Flash Synth...

[John the Savage]

One of these days, I would love to find out what you are trying to use live on stage, John. I have been playing live with iOS devices for nine years, and have had a grand total of one failure in all that time. I’m just curious as to what we are doing differently. Perhaps my applications are less demanding.

I don't want to give the impression that my iPad rig is a complete disaster. I have a select collection of reputable and reliable apps, and the iConnectAudio4+ that I'm using has proven to be a fairly robust interface (after a year-and-a-half of bug-fixes mind you). Regardless, overall, it's workable. Indeed I do work with it—150 shows a year or better, on average—and it gets the job done. However, there's always something to deal with. Whether it's something as small as a stuck note, a random glitch in the audio, a graphical anomaly, an app refusing to launch, a temporary bout of latency, etc.; or something as problematic as a protocol change that has crippled an app or peripheral altogether... It all adds up. Hell, even things like how the iPad won't turn on for ten minutes after being plugged-in to charge, if it was run dead... That can be really stressful in time-sensitive situations.

There's a certain shell-shock that comes of it over time—constantly troubleshooting—and I often find myself not wanting to use the LinnStrument between gigs because of it. It just doesn't feel like a cohesive system. Never mind that I'm always a little apprehensive at gigs, when I set up the LinnStrument side of my rig, in anticipation of "what's today's issue going to be?" It doesn't have to be a total showstopper to ruin my mood.

As a result, when I'm at home or in the studio, I tend to reach for devices that simply work at the flip of a switch. That's just the truth of it. I mean, if I had to negotiate with my guitar every time I picked it up, I probably wouldn't want to play it either. Y'dig?

At any rate, I think it's a shame. The LinnStrument itself is brilliant; it’s just that it’s at the mercy of an industry that doesn’t fully support it, and that's frustrating. That said, I don’t want to step back from the MPE thing—I’m kinda hooked on it now, to be honest—but I’m starting to regret ever aspiring to it. Of course, if I abandon MPE, buy a modulation-heavy mono synth, and revamp my live rig to accommodate it; the very next day, someone will drop the perfect MPE synth… I guarantee it.

Cheers!

[Tj Shredder]

I think it boils down to focus. An iPad or even more laptop just always reminds you of potential. The potential to install a new toy mainly. As soon you do that, or upgrade the OS, things might brake. I bet, if you restrict yourself to a single app and never change that running system, you are at least as stable as any hardware synth. Even those, if they deliver more than just pure analog mono sounds, need some time to fire up.
Get a second iPad just for that limited purpose and it will be cheaper than any other hardware with comparable features. Though as soon you need the knobs, things get more complicated...
For the old iPads with that huge connector, there had been some special mixers who would deliver the knobs and the iPad would deliver the screen. Maybe when the USB-C connectors are the only standard, those solutions appear again. You would leave that iPad in place and surf or browse KVR with a different one...

[mrspiral]

I understand that. Computers have a great potential for becoming loaded down with things that can cause problems. I can certainly see how the ongoing stress could get to you after a while.

All that having been said, I am still curious as to what you were using, because the sorts of problems you’re mentioning simply never bother me. Admittedly I gig a lot less often than you do, probably playing fewer than 50 live shows a year, but still…

[John the Savage]

I think it boils down to focus. An iPad or even more laptop just always reminds you of potential. The potential to install a new toy mainly. As soon you do that, or upgrade the OS, things might brake. I bet, if you restrict yourself to a single app and never change that running system, you are at least as stable as any hardware synth. Even those, if they deliver more than just pure analog mono sounds, need some time to fire up.
Get a second iPad just for that limited purpose and it will be cheaper than any other hardware with comparable features. Though as soon you need the knobs, things get more complicated...
For the old iPads with that huge connector, there had been some special mixers who would deliver the knobs and the iPad would deliver the screen. Maybe when the USB-C connectors are the only standard, those solutions appear again. You would leave that iPad in place and surf or browse KVR with a different one...

No offense, but it's an awfully big presumption on your behalf, to suggest that a professional touring musician of 30 years is naively surfing the 'Net and checking his email on the same device that he uses onstage for live performance purposes, or that I've got my iPad bogged-down with novelty apps for that matter; especially when I already said that I use only a handful of reputable apps with one of the more robust iOS audio interfaces on the market. What am I new here?

Ahem!

At any rate, I'm not going to split hairs with anyone over the merits of software, or pour over the minutiae of why something works on one iDevice or computer and not another. Frankly, I think that's beneath us. Ain't no two computers alike. I'm sure we can all agree on that. No? Regardless, the problems that I've encountered have been thoroughly documented and ultimately vindicated by the developers of the apps and hardware in question. That's what I do.

Besides which, that's not the point I was originally trying to make. I have synths here that couldn't outperform an adding machine; and yet they still work, every time, exactly as they did the day they were released... The bottom line is, the LinnStrument needs a sturdy and reliable hardware companion, with a comprehensive I/O, designed for life on the road.

I only posted about this cute little MIDI-dongle, because there has been talk here of making a LinnStrument 2.0 with a built-in sound engine; but I personally would prefer a peripheral device of some sort instead, even if that means dealing with certain limitations. That's all.

Cheers!

P.S. I feel I should clarify my tone of voice here—I'm not angry, I'm not attacking you, and I'm not talking-down to anyone—I've just been doing this a long time, and I know what I need, and I have my reasons. Peace.

[John the Savage]

All that having been said, I am still curious as to what you were using, because the sorts of problems you’re mentioning simply never bother me. Admittedly I gig a lot less often than you do, probably playing fewer than 50 live shows a year, but still…

2017 iPad 9.7" — iOS 12.3.1 — iConnectAudio4+

• Animoog
  Model D
  LayR
  iLectric
  SampleTank
  AUFX Dub

Running inside AudioBus 3, no more than two apps at a time, averaging 50% CPU...

I have the Fitness Tracker turned on though... Is that bad?

Cheers!

P.S. 50 shows a year is respectable. 75-100 a year would be about the perfect pace for me; but when it rains it pours, as they say, and it's either feast or famine in this business. My busiest year on record was 258 shows, all on the road...

[mrspiral]

All that having been said, I am still curious as to what you were using, because the sorts of problems you’re mentioning simply never bother me. Admittedly I gig a lot less often than you do, probably playing fewer than 50 live shows a year, but still…

2017 iPad 9.7" — iOS 12.3.1 — iConnectAudio4+

• Animoog
  Model D
  LayR
  iLectric
  SampleTank
  AUFX Dub

Running inside AudioBus 3, no more than two apps at a time, averaging 50% CPU...

I have the Fitness Tracker turned on though... Is that bad?

Cheers!

P.S. 50 shows a year is respectable. 75-100 a year would be about the perfect pace for me; but when it rains it pours, as they say, and it's either feast or famine in this business. My busiest year on record was 258 shows, all on the road...

Mad respect all around. your schedule is definitely going to be harder than mine… Perhaps, most of all, harder on you.

What you’re doing definitely doesn’t seem like something an iPad couldn’t handle.

I have to admit, I don’t use many of those apps regularly myself, although I own most of them and play with them a little bit. However, I do wonder if any of them could produce CPU spikes that you will not see in the Audiobus CPU metering. Average load of 50% but a spike of 200% could lead to “ghosts in the machine”...

I have one of those iConnectAUDIO4+ interfaces, but haven’t used it a lot, simply because I haven’t had time to configure it the way I want. The feedback on them appears to fall into two camps… either people love the flexibility, or they hate the complexity. Is there some feature it has that you absolutely require, that is preventing you from using a simpler interface with fewer possible points of failure?

I have no doubt that you have worked hard on this system, but I am just wondering if there is some area of expertise I have that could be of help to you.

[mrspiral]

...and if people want us to take this conversation elsewhere, perhaps we should. On here, I can go back to wishing for a little dongle synthesizer that plays Mellotron sounds.

[John the Savage]

I have no doubt that you have worked hard on this system, but I am just wondering if there is some area of expertise I have that could be of help to you.

Well, there is this little matter of cold fusion that has had me stumped...

Seriously though, with regards to the iConnectAudio4+, I've got it. It's not at all over my head, and I actually make use of its many complexities regularly. In fact, I'm currently employing every port it has, and that's just in my little corner of the stage.

No, most of the problems I've encountered are Audiobus related, and I've worked closely with Michael to solve a few of those problems over the years. Much to his credit, he does take it seriously, and understands the urgency and need for reliability in the context of live performance. However, despite fighting the good fight, it's an uphill battle to be sure. iOS 11, for instance, broke both Audiobus and iConnectivity's lightning protocol simultaneously; the effects of which I was dealing with for over a year. iOS 12 had issues that weren't fixed till 12.2, only to be broken again with 12.4. And now we're on to iOS 13, which has yet to prove itself... etc. Never mind the differences from one generation of iDevice to the next. Frankly, I don't know how developers find the time or the patience.

As I said, this is why hardware has its place in the world of professional music. The industry needs to stop chasing its tail and commit. The elusion of choice is a siren song.

Cheers!

P.S. What does your live setup entail? And what kind of gigs do you play?

[John the Savage]

...and if people want us to take this conversation elsewhere, perhaps we should. On here, I can go back to wishing for a little dongle synthesizer that plays Mellotron sounds.

Pff... It's my thread, and I say we can talk about whatever we want. I mean, really, how much could there possibly be to say about a lo-fi synth that fits inside a MIDI dongle?

Cheers!