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
What you say is a fine example of approaching music making with an open mind, and doing what works for you.
I think it’s important for us all to encourage not only each other but any newcomers. It can seem a bit intimidating, landing among the abilities found on the AB Forum, even though nine out of ten are good peeps.
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Which is why we use it to create stuff that gets sequenced in Cubasis or Auria Pro.
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Quite right, Mr Beak. Errr, I’m assuming you mean Beatsnap?
As I followed the thread, I was thinking Blocs Wave wasn't going to be what you are looking for. I'm not into looping other than to make some quick jamming tracks, and BW is good for that. I rarely use Live Loops in GB, but not because it's not fun. However, you can drag Apple Loops onto tracks to arrange them linearly.
If someone could take the basic idea of BW and expand on it so we can make larger compositions with flexible tempo and key, I'd buy it. Does Groovebox work for this? I haven't had a chance to look it over yet.
@lovadamusic yeah that's what I'm doing now in GB. Though it first took me about an hour to even find out how to get to the damn arranger... essentially I had to create a "fake instrument" first, then tap on the arranger icon in it, then drag an Apple Loop to a new track, and then delete the "dummy" instrument again... errr maybe I'm just incredibly dense but how in God's name is a beginner going to be able to use this?
I don't use the loops much, but all I do is just open the loop browser, press and hold until the icon for the loop expands a bit, then drag it into the tracks area. GB makes a new audio track for it automatically. When you create a new song, you start with an initial track of your choosing. After that, just drag and drop.
@lovadamusic yeah, but the instrument types offered on creating a new song do not include "Audio track" or "Apple loops". Only "Live loops", but I didn't want LIVE loops. I wanted plain old DEAD loops!
I also didn't want to record my voice, play a virtual guitar, or load external instruments. Why isn't there a plain "Audio track" instrument there, or a simple button "Open arranger". It's really confusing to a stone old straight thinking dinosaur like me!
There is no loop track. It's audio that loops. I believe the audio track type is called "Audio Recorder." Pick that one initially, dismiss the recorder screen by selecting the track view at the top and you have an empty audio track. Drag a loop to it.
@lovadamusic yes yes I know. I'm already on a more philosophical level. Why do I have to pick something to "record my voice or any sound" if I want to add Apple Loops? It doesn't make any sense. But probably 99% of the target audience of GB don't even know what an "arranger" is in the first place, so maybe it's good UI after all
Well, you're right, it probably could be more logical or straightforward. I learned it by slogging through the online user guide a long time ago. I don't find much these days to be intuitive.
You had me curious about this workflow and honestly while i love GB for this type of stuff it’s a little clunky.
So i ventured to try a few apps:
. Noise from Roli - works great with the Blocks devices but a little limited for a knob noodler like myself
. BeatMaker 3 - wonderful app, but doesn’t work as smoothly with a Seaboard Block as I’d like
. Cubasis - excellent with Seaboard but not the best for loops and such
. And then i remembered something wonderful...iMPC Pro2 now supports AU synths - BOOM. Fantastic workflow for loops and samples and internal and IAA fx
Within a few minutes of opening the app i had layed down some nice loops and grooves. I’m going to keep exploring it and hopefully record some findings.
Fwiw, i am using the Roli Seaboard Block with all of these and it works great in iMPC Pro 2 so far.
Cheers!
Ahhhhhhhhhh.
YOU are developing a game?
Nooooooooooooooooooooo
Please add stuff to Xequence insteadddddd
@SevenSystems Not sure if it helps, but if you record your session while in the loop grid interface, the recorded session shows up as a multitrack arrangement in the arranger.
If you do, you could do worse than go and try Magix (Spit) Acid and Cockos Reaper, those two have the fastest browser to arrange loop workflow.
Yes Groovebox does do this....the sounds are synth based and you can edit them, if you unlock the synths you get a lot more editing options on the sounds. Drums are sample based, but you cannot add your own, there are plenty of sounds available though, and when unlocked you get options for messing with the sampled sounds by changing pitch, length, fx etc
The patterns are exactly that...patterns, that you can edit or create your own from scratch.
It also has a scenes mode that allows you to build multiple scenes and switch between them, there is no song mode so you have to switch patterns manually.
Groovebox with a launchkey is my current favourite fun tool and inspiration giver.
@tja I would love to devote all time to Xequence, but unfortunately I also have to watch the bottom line
As fun as making iOS music apps is, it’s definitely not the quickest way to become rich 
but no worries, Xequence will continue to grow.
@CracklePot OK, thanks for the hint, that’s again very strange. I would expect the Record button to record live input only.
@Samplemunch heh... I’ve never been particularly fond of Magix, but since the day they ruined the best graphics design app in the world — Xara Xtreme Pro (now Xara Designer), it hasn’t gotten better
I’ve never been particularly fond of Magix, but since the day they ruined the best graphics design app in the world — Xara Xtreme Pro (now Xara Designer), it hasn’t gotten better
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I was part of the original group beta testing Xara, before they sold it then bought it back.
I also stopped at Xara Xtreme Pro, and still use it. Nothing else quite as useful as Xara’s fades.
@Zen210507 oh did they buy it back? Well I’m using a relatively recent Designer version (before the 365 stuff) and the whole app is just so very, very intelligently designed. It just has a few main “features”, but the way they interact and disappear behind a great UI is just unsurpassed. People can stone me to death with Adobe CS every day
Magix are xxxxx
Thanks for the information. The no song mode and having to manually switch patterns is where Groovebox matches their other apps and what I want to see expanded. I've pretty much accepted that Novation is not aiming their products at people working and playing the way I do, and that's cool. If I didn't already have a lot of other apps to play with, I'd probably grab Groovebox. I can see the appeal.
@SevenSystems fwiw, here’s a short example of using iMPC Pro2 to create the loops and dub over them.
Used the Roli Seaboard Block for the midi controller/player and the following in app:
2 instances of the Noise as AUsynths
1 AU of Model D
1 drum track from iMPC pro sample pack
I just created a single loop, duped and dubbed and repeated and added some nice Sugar Bytes WOW for the xtra grit.
@echoopera thanks, yeah that sounds about like what I'm after... I'm sticking with GarageBand for now, as I've now "discovered" a few "secrets" (like, how to get to the arranger
) and try to keep my pulse below 300 while waiting for all the animations in it to finish 
(the worst offender is really switching between the arranger and an instrument (the "screen rolls around" one). Seriously, is there anybody in the world who does NOT find that annoying, especially as switching between arranger and instrument is something you need to do like 3 times per second?
I massively hate Garageband - it may even be good and capable, but I just cannot handle it.
@tja yeah it's too bad because all the technical infrastructure seems to be there (remember that GarageBand is essentially Logic), they'd just need to get rid of that dumbed-down "grandma has made a song" UI and we'd have Logic for iOS!
(not quite as simple but...)
Garageband, especially on iOS, is aimed at a certain market. In Logic Pro, first-time users see it set to the option that makes it more like GB. I can't imagine ever dumbing down Logic like that, but apparently some people do because they like the simplicity.
GB's a free app made to attract people who are new and might be intimidated by the idea of making their own music, so I accept it as such. Pretty amazing that it's also powerful enough that some talented musicians with years of experience also like to use it. Comparing it to the prosumer-level multi-tracks we mortals used years ago, it's incredible, and we didn't hate those devices then, we just made music. Hard to make everyone happy all the time, and Apple apparently doesn't feel it's worth it to make Garageband flexible enough to attract today's more demanding user.
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Yes. The way Corel was taking it was not succeeding, so the original developers bought it back. Then made it great. Then pushed too far.
Like you, I have nothing to do with rental versions of Adobe products. The last ‘proper’ version still serves me well enough. Sometimes, progress is back to the future.
I’ve found GB on 12.9 iPad Pro to be a great experience. The best compromise of features and interface. Cubasis is a close second though
I hated GB at first. I would have totally abandoned it, but I really wanted the increased MIDI resolution. Cubasis was/is limited to 48PPQ. Forced myself to invest in GarageBand and then it clicked. The design direction is fabulous. The interface is great for composing (other than the animations-which I hope will be able to be tamed at some point)
@SevenSystems not to sway you to iMPC Pro2 but it is a pretty sweet setup. Here’s a photo of my setup with the Seaboard Block and it:
What’s great is that i can quickly create loops and overdubs by tapping on individual tracks and having a go at it.
would love to see a video of the method you're discussing if you're so inclined.