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.

In my opinion the iPad is the ultimate portable modular music making machine.

edited February 2023 in Support and Feedback

Of course there are synths that I “wish” I had on here, and I’m sure people more musically inclined than me would argue about there not being a decent DAW. But for me the sheer number of synths, effects and general sound makers is truly wondrous. It’s a portable touchscreen radiophonic studio that would have blown their minds at RAI, the BBC, SEM or EMS. It’s an electro acoustic wormhole of sound shaping beauty, it’s an ancient krell machine you can take on the bus, it’s an SP404, tape-looping busted out beatbox of hands-on joy. It can be as simple or as complex as you need. And I love it…

But it would be nothing without the devs, so good on them for creating and supporting their apps and for dealing with cranky bods on this forum, but above all for making this standard of music making technology affordable, portable and user friendly. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

sorry. Feeling a bit soppy today

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Comments

  • It is a beautiful thing to carry about, I was happily noodling away on a train to Blackpool last week, industrial dead lands rolling past, as I carved out sounds made from cast aways of its long gone heyday…

  • @Krupa said:
    It is a beautiful thing to carry about, I was happily noodling away on a train to Blackpool last week, industrial dead lands rolling past, as I carved out sounds made from cast aways of its long gone heyday…

    Yeah that’s exactly it, you can pretty much create wherever inspiration takes hold. It’s never been so easy to make “art”. I feel we forget sometimes how amazing it is!

  • edited February 2023

    spot on.
    when I have a gig and its far from home
    I only take my *Pad Air 3 and my **Faderfox UC4...:)

    My gratitude to iPad coders
    and this community for this:)

    *iPad Air3 - no need for dongles or anything external,
    I just plug it in the mixer and the battery holds for hours:)
    ** Faderfox UC4 works on iPad power - no need for external

    ah!:)
    also iPhones.
    my iPhone 11 + roli Blocks + audio dongle
    complete music machine in a pocket!:)
    no need foe any externals.

  • Love my iPad for making music. However, I am very reluctant to use it for live performance. Too much peripheral stuff to connect: CCK, powered USB buss, audio interface with its associated cables and power supplies, etc. Alesis and others used to make docks that took care of all of this stuff, but Apple keeps on revising connectors and form factors.

    OTOH- I get your point---- I can take just the iPad anywhere I want and generate great ideas on Xynthesizer, Fugue Machine, Shoom, etc, etc.

  • I completely agree. It is a wonderful thing.

    The same for the iPhone- “I’ve got five mellotrons in my freakin’ pocket!”

  • Agreed Dan, and personally I love the fact that there's no ideal daw pushes us to be more creative and work with these more modular setups. I watched a bit of a mylar melodies video today about how you should have everything set up so that you're ready to make music in 20 seconds flat when you get to your desk etc. But for me personally, starting from scratch every time, and the thought process about what midi, synths, fx etc I want to use at any given time is all part of the fun. I don't want to box myself into any 'templates' 👍

  • @waka_x said:
    spot on.
    when I have a gig and its far from home
    I only take my *Pad Air 3 and my **Faderfox UC4...:)

    My gratitude to iPad coders
    and this community for this:)

    *iPad Air3 - no need for dongles or anything external,
    I just plug it in the mixer and the battery holds for hours:)
    ** Faderfox UC4 works on iPad power - no need for external

    ah!:)
    also iPhones.
    my iPhone 11 + roli Blocks + audio dongle
    complete music machine in a pocket!:)
    no need foe any externals.

    Yes!!!!!

    @piano39 said:
    Love my iPad for making music. However, I am very reluctant to use it for live performance. Too much peripheral stuff to connect: CCK, powered USB buss, audio interface with its associated cables and power supplies, etc. Alesis and others used to make docks that took care of all of this stuff, but Apple keeps on revising connectors and form factors.

    OTOH- I get your point---- I can take just the iPad anywhere I want and generate great ideas on Xynthesizer, Fugue Machine, Shoom, etc, etc.

    :)) yes it’s not perfect I guess, and that’s apple’s fault.

    @JeffChasteen said:
    I completely agree. It is a wonderful thing.

    The same for the iPhone- “I’ve got five mellotrons in my freakin’ pocket!”

    YES!!! A whole vcs3 in ma jeans!

    @Gavinski said:
    Agreed Dan, and personally I love the fact that there's no ideal daw pushes us to be more creative and work with these more modular setups. I watched a bit of a mylar melodies video today about how you should have everything set up so that you're ready to make music in 20 seconds flat when you get to your desk etc. But for me personally, starting from scratch every time, and the thought process about what midi, synths, fx etc I want to use at any given time is all part of the fun. I don't want to box myself into any 'templates' 👍

    I agree, and I think the process is so intuitive and quick with Aum for example, that there’s not really any need to streamline, just switch out modules with a finger flick!

  • @piano39 said:
    Love my iPad for making music. However, I am very reluctant to use it for live performance. Too much peripheral stuff to connect: CCK, powered USB buss, audio interface with its associated cables and power supplies, etc. Alesis and others used to make docks that took care of all of this stuff, but Apple keeps on revising connectors and form factors.

    For live you gotta keep it simple. Once you start adding hubs and peripherals it gets messy.

    I use mine live all the time. But I only plug an audio interface into it and power it all with a power bank.

  • Totally agree. The mix of endless possibilities and limitations imposed by the iOS architecture makes it a truly inspiring device on which each individual can develop very personal approaches and workflows. On a personal pov, this has been a life saver. I would probably have given up on music production without the iPad and the great community I found on this forum. Thank you guys !

  • @waka_x : Yes! I just got a Faderfox U4 to get tactile with this mega mix thing I’m supposed to be putting together. So made for the iPad, so small, so chunky… Great bit of kit.

  • @waka_x said:
    spot on.
    when I have a gig and its far from home
    I only take my *Pad Air 3 and my **Faderfox UC4...:)

    My gratitude to iPad coders
    and this community for this:)

    *iPad Air3 - no need for dongles or anything external,
    I just plug it in the mixer and the battery holds for hours:)
    ** Faderfox UC4 works on iPad power - no need for external

    ah!:)
    also iPhones.
    my iPhone 11 + roli Blocks + audio dongle
    complete music machine in a pocket!:)
    no need foe any externals.

    What's your audio dongle?

  • If Apple never brings Logic Pro to iOS, I hope they at least bring MainStage.

  • @sevenape said:
    sorry. Feeling a bit soppy today

  • I’ve got the humble iPad 9th generation and it does everything I need it to do. I plug in my minilab mk iii, some headphones, and I’m good to go. When I’m done with music, I can do some creative writing or read a book. Then I might want to pay the bills, catch up with some emails, watch a film. The iPad is simply a must-have bit of kit for me.

  • I love iPads, but I would argue in favor of this holding the title:

    It’s also less likely to run out of battery power.

  • @michael_m said:
    I love iPads, but I would argue in favor of this holding the title:

    It’s also less likely to run out of battery power.

    Less portable and not really modular in the sense intended by the op. But hell yes to not having to worry about battery life - although if it is a semi acoustic, the battery dying while you're in the middle of an amped performance can be a bitch. Strings breaking while playing, especially onstage, can be a bummer too! Nothing is perfect 😂

  • Neither of those things fit in a shirt pocket, failing on Mobility in my eyes.

    The lack of auv3 support for the Kazoo demonstrates how hard it is to model its beguiling tone :-)

    And for those that claim its not modular (albeit with a bigger pocket required):

  • @Gavinski said:

    @michael_m said:
    I love iPads, but I would argue in favor of this holding the title:

    It’s also less likely to run out of battery power.

    Less portable and not really modular in the sense intended by the op. But hell yes to not having to worry about battery life - although if it is a semi acoustic, the battery dying while you're in the middle of an amped performance can be a bitch. Strings breaking while playing, especially onstage, can be a bummer too! Nothing is perfect 😂

    It was half in jest, half practical for being in the middle of nowhere.

    Probably learning to make your own flutes is the only infallible way of maintaining a portable instrument in any location without access to batteries, spare strings, etc.

  • Haha, just bashing various natural objects together is another option. But yeah, your hands, feet, other body parts and voice are things we mostly all have and are supremely portable

    @michael_m said:

    @Gavinski said:

    @michael_m said:
    I love iPads, but I would argue in favor of this holding the title:

    It’s also less likely to run out of battery power.

    Less portable and not really modular in the sense intended by the op. But hell yes to not having to worry about battery life - although if it is a semi acoustic, the battery dying while you're in the middle of an amped performance can be a bitch. Strings breaking while playing, especially onstage, can be a bummer too! Nothing is perfect 😂

    It was half in jest, half practical for being in the middle of nowhere.

    Probably learning to make your own flutes is the only infallible way of maintaining a portable instrument in any location without access to batteries, spare strings, etc.

    @michael_m said:

    @Gavinski said:

    @michael_m said:
    I love iPads, but I would argue in favor of this holding the title:

    It’s also less likely to run out of battery power.

    Less portable and not really modular in the sense intended by the op. But hell yes to not having to worry about battery life - although if it is a semi acoustic, the battery dying while you're in the middle of an amped performance can be a bitch. Strings breaking while playing, especially onstage, can be a bummer too! Nothing is perfect 😂

    It was half in jest, half practical for being in the middle of nowhere.

    Probably learning to make your own flutes is the only infallible way of maintaining a portable instrument in any location without access to batteries, spare strings, etc.

  • Agreed. It definitely is. <3

  • @NeuM said:
    If Apple never brings Logic Pro to iOS, I hope they at least bring MainStage.

    I would love Mainstage on iOS.

  • I've been saying something similar in that "iOS is the DAW". The iPhone is basically a decentralised modular DAW environment, and the iPad is basically an iPhone with a larger screen, lol. (Although now I have to update that to "and the iPad is basically an iPhone with a larger screen and a modified version of iOS. 😂 )

    This is why I'm not stressing over this app lacking such-and-such feature and that app lacks such-and-such feature. ;)

  • I entirely agree!

    I watched MylarMelodies’s recent video and though to myself: all I have to do is unlock the iPad and launch AUM. Boom! TBH with my hardware setup it’s not that much more complicated - power up, plug iPad in, launch AUM, load template. But I still do loads on just the iPad, simply because I’m not tied down to a location, and I spend time regularly away from my hardware kit.

    I’m reminded of a couple of things when I see a lot of complaints about this, that or the other thing being missing: 1) that Yazoo speech collage track on their first album, with the repeated phrase “force the tools available”, and 2) an Eno interview where he described going into a studio and seeing what was available there, so he wouldn’t be doing some things, but he would be doing others, ie working with what is there.

    The iPad has transformed the way I work, and the kind of music I thought I’d be doing, and it’s opened so many doors in the process.

    And you’re right about the devs: thank you! 🙏

  • I think there's something to be said for the modular aspect still being a bit too clunky, especially when it comes to the simplest of things e.g trying to move/share files between any/all apps. But overall, the power and flexibility is top-notch.

    My biggest frustration (And this is of course not specific to iPads/iPhones) with it in terms of portability is that it becomes useless out in the sun. Where I live there're daily periods of sun all year round. Many times during the colder months, I've longed to go out and sit at the beach, enjoying the warm rays and making music. Just impossible to do :( This is why I've started to lust after an OP-X. Not even close to being able to afford one, and would no doubt become frustrated with it after a while. But the 'itch' is there.

  • @Gavinski said:
    Haha, just bashing various natural objects together is another option. But yeah, your hands, feet, other body parts and voice are things we mostly all have and are supremely portable

    Speaking of voices, the arc from the Renaissance perfection of using the human voice to today's obsessively autotuned abomination is truly heartbreaking. (Yes, the "let's shout loud enough so it can be heard over brass instruments" belcanto was a step down the slope, too. 👌)

  • @ervin said:

    @Gavinski said:
    Haha, just bashing various natural objects together is another option. But yeah, your hands, feet, other body parts and voice are things we mostly all have and are supremely portable

    Speaking of voices, the arc from the Renaissance perfection of using the human voice to today's obsessively autotuned abomination is truly heartbreaking. (Yes, the "let's shout loud enough so it can be heard over brass instruments" belcanto was a step down the slope, too. 👌)

    Definitely. The imperfections of the human voice are way more beautiful than something that has been hammered into a perfectly symmetrical shape.

  • @el_bo said:
    I think there's something to be said for the modular aspect still being a bit too clunky, especially when it comes to the simplest of things e.g trying to move/share files between any/all apps. But overall, the power and flexibility is top-notch.

    My biggest frustration (And this is of course not specific to iPads/iPhones) with it in terms of portability is that it becomes useless out in the sun. Where I live there're daily periods of sun all year round. Many times during the colder months, I've longed to go out and sit at the beach, enjoying the warm rays and making music. Just impossible to do :( This is why I've started to lust after an OP-X. Not even close to being able to afford one, and would no doubt become frustrated with it after a while. But the 'itch' is there.

    Have you tried a pair of polaroid sunglasses? only problem is if you turn the screen 90 degrees it goes completely black.

  • @sevenape said:

    @el_bo said:
    I think there's something to be said for the modular aspect still being a bit too clunky, especially when it comes to the simplest of things e.g trying to move/share files between any/all apps. But overall, the power and flexibility is top-notch.

    My biggest frustration (And this is of course not specific to iPads/iPhones) with it in terms of portability is that it becomes useless out in the sun. Where I live there're daily periods of sun all year round. Many times during the colder months, I've longed to go out and sit at the beach, enjoying the warm rays and making music. Just impossible to do :( This is why I've started to lust after an OP-X. Not even close to being able to afford one, and would no doubt become frustrated with it after a while. But the 'itch' is there.

    Have you tried a pair of polaroid sunglasses? only problem is if you turn the screen 90 degrees it goes completely black.

    Ah, that's really interesting. Could be a solution. I do quite like looking at miRack in portrait mode, but using it in Landscape mode is no biggie. Can't think of other apps that I would have an issue with.

    Have you tried them, yourself...out in 'the field'?

  • @el_bo said:

    @sevenape said:

    @el_bo said:
    I think there's something to be said for the modular aspect still being a bit too clunky, especially when it comes to the simplest of things e.g trying to move/share files between any/all apps. But overall, the power and flexibility is top-notch.

    My biggest frustration (And this is of course not specific to iPads/iPhones) with it in terms of portability is that it becomes useless out in the sun. Where I live there're daily periods of sun all year round. Many times during the colder months, I've longed to go out and sit at the beach, enjoying the warm rays and making music. Just impossible to do :( This is why I've started to lust after an OP-X. Not even close to being able to afford one, and would no doubt become frustrated with it after a while. But the 'itch' is there.

    Have you tried a pair of polaroid sunglasses? only problem is if you turn the screen 90 degrees it goes completely black.

    Ah, that's really interesting. Could be a solution. I do quite like looking at miRack in portrait mode, but using it in Landscape mode is no biggie. Can't think of other apps that I would have an issue with.

    Have you tried them, yourself...out in 'the field'?

    I haven’t I’m afraid, but I have some Polaroids here somewhere I’ll try tomorrow!

  • @sevenape said:

    @el_bo said:
    I think there's something to be said for the modular aspect still being a bit too clunky, especially when it comes to the simplest of things e.g trying to move/share files between any/all apps. But overall, the power and flexibility is top-notch.

    My biggest frustration (And this is of course not specific to iPads/iPhones) with it in terms of portability is that it becomes useless out in the sun. Where I live there're daily periods of sun all year round. Many times during the colder months, I've longed to go out and sit at the beach, enjoying the warm rays and making music. Just impossible to do :( This is why I've started to lust after an OP-X. Not even close to being able to afford one, and would no doubt become frustrated with it after a while. But the 'itch' is there.

    Have you tried a pair of polaroid sunglasses? only problem is if you turn the screen 90 degrees it goes completely black.

    Have you tried tilting your head to one side?

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