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.
iPads with no headphone socket
Hi, I have a 6th gen iPad but it’s only 32gb and I am looking at upgrading. I really fancy a big screen as I also like watching movies and football on it when I’m not making music.
As far as music is concerned, I use my headphones ALL the time! Yes, I have an iRig and understand I can plug my phones into that, but that’s a pain if I’m just on the sofa noodling or watching a film or whatever.
How do folk get around the fact there’s no headphone jack on new iPads? Sounds like a bloody disaster to me! Do I buy an old iPad just to get one? What model do people recommend?
Comments
The Lightning/USB-C->3.5mm dongles work quite ok if charging is not needed...
This partially why I'm still evaluating what iPad the to get and the 128GB 8th 10.2" iPad is one option I'm looking at.
The Air 4 is tempting as well, but I need to see and feel it in person first...
You can use the little Apple 3.5mm dongle, with the caveat that it will lock your sample rate to 48k, and personally I find this to be a gigantic nuisance.
The way I work around the issue is to use a Dragonfly Black (or the Red which I also own) into the CCK. That way I can plug in headphones and also control the sample rate and set it to whatever I want. The drawback of course is that this is an extra expense, but unfortunately that's the price you pay with Apple stuff.
This is what the Dragonfly looks like when plugged in to an iPhone XR, it's still very compact and portable:
its np at all. 2020 pro here with dongle usb-c , not inconvenient nor take up any more space than the headphone chord, just extends it. Got used to it now, moving on.
Cool do you use binoculars when using it?
That works for the Lightning connector. I think it's a little more complicated for USB-C, as on the current iPad Pros.
Thanks - so a 12.9 inch 1TB iPad Pro would be the best option if (in a fantasy world) money was no object? Would there be any reason to choose anything else?
It should work exactly the same, just with the USB-C adapter instead of the Lightning one:
Apple USB-C to USB dongle
But of course you can also use a hub instead.
My work-in-progress article on the headphone jack heartache issue and our options-
https://www.mobilemusic.us/articles/hardware/244-solutions-for-missing-headphone-jack-on-ipad
Look. I've tried 9 different usbc gadgets to my ipad pro 2020, every one worked np, generic ebay china , Apples own etc. Heck my old Xstation works without charger usb b to c. that didn't work with lightning. Usb c is great in this regard, cheaper just works.
There is a new DragonFly Cobalt / Blue ...
Seems to be great:
https://majorhifi.com/audioquest-comparison-dragonfly-cobalt-vs-dragonfly-red-comparison-review/
I have the Cobalt, it even comes with a nice USB-C adaptor. For me the difference in audio quality was instantly noticeable with my SE846's, but on say my Focals it's much less obvious. Nice little D/A, but I think whether you get any improvement over say the Red or Black will depend on how good your headphones are or their impedence.
FWIW, 90% of the time I just use the little Apple headphone adaptors though, smaller and good sounding too.
Using the dongle on my 2018 pro doesn't bother me in the slightest. I thought it might but it doesn't.