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.

Which AUv3 Sample Player

Thinking of using a sample player to cut down on the load of running multiple instruments that only play small sections or odd sounds.

So to my questions:

  1. Using an Air2, is this a viable plan to cut processing load, or will the lack of Air2 ram be an issue?
  2. Are any of the sample players noticeably more processor friendly than others?
  3. Which one is easiest to map different samples across the keyboard a la Depeche Mode stylee?
  4. Do you think this is a better plan than just say, using multiple versions of the Cubasis sampler?

Reason I’m asking, is because I’ve rarely used samplers since the old hardware days, simply because I remember how much time it often took to organise everything. Anyone use this method much?

«1

Comments

  • edited February 2020

    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

  • @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    Yes. And if you name your samples with the naming conventions that it uses, it will automatically generate layers/zones.

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    Oh, definitely. I had one too. The e5000 Ultra had much better filters but AL's filters cover most bread & butter needs.
    I recently built a second grand piano with more than 1 GB of samples and if you give your samples the correct names (shown in the import dialog), they auto-map correctly.
    You won't need that though if you'll only import a few samples, they can be moved around quite easily on the key map.

  • @espiegel123 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    Yes. And if you name your samples with the naming conventions that it uses, it will automatically generate layers/zones.

    Does it have a built in manual, or is one available on their website? Sounds like the one to go for, unless anyone tells me that Chameleon is any better?

  • @rs2000 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    Oh, definitely. I had one too. The e5000 Ultra had much better filters but AL's filters cover most bread & butter needs.
    I recently built a second grand piano with more than 1 GB of samples and if you give your samples the correct names (shown in the import dialog), they auto-map correctly.
    You won't need that though if you'll only import a few samples, they can be moved around quite easily on the key map.

    Yes, the Emu did sound lovely. I had quite a bit of Emu gear - out of all my hardware, it was the only brand that I never had any issues with!

  • @espiegel123 @rs2000

    What are you both using for making, editing, cataloguing samples on iOS?

  • wimwim
    edited February 2020

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    The interface is a bit of a pain in the ass for doing that. I pretty much set it aside as too frustrating for awhile. I'm much happier now that I mainly use it with properly named samples produced by SynthJacker.

    I don't own Chameleon, but it seems like it would be simpler to deal with if you don't need multi-layered samples.

    EG Pulse and DigiStix, though technically drum machines are promising for a such a workflow. Also not a sampler per-se, but GR-16 is outstanding for that kind of work, though not AU.

  • @wim said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    The interface is a bit of a pain in the ass for doing that. I pretty much set it aside as too frustrating for awhile. I'm much happier now that I mainly use it with properly named samples produced by SynthJacker.

    Frustrating while making complex multi samples, or how do you think it would be for just placing a few samples across a keyboard layer to sequence in a track?

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:
    @espiegel123 @rs2000

    What are you both using for making, editing, cataloguing samples on iOS?

    I don't do any cataloguing on iOS. I use quite a few different apps for sampling -- it really depends on what I am doing: AudioShare, BeatMaker 3, Auditor, AUM, AudioLayer, Auria Pro.

  • AudioLayer can also import exs24 sample instruments which is cool.

    Making samole instruments in audiolayer is a bit fiddly, but to be fair a lot of that is down to iOS. So I tend to make an instrument in Logic and just import it.

    Chameleon is ok but far simpler and has limitations. I can’t remember how many secs/samples each preset is limited to but it’s easy to run into them. Also all the samples get renamed to completely nondescript names too which is annoying when you’re trying to organise them. For example you import a bunch of drums named “BD”, “Snare” etc and chameleon renames them all to S01, S02 etc making it awkward to assign them to the keys you want. Even worse for instruments named with the key.

    It’s easier to but up with Audiolayer’s foibles as it’s far more powerful.

  • @espiegel123 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:
    @espiegel123 @rs2000

    What are you both using for making, editing, cataloguing samples on iOS?

    I don't do any cataloguing on iOS. I use quite a few different apps for sampling -- it really depends on what I am doing: AudioShare, BeatMaker 3, Auditor, AUM, AudioLayer, Auria Pro.

    Basically I just want to record single notes (because they will be mostly played within the same octave) or the odd longer sound samples for sequencing - mostly to cut down on app use per track and constant freezing / unfreezing.

  • @klownshed said:
    AudioLayer can also import exs24 sample instruments which is cool.

    Making samole instruments in audiolayer is a bit fiddly, but to be fair a lot of that is down to iOS. So I tend to make an instrument in Logic and just import it.

    Chameleon is ok but far simpler and has limitations. I can’t remember how many secs/samples each preset is limited to but it’s easy to run into them. Also all the samples get renamed to completely nondescript names too which is annoying when you’re trying to organise them. For example you import a bunch of drums named “BD”, “Snare” etc and chameleon renames them all to S01, S02 etc making it awkward to assign them to the keys you want. Even worse for instruments named with the key.

    It’s easier to but up with Audiolayer’s foibles as it’s far more powerful.

    Thanks. Renaming sounds like a brain nightmare - I have a hard enough time keeping track of things as it is :D

  • @klownshed said:
    AudioLayer can also import exs24 sample instruments which is cool.

    Making samole instruments in audiolayer is a bit fiddly, but to be fair a lot of that is down to iOS. So I tend to make an instrument in Logic and just import it.

    Chameleon is ok but far simpler and has limitations. I can’t remember how many secs/samples each preset is limited to but it’s easy to run into them. Also all the samples get renamed to completely nondescript names too which is annoying when you’re trying to organise them. For example you import a bunch of drums named “BD”, “Snare” etc and chameleon renames them all to S01, S02 etc making it awkward to assign them to the keys you want. Even worse for instruments named with the key.

    It’s easier to but up with Audiolayer’s foibles as it’s far more powerful.

    Does Chameleon have velocity layers?

    @Fruitbat1919 : you can sample directly into AudioLayer if you want. There is also an app called SynthJacker that some people use that can do autosampling to conveniently grab samples of your synths if that is what you are wanting to do?

  • @wim said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Thanks, never knew that it had disk streaming. Is it pretty easy to set layers and zones? I suppose bearing in mind I used to use an Emu hardware sampler many moons ago, it must be easier to use than that :D

    The interface is a bit of a pain in the ass for doing that. I pretty much set it aside as too frustrating for awhile. I'm much happier now that I mainly use it with properly named samples produced by SynthJacker.

    I don't own Chameleon, but it seems like it would be simpler to deal with if you don't need multi-layered samples.

    EG Pulse and DigiStix, though technically drum machines are promising for a such a workflow. Also not a sampler per-se, but GR-16 is outstanding for that kind of work, though not AU.

    I don’t own EG Pulse or DigiStix yet, so will have to research them. Got to be AU :)

  • @espiegel123 said:

    @klownshed said:

    Does Chameleon have velocity layers?

    No. It can layer sounds but no velocity support.

    It does have a vocoder though. :-/

  • @espiegel123 said:

    @klownshed said:
    AudioLayer can also import exs24 sample instruments which is cool.

    Making samole instruments in audiolayer is a bit fiddly, but to be fair a lot of that is down to iOS. So I tend to make an instrument in Logic and just import it.

    Chameleon is ok but far simpler and has limitations. I can’t remember how many secs/samples each preset is limited to but it’s easy to run into them. Also all the samples get renamed to completely nondescript names too which is annoying when you’re trying to organise them. For example you import a bunch of drums named “BD”, “Snare” etc and chameleon renames them all to S01, S02 etc making it awkward to assign them to the keys you want. Even worse for instruments named with the key.

    It’s easier to but up with Audiolayer’s foibles as it’s far more powerful.

    Does Chameleon have velocity layers?

    @Fruitbat1919 : you can sample directly into AudioLayer if you want. There is also an app called SynthJacker that some people use that can do autosampling to conveniently grab samples of your synths if that is what you are wanting to do?

    Sampling direct sounds good, but I didn’t think AudioLayer had sample editing tools? Never heard of Synthjacker either!

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @espiegel123 said:

    @klownshed said:
    AudioLayer can also import exs24 sample instruments which is cool.

    Making samole instruments in audiolayer is a bit fiddly, but to be fair a lot of that is down to iOS. So I tend to make an instrument in Logic and just import it.

    Chameleon is ok but far simpler and has limitations. I can’t remember how many secs/samples each preset is limited to but it’s easy to run into them. Also all the samples get renamed to completely nondescript names too which is annoying when you’re trying to organise them. For example you import a bunch of drums named “BD”, “Snare” etc and chameleon renames them all to S01, S02 etc making it awkward to assign them to the keys you want. Even worse for instruments named with the key.

    It’s easier to but up with Audiolayer’s foibles as it’s far more powerful.

    Does Chameleon have velocity layers?

    @Fruitbat1919 : you can sample directly into AudioLayer if you want. There is also an app called SynthJacker that some people use that can do autosampling to conveniently grab samples of your synths if that is what you are wanting to do?

    Sampling direct sounds good, but I didn’t think AudioLayer had sample editing tools? Never heard of Synthjacker either!

    Damn Synthjacker sounds just the job for part of the job at hand. Have you tried it?

  • @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Is there anywhere to buy sample libraries for AudioLayer? I’m more of a Kontakt library buy it and surf the presets kinda guy. Kontakt is really the only thing I miss these days since giving up desktop computers .. well that and Omisphere.

  • @cloudswimmer said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Is there anywhere to buy sample libraries for AudioLayer? I’m more of a Kontakt library buy it and surf the presets kinda guy. Kontakt is really the only thing I miss these days since giving up desktop computers .. well that and Omisphere.

    I don't think there are sources of sample libraries specifically for AudioLayer. It can import esx24 instruments (check with others first about how smooth this is though), so if you can find sources to buy those ...

  • @cloudswimmer said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Is there anywhere to buy sample libraries for AudioLayer? I’m more of a Kontakt library buy it and surf the presets kinda guy. Kontakt is really the only thing I miss these days since giving up desktop computers .. well that and Omisphere.

    I will let you know how Synthjacker works out for me. If it’s easy enough to sample other apps and load into AudioLayer, this might be the closest to we have unless others know of libraries to buy. With the iPad Pro models making external hard drives easier, I believe it’s just a matter of time until the market for large sound libraries comes to iOS.

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:

    Sampling direct sounds good, but I didn’t think AudioLayer had sample editing tools? Never heard of Synthjacker either!

    Damn Synthjacker sounds just the job for part of the job at hand. Have you tried it?

    I use it with its "Bring Your Own File" method. Basically, you set up a MIDI file using the app, then play that back in a DAW to produce an audio file, then the app slices that wave file up into named samples and makes a zip file. Once that's done with the right sample naming scheme, importing to AudioLayer is simple.

    It doesn't have sample editing tools, but you can set the beginning and end, set loop points, and use the app's envelopes to suit what you need. The only niggle I have with it is that you can't destructively trim the sample to save space. But that isn't a big deal for me.

    As far as your other question about the interface usability. It's not horrible, especially if you're not working with a whole bunch of samples and layers. But it can be pretty damn frustrating, I'll admit.

  • @wim said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    Sampling direct sounds good, but I didn’t think AudioLayer had sample editing tools? Never heard of Synthjacker either!

    Damn Synthjacker sounds just the job for part of the job at hand. Have you tried it?

    I use it with its "Bring Your Own File" method. Basically, you set up a MIDI file using the app, then play that back in a DAW to produce an audio file, then the app slices that wave file up into named samples and makes a zip file. Once that's done with the right sample naming scheme, importing to AudioLayer is simple.

    It doesn't have sample editing tools, but you can set the beginning and end, set loop points, and use the app's envelopes to suit what you need. The only niggle I have with it is that you can't destructively trim the sample to save space. But that isn't a big deal for me.

    As far as your other question about the interface usability. It's not horrible, especially if you're not working with a whole bunch of samples and layers. But it can be pretty damn frustrating, I'll admit.

    Thanks. Yeah, I doubt space saving is going to be a major issue for myself. It’s not like the days when sample time was so short that every millisecond counted :p

  • AudioLayer all the way!!!

  • @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @cloudswimmer said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    I'd say go for AudioLayer. Supports huge samples (disk streaming!), multiple velocity layers and crossfading between layers using the modwheel.
    It supports crossfade looping and rather intuitive editing of sample zones.
    It cannot do pitch modulation by modwheel but is still far ahead of the Cubasis sampler which is so bad and buggy that I would not even touch it.

    Is there anywhere to buy sample libraries for AudioLayer? I’m more of a Kontakt library buy it and surf the presets kinda guy. Kontakt is really the only thing I miss these days since giving up desktop computers .. well that and Omisphere.

    I will let you know how Synthjacker works out for me. If it’s easy enough to sample other apps and load into AudioLayer, this might be the closest to we have unless others know of libraries to buy. With the iPad Pro models making external hard drives easier, I believe it’s just a matter of time until the market for large sound libraries comes to iOS.

    Thanks, yeah look forward to hearing what you think!

  • Another vote for AudioLayer. You'll curse the 20% infuriating parts to enjoy the 80% that is unmatched on iOS.

  • edited February 2020

    @Fruitbat1919 Sampling, editing, finding loop points (if you want to loop your samples anyway) and placing samples on the key map is all very straightforward in AudioLayer, I would't mess with SynthJacker, Chameleon etc if all you want is record and map a few samples. Yes, sample mapping can be fiddly on an iPhone but if you're using an iPad, it's very easy IMHO.

    As for sample preparation, I'm mostly working with my own set of scripted command line tools but again, I do this because I'm building huge instruments with thousands of samples.
    For editing a few samples, just use the built-in sample editor or take TwistedWave if you want to stamp AUv3 effects on some samples before importing.

  • Does anyone have a big instrument library for AudioLayer, where they didn’t have to do every instrument as an import, one at a time?

  • @rs2000 said:
    @Fruitbat1919 Sampling, editing, finding loop points (if you want to loop your samples anyway) and placing samples on the key map is all very straightforward in AudioLayer, I would't mess with SynthJacker, Chameleon etc if all you want is record and map a few samples. Yes, sample mapping can be fiddly on an iPhone but if you're using an iPad, it's very easy IMHO.

    As for sample preparation, I'm mostly working with my own set of scripted command line tools but again, I do this because I'm building huge instruments with thousands of samples.
    For editing a few samples, just use the built-in sample editor or take TwistedWave if you want to stamp AUv3 effects on some samples before importing.

    Yes, my use case is on the really simplistic side. As stated though I’m going to have to pre fx the sounds, as I won’t be able to use any fx on the track for the most part unless it’s just some fx that each sample can share use of. Any sounds that require the complexity of high levels of multi samples, can keep its own instrument track.

    Twisted Wave still the editor of choice for more complex editing duties?

  • edited February 2020

    @Fruitbat1919 said:

    @rs2000 said:
    @Fruitbat1919 Sampling, editing, finding loop points (if you want to loop your samples anyway) and placing samples on the key map is all very straightforward in AudioLayer, I would't mess with SynthJacker, Chameleon etc if all you want is record and map a few samples. Yes, sample mapping can be fiddly on an iPhone but if you're using an iPad, it's very easy IMHO.

    As for sample preparation, I'm mostly working with my own set of scripted command line tools but again, I do this because I'm building huge instruments with thousands of samples.
    For editing a few samples, just use the built-in sample editor or take TwistedWave if you want to stamp AUv3 effects on some samples before importing.

    Yes, my use case is on the really simplistic side. As stated though I’m going to have to pre fx the sounds, as I won’t be able to use any fx on the track for the most part unless it’s just some fx that each sample can share use of. Any sounds that require the complexity of high levels of multi samples, can keep its own instrument track.

    Twisted Wave still the editor of choice for more complex editing duties?

    Depends on what you mean with more complex.
    Auditor is more advanced, I just like the simplicity of TW.
    And its AUv3 support, e.g. for denoising samples by the help of Brusfri.

Sign In or Register to comment.