Audiobus: Use your music apps together.
What is Audiobus? — Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.
Download on the App StoreAudiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.
Comments
if iSequence doesn't go 64bit I will update no more forever
Wow. Hadn't even crossed my mind. That is a dilemma.
I agree. I see iOS music production as the future for a lot of us, but not all. It's microcosmic of today: there's so many choices in entertainment, technology and music in general a consensus on that ONE format, that one tech (i.e. vinyl in the 60's, 2" tape as the studio standard, etc.) is just not going to happen again.
People could argue "But DAW's?" "But MP3's?" Well, there isn't just Pro Tools, there's Logic, Ableton, Studio One, Reaper, etc. and there isn't just 128kbps MP3's, there's FLAC, WMA, etc.
So Apple knows there's a musician contingent in their consumer base but they cater to novices, semi-pro's and the professional market. They think most iOS musicians (in their eyes) don't care about bit bridges and old apps. They believe, and try to propagate It's about the shiny new OS and the newest iDevice. Of course, they're wrong when it comes to a great many of us.
I started my iOS app hoarding in early 2015 on my iPad Air2 which I still my main squeeze and working fine. So most of the apps I got were post iOS 8 and I've updated three times (8.4 to 9.3.5 to 10 to 10.2) and am really not looking forward to upgrading any further. We'll see...
But I don't think any of my favorite app aren't 64 bit ready. I do wonder if things like the toggle on Auria for the 32 or 64 bit mixer will be effected or if apps that are smooth now (and 64 bit compatible) will be effected if they can't "shift down" to 32 bit....dunno.
The problem here is that Alchemy was a seminal app in iOS music production; one of the early handful that really did get a lot of interest and love from musicians - as we all know. Apple recognized this and bought out Camel. They then incorporated Alchemy in their flagship "DAW" / music app. So, it's not just a fringe app or fringe focus area here. That I think puts the music apps in general in a slightly different category than "How to water plants" or "17 ways to change a tire" or "Flappy Fish 27 - the outgoing tide" apps.
My recollection is that Apple did provide some update to Alchemy after Camel Audio finally closed their doors. I hope Apple decides to do a seperate Alchemy app rather than let it expire due to deciding not to update it. The functionality of Alchemy in GB iOS isn't the same as the IAA/Audiobus supported Alchemy Mobile app.
I think the App Store is driven largely by what people decide to buy and the biggest improvement Apple could make on this front is to have a sub-category for music creation apps to seperate them from apps that are for listening to music content. The second aspect would be to provide a way to manage files more easily and comprehensively in order to support more complex music work flows to attract more users and developers. Until file management in iOS is addressed, I think Pro is more of a marketing strategy than a way to actually serve the needs of pro users (this extends to all types of pro apps).
The biggest issue I see is many developers getting enough revenue to sustain their app creation as a business otherwise they're doing it part time where its priority is superseded by trying to pay the bills with the regular job. Perhaps Yamaha, Roland, and other major music companies other than Korg haven't become more engaged in creating iOS apps because they don't see how it will improve their bottom line?
@MusicInclusive Derek I agree, my point was I think while Apple know they have a musician/music production demographic it seems it's still treated very middle of the road milquetoast.
It's just my opinion that if they're splitting the iPad models along a Pro line & Air 3, Mini lines (as the latest rumours seem to indicate) then they need to sincerely cater to pro's and not just amateurs, beginners and kids who think the smart instruments are a hoot. Hey, they're important, but come on.
If they're going to hinge GarageBand in the middle of easy to use & professional capability, get a mobile Logic for Pro iPads, or introduce a hybrid OS or straight mac OS for the Pro's to run professional software.
I don't see that ever happening. I do see a capable R&D and marketing team seeing there are lots of us ready to use iOS/Tablets as professional studio equipment instead of laptops or desktops, and letting third party devs with apps like Auria Pro and Cubasis have more flexibility in their coding, sales, etc.
Killing off the rest of the still abundant 32bit iDevice user base and their draconian App Store loops of fire devs jump through show they're not there yet or smart people who see the potential of this community don't exist right now at Apple's Cupertino offices.
NanoStudio. Not sure if and when version 2 ever come to reality (still my most wanted iOS DAW).
hey rick, I already have an ipad air 1 and it's on ios 10 so I'm good.
I can imagine the frustration if you bought a lot of apps in the past.
Even though we're bemoaning the loss of some apps we love and use regularly, and I include myself here, isn't this just all about progress, and shouldn't we be looking forward to what comes next?
I completely respect everyone's opinion, but I hope that the 64bit entry level drives development of newer, more stable and more ingenious apps. We're not short of anything and to be honest most of us, again I include myself, could be much more productive with our current tools without ever buying another app. However, a lot of our pleasure is derived from taking the plunge on new instruments and effects and most of what I use is 64bit only and their qualities are superior to most 32bit, IMHO.
I will admit that I use an ipad pro, now, having recently upgraded from the ipad 4, but I'm sure I'm in the minority user base as these are expensive luxuries and can't imagine everyone having gone through the same upgrade process just yet. There will be a lot of legacy ipad users who will be pissed at what's happening, I totally get that, but I'm really looking forward to what's coming next.
I'll dig this post out in 3 year's time and replace 64bit with 128bit and cut n paste it here, because no doubt the spectre of progress will loom large once more.
Forgive me if you think I missing a bunch of points and my sympathies go out to developers adversely affected.
Flame away.
'll dig this post out in 3 year's time and replace 64bit with 128bit and cut n paste it here, because no doubt the spectre of progress will loom large once more.
3 years?... I wouldn't worry about 128 bit processors anytime soon... like a decade or two... or more... there's no need for them right now.
I hope all Beepstreet apps get updated, iSequence is a favorite of mine but hasn't been updated for years, and it appears the dev is focused on PC development now (my hats off to him, he makes great product), so I'm not holding my breath. I do hope he does update all of his apps though, Sunrizer and iSequence are my favorites on iOS.
It was suggested merely to frame my point, but agree 128bit is probs not gonna happen any time soon.
Apologies for the flippancy.
A majority of the synths I have I'm leaving behind anyway because they didn't go AUv3 like I had hoped. Thankful for the one's that had the courage to do so
bring on 64-bit only iOS11
Have a 4 that I never use, but I sense it will become the museum/time capsule....
Apple provides the platform.
It is down to the devs to support the platform, and for Apple to make it as easy for them to do so as possible, which they do....4 major versions prior warning of a change is more than enough.
The prices on the app store also reflect the expected lifetime of an app.
Nothing lasts forever, except taxes and death.
So you're saying approach any further iOS updates with EXTREME CAUTION
Especially since I just purchased iSequence
NOOII.SE have said on their facebook page that they're working on the update for FLUX:FX. I reckon this change might just force a few long overdue updates past the finishing point.
I think the main Problem here's alchemy. Maybe the only real problem... as it's developer it's the very same company that has decided to stop supporting 32 bit apps but for the rest of the 32 bit apps the situation it's more clear.
If Apple really started warning developers since iOS 7 about 64 bit compatibility then 4 years (by the time iOS 11 launches) it's enough time to do it.
If an app it's still 32 bits only and there's no plan for a future compatibility update or a newer 2.0 version of the app then we can assume the developer abandoned the app, sure, you might like it but that's not apple's fault. if an app is not going to be updated anymore it should be removed from the store or if has to be there for some reason then put big warnings in the description so new potential customers avoid it and put a high price for it (like a 1000 dollars) or just make it free...
On the customer side you could avoid updating the device. Get an old iPad (2,3,4) for those apps (I got an old iPad 3 where eventually all my legacy apps will run)
Edit: I have counted between this forum comments and facebook less than 30 apps affected by this and 80% of those are assured to get an update at some point this year, this is almost a nonissue, except for alchemy...
This news is pretty disturbing to me. We've had a lot of discussions on this forum about the pricing structure of iOS music and whether these are long-term useful music products or "disposable" software that we can't have any realistic expectations of being able to use in 10 years. Too often, we're seeing things like this 32-bit purge that point more towards the latter scenario. Apps completely disappearing from the App Store without advance warning (and leaving no recourse for people who have already purchased them). Wholesale changes to iOS that suddenly brick abandonware. And decisions by Apple to no longer support formats and programming mechanisms that are the basis of many apps.
I have CD-ROM's of computer games from the 1990's like Command & Conquer and XCom - many of those were designed to work with DOS, or on very early versions of Windows using extremely different hardware. Yet, in most cases, you can still get those programs to run on modern PC's - sometimes after something as simple as finding a DOS loader, or installing a driver.
Similarly, 100's of NES games originally played on a primitive cartridge system can be loaded an played on computer emulators, in ways that weren't even imaginable at the time the games were originally produced.
I don't have the same level of confidence yet that there will be a way to continue enjoying these products 10 years from now, particularly with ownership of these apps being tied to the App Store and Apple accounts, but hopefully I will be proven wrong. We've seen a saturation of content and a slowdown of new products in the past 1-2 years versus the "boom" period that was 2012 to early 2016, so it's arguably a problem that's mostly played itself out, as well.
If it wasn't for the nag screen about updating to a more recent version of IOS, this would be a non-issue. As it is I keep getting the warning throughout the day and it automatically downloads the update to my device, taking up precious space. I finally upgraded my iPhone 5S to IOS 10 when I got my watch, but before that I spent time every day to delete the update and dismiss the nag screen. Fortunately my iPad2 is loaded with 32 bit apps and I no longer get the nag screens on it, it must be too old that they don't bother. But for those of you on new 16GB devices, I feel for you. Apple is awful.
I was hoping my iPhone and the apps I bought would be more akin to hardware music making devices. I bought them and they work just the same as they did back in 1989 except for some minor patches that were applied over time. But at no point did those patches completely disable the unit or make it so unusable via nag screens that I was forced to upgrade the device itself.
Here's the list I have so far:
I use these. Some more than others, to be sure, but I have them loaded, not just in the app store "cloud". I do not want to have to keep my mini 4 128 on an older version of iOS just to use them, whether or not I can run them on other older iPads.
Alchemy
DrumStudio
TableTop
NanoStudio
MidiPatternSequencer (mSequencer)
MIDIWrench
MIDIMonitor
iSequence
ChordWeaver
iConfig
netMIDI
Rhythm
BeatForge
MIDIBridge
minisynth
Epic Synth
SynthX
The following are used for MicroBrute control:
Synth76477
SGenerator
TriggerBox
Maybe instead of updating Tabletop, Retronyms will update their other apps to support Audiobus
Since Apple plan on leaving some of us behind if we don't update or upgrade, I'm preparing to leave Apple behind before that happens. I know I'll be spending more money on Rack Extensions for Reason. But the fact that they will always be compatible in the future gives me more comfort to know I'm spending my money wisely. Now that Rack Extensions are capable of loading samples and everything with the new SDK, things are looking even better. REs are ripening while the Apple rots slowly. So I'll be leaving the rotting Apple behind soon.
Retronyms' other mainstream apps - iMini, iProphet, etc. - already do. It's TableTop that doesn't.
I don't own anything by Retronyms actually, I just like jokes.
I have contacted iConnectivity about updating iConfig and netMIDI. I think we need to proactively contact the other folks and ask them to update too.
Also just contacted the SGenerator and Synth 76477 devs to do the same.
I think you're right...and Apple will have a reason for doing this...why buy a company only to kill off its best seller, it doesn't make sense. They have already released a player within GB, I'm sure there will be more to come from Alchemy.
Losing the technical debt associated with keeping 32 bit apps alive is a sensible move from a technical point of view and a brave one from a business point of view.