Connect Mic To Ipad Garageband

Apr 19, 2015 Recording guitar and vocals at the same time with Garageband for iPad. Guitar into garageband using something like an iRig2 utilizing the headphone jack and record vocals using a Samson Go Mic and a lightning connect to usb adapter which would utilize the lightning connector. A high-quality mic is not enough to record perfect sound with your iPad. You’ll also need good recording and editing apps. Most iOS-compatible mics are also compatible with apps such as Garageband, Music Studio, AmpliTube, Studio HD, and various others. How do I record with external microphone with iPad? When you attach an external microphone. Make sure the audio interface has the proper jack to connect the mic to and works with OSX (Core Audio) so you don't need to install any additional driver. In GarageBand, you then just select that audio interface as the audio source and you can record from your mic onto an Audio Track.

You can connect real instruments, such as electric keyboards and guitars to your Mac for use in GarageBand. Using real instruments with GarageBand produces not only better sound, but realistic practice, as you finger the actual instrument and not an on-screen keyboard/string set.

You can connect a real MIDI keyboard through a USB cable (on most newer gear) or a MIDI adapter (on older equipment). You can connect other MIDI instruments, including guitars, woodwinds, and drums, and record onto a real instrument track in GarageBand. Click the red Record button when you’re ready to rock. Move the playhead to just before where you want to start jamming.

There are also MIDI connectors such as the iRig MIDI, which hook up MIDI keyboards, drum machines, drum pads, pedal boards and more to an iOS device. Connect your guitar to your iOS device (we’re using an iRig), get your headphones on and turn up the volume on your headphones and guitar. Open GarageBand. Make sure your hub is powered on. Using a Lightning-to-USB adapter and a standard USB cable, connect your iPhone or iPad to the hub. Connect your microphone to the hub in another port.

MIDI is geek shorthand for Musical Instrument Digital Interface, a standard that has been around for years.

If the high-quality instrument you have in mind is your own singing voice, connect a microphone (in lieu of the Mac’s built-in microphone) to an audio input port on the computer.

Open System Preferences, click Sound, click Input, and then select Line In. Drag the Input volume slider to an appropriate level. Choose Vocals and the instrument that most closely matches your singing style, such as Epic Diva, Helium Breath, or Megaphone. Garage Band will tailor the effects to your voice.

Don’t worry if you don’t know how to characterize your singing voice; one of your other options is No Effects.

Good microphones are also useful when you’re recording podcasts. If you choose to use a microphone not for singing but for recording your speaking voice, set the option to No Effects (unless you’re going for a comedic effect).

To add the instrument to a recording, click the Create a New Track (+) button, choose Track→New Track, then select Real Instrument and click Create.

Choose an input source (stereo or mono), depending on how the instrument is connected to the Mac. Select Monitor from the pop-up menu to be able to hear the instrument as you play it, with or without feedback.

With the exception of a few dedicated iOS-specific models, most MIDI controller keyboards require another piece of hardware to be placed in between them and your iOS device in order for your Core MIDI apps to recognize and respond to your MIDI controller. You have a few different ways you can go.

iOS MIDI interface

One way to go is to purchase a dedicated iOS MIDI interface, or an iOS audio-and-MIDI interface that gives you microphone or guitar connections (or both) in addition to a MIDI connection. Examples of audio-and-MIDI interfaces on the market include the IK Multimedia iRig PRO, the Alesis I/O Dock II, and the Behringer iS202.

If you only need MIDI and don’t plan on recording audio, a dedicated iOS MIDI interface is an economical way to go, and more are being released all the time. For instance, the new IK Multimedia iRig MIDI 2 gives you the option of Lightning and 30-pin connections for iOS, or USB connections for Mac and PC. It features MIDI in, out, and thru ports.

If you want to have the option to set up a multi-machine setup with four MIDI ins and four MIDI outs, and the ability to pass audio from one machine to the next, you might consider iConnectivity’s new iConnectMIDI4+, which, with all its capabilities, sells only for about $200.

To connect a controller keyboard with an iOS interface, first connect the interface to your iOS device’s dock port. Next, plug the keyboard’s MIDI out to the MIDI in on the interface using either a standard MIDI cable or a cable that comes with the unit, depending on the interface you have. The keyboard’s MIDI out is where messages coming from the keyboard — including note-ons and note-offs, CC data, and more — are sent.

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The interface’s MIDI in port takes that data and brings it into your iOS device and makes it available for your app.

Before MIDI came along, synthesizers used control voltage (or CV) to pass messages like notes and performance data between different devices. CV isn’t common to iOS interfaces yet, but some enterprising souls allow you to pass MIDI to digital devices and CV to analog devices for some truly impressive synth rigs. If you feel like geeking out, check out apps like Brute LFO and buy the cable you’ll need (one end should be the standard headphone to plug into the phone, and the other end whatever the analog synth accepts).

Connecting controllers to iOS devices using USB

Another option for plugging in an external keyboard is to use a standard USB MIDI controller. “But wait, there’s no USB port on an iOS device,” you say. This is technically true, but you can add one very easily with Apple’s inexpensive Lightning-to-USB-camera adapter, for Lighting-equipped devices, or the Camera Connection Kit for iOS devices with 30-pin dock connectors.

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When you do this, the MIDI controller world is your oyster, as you can choose from a large selection of USB MIDI interfaces.

In order to work with Apple’s Core MIDI, a USB MIDI controller must be USB Class Compliant, which means that it’s designed to work with your iOS device (or a computer) without the need to install a software driver. If driver installation is required, it won’t work on your iOS device.

A large percentage of USB controller keyboards are USB Class Compliant, and some even advertise themselves as being iOS compatible, if you use one of the Apple camera adapters.

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Do your research and make sure your USB MIDI controller will work with iOS devices. Manufacturers who do produce compatible equipment will usually fall over themselves advertising this fact.

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One more big advantage of connecting via USB to your iOS device is that you don’t need to plug a power adapter into the keyboard; it will be bus powered, which means it gets its power through the USB cable. As a result, you can connect your MIDI keyboard in places where there’s no AC power available — as long as your iPad’s battery is charged. However, longer chains of devices or larger devices might still need a separate power source — do your research and test first.