Most important news from WWDC - Audio apps can now run multiple audio threads !!!

wim

What happens if there's a Starbucks in the store with a cute but slow barista, and the workers keep going back to order half-caf mocha soy milk frappuccinos?

nerVe

I hope the jello is available soon...how soon after iOS14 drops? Will we see lower core audio latency?

horsetrainer

@hes said:

@horsetrainer said:
So the store has to keep track of each shopper's departure time, and make sure they are put in both the checkout lines, and in the lines leading into and out of the store, in an order that allows all the shoppers to make it back into their vans on schedule.

This is not a precise or complete analogy, but this may be a way to think about single-core vs. multi-core in the audio app context using your van at the grocery example:

Assume we have a single van (the DAW) that needs to get filled up with food by a certain time. The van has four workers (the plugin apps) that can be used to gather food in the store to hopefully leave on time.

In the single processor core scenario, the van sends the four workers into the grocery store to gather produce. However, they have a (strange) limitation: only one of them can move or gather produce at a time (during their "time slice" on the single processor core). So Worker 1 moves a bit and gets an apple or two, then he must stop and Worker 2 is allowed to gather for a while, then Worker 3, and so on. Eventually they all make it back to the van; if one arrives back before the others he will just sit and wait until they all get back. (Hopefully they all get back in time, if not, then you may, for example, hear a "crackle".)

In the multi-processor scenario, the van sends the four workers out again. Only this time, the workers can all go about their business without worrying about being stopped to allow another worker to move (so long as they are the only worker assigned to their processor core). In an ideal world, they would complete their task of getting all the produce back to the van in 1/4 the time.

(Preventing different processes or threads from accessing the same data at the same time is critical, but I don't think it's a necessary part of understanding the benefit of multi-processing. )

Thanks for the better example... Makes sense.

I guess the concept I was contemplating is more about the whether the iPad has any "other" peripheral circuit architecture that act as Audio "bottlenecks" or "speed limits" relative to using the data delivered by the faster processing. Like me plugging my older USB2 external drive into a computer with USB3 bus architecture. The bus may be faster, but it's not going to transfer my files any faster because the old drive can only transfer data at USB2 speed.

So if the iPad is updated to use it's multi-core processor for audio, are all the other peripheral components that the iPad uses to process audio going to be fast enough to take advantage of those faster processing times?

supadom

Sounds like a car crash to me, especially at the beginning.

Buying the newest and fastest device will likely still remain the surest way to get more processing done. I just hope that headphone jack is not the thing of the past.

drcongo

@wim that supermarket analogy is the best description of threads, cores and multiprocessing I’ve ever seen.

Carnbot

Yes, wish that guy in the video used the same analogy So I guess this development could be one beneficial result of Mac Os running on the same CPU, to make it run desktop class apps optimally on the mobile chip, the development work in both OSes on the chips will benefit both platforms in performance.

nerVe

Any news on this multicore iOS update? Can I ditch using my mac for DSP? Can I run iOS apps on macOS?

wim

@nerVe said:
Any news on this multicore iOS update? Can I ditch using my mac for DSP? Can I run iOS apps on macOS?

No. No**. No.

** actually, that one is up to you.

nerVe

How about aggregate devices? USB3 support? Can I pass on the Eventide H9000R?

jolico

How long until I can run 2 instances of Model D in AUM?

How many more years after that until can add an effect to each of them?

Jocphone

@jolico said:
How long until I can run 2 instances of Model D in AUM?

How many more years after that until can add an effect to each of them?

What is stopping you?

_ki

@jolico Just tested - a two year old iPad Pro 10.5 on IOS 13.6 can run 4 Model D instances in AUM with different presets each and mix bus with a common FX plugin. Or 3 Model Ds, each with own insert FX plugin, a mix bus and a common FX on that.

The GUI of the Model Ds should not be opened as this cost more performance and crackling starts
But all in all, im quite happy with the cpu- or IOS performance and stability

jolico

@Jocphone said:

@jolico said:
How long until I can run 2 instances of Model D in AUM?

How many more years after that until can add an effect to each of them?

What is stopping you?

iPhone 6S

Jocphone

@jolico said:

@Jocphone said:

@jolico said:
How long until I can run 2 instances of Model D in AUM?

How many more years after that until can add an effect to each of them?

What is stopping you?

iPhone 6S

OK, so that is a situation that is unlikely to get resolved by iOS or Moog updates.

For what it is worth mine is the cheapest iPad 6. I think it was about £329 in the UK in 2018..?

And I can run 4 Model Ds with some effects, just about. Move anything on screen and it's crackletime but it soon settles down again.

jolico

@Jocphone said:

@jolico said:

@Jocphone said:

@jolico said:
How long until I can run 2 instances of Model D in AUM?

How many more years after that until can add an effect to each of them?

What is stopping you?

iPhone 6S

OK, so that is a situation that is unlikely to get resolved by iOS or Moog updates.

For what it is worth mine is the cheapest iPad 6. I think it was about £329 in the UK in 2018..?

And I can run 4 Model Ds with some effects, just about. Move anything on screen and it's crackletime but it soon settles down again.

I know. This thing lasted much longer than I expected

nerVe

Do I understand correctly? multi-core support for realtime audio apps begins with this new 2020 workgroup API?

wim

@nerVe said:
Do I understand correctly? multi-core support for realtime audio apps begins with this new 2020 workgroup API?

It depends what you mean by that. Here’s an earlier post on the subject - I don’t feel like typing it again:

https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/840102#Comment_840102

nerVe

Thanks. So I guess there are no apps out yet....

@wim said:
It depends what you mean by that. Here’s an earlier post on the subject

https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/840102#Comment_840102k

wim

@nerVe said:
Thanks. So I guess there are no apps out yet....

@wim said:
It depends what you mean by that. Here’s an earlier post on the subject

https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/840102#Comment_840102k

No, and I haven’t heard of any under development either. It’s gonna take time. IOS 14 isn’t even out of beta yet.

nerVe

@wim said:

No, and I haven’t heard of any under development either. It’s gonna take time. IOS 14 isn’t even out of beta yet.

Ahh, ok, I understood workgroups were already live and not dependent on iOS14.