jammr Forum

Charlotte
I'm hoping to be able to play piano duets remotely with friends while we can't meet up because of the coronavirus.

Hi Charlotte,
jammr is live but not real-time. It is designed for improvising together to a chord progression. It is not suited for playing entire pieces (with few exceptions where the structure of the music has repetition).

You can play with your friend using jammr, but you won't be able to perform duets.

Here is a page that explains how it works:
https://jammr.net/howitworks.html

Kozmuck
I decided to try connecting to Jammr through my Universal Audio Apollo 8 system connected to my laptop via the Thunderbolt 3 interface. This seemed to work very well on my end but the players on the other end says it's way too load, distorted and crackly. I looked all over for a way to turn down the output to Jammr but there's no user interface I can find to do that. In Jammr settings I set the output device to be “Speakers (Universal Audio Thunderbolt WDM) and the audio system to be ”Windows WASAPI" How do I confirm that I have the correct and, hopefully, best setup and confirm the levels going into Jammr?

Using the Apollo interface is a good idea because built-in soundcards usually have poor quality mic inputs.

Sounds like audio output is working fine but input needs adjustment.

Please try the following:
1. Listen through headphones if you are using a microphone. This prevents feedback.
2. Reduce the input volume level on the Apollo interface either by adjusting the Preamp knob or using the control software.
3. Turn the Monitor knob on the Apollo interface completely off. Let's use software monitoring instead so you hear yourself the way jammr hears you.
3. Change the audio system to “Windows WDM-KS” and select the Apollo as the input and output device in jammr's sound settings. Set Latency somewhere between 5-12 milliseconds. Leave Sample Rate at the default (probably 44100 or 48000 Hz). Enable the “Play back my audio” checkbox in jammr's sound settings.
4. Join a jam session and you should still hear others playing. You can also verify that audio output is working by enabling the Metronome button in the bottom-right corner of the jammr window and checking if you hear the metronome click.
5. Do you hear yourself through the headphones when you play a note on your instrument or say something into the microphone? You can adjust the Preamp knob on the Apollo interface until your input volume level fits into the mix.

If you hit an issue please go to Help | Show log and copy-paste the technical information that gets displayed so I can take a look at the audio configuration. Thanks!

Hi! thank you a lot for this tool! And support!
My issue: having checked into a current session, I was not able to hear anything. The chat was working. I have only a simple in/out-headset for telephoning, but it works. So what could be the problem?
greets, nw

nordwind
I was not able to hear anything. The chat was working. I have only a simple in/out-headset for telephoning, but it works. So what could be the problem?

Is the sound device that the headset is connected to selected as the input and output device in jammr's sound settings?

When you enable the Metronome button in the bottom-right corner of the jammr window you should hear the metronome click if audio output when connected to a jam session.

@

stefanha

hi stefanha, the headset is directly connected to the laptop via two mini-clinques, no other device between.
in the settings I cannot change “Audio-Settings”, neither MIDI. I could do something in “Effect plugins”: “Add”, and in “User interface”: switch from “Default” to several numbers.
joining to a session, I can only see the metronome, not hear it.
Actually I got a Debian operating system, do you have experience with it?

Edited nordwind (May 18, 2020 18:52:36)

Hi nordwind,
It sounds like it's almost working now. Audio settings cannot be changed while connected to a jam session. Please go to File | Disconnect before changing the sound settings in File | Settings. Now the settings controls will be enabled.

Regarding Debian, I recommend either using ALSA directly or JACK. Avoid using the “default” or PulseAudio ALSA device, it often does not work well with low-latency recording. You can tell PulseAudio not to access the sound device by launching pavucontrol and disabling the device in the Configuration tab.

stefanha
It sounds like it's almost working now..

thank you, that's a start. Yes, it's working, but I have to check out devices now. Can you recommend how to just transmit the room-sound via mic-in? I have a zoom H2 device, that I can connect by USB, but starting to play, the sound-transmission is crashing. You have to choose in-put-frequency: 44,1Hz or 48Hz? Got also a mic, but still need technique to connect it. What's best? Do I have to get an amp or mixer better?
Thanks a lot! Greetings!

hi and hello to everybody!
Ive never done a jamsession before, so is anybody here who wants to tell me which kind of hardware and software i will need for singing or playing the Accoustic guitar? Do I need an interface, which programmes (easy, for windows 10) and which cables will I need - T
thanks for infos !!!!

Hi Gabi,
jammr has the same requirements as computer recording. There are lots of tutorials and reviews available online that cover the options. I'll try to give a quick overview here.

If you would like to sing and play guitar then a USB sound interface like the Focusrite Scarlett Solo will provide good quality audio. This type of soundcard usually has one microphone and one guitar input.

To record singing you will need a microphone. Built-in microphones in laptops have poor quality audio, they are usually not suitable for recording good-sounding vocals. Instead a higher-quality microphone plugged into a USB sound interface through an XLR cable will sound good.

Acoustic guitars can be recorded through a microphone (even the same microphone as your vocals!). If you want to record vocals and guitar through the same microphone then it's important to check that the microphone you buy is designed for this, because some microphones are designed to focus on just a narrow angle and might have trouble picking up both vocals and the guitar.

Some acoustic guitars also have built-in pickups (electronics) so you can plug a guitar cable directly from the guitar into a soundcard without a microphone. If your guitar has a guitar jack then you can plug it into the soundcard and don't need to use a microphone.

Here is a video that shows you the options:
How to record guitar

Although the video is aimed at recording songs on your computer instead of jamming, most of it applies. You won't need a DAW (like Ableton, Reaper, or Garageband) when using jammr.

To summarize:
1. Some web searches and YouTube videos will help you choose the right gear.
2. You can get good-quality recordings with a USB sound interface and a microphone connected with an XLR cable.

I want to see if I was successful in loggin in. All new to me.