, toms, and cymbals. Designed with drummers, producers, and music enthusiasts in mind, the app simplifies drum track analysis, practice, and creative remixing.
My role involved leading the project from concept through execution, defining the product vision, conducting competitive analysis, designing the user experience, establishing a design system, and producing the final UI.
The Problem
Drummers often learn songs by practicing along with the original track, but the drums can become difficult to hear when competing with other instruments in the mix. This makes it challenging to analyze drum patterns, identify specific pieces being played, and accurately replicate the performance.
Drummers need a way to isolate and control individual drum elements so they can better understand songs, practice more effectively, and improve their playing.
Research & Competitive Analysis
Before designing SplitKit, I explored existing tools used by musicians to practice, learn songs, and separate audio tracks. The goal was to understand how these apps supported drummers specifically, identify their limitations, and uncover opportunities for a more drummer-focused experience.
I focused on features such as:
Instrument isolation capabilities
Control over individual audio elements
Flexibility over what type of files could be imported
Ease of use for musicians
Key Insights
— Existing tools separate instruments, but lack drummer-focused workflows — Organizing tracks into playlists, by audio types, or into setlists is important to users — Users are accustomed to familiar playback controls, playlists, and queues
Project Goals
— Create a familiar stem separation experience tailored for drummers — Allow users to create personalized playlists with tracks to make practice more streamlined — Allow users to apply custom presets to the entire drum track, speeding up workflow
Primary User Flow
Wireframes
Wireframes were utilized to establish the app's structure and user flow, focusing on the main features such as uploading tracks, editing audio, and playlists.
Design System
The Final Experience
Getting Started
The onboarding and track library screens were designed to make the user's experience as easy and enjoyable as possible. New users are introduced to SplitKit through a simple onboarding screen before being taken to a familiar song library interface where they can import, browse, search, and organize their tracks.
Stem Separation
Once a track is imported, SplitKit uses AI to process the audio and isolate the drum performance. It then separates the isolated audio into individual drum stems for each part of the kit present in the track.
The stem mixer gives users independent control over each element of the kit, making it easy to isolate parts, adjust the levels, add presets, and customize playback.
Practice
After the user is satisfied with their mix, they can add it to a new or existing playlist, allowing them to build personalized practice sessions with the same intuitive and seamless experience as a traditional music player.
In addition, the user can also save the mix to their device, or share it externally with friends or musical collaborators.
Presets
Users can browse, preview, and purchase presets that can be added to their tracks. These can provide a starting point for their mix or allow them to quickly achieve specific drum tones inspired by different genres, recording environments, and playing styles.
Conclusion
As a drummer, I focused on creating a product that transformed more traditional instrument separation apps into a focused practice and editing tool built specifically for fellow drummers.
I addressed the limitations of those traditional splitter tools by introducing individual drum component mixing (kick, snare, toms, cymbals etc.) in addition to playlists that act as practice sessions rather than a simple collection of songs.
The final product leverages familiar music software controls and UI patterns that help drummers analyze, adjust, learn, and practice drum parts effortlessly.