I’m attempting to connect elastic drums on an iPad to VCV more fluently. My setup is iPad, MacBook, VCV Pro, and currently direct cable connection (USB-C into laptop and lightning to iPad)
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What I’m already doing:
-sending clock to either device as master and slave
-sending iPad audio to mac and getting a left and right output
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I am looking to try a couple of different things with the connections and am not sure how to/ what I need in order to:
-Output each of the 6 drum channels to vcv in separate lanes for processing.
-Output midi from separated lanes for processing.
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While this really could be seen as a non VCV issue… There may be someone out there more versed in connecting multiple audio lanes from an iPad to VCV and may know of optimal setup. not only that but I figured there may be a simple thing I’m missing on the VCV side or something to that effect.
if not VCV side, is it a case of using audiobus or aum to output multiple channels, getting a midi interface like irig2?
Thanks in advance for any help with this oddly specific connection.
I’m on Windows, but I connect my iPad MIDI via an iConnectMIDI.that goes from the iPad lightning to my Focusrite Scarlett interface. I’m always forgetting my recipe for how to do this But, this probably does not answer your question.
First open the Audio/MIDI Setup app and make sure you have an Audio Device window open. Here you should see the iPad at the bottom with an enable button. Push that and your iPad will be able to be an audio input to your mac.
In Rack: Add another Audio2 module and you can use the two black outputs from that as stereo left / right for Audio from iPad app after setting that Audio Module to take input from the attached iPad.
Clock syncing I haven’t tried, but I have set this via MIDI-CV and CV-Midi modules, so I can send a start to say Animoog on the iPad and get the audio pretty latency free back to Rack. I don’t use a DAW though, Animoog is set to receive and send MIDI from all channels (tweak those settings in your app as needed) so I can start/stop/reset etc the Animoog from Rack. Clock syncing I haven’t tried, as I haven’t needed that, given the very low latency of getting audio after a start CC event to Animoog. Works for me.
you use ‘CV to Midi’ Start input to start the iPad app, and send a pulse (trigger) to it to start it. you cab use a flip-flop to start with one trigger and stop with the next.
Perhaps this is a misunderstanding. But what exactly is started with the start/stop trigger on the VCV “CV to Midi” module? If I connect a V/Oct and a gate signal, e.g. from a running sequencer, to the “CV to Midi” module the Animoog Z immediately plays the corresponding note in the beat of the connected gate signal. What is the start/stop trigger needed for?
ah yes, Animoog doesn’t have a sequencer, but if your app has a sequencer you need to start/stop it. Never mind . Was thinking of another piece of music software that does have a sequencer. Seems you got the basics worked out then.
Yes I am aware of all of this.
Secondary Problems that arise are that any synced clock slowly drifts. (A problem because I am playing sessions with other people.)
Back to my op intent though, At the end of the day I know that the app in question has the ability to output audio from each of six instrument lanes because they are found in the interapp audio options. Vcv only registers a left and right from the enabled iPad, and mac has no ability to edit setting of iPad in audio midi setup.
It is not possible to send multiple lanes of audio from an iPad to a Mac using iAA. Inter App Audio is only for apps on the iPad.
iPads support IDAM which is just stereo audio to Macs via USB as you are using it. These are Apple limitations.
There are alternatives such as apps like studiomux which is not updated or maintained anymore for multiple audio streams over USB.
The best solution is using a hardware audio interface which supports multiple devices like iConnectAudio4+ by iConnectivity. This is designed to specifically for this type of use case. I have tried all the solutions above over the years and this works the best. You can connect an iPad and your Mac at the same time, and then send multiple mono/stereo audio between each.
I suppose this might be out there somewhere, but if i buy this device how do i know it could pull the multiple audio lanes from my app or others like it… any experience here? @auxmux
Yes, it takes some a bit of configuration, but you can do it relatively easily. For example, use AUM as host for Elastic Drums, load it as IAA and then route the outputs in AUM to the USB port of your Mac. In the Mac, you load VCV with the iConnectAudio4 as your interface to bring in the inputs from the iPad.
You’ll need set the audio ins/outs using iConnectivity’s configurator software. I’d recommend reading their manuals and then ask for help on forum.audiob.us. Lots of folks there have this.
But, this probably does not answer your question.