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.
synthjacker update?
i just saw synth jacker has had a new update last week i think? and has some sort of external audio slicing feature? what is that, and how does it work? i opened the app but I’m not sure how to go about it.
Comments
It is described in the manual, which you can find in app, or on this link: http://coniferproductions.com/apps/synthjacker/synthjacker-user-manual/index.html#idm378463543664
I think it just slices up an external audio file, in the exact places where it would have sliced its own audio file that it records, when you are sampling synths, by playing them with midi.
Not a full on sound slicing utility, those have editors where you can place the slice, and edit how it names the slices being saved into little audio files. This is like, if you had the SynthJacker midi sequence, but recorded into a different system, like a daw, and play the midi sequence and record the synth, in that daw, you could import that recording back into SynthJacker, and it would slice it and name the slices.
I’d be really interested, in a semi-auto sampler, if it existed, for non-midi synths, and acoustic instruments, where it tells you what note to play, and then you play it by hand, and the app finds the transient where you played the note and slices it, and names it the note/velocity it directed you to play.
From a different thread: https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/694130/#Comment_694130
I tried it one time by setting up a midi file, opening it in Photon in AUM and created an SFZ of a Model D patch. It opened as it should in Zenbeats. I've not had much luck with Stagelight/Zenbeats with sfz's though. Some notes sound OK, others not.
I've not tried other import targets yet.
That's right. When there's something that SynthJacker can't drive directly, like an IAA app, then use another app (like Cubasis) to drive it and record the result. Then bring it to SJ to handle the rest.
That's a cool idea. For the time being SJ is totally focused on MIDI-capable (digital) instruments, but definitely the transient detection would be cool.
I wonder if something like that could be approximated by using a combination of pitch-to-MIDI and recording? I.e. play something, record it at the same time, then use pitch-to-MIDI to get a MIDI file out of it, and then bring the recording over for slicing. That might require some tweaking with SJ, because it stubbornly uses its own idea of a sequence and the notes that belong to it, so arbitrary notes don't really work right now. Except if you play the sequence rigorously. But then you wouldn't need the pitch to MIDI... is my logic circular or what? But definitely worth thinking more about.
oh wow, what a great idea! I certainly won't hold you to it, but I would pay for that app (or IAP) in a heartbeat.
what is a good midi app that allows import of midi files? I’m trying to record several plugins with effects in AuM for synthjacker
Photon AU
thanks > @auxmux said:
Bug fix release 0.7.1 is on the App Store now.
Guys where can i find what settings a need to have in Synthjacker to create samples to be used in AudioLayer.
Should be:
I think.
[edit] ehh... NOT. AudioLayer needs that dumb p, pp, ppp, etc. naming convention. I don't think SynthJacker can do that.
I always hated that aspect of the Audiolayer import.
Thank y so much Wim,
I thought it would be easier to understand but man, hit a wall fast.
You'll have to rename the samples one by one, or rearrange them into the right velocity layers in the app. Unless you're just using one velocity layer. In that case, you can change Sample Name Format to Patch-Note.
[edit] the info above was outdated. AudioLayer no longer requires the ppp, pp, etc. naming format. Velocity numbering works fine.
I was thinking of using new way that SynthJacker dev said to use. I think i can import the recorded files and have SynthJacker do the post stuff for me?
I was able to get the midi file from Xequence to play my synth in AUM; recording right now. Will see how it works.
The problem is with AudioLayer's required naming convention. SynthJacker can output the velocity as a number, but AudioLayer's import requires musical notation style (ppp, pp, p, m, f, ff, fff) for the import if you use velocity. SynthJacker can't do that style of velocity naming.
[edit] the info above was outdated. AudioLayer no longer requires the ppp, pp, etc. naming format. Velocity numbering works fine.
You mean in Audiolayer? I thought AudioLayer did that automatically if you imported the files already named; then again what do i know😂😇❤️
Yes, AudioLayer can import the files if they're named properly. But you can't get SynthJacker to name them that way, at least not for multiple velocity layers. If you only work with one velocity per sample then it can name them without the velocity (Patch-Note, rather than Patch-Note-Velocity).
[edit] the info above was outdated. AudioLayer no longer requires the ppp, pp, etc. naming format. Velocity numbering works fine.
From another thread where I wrote about the AudoLayer target
SETTINGS:
MIDI Note 60 is C4
Sample Name Format: Patch-Velocity-Note
Separator: Dash
Three-digit velocity: Check
Three-digit note : Check
Folder Structure: Flat (this can be changed to By Velocity if you want to import by Layers or By Note if you want to use Zones, I think). I like Flat to get a complete map "football" field of the samples as imported into AudioLayer.
Trim Silence: Both
Noise Floor: -54.0 dB
Normalize Samples: ON
Normalization Level: -1.0 dB
App UI:
Audio Unit (I use external using Loopback cables with a Presonus AudioBus for IAA Apps)
Instrument: Mostly the Sample-based Apps like BS-16i, Colossus, RC 275, BeatHawk) but Synths too if they make sense for a 5 second snapshot.
Name: Pick a Name that will help ID the instrument later.
From Note: A0 (21) (if I want the full keyboard but C2 for Synths)
To Note: C7 (96) (C6 (84) it the process fails or I don't want fidelity to the 88th key).
** That's still only 76 keys but that top octave never records better than using the C7 to cover the whole octave.
Semitones: 3 (1 for drums with much smaller NOTE range)
Velocity Layers: 20,40,60,80,100
Note Length: 5.0 seconds
Note Decay: 1.0 seconds
Gap Between: 0.5 seconds
This makes a useful import files set 90% of the time. When there's a problem, I reduce the Velocity Layers first to 30,50,100 for example.
Start the "SynthJack" Process... and listen for a few seconds to insure its working. Some synths don't respond to NOTE 21 and it's good to stop and raise the Start Note.
After the import I use the Files App and go to:
On My iPad/SynthJacker and check for the Folder with the "Name". Multiple runs use a name over and over and the Folder has a serial code appended so find the biggest inter code.
How many files are in that folder... should be somewhere around 100+.
Open AudioLayer and choose the Instrument Selector and the "+ Instrument" in the lower
left of the pop-up menu. Name this New Instrument and use the Name you input in SynthJacker if you want to indicate the connection and mirror the soon to be imported Sample files.
Next, tap on the Football field.
Select Import sample
Navigate to On my iPad/Synthjacker/{Name_of_Instrument Folder}
Choose Select
Choose Select All
(Unselect the SFZ file... probably doesn't matter really).
Choose Open
Choose "Auto Map [File Name]"
The samples will be imported to cover the Football Field. If area is not covered touch an adjacent sample and pull it to cover the open "black" area.
Choose the DISK ICON next to the Instrument's Name and Select Save. The instrument is not save and any crash while testing it out could loose the work to this point.
From start to end the whole process takes about 10 minutes for a 100-200 sample instrument
with 5 second samples.
NOTE: The samples generated may not be 5 seconds long after trimming. But they will be as long as you can get. Some will end up being 2-3 seconds.
If there are any errors here let me know while I can edit them in the text.
Oh i see. So i guess its better to just do single velocity layer. I’ll try it.
@McD, I think there are two errors in the above. I think the separator needs to be Underscore rather than Dash, and the naming has to be Patch-Note-Velocity, rather than Patch-Velocity-Note.
[edit] the above comment is still correct.
Either that, or the post I was going from: https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/622517/#Comment_622517 is wrong.
[edit] indeed, part that post is no longer correct. Velocities can now be specified in numbers.
I'm not feeling ambitious enough to test that out though. I'm kind of put off of batch importing to AudioLayer because of the velocity naming scheme which I roundly dislike, and the odd (to me) way it allocates velocity ranges even when you do go to the trouble of naming them.
[edit] I’m happy to say that importing now works great using SynthJacker and numbered velocities. Ex. Piano_C3_100.
At the time of creating those recommendations I believe that was the case. It has been updated a few more times. The naming details are important. I'd try let it do it's magic and see what multiple velocities in a run provides. It was buggy and I suspect it's better now.
I don't see any penalty to using the multiple folders for a range of velocities but ideally complete automation of the process is the ultimate goal.
I haven't done any significant testing of the recent update. I'm hoping to import some 3 layer samples into NS2's Obsidian sampler following the lead of @ScottVanZandt who makes his samplesest by hand:
https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/33481/secrets-of-the-ios-masters-scottvanzandt-and-nanostudio2-no-auv3-instruments
Thank you guys so much❤️
The out file was a single long file. I’ll try to upload it.
You need to process that file through SynthJacker to slice and dice it into samples AudioLayer can import. It won't import into AudioLayer as one long file. Somewhere in this thread there are instructions for that. Or...maybe in the app store release notes.
Lemme check.
here it is from the manual:
Hello, have I missed something about the AudioLayer import? I’ve never needed those p, f, etc. designations in the name; just the numeric MIDI velocity values should be fine for automapping.
If there is something else that SynthJacker could do to make it easier, can you wrap up the issue so I can think about a solution. Thanks!
No. I think you got it right for naming and isolating the files to velocity folders but
pointing a velocity to a "pp,p,mf,f,ff" naming scheme also gets the user there.
Sorry, that’s Inaccurate.
AudioLayer requires the ppp, pp, mf, f, ff, fff naming convention to work with velocity layers for automatic import. Unless they changed it somewhere along the road and I missed it. I’m pretty sure I’m right on that point.
[edit] Well, well, well, happy to be wrong on that point! It does work with numeric velocities! That’s great. Not documented anywhere I’ve been able to find, but Soooooo much better that way. Happy, happy, happy.
I’ll go back and edit previous posts about the settings. (Attn: @Musikman4Christ )
AudioLayer doesn’t make use of folders for velocity @McD. You may be confusing this with Obsidian. For Obsidian you want each velocity layer (up to three) in its own folder. That makes loading the files to the three oscillators easier.
Thanks for clarifying the facts. It's been a while since I was cranking out AudioLayer clones of my app and my memory is not what it used to be. The instruments are great. The ESX24s import from my MacBook's Logic Pro are great but AudioLayer is too heavy to allow for a lot of tracks... just like all my other great AUv3's. They are too resource intensive to scale past 5 tracks.
It's Cubasis audio freezing (which has been too painful for me) or 3-layer NS2 importing to do the Film Scoring stuff. I haven't been motivated to do the NS2 work. Maybe people will share their NS instrument creation efforts and we can break the work into pieces using PatchStorage. I suspect there are complex issues with rights. I bought Colossus Piano and
could be able to "back it up" but should I give away my backup?