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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Audiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.

the goal - to mix ios with external synths

edited November 2019 in Support and Feedback

Hi all - I'm working now on several projects within ios (self contained on the ipad). And I have other projects that are outside-that-box, if you will. I'd like to eg. add my Microbrute external synth to a tune written in Grooverider or NS2 or another app.

I have a ton of apps including the utility monsters AUM, ApeMatrix. But don't have the new 4Pockets thingy. I've got a decent interface in the Presonus iTwo. I have Cubasis (not preferred at all), BM3, NS2, ModStep.

1) I know others are doing this, I just don't know how.
2) Will the new 4Pockets audio recorder allow me to do this - easily?
3) I'm not trying to go into the computer (though I could). That is a plan for another time.
3) I'm trying to streamline my process to get it done fast and as seamless as possible to get crap done fast (crap being the music).

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere. Maybe this will be useful to others in my shoes.
Thanks as always for your help.

Comments

  • There may likely be some ramp up to getting to the degree of immediacy you want on iOS for the kind of process you may require but I would say out of all of the apps you listed be sure to get to know BM3 well.
    It is an extremely capable swiss army knife that rewards commitment and out of the box solutions, not as readily possible in other apps.

  • Despite saying Cubasis is not preferred it’s probably the quickest and easiest way to do what you want

  • I've only used iOS (connected to PC via lightning cable and Studiomux/Midimux) as a single outboard instrument or, more recently, as an outboard MIDI effects processor. It might turn out easier in terms of managing varying latencies to go through the PC rather than straight in, but if you're just recording one synth.... I'd probably also use Cubasis of what you have, since NS2 doesn't yet have audio (right?). Good luck. I'll be watching this thread to see how it goes for you :)

  • edited November 2019

    Thanks to you all.
    @AudioGus I'm still on the BM3 thing. Don't know it well enough yet to employ it in this way. Tips?

    @BiancaNeve and @vitocorleone123 Thanks! Regarding Cubasis -

    Is it a matter of say, loading up GR-16 in Cubasis, arming another track for external synth and playing along? Hmmm, just writing that seems to make it clear.

    Hopeful that I could/can do this in NS2. But it seems it would require workarounds until it gets audio tracks.

    You guys are the best - thank you!

  • Send midi from some_thing to your hardware, record the output into AUM. Files will be in AudioShare.

    Link to midi app might be useful.

  • edited November 2019

    It would help to know more about your actual workflow...are you planning on

    • Sequencing the brute, and using an external mixer to mix the audio ?
    • Sampling single notes and making sampled instruments ?
    • Sequence the brute and record loops ?
    • Are you looking to play freehand and record an entire passage ?
    • Something else ?

    Once you have audio recorded what do you want to do with that audio ?

    Each of these will have a different approach and possibly different apps to get the easiest method.

    I use several hardware sound sources alongside iOS, and have multiple methods depending on what specifically I am doing at that particular moment.

  • @kinkujin said:
    Thanks to you all.
    @AudioGus I'm still on the BM3 thing. Don't know it well enough yet to employ it in this way. Tips?

    No specific tips. There are sooooo many different valid ways to work with any of these tools. The best results for me always come from getting to know the tools first (not even trying to think of or really make any music) and just letting process emerge.

  • edited November 2019

    Are you trying to use said apps to sequence midi using the Microbrute or just record the audio? They all can pretty much send midi out to the Microbrute. I have a Microbrute and for the most part I prefer to just play the audio into the IPad because I like to play with the filter and whatnot , so I prefer IOS Daws with audio tracks. I do sometimes send midi to the Microbrute but it gets more complicated really fast, ie, usb hub so I can connect the midi cable from the Microbrute and also my Apogee Jam to send audio from the Microbrute, which isn’t too complicated, but with an app like NS2 I’ll record the audio from the MB into Aum, then export stems from NS2 to Cubasis or Auria Pro, long story short, I rarely use my MB with NS2.

    If you’re wanting to use NS2 , the 4pockets Multi Track Daw sounds like a good option but I don’t have it so I can’t really give an informed opinion on it. Again, I use apps with audio track when I’m recording with my Microbrute, Cubasis, BM3, Roland ZenBeats, or evening GarageBand if I’m ending up in Logic. Here’s how I use apps to send midi when I occasionally do sequence with the MB.

    Edit. Just read in another post you can not record external audio into 4pockets multi track daw with NS2.

  • My first plan of attack is to play synths in live to whatever app. Then sequenced live synths, recorded in app. I guess.

    Your input is all greatly appreciated.

  • edited November 2019

    Ok more on this - no luck setting it up in cubasis.
    External synth into my presonus itwo.
    Settings in cubasis recognizes the presonus device.
    Arm track, record.
    No audio is recorded.

    Any thoughts?

  • Any luck?

    It's difficult to know what's wrong...

    I use Cubasis to record my hardware synths with a Steinberg midi/audio interface and it works perfectly.

    Not wishing to patronise you but I assume you got all the audio leads plugged in?

  • @FPC said:
    Any luck?

    It's difficult to know what's wrong...

    I use Cubasis to record my hardware synths with a Steinberg midi/audio interface and it works perfectly.

    Not wishing to patronise you but I assume you got all the audio leads plugged in?

    No worries and thanks for replying. Won’t be on this until after the holiday.

  • Hi again ... I'm returning to this after quite some time and diversions.

    My hope is to use all the great midi-fied stuff (Bram Bos apps, StepPoly for instance) to send to my external synths, but likely then send that audio to my desktop DAW (Live or Reason).

    At this point, is BM3 or NanoStudio more suited to this? Or Cubasis 2?

  • @kinkujin said:
    Hi again ... I'm returning to this after quite some time and diversions.

    My hope is to use all the great midi-fied stuff (Bram Bos apps, StepPoly for instance) to send to my external synths, but likely then send that audio to my desktop DAW (Live or Reason).

    At this point, is BM3 or NanoStudio more suited to this? Or Cubasis 2?

    You want to record the midi from the AUs in a daw first? Because if not, skip the daw and record the audio. Faster, and a lot less grief.

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