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.

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Yamaha P105, Yamaha MX49, Behringer UMC1820 Interconnectivity Magic

motmeistermotmeister
in App Tips and Tricks

I'm posting this because I'm sure that somewhere in this rambling SOMEONE will find a solution for THEIR MIDI connectivity problem. Frankly, I was surprised this worked, but it does, and that's what prompts me to write.

The hardware involved:
Yamaha P105 digital piano
Yamaha MX49 synth
Plugable powered USB3 10-Port Hub
Behringer UMC1820

The iPad software:
AUM
iSymphonic (as an audio unit)
Midiflow

Preliminary notes:

ALL of the MIDI hardware is CoreMidi compatible.

The Yamaha P105 does not have a standard MIDI out connector, it's USB to Host. There are myriad discussions in various forums of people wanting to use the P105 as a MIDI controller to control other MIDI devices. Without the 5-pin MIDI out, the P105 cannot connect directly to another MIDI synth. That was a problem.

The Yamaha MX49 has both 5-pin MIDI out and in, as well as a USB to Host. For this discussion that made it very flexible.

The Behringer UMC1820 has both 5-pin MIDI out and in, and its USB also carries both MIDI in/out (as well as the audio).

I used the powered 10-port USB3 hub because I was going to ultimately plug everything to the iPad and I wanted to be sure the issue of getting USB power from the iPad wasn't a factor for the test.

My objective:
To use the Yamaha P105 piano as the MIDI source for the iPad, to play 4 iPad synths, and send the output of each to a different pair of outputs on the Behringer. Connection of the MX49 to the MIDI mix was a secondary bonus.

I started with NOTHING turned on, and the powered USB hub unplugged.

Instructions for hardware connection:
1. Plug the P105 USB to the USB hub.
2. Plug the Behringer USB to the USB hub.
3. Plug the MX49 5-pin MIDI out to the Behringer 5-pin MIDI in.
4. Plug the USB hub output to the CCK (I used the USB3 version with lightning power, a fairly recent type).
5. Turn on the P105.
6. Turn on the Behringer.
7. Turn on the MX49.
8. The MX49 needs to be set to send its MIDI through the MIDI cable and NOT the USB to Host connection. (See the MX49 manual for how to do this, but...)
Press the Utility Button.
Use the jog wheel to find Utility:MIDI.
Press the Enter button.
In the menu "UTILITY MIDI|MIDI IN/OUT" use the jog wheel to find MIDI.
Press the Enter button.
Press the Exit button repeatedly until you are no longer in the Utility settings dialog.
(This setting needs to be set again if you turn off the MX49 power)
9. Plug the USB hub to power.
10. Connect the CCK to the iPad.

Starting the software:
1. Start MidiFlow.
2. Add two lanes.
3. Set the input to Lane 1 as "Digital Piano (the P105).
4. Remap the Lane 1 MIDI to channel 2. (more later).
5. Create a virtual output (I called it CUOut1) and set the Lane 1 output to it.
6. Set the input to Lane 2 as "UMC1820" (which is where the MX49 is plugged in).
7. Remap Lane 2 MIDI to channel 3. (also more later).
8. Create another virtual output (I called it CUOut2) and set the Lane 2 output to it.

  1. Start AUM.
  2. Add four lanes to AUM.
  3. Set up Lane 1:
    Input will be iSymphonic Audio Unit (you choose the instrument).
    MIDI in will be CUOut1.
    Output will be Hardware output UMC1820 3+4.
  4. Lane 2:
    Input will be iSymphonic Audio Unit (choose a second instrument).
    MIDI in will also be CUOut1.
    Output will be Hardware output UMX1820 5+6.
  5. Lane 3:
    Input will be iSymphonic Audio Unit (choose a third instrument).
    MIDI in will be CUOut2.
    Output will be Hardware output UMX1820 7+8.
  6. Lane 4:
    Input will be iSymphonic Audio Unit (choose a fourth instrument).
    MIDI in will also be CUOut2.
    Output will be Hardware output UMX1820 9+10.

When you play the P105 keyboard, the iSymphonic instruments in Lanes 1 and 2 should play to Behringer outs 3+4 and 5+6.
When you play the MX49 keyboard, the iSymphonic instruments in Lanes 3 and 4 should play to Behringer outs 7+8 and 9+10.
Note: In order to monitor the outputs, you have to connect speakers/headphones to the Direct outs 3-10, one pair at a time.

That's the amazing part. You're sending TWO MIDI in signals to the iPad (One from the P105, and the other from the MX49 through the Behringer). THEY BOTH PLAY. AT THE SAME TIME.

I originally did this without using MidiFlow with the inputs from each of the MIDI devices (P105 and MX49/Behringer) set directly in AUM. Natively, both of the devices use MIDI channel 1. It worked fine until you played the same MIDI note on both devices at the same time (e.g. C3). Then only one of them played. When I used Midiflow to redirect the signals from each device to a different virtual MIDI channel, BOTH of them played.

If you have any questions or observations, I'd love to hear them. I'll answer anything I can.

Post Post Script... if this has been done or described before, Gilda Radner as Emily Littela would say... "Never Mind!".

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