Beatbuddy with Soundbrenner Pulse

[Habo]

Hi,
I use the beatbuddy and want to connect it (MIDI) with the Soundbrenner Pulse watch. Cool device … Did anyone get it work with one of the following scenarios in the configuration :
PC Windows 10 and Android 9

Scenario 1. Beatbuddy is master (sender) of beat and sends it to Soundbrenner Pulse:

Source of beat : The Beatbuddy -> MIDI OUT Cable -> MIDI2USB Adapter ->MIDI IN -> PC Window 10 ->MIDI OUT via USB Port -> Cable to Smarthpone S9 Samsung Android9 -> USB as MIDI Protocol -> Soundbrenner APP with Midi Enabled --> Bluetooth to --> Soundbrenner Pulse Watch. …
to feel the beat of beatbuddy.

Scenario2. Beatbuddy is slave (receiver) of beat and Soundbrenner Pulse defines the beat

Source of beat: Soundbrenner Pulse Watch -> Bluetooth to Soundbrenner APP with Midi Enabled ->USB Port -> Cable Smarthpone S9 Samsung Android to PC USB Port-> PC Windows 10 -> USB Port MIDI OUT -> Beadybuddy breakout cable MIDI IN.

Scenario3. “Dream Scenario” Beatbuddy is master (sender) and send the beat via MIDI Bluetooth direct to Soundbrenner Pulse.
The Beatbuddy -> MIDI OUT Break-Out Cable -> MIDI2 Bluetooth Sender --> Soundbrenner Pulse watch direct. Don’t know if this is realistic…

Scenario4. Beatbuddy is master (sender) and send the beat via MIDI Bluetooth to Smartphone and then to Soundbrenner Pulse.
The Beatbuddy -> MIDI OUT Break-Out Cable -> MIDI2 Bluetooth Sender --> Smarthpone S9 Samsung Android9 midi over Bluetooth --> Soundbrenner APP with Midi Enabled --> Bluetooth to --> Soundbrenner Pulse Watch.

If someone of you have some hints to get this work, let me know.
Or are there another scenarios where it could work with Windows 10. Sorry I have no IOS laptop and no IOS smartphone …

At the moment it works perfect with a DAW like StudioONE as beat source … when you press
PLAY in the DAW the Pulse starts with the beat defined in the DAW. Would be cool if I start the beatbuddy and the Pulse watch would start with the beat defined in the Beatbuddy.

Here how it works with DAW but without BB :

https://www.soundbrenner.com/soundbrennerpulse/

How to Connect the Android App to DAW on Windows using MIDI

How to Connect the iOS App to DAW on Windows using MIDI

… but with beat buddy it would be certainly more fun.
Let me know your ideas and experience. THX

[DavidPackouz]

@Habo as far as the BeatBuddy goes, it sends out and receives the standard MIDI clock signal via the MIDI Sync breakout cable. What you connect it to doesn’t affect the BeatBuddy’s function. So this is a question of how those other devices interact with each other.

For scenario 3, you will have to check with Soundbrenner if the pulse can connect directly to the MIDI bluetooth adapter, or if you need to go through the smartphone like scenarios 2 and 4.

[Habo]

Hello David,

Thanks alot for your response! I will check this with

the soundbrenner guys. I let you know.

Kind regards Habo

[Habo]

Scenario1 : It works on Android and Windows10!!! So cool!
Hello again,
David you are right BB already sends the timing information. After al little bit research …all I had to do
is to connect the USB Midi Port (INPUT) which is connected to the Beatbuddy with the “Midi Function” Port (OUTPUT)
generate by the USB Midi connection to the Android phone. I did it simply by connecting the port
with MIDI-OX .
So the final working flow is :
Scenario 1. Beatbuddy is master (sender) of beat and sends it to Soundbrenner Pulse:

Source of beat : The Beatbuddy -> MIDI OUT Cable ->; MIDI2USB ExternalAdapter ->; USB MIDI Interface (INPUT) PC Window 10 -> MIDI-OX application on Win10 with Port Assignment to MIDI Function Port (OUTPUT) -> USB Smarthpone Cable Standard to Smarthpone S9 Samsung Android9 -( USB Protocol set to MIDI -> Soundbrenner APP with Midi Enabled --> Bluetooth to -->; Soundbrenner Pulse Watch. … press Beatbuddy play and you feel the the beat of beatbuddy. All tempo changes on BB will immedeately reflected on the Soundbrenner Pulse !
Really great!

This is the flow … maybe we can optimze it …lets see

[Habo]

Hi,
good news I tried to optimize Scenario 1.0 by removing the Windows 10 PC and directly connect the Beatbuddy and the Smarthphone and the Pulse. And … it works !!!
Instead of the Windows 10 PC I plugged the Samsung OTG (stands for “USB On-The-Go”) which comes with the smartphone , to the USE2Midi Adapter which is connected to the Beatbuddy and the USB Type C side to the Smartphone. Thats it ! The key is the OTG Adapter. It converts your smartphone from a “MIDI device” into a “MIDI Host”. You cannot connect a MIDI Device (BB) to MIDI Device (PULSE) …you always need a MIDI HOST.

Here is the flow …

[Habo]

Gear. All you need.

Lets try Scenario 2.0 , if we can bring the Beadbuddy to react on the BPM change on the Pulse so that we can remote control or just adjust the tempo of the Beatbuddy without our feed…

[Habo]

Hi,
found out that I could easily use the Pulse App (Android) as Remote Controller for the Beatbuddy. Just connect the OTG Midi cable ,start the App , enable Midi Output connection to Beatbuddy and it works!!
You can start and stop the Beatbuddy remote from the smartphones app and turn the BPM wheel to change the beats BPM and Beatbuddy reacts immediately and follows the master command. Beatbuddy is a great designed tool!
Wonderful.
This is Scenario 2.1 “without” the Pulse watch. Scenario 2.0 with the Pulse watch as master is still under evaluation

[Habo]

Hi, made two little videos for scenario1.1…in a hurry as you can hear …sorry… one the setup the scenario and the second for changing the BPM. Hope it helps … For what ?
As an example the pulse app is configured that it will “speak” and “vibrate” the main 1/4 beats. Cool is that you can set a beatbuddy a rhytm you like in (e.g.4/4) and overlay a second rhythm from pulse (e.g. 1/16 or what you want for soloing with you guitar.) So you hear the rythm from the beatbuddy,but you “feel” a 4 times high rthym …micro timing… I guess this will help me in learning solos more exact … lets see…

Gear set up:
https://1drv.ms/f/s!Aqmq-DFvVUZzgQQv-UPQwu79o_M3
Usage:
https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aqmq-DFvVUZzgQFDaheEXpK3AH5i

New video

Beatbuddy Slave 2 SB Pulse App Master 2 Pulse slave :
https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aqmq-DFvVUZzgQVScTa9eIf2wyjZ

[Habo]

Hi,
here is the next scenario 2.2 of my little experiment:
Pulse watch is now master and not the Pulse app. Free control over Beatbuddy! You can walk around and start and stop you and change the beat of Beadbuddy by tapping the pulse or turning the wheel! Its amazing!
Here the flow:
And a little video …
https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aqmq-DFvVUZzgQi2C8cViAaRLPot

Regards Habo

[Habo]

Hi Habo is back,…,
and here my latest experiment:
Scenario4.0. : No USB cable at all ! Crazy! And we are on Android!

Only Bluetooth between Beatbuddy & Smartphone and Smartphone & Pulse watch
… and it works!

Scenario4.0. Beatbuddy is master (sender) and send the beat via MIDI Bluetooth to Smartphone and then via Midi Bluetooth to Soundbrenner Pulse. To feel the BBs vibe …!

First impression: Great. But the sound from the seems a bit influences …noise… maybe the 2 bluetooth links. Its a little bit instable what I feel. But in general it works and I feel on the first run no delay because of the two bluetooth link we add. But ofcourse there must be one delay of about xx ms. But its not recognizable … I have to check this…can’t believe it…
Hope you like it. Give me some feedback if you want.
Regards Habo

Here a little video…
https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aqmq-DFvVUZzgQngb6N0nhI1rNxn

And here the flow:

[Psalm40]

Wow thanks for all the work you put into this, being a sucker for new musical tech I have just acquired the new Soundbrenner core watch and would like to try to sync it to the BB. I have managed it to get it to sync the tempo but not the time signature, did you test this in your scenario? I don’t know if it is the app (ios) or the beat buddy not sending the time signature, I suspect it is the latter. I also use OnSong and I believe they are working on an integration. I want to be able to start the songs without the BB and then bring it in and be in sync with it. But as with all things it takes time for these features to be available.

[natmobile]

@Habo Thanks for all the hard work figuring this out! With scenario 4, what was the latency like? In the video posted, there is an audible delay between the BB and the phone app.

[Psalm40]

So I have had the following from Soundbrenner on the time signature and as they are using MIDI Clock it does not include time signature, so this would need to be set in the app.

About the time signature, unfortunately, this is not possible. We are using MIDI Clock to transfer the data and this does not include time signature information. In this case, you have to set the time signature from our app every time you change from BeatBuddy.

Asked if this could be added in the future got back.

Unfortunately, there is no way we can promise you this feature. It is definitely not in our scope for the next year.

Asked about the integration between Onsong and Soundbrenner app using Ableton link…

your question about Onsong and Link: this is also not possible. IF you actually check Ableton Link, it also can’t change the time signature of the application on all platforms. Even if Onsong develops Link support, it will not be able to receive time signature date from another Link-enabled device.

Finally asked if it could be possible to change songs in the app using midi, eg one song for each time signature, got back…

It is also not possible to control anything in the setlist other than the BPM of the songs inside the setlist. MIDI Clock has only access to the BPM value.

Looks like the core is not going to do what I had hoped. Lastly there is a delay over Bluetooth which is quite noticeable, hopefully Soundbrenner will at least give the option to somehow compensate for the delay in the future. At the moment the core is a rather expensive decibel meter, tuner and a way to tell the time.