How to Use the iPad as a MIDI Controller on a Mac
Apps for musicians can turn your iPad into an advanced controller and a great music-maker, but you still have to get those signals to your Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). You may be surprised to hear that iOS has supported wireless MIDI connections since version 4.2, and Macs running OS X 10.4 or higher support MIDI Wi-Fi. While Windows doesn’t support wireless MIDI out of the box, there’s a simple way to get it working on the PC as well. The Mac makes it relatively easy to set up a connection with an iPad, but you need to dig into your MIDI settings and know just where to go to make the connection. This creates a network connection your DAW can use to communicate with the iPad.
How to Configure MIDI Over Wi-Fi on a Windows PC
Windows can support wireless MIDI through the Bonjour service. This service is installed with iTunes, so before you set up Wi-Fi MIDI on your PC, make sure you have the most recent update of iTunes. If you don’t have iTunes, you can install it from the web. Otherwise, launch iTunes. If there is a more recent version, you are prompted to install it. This creates the connection on your Windows-based PC.
Try These Apps for Your New MIDI Controller
Now that you have the iPad set up to talk to your PC, you need some apps to send MIDI to it. The iPad can be great as a virtual instrument or just to add a few extra controls to your setup.
TouchOSC: A great way to add some knobs and controls via your iPad’s touch screen. Compatible with iOS 5.1.1 or later. Knob Lab: An alternative to TouchOSC, Knob Lab is free to download and check out. Compatible with iOS 9.0 or later. Geo Synthesizer (9.0 or later) and GeoShred: (9.3 or later): Two sides of the same coin, these apps use a fourths-based layout to turn your iPad surface into a virtual instrument. GeoShred comes with a modeled guitar, while Geo Synthesizer has synth-based sounds. Lemur: This app is a multi-touch instrument that allows you to design colorful multi-shape widgets and place them on canvas for your control. Compatible with iOS 8.0 or later.
