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.

[POLL] Tracks Per Project

Out of curiosity, how many tracks per project or session are you typically running in iOS? I know performance can vary per device and some use external instruments, vocals, etc., so not limiting to iOS apps/au strictly. Also, if you're counting sends tracks in your vote and if you prefer/wish you could use more.

Also, how does this compare to your setup in a desktop DAW, if you use one.

Tracks Per Project
  1. How many is enough?35 votes
    1. 1 - It's all I need
        0.00%
    2. 2-3 - Good enough
        5.71%
    3. 4-8 - Basic Mixer Setup
      34.29%
    4. 8+ - Multi-tracking FTW
      60.00%

Comments

  • Running Modstep with Au3s. Try to be pretty conservative and watch CPU because this setup is for live use so stability is a big priority. Even counting the hardware outs, which probably shouldn't, I'm usually about at 8. That gives me a few tracks for various drums, bass, a synth if needed, extra samples. Which is pretty much a song when you add some singing and guitar. :)

    How does that compare to desktop?
    That is a fraction of what I'd do on desktop.

    Looking at one we moved over from iPad to desktop that I'm editing and mixing. iPad version tracks:
    1. Virsyn Audiolayer (sample drums)
    2. Ruismaker OG
    3. Ruismaker FM
    4. Ruismaker Noir
    5. Icegear Redshrike (bass part)
    6. Virsyn Tera (alt bass part)

    played live
    6. Moog Sirin lead
    7. guitar
    8. guitar
    9. vocals

    Desktop version
    1 - 4 Ruismaker FM and Noir broken into 4 tracks, separating kick, snare and other stuff.

    Didn't use Ruismaker OG. Instead used Tremor
    8 tracks plus busses

    Samples from Audiolayer were from BFD, using the midi from Modstep for BFD
    14 tracks

    Redshrike
    2 tracks, because different effects on different song parts

    Tera
    1 track

    Guitar 1
    Tracked on 3 tracks because different pedals used and slightly different post effects. No double tracking even.

    Guitar 2
    1 track

    Moog Sirin
    2 tracks for different parts
    Added a 3rd layer of one with the Boog Model D

    Three reverb busses. Near left, near right, far.

    So 41 tracks, 4 to 6 vocal tracks would be more typical for my productions. I don't go crazy with overdubbing usually like a lot of people.

    But on this particular track I wanted a huge contrast between verses and chorus. So 1 vocal track on verses, have 12 on backing ones inc harmonies on the choruses, another for the bridge.

    56

    And I'm sure I'm been near 100. This song doesn't have a lot of changes.

  • edited May 2019

    For context I am mainly a timeline based daw guy.

    14-24 on ios and over double that on desktop (which is not a lot at all these days compared to the pros). A lot of my tracks may only live for a handful of bars (or less) or just be an alternate version to a main track. Since they are so cheap and easy to set up a track is often a lazy (or safer) alternative to setting up more automation.

  • @nondes said:
    Out of curiosity, how many tracks per project or session are you typically running in iOS? I know performance can vary per device and some use external instruments, vocals, etc., so not limiting to iOS apps/au strictly. Also, if you're counting sends tracks in your vote and if you prefer/wish you could use more.

    Also, how does this compare to your setup in a desktop DAW, if you use one.

    I am doing live production performance style.

    I generally do this.

    GENERALLY

    Projects usually have either:

    Novation Circuit and Monostation w/ little bit or Elektron Model

    or

    Elektron Digitakt and Elektron Digitone w little bit of Elektron Model

    I then use generally 2-4 instrument apps usually consisting but not limited to:

    AU synths (Sugar Bytes) or Animoog
    Samplr or Sector

    and

    Blocs Wave or Launchpad app

    THE IOS SET UP IS EASILY SWAPPED OUT FOR ABLETON AND REPLACING THOSE ITEMS WITH COMPARABLE VSTS

    I don't do a lot of horizontal track by track song writing.

    I generally use LOOPY and save songs/patterns to devices.

    I often trigger the AU synths or VST with hardware as well including keyboard, launchpadpro, or boxes.

  • edited May 2019

    I don't think 8+ as a maximum option is too useful -- I frequently use 24 or more.

    Typical EDM production: Bassdrum, Hihat 1, Hihat 2, Clap, Perc 1, Perc 2, Crash, Snare, Reverse Crash, FX 1, FX 2, Bassline 1, Bassline 2, Lead, Pad, Vocal... that's 16 alone, plus I like to keep controllers / automation on separate tracks, so if half of those have at least one automated parameter, that's 24 :)

    (also, each drum on a separate track, because flexibility and overview)

  • edited May 2019

    20+ ... but i'm not counting hihat1, hihat2, clap, perc, etc as individual tracks, cause usually i have all of them inside single drum sampler , so that's for me 1 track :-)

  • I'm a simple 4 track kinda guy then I'll mix those down to audio and over dub with more tracks..
    I normally do drums on one track to simplify using something like kew, groovebox, patterning... With the exception of groovebox I can mix drums in their mixer but record it to one track, I use other drums as well but as examples...i morally trigger my synths with multiple steppolyarp sequences and those are normally triggered by one key in AUM...
    So if you count thoss then it's way more than 4, but for actual audio capturing its all down to 4 at a time until I mix em down into one

  • 16-32 tracks in my video cover song projects

  • I think it really depends on a ton of factors. I’ve got 65 tracks going in NS2 right now and it’s running at 55% max. Drum kits count as one track. But I could easily write something with a handful of tracks and destroy my iPad :)

    My personal style of music has a lot of different sound sources throughout so I might only have 20 actual sound source tracks going on at the same time but then those are feeding 10 or more send tracks plus group tracks, etc. I rotate through to different sounds when I move to a different section of the song. This song has 3 distinct movements, hence the large track count.

  • Less is more, in my case. Fewer glitches, less frequency overlap, fewer mixing choices and less user error. But two lead instruments, two drum tracks, and bass are five already, so eight is about the Goldilocks number for me. Still, double that is an exciting challenge.

  • @LinearLineman said:
    Less is more, in my case. Fewer glitches, less frequency overlap, fewer mixing choices and less user error. But two lead instruments, two drum tracks, and bass are five already, so eight is about the Goldilocks number for me. Still, double that is an exciting challenge.

    I need more tracks to cover up my poor playing :smiley:

  • I try to do a stripped down bare minimum type tunes to focus more on the song rather than the intricate wall of sound. Even though that’s my aim, it’s always more than 8 tracks. Don’t even ask me about how many effects per track....

  • Usually anything between 25-40.

  • edited May 2019

    From 1(often) to 13-15 tracks.
    My way of recording is relatively basic.
    I don't like complexity in this domain.

  • I’ve not tried much more than a total of 4 tracks running Auria Pro in stand-alone mode. I’m using a 2018 512Gb 10.5” iPad, and when the CPU meter is displayed, it’s fairly high. However I’m working in the 64 bit option, for better, or for worse, I feel like I hear an improvement over the default option. Also, I have it set to record @512 buffer size, and playing with a buffer size of either 256, or 128, depending on the tempo. Would love to hear your thoughts about this setup, as I’m new to iOS, and for the most part, am largely ignorant of what the best approach to recording is.

  • Great stuff, all. I thought most people were above 8 but didn't realize by how much, so may be some higher poll options would've been better. Desktop productions are like 100! for most today, but there is some to be said for keeping things minimal.

    Similar to @RUST( i )K and @reasOne I try to keep things organized by performance mindset, so usually it ends up being around 8 on iOS.

    But yeah, on desktop/Ableton, it starts multiplying from there. I'm going to start splitting out drums like @Multicellular now I'm distributing duties across iPads. Already do this on desktop for proper drum processing.

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