Is this internal audio routing possible?

[hjorte]

I am using an external USB audio interface (MOTU) with my Macbook M1 Pro.
The MOTU has two LINE IN jacks (called In 5 and In 6 in Audio Devices).

I am using an audio analyzer application called NAK T-100, which will only listen to In 1 and In 2 from the system.
I want the app NAK T-100 to receive input from the MOTU LINE IN 5 and 6 (system In 5 and In 6).
The MOTU does not have any routing software.

Is there a system setting in Sonoma or a routing software which will make this possible, i.e. take the signals arriving on MOTU LINE IN 5 and 6, and route them internally to system In 1 and 2?

 

[motulist]

if a device is set up in audiomidi and is working, then that generally means its ins and outs should be available to all apps. i would guess that you just have to figure out how to select those inputs within the t-100 software

 

[hjorte]

i would guess that you just have to figure out how to select those inputs within the t-100 software

I told you the software does not offer the possibility

 

[sahnert]

I use Rogue Amoeba Loopback for jobs like this.

Loopback - Cable-free audio routing for Mac

Get all the power of a high-end studio mixing board, right inside your Mac!

rogueamoeba.com

I believe there is a demo so you can check to make sure it does what you want.

 

[Ben J.]

I use Rogue Amoeba Loopback for jobs like this.

Loopback - Cable-free audio routing for Mac

Get all the power of a high-end studio mixing board, right inside your Mac!

rogueamoeba.com

I believe there is a demo so you can check to make sure it does what you want.

Same goes for Rougue Amoeba Soundsource.
Soundsource is a kind of mac Coreaudio manager. I've used it for years, and I find it very solid and does everything I need to manage everything audio, in paralell with my Pro Tools Studio work. Rougue Amoeba is good value for money IMO.

I checked on the analyser app you mentioned, NAK t100, and point #10 in the bottom notes on the page seems to indicate that you need outside routing.

 

[hjorte]

I checked on the analyser app you mentioned, NAK t100, and point #10 in the bottom notes on the page seems to indicate that you need outside routing.

Yes, outside of the NAK T-100 application. Not outside of the computer. Just making it clear for everyone.
Although the NAK T-100 app can select which audio device to use, the settings of that audio device have to be configured outside of this app by using system provided tools.

Loopback is 125 USD. A bit steep for this.
Soundsource is less money. Ii will check it out.
Has anyone experience with Blackhole for this task?

 

[sahnert]

It could be done with Blackhole plus an additional piece of software like a DAW.

You would need the DAW to monitor the inputs 5-6 and pass the output to Blackhole, then set Blackhole as the input source in NAK

 

[hjorte]

Thanks, @sahnert, is there no way Blackhole can monitor inputs 5-6 thus eliminating the need for a DAW?
Mind you, I have a DAW (Studio One), but the less apps the better.

 

[sahnert]

As far as I know the only interface for Blackhole is in the sound input/output settings of a given app. So you can set Blackhole to be the input in NAK, but then you would also need to tell your MOTU to send audio to Blackhole, and for this you would need another application that has its own Input/Output settings.

So MOTU -> DAW -> Blackhole -> NAK

I suppose if MacOS is hearing input 5/6 and sending it to the Main outputs you could set the System Input to MOTU, then the System Output to Blackhole, then NAK input from Blackhole should work.

 

[hjorte]

The macOS does not hear input 5-6 on the MOTU as of now. And I don't know how and if I can make the macOS hear it.
I'm fairly new to macOS - can Aggregate Device or Multi-Output Device be used for this?

 

[sahnert]

I just looked at the Existential Audio website and it looks like they have a new app I haven't used called Dipper that may work for this https://dipper.audio/.

 

[hjorte]

Ok, I'm trying Dipper but can't get it to work. It seems that an extra app is needed (DipperVirtualMic.pkg), but I can't install that here. It gives an error from the system.

 

[hjorte]

I have Dipper working now! Most of the time. I think it is quite buggy on my macOS (latest Sonoma).

The only issue I have: The only way I can listen back to the signal arriving at MOTU input 5-6, is to hit the MONITOR button directly on the MOTU, which is just a thru function (hw routing input 5-6 directly to output).

But this issue is not crucial. I need to experiment some more, but many thanks for helping out.

Perhaps these pics can document how I got it to work if you're interested

Dipper

macOS

NAK T-100

 

[sahnert]

The only issue I have: The only way I can listen back to the signal arriving at MOTU input 5-6, is to hit the MONITOR button directly on the MOTU, which is just a thru function (hw routing input 5-6 directly to output).

For this you could create an Aggregate device or Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI setup.

(Aggregate device if you need to combine inputs and outputs from multiple sources, Multi-Output if you only need to combine outputs)

I haven't used the Dipper Virtual Mic to know if it has inputs and outputs, but if it was Blackhole you could create a Multi-Output that goes to both Blackhole and your Headphone Output (for example). So then any input that goes to Blackhole can also be monitored by headphones.

 

[hjorte]

One more piece of info (while reading your latest post)

Unfortunately, Dipper only supports 48 kHz sample rate. NAT T-100 recommends 96 kHz for best measuring accuracy.

 

[sahnert]

The fact that dipper works in general makes me wonder if you could get Blackhole to work through the system audio settings, as it does support 96k according to the website.

 

[hjorte]

Yes, I will try and see what Blackhole can do.

Please know that I am very grateful for your help and inspiration, I am very lucky you are online and so quick to guide. Thanks, man!

 

[avkills]

VB audio cable might work; not sure if it supports higher end sample rates though.

 

[olavsu1]

I told you the software does not offer the possibility

Then you can't do that. That routing is possible only in linux/unix using audio/midi routing software called qjackctl It can route audo/midi/sync between all those apps what have jackd support. Without jackd support it will not work.

 

[kkclstuff]

hey @hjorte doesnt the MOTU M6 support the use of their "browser-based" setup (MOTU AVB)?

Im using the 8pre-ES and I control the hardware setup (Routing/mixing/ext device like iPad/ etc) via my browser. I thought all the 'new ' MOTU interfaces used the same system control? It might be the best solution if the M6 utilizes the same (2nd image is the routing setup)...

PS> check with the MOTU.com Knowledge board the support staff are great with accurate (and quick) answers👍

 

[hjorte]

hey @hjorte doesnt the MOTU M6 support the use of their "browser-based" setup (MOTU AVB)?

No, I'm pretty sure the M6 does not support the AVB network function. I think it would have to have a networking port to be able to do that, which it hasn't.

I ended up using the mic/line input 1+2 for the purpose, despite the preamps cannot be bypassed and also have an unwanted potentiometer in the signal path. The purpose being analysing the line output from cassette decks.

I had two concerns:

1. I was worried that the pots would be inaccurate at their zero position and would not have the same resistance, resulting in channel imbalance. This is very important. To find any channel imbalance in a cassette deck, the measuring gear cannot have any inaccuracies.
2. Without mixer software and no DAW involved, I would have the problem of both inputs being panned center, which is unwanted.

Regarding #1: I found the 1+2 pots to be really precise and the same at the zero position. So, no worries here.
Regarding #2: I finally found the Stereo Monitoring feature of the MOTU M6, where long-pressing one of the MON switches will enable stereo panning for that input pair (1+2 or 3+4). Solved.