Something to get out of the way straight away - this is getting rid of latency in one direction only. Unfortunately there aren’t yet any easy answers if you want to jam in real time over an internet connection. However this tip from Production Expert Contributor Tim Bran is so simple its probably genius! Over to Tim:
How To Bend Time With Audio Over Zoom
I was doing a songwriting session the other day with an artist in Florida and we were on Zoom. I was streaming a backing track idea from my Logic to her using the wonderful Audiomovers Listento plugin on my output bus. She starting singing over it (through Zoom audio) and her audio was obviously late back to me.. due to the delay of my audio getting to her, then hers back to me. I suddenly thought — if I could delay MY audio just for me, then she would be singing in time.. then I realised that I could!
I put a stereo delay AFTER the Listento plugin so the timing of the outgoing stream wasn’t affected in any way, and adjusted the delay time so her Zoom singing was perfectly in time with what I was hearing! (See photo below for the settings I am using and also how I have my plugins stacked up).
I tested the idea with a friend a few days later, where he was playing his guitar over a drumbeat I had programmed. It worked perfectly. You may have to adjust the delay slightly according to the Zoom delay but you can work this out by asking the person on the other end to clap over a beat that you play them.
Note: this system won’t work if you want to play LIVE as your audio is delayed for you by quite a bit. Make a backing track first then play that over Listento.
I hope that you use this idea to write some great songs!
Tim Bran is a record producer, mixer and writer who has worked with the likes of London Grammar, Birdy, Aurora, Rae Morris, KT Tunstall, Halsey, The Verve, La Roux and Dreadzone. He was also a co-founder of audio collaboration software company Rocket Network, acquired by Avid in 2002.
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