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.

Cubasis noise, Audiobus and Audioshare bail me out again.

moonstringmoonstring
edited September 2014 in General App Discussion

I'm using an iPad Air with the Allen & Heath Zed10fx audio interface connected via USB/CCK(Apple). When I monitor/record live sound in Cubasis, I get this distorted, thin fuzzy sound (noise). I don't have this issue while using other apps with this audio interface. I searched the Allen & Heath website for a firmware update but there there aren't any. Additionally, Cubasis is listed as a compatible app.

If it were a hardware issue, I would not be able to use it with other apps but that's not the case. Is someone having a similar issue? Can someone help?

Thanks

Comments

  • Phil999Phil999

    I don't have this interface, but it appears like there is a problem with sampling rates. I know this well from other interfaces.

    Generally one has to quit (kill) the app, reconnect the interface, run the app again. If that doesn't help, reboot the iPad before reconnecting.

  • moonstringmoonstring

    @Phil999, thanks. I tried your suggestion but unfortunately it didn't work. It's funny because even after I quit Cubasis, the other programs were affected by this same noise problem. Cubasis seems to corrupt the iPad's audio system.

    However, I found a work-around that might benefit other users in a similar situation (if this hasn't been talked about before).

    I started Audiobus with Audioshare as the input and Cubasis as the output. In Audioshare I clicked on monitor on. After this I had a clean signal. Curiously enough, even after I clicked on Audioshare's monitor off and open a new track on Cubasis bypasing Audiobus, I still had a clean signal.

    Thank goodness for Audiobus and Audioshare, they've bailed me out many times before.

  • Phil999Phil999

    this is clearly a sample rate problem. Starting with a different app that uses the right sampling rate before launching Cubasis is probably the best workaround. You may also have a look at Cubasis and interface settings if there are any. It's often a 44.1/48 kHz problem.

  • WashboyWashboy
    edited September 2014

    I suspect this is a recording buffer size issue. My understanding is that the first audio app to be opened gets to choose and set that buffer size. All subsequently opened apps must also use that buffer size. @Phil999 is right with his advice.

    @moonstring: when you started Audiobus first, it was able to set the buffer size. You can see that size (expressed as 'frames') at top-right of the AB screen. When apps run in AB they set their buffer size to match whatever AB is using. If you want to be able to start Cubasis first, on its own (i.e. not with AB), you need to investigate Cubasis' Audio setup page and configure 'Hardware Latency' (and possibly set 'Large Recording Buffer') to match what AB was configured for, when it worked OK with your A&H.

    EDIT: Oops! The AB frames indicator is at top-LEFT. Doh!

  • moonstringmoonstring

    Thank you guys. Good suggestions. I'll give it a try tomorrow since my work-around only worked sometimes, not always. But you might me on to something.

  • mkell424mkell424
    edited September 2014

    I have the same problem with Sample Tank. I have an audio drum loop going and I play some notes on Sample Tank, and for some reason, the audio becomes distorted. It doesn't happen all the time. The audio will loop for a while and the become distorted, and then go back to sounding normal. Weird.

  • Phil999Phil999
    edited September 2014

    true, as @Washboy said, there is also the buffer size.

    So there are two factors, the buffer size and the sampling rate. I guess the latter is responsible for the distorted sound, but anyway both factors have to be identical to the external audio interface.

    I made a habit of a certain procedure when I use my interface (Tascam iU2). First connect the interface, then connect the power supply, only use one app (Auria), and record from analogue sources. Then it works quite reliably.

    I have another interface, the Apogee Duet2. With this one I had almost never any problems. I can switch apps as I desire. Probably because it has a driver control app (Maestro) that adapts to sampling rates and buffer sizes. But actually I'm not sure. It just works fine.

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