iPad/iPhone/iPod touch music gear and apps
 

I've been looking to hear some opinions on music recording gear for the devices that are listed above.

Ive tried the griffin guitar cable on my iPad and it was complete garbage. Sounded like crap, so much feedback, so I returned it and have yet to pick up another interface for my iPad. Ive been looking into some, like the alesis IO dock, apogee jam, line 6 mobile in and the focusrite itrack solo. The one I'm really thinking about getting is the apogee jam. I've heard good things about it, it's really mobile, sounds good in some videos I've seen and it's only 100 dollars. The other one I'm considering is the alesis dock. It just seems like the better product but i don't really think its worth twice the price of the apogee jam. Has anyone tried any of these? If so, I'd really like to hear some opinions.

Another thing im curious about is music recording apps. The only one I've tried is GarageBand, and it's pretty good but I've had some problems with it. I like the virtual instruments and I doubt any other app could match that aspect, but I don't really use them anymore, other than the smart drums, which I find pretty useful. It's limited when it comes to the actual recording and editing process.

Please share your experiences with any apps that you have used, I'm looking to try something new.