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 Store

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

The SWAM apps by Audio Modeling has been released

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Comments

  • edited February 2021

    @jazzmess said:

    @Clueless said:
    I wonder if there also will be a complete solo brass bundle with all 15 instruments (like on desktop which is 600 bugs there). So with maybe all the future IAP the iOS complete thing isn't far away (but it's O.k. I think).
    I would like to know how much a "modern" iPad could run in terms of cpu/RAM usage.

    Another user running those in polyphony could get up to 6 instances of geoshred sax with a pro 2018 ( the 2020 should do no better), so yeah under 10 instances until we get proper multicore support...I will try with my air 4.

    I was imaginating an adat setup with a digiface and usbstreamer to spread the CPU load over 3 or 4 idevices, and send the channels to my computer, but this is too much of a hassle, and there would be a midi problem... In the end I might be buying the desktop instruments to avoid this !

    Thank‘s.
    Maybe the next iPad generation is not far away.
    M1 like performance in an iPad would be nice.
    The problem is you get no universal app and have to buy it for iOS and desktop.

  • edited February 2021

    Yep. The cheapest route I found is with an iconnectaudio, midi clips recorded in Bitwig from my sensel morph (connected to ICA usb host port), bitwig send midi data to AUM (with the proper routing) and get the audio back in Bitwig via an audio track that can be mangled.

  • I'll buy the trumpet and try to choke the iPad air 4

  • Are the key variations of the same instrument needed for piano players?

    @jazzmess said:

    Waiting for advice also on this :-)

    @FriedTapeworm said:

    The key variations don’t matter for keyboard players. The note you play on the keyboard is the note that sounds. Key variations only matter to the brass player.

    I haven’t done much comparison, but supposedly the Bb trumpet vs C trumpet have a subtle difference in tone (for real instruments), so perhaps the modeled ones will sound slightly different. I haven’t noticed much difference in tone between the key variations, but I haven’t payed super close attention.

    So a piano player could forgo the variations then and still get the same outcome? If so, thats a nice money saver.

    Also, this IAP they might incorporate to unlock the advanced stuff sounds like it could get pricey when done per app. Even at just $10 each, thats an additional $150 all in. Knowing what you know from experience @FriedTapeworm, would you buy these as IAP’s (when available)?

  • @sigma79 said:
    Sound demo. Just open multi youtube.

    Can anyone else comment on the use of these as orchestral instruments? This video mentions that it is a bit tough to fit these into a mix. Makes sense as they are solo. I seem to (mis)remember SWAM also promising some sort of brass section?

  • edited February 2021

    @Clueless said:

    @jazzmess said:

    @Clueless said:
    I wonder if there also will be a complete solo brass bundle with all 15 instruments (like on desktop which is 600 bugs there). So with maybe all the future IAP the iOS complete thing isn't far away (but it's O.k. I think).
    I would like to know how much a "modern" iPad could run in terms of cpu/RAM usage.

    Another user running those in polyphony could get up to 6 instances of geoshred sax with a pro 2018 ( the 2020 should do no better), so yeah under 10 instances until we get proper multicore support...I will try with my air 4.

    I was imaginating an adat setup with a digiface and usbstreamer to spread the CPU load over 3 or 4 idevices, and send the channels to my computer, but this is too much of a hassle, and there would be a midi problem... In the end I might be buying the desktop instruments to avoid this !

    Thank‘s.
    Maybe the next iPad generation is not far away.
    M1 like performance in an iPad would be nice.
    The problem is you get no universal app and have to buy it for iOS and desktop.

    So I tested and...
    The iPad air 4 could manage 14 instances of trumpet, bass tuba and tenor trombone. That s quite a lot !!!!
    Apart from the tenor trombone, what trombones would you recommend to choose (jazz, funk, so I don't need a comprehensive orchestra:-) )

  • @ipadbeatmaking I won’t be buying the advanced features personally. The important stuff for sculpting a good sound are all there already. I wrote a somewhat lengthy post on page 4 of this thread about the pros and cons of some of the locked Parameters.

  • edited February 2021

    @FriedTapeworm I hear you. If it’s under $10 I might buy it. Although I’m sticking with the trumpet only until the saxophone and double bass drop.

  • @jazzmess said:

    @Clueless said:

    @jazzmess said:

    @Clueless said:
    I wonder if there also will be a complete solo brass bundle with all 15 instruments (like on desktop which is 600 bugs there). So with maybe all the future IAP the iOS complete thing isn't far away (but it's O.k. I think).
    I would like to know how much a "modern" iPad could run in terms of cpu/RAM usage.

    Another user running those in polyphony could get up to 6 instances of geoshred sax with a pro 2018 ( the 2020 should do no better), so yeah under 10 instances until we get proper multicore support...I will try with my air 4.

    I was imaginating an adat setup with a digiface and usbstreamer to spread the CPU load over 3 or 4 idevices, and send the channels to my computer, but this is too much of a hassle, and there would be a midi problem... In the end I might be buying the desktop instruments to avoid this !

    Thank‘s.
    Maybe the next iPad generation is not far away.
    M1 like performance in an iPad would be nice.
    The problem is you get no universal app and have to buy it for iOS and desktop.

    So I tested and...
    The iPad air 4 could manage 14 instances of trumpet, bass tuba and tenor trombone. That s quite a lot !!!!
    Apart from the tenor trombone, what trombones would you recommend to choose (jazz, funk, so I don't need a comprehensive orchestra:-) )

    Nice! In hosts like cubasis where you can freeze it seems like skies the limit with this. Did you buy the bundle or single products? If single products, does it give the option to complete the bundle? If so, how much does it say it is? Thanks

    @FriedTapeworm Thanks for sharing your insight. So no need to buy the alternate note versions for keyboard midi controller users right?

  • Question... the SWAM standalone still play a prerecorded midi track? (Not possible with GeoSWAM inapps).

  • @ipadbeatmaking Correct. There is no need to buy, for example, trumpet and trumpet c. If all you are looking for is a trumpet sound, either will work. One has a range slightly lower in register than the other, but only by a couple of notes.

    If you are planning on doing a lot of pieces with multiple trumpets playing in unison, maybe you would want both for the slightly different tone of each; but you can also use EQ and other instrument parameters on the same trumpet to achieve 2 different sounding horns on a track.

    I’m curious how many people will jump on the bundles. I can’t see myself needing 4 different trombones, or 2 different tubas. I think I may end up with one trumpet, one trombone and maybe a French horn as a third for the calmer tracks. The geosax can fill in the alto range for a full “horn” section.

  • Think Id buy 3 apps and not the whole collection. Mainly I guess if theres cpu limitation on IOS. A mix and match of 5 apps for £85 would be cool.

  • That’s a shame they include the key variations in the bundles. I expect a lot of people won’t need them.

  • @gusgranite said:
    That’s a shame they include the key variations in the bundles. I expect a lot of people won’t need them.

    It is, I imagine very few people will buy the bundles

  • What would he great would be one bundle option that had one instance of every instrument. 1 trumpet, 1 tuba, etc etc

  • @Gavinski said:
    What would he great would be one bundle option that had one instance of every instrument. 1 trumpet, 1 tuba, etc etc

    That would be great, and the obvious best seller.

  • Has anyone been able to compare these to the SWAM instruments in Noise? Is this a newer generation with improved sound?

  • @marmakin said:
    Has anyone been able to compare these to the SWAM instruments in Noise? Is this a newer generation with improved sound?

    Haven't compared, but will do later when I get the chance. I would say it doesn't matter even, because the advantages of having these as AU with so much more control over vibrato etc means these completely kick the ass of the Noise Swam sounds

  • @Gavinski said:
    What would he great would be one bundle option that had one instance of every instrument. 1 trumpet, 1 tuba, etc etc

    yep, I'm kind of shocked that this isn't an option. kind of a no brainer. I would've bought that in an instant. now I'm probably going to pick one or two to buy instead.

  • edited February 2021

    @Gavinski said:

    @marmakin said:
    Has anyone been able to compare these to the SWAM instruments in Noise? Is this a newer generation with improved sound?

    Haven't compared, but will do later when I get the chance. I would say it doesn't matter even, because the advantages of having these as AU with so much more control over vibrato etc means these completely kick the ass of the Noise Swam sounds

    Thank you! I just realized the Noise packs are all woodwinds and strings, so they are actually a nice temporary compliment until they release those instruments at some point. Still curious how they compare in general when using the seaboard for example. But yeah AU is huge.

  • For anyone deciding on bundles vs. single instruments I recommend this site for a deep dive into each family of these brass instruments. There is a wealth of information here which may be helpful. I have initially bought the trumpet. Not sure I will invest in the bundles. But I think I will be buying the tenor trombone and a French horn to cover the bases I am most interested at this time. This site was useful in my decision process. YMMV. This is a small part of the trumpet page at this site.

    http://andrewhugill.com/OrchestraManual/trumpets.html

  • @palms said:

    @Gavinski said:
    What would he great would be one bundle option that had one instance of every instrument. 1 trumpet, 1 tuba, etc etc

    yep, I'm kind of shocked that this isn't an option. kind of a no brainer. I would've bought that in an instant. now I'm probably going to pick one or two to buy instead.

    Yeah I agree too. Usually I’m all in for bundles but I can’t go for the key variations. I’ll probably just end up with a few now instead.

    It looks like these are the exact bundles they already sell for desktop, so I can’t imagine they will change that for iOS. Different audience though. Even in noise (which I will now stop talking about lol) they had the 2 quartet bundles. Those would sell so well.

  • I've just emailed Audio Modeling suggesting the kind of bundle I mentioned earlier. Let's see what happens, you never know. I am hundred percent sure they will sell more if they make the kind of bundle I proposed. Their market on desktop is pros, on iOS it is hobbyists mostly. The way they do the desktop bundles is likely to make most money on desktop, but not on iOS I reckon.

  • edited February 2021

    @FriedTapeworm said:
    I have seen people concerned about some of the advanced parameters that are locked in the iOS version of these apps. I just want to give a little summary of what is locked, so people know what they would be paying for (and potentially losing out on) by purchasing iOS vs desktop versions. There are 5 basic parameter categories: Expression, Play modes, Timbre, Pitch, and Advanced Parameters. The vast majority of parameters (and the most important ones) are available in the iOS version. Instead of going through every parameter, I just want to touch on the locked parameters, and what they do.

    TLDR - The vast majority of the locked parameters are very niche things to be adjusting. If someone is going for a realistic and professional sounding brass instrument, the locked parameters are not needed in most cases. The lack of these features should not deter people from purchasing, since you probably won't ever use them in a composition.

    Expression: All of the parameters in this category are available.

    Play Modes:

    • Changing the playing mode to "slide" for trumpet, instead of "valves" is locked - This parameter is only useful if you want your trumpet to be played like a trombone. This is not a very useful parameter if you want a realistic trumpet sound in your track.
    • Custom valve fingering is locked. This makes little to no difference in how the instrument actually sounds.

    Timbre:

    • Adjusting the mute size and tone (locked) - This one is not essential, but would certainly be helpful to have unlocked if you play a lot with different mutes. All of the mute types are available, however, and movement of the mute is adjustable and mappable.
    • Harmonic Gain (locked) - This one can make a big difference in sound, but is not necessary if going for a realistic brass sound. Increasing the harmonic gain will quickly make your instrument sound a lot less like you expect a brass instrument to sound.

    Pitch: All of these parameters are available, including micro tuning the instrument, and transposing.

    Advanced Parameters:

    • Panpot type is locked to "acoustic" - I will have to edit to explain this, as I don't remember its significance exactly.
    • Release time - Same as above. I have never adjusted this, so don't know the significance.
    • Dynamic pitch (locked) - This parameter is used to make the instrument sound out of tune, as though it is very cheap, or being played by an amateur player. Low and high notes are more affected by this. This parameter can be fun, but is not the sound most people are looking for when putting a brass instrument on a track.
    • Vibrato Random Rate, and fade in (locked) - This adjusts how random the speed of vibrato is per note that is played. In my opinion, this is a very useful tool, and probably the one I miss most on iOS. In all honesty though, brass instruments don't use vibrato heavily, so it's not a deal breaker by any means. This one will be more missed once the strings come out. A way to make the vibrato sound more human, is to map the rate to expression, which will give a similar effect to what this parameter does.
    • Dynamic Resonance (locked) - This is how much resonance comes from the bell of the instrument with higher dynamics. This parameter seems important on paper, but it has overlap with two other parameters that have a similar effect. Reactivity and Dynamic Sensitivity are 2 other parameters that sound very similar when turned up. The make the loud notes sound more "brassy". For me, it is no big deal that dynamic resonance is locked, since the other 2 parameters are more important and cover similar ground.
    • Random Lips (locked) - This randomizes how much lip noise is applied to each note. Adjusting this can humanize the sound in a very subtle way. This is very similar to Dynamic Pitch, in that the higher you put this parameter, the more amateur the playing will sound.
    • Breath controller parameters (locked) - These parameters being locked might be a problem to anyone using a breath controller as their expression controller. I don't use one, so I don't know to what extent these parameters are needed. I haven't seen many people on iOS using breath controller, so I would bet this isn't a big deal to most people.

    @FriedTapeworm thanks for listing these to the community, but I have to correct you, as you listed some parameters as "locked" erroneously.

    Timbre:

    • Harmonic Gain IS NOT LOCKED! You just need to enable the Timbral Correction parameter just above

    Advanced:

    • Breath controller parameters ARE NOT LOCKED! They are grayed out when Breath Controller Mode parameter is set to OFF.

    MOREOVER, these Apps have been built and optimized with Wind and Breath Controller players in mind, especially.

    Please pay attention to what you spread to the community, and double check the truthfulness of your info

    Best!

  • @Clueless said:
    I wonder if there also will be a complete solo brass bundle with all 15 instruments (like on desktop which is 600 bugs there). So with maybe all the future IAP the iOS complete thing isn't far away (but it's O.k. I think).
    I would like to know how much a "modern" iPad could run in terms of cpu/RAM usage.

    We would have liked to release a complete "Solo Brass" bundle, unfortunately Apple allows up to 10 Apps in a bundle, no more... that's why there is not a full "Solo Brass" collection. You need to buy three bundles (you save $45, more than two Apps are free!)

  • The trumpet beta is phenomenal. I love moving the mute options around to different positions with my finger. I can only image they all sound as great.

  • edited February 2021

    @audiomodeling Thanks for clarifying. I will edit the post accordingly.

  • @Gavinski said:
    I've just emailed Audio Modeling suggesting the kind of bundle I mentioned earlier. Let's see what happens, you never know. I am hundred percent sure they will sell more if they make the kind of bundle I proposed. Their market on desktop is pros, on iOS it is hobbyists mostly. The way they do the desktop bundles is likely to make most money on desktop, but not on iOS I reckon.

    If you just need a trumpet, a trombone and a tuba, go for them separately. With the current launch offer, $60 is nothing for such realistic and expressive instruments. We are planning to offer mixed bundle in future, when we will release all other instruments... it will make more sense.

  • rudrud
    edited February 2021

    Has anyone used one of these apps with iFretless or Geoshred? I’m hoping to use the on-screen guitar layout with a Behringer FCB1010 foot controller for expression via the pedals.
    Any insights and answers appreciated. Ta.

  • @rud said:
    Has anyone used one of these apps with iFretless or Geoshred? I’m hoping to use the on-screen guitar layout with a Behringer FCB1010 foot controller for expression via the pedals.
    Any insights and answers appreciated. Ta.

    Works fine.

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