ReWire

ReWire

ReWire allows you to connect and synchronise multiple software applications, so that you can run them side by side while passing Audio/MIDI information between them. ReWire is available on Windows/Mac only, but on Linux Jack Transport can be used to do similar things.

For example, you could connect Renoise to Logic and program your drums in Renoise while arranging the bulk of your song in Logic. Or you could connect both Reason and Ableton Live to Renoise, then arrange your track in Renoise, control Reason's built-in synthesizers and play around with clips in Live.

ReWire has two modes, both of which are fully supported by Renoise:

• ReWire Master: Commonly known as a Mixer application, the master controls other ReWire slaves. A ReWire master has exclusive control of the soundcard, while slaves must route audio through the master application. There can be multiple slaves, but only one master.

• ReWire Slave: Also known as a ReWire Synth application. Slaves are controlled by a ReWire master and feed their audio back into it. They receive MIDI from the master, but can also send MIDI to the master and ask it to reposition itself.

Because Renoise can be both Master or Slave, you can use it with any application that supports ReWire.

Start/Stop Procedure for ReWire Applications

Starting: The ReWire master application should be started first, then the slave(s).

Closing: Close the ReWire slave application(s) first, then close the master.

Important: When working on songs you must save them separately in both applications. You must also load them up individually when continuing a session. ReWire only handles Audio and MIDI routing and so will not automatically exchange/restore songs or patches.

The basic workflow is:

1. Start ReWire master (and load a pre-saved session).
2. Start ReWire slave (and load a pre-saved session).
3. Save the session and close ReWire slave.
4. Save the session and close ReWire master.

Using Renoise as ReWire Master

First, make sure that no other ReWire master application is open. Start Renoise, automatically making it the master, then in the "Track DSPs" tab select a "#ReWire-In Device" and add it anywhere in the song (Send Tracks are the ideal place to use this meta device).

Routing Audio To Renoise

Use the "Device" option to select a slave from the list. In most cases the slave will automatically launch. If not, then launch the application manually.

The audio signal from the slave will now be routed into Renoise via the "#ReWire-In Device". If you hit play in Renoise, the slave will start playing too. If you navigate around in the song, the slave will follow. If you change the playback in the slave, Renoise will follow. Both applications are now bound together and everything is automatically configured for you.

If you want to capture another audio bus from the same slave, simply add another "#ReWire-In Device" and select the same slave but select a different bus. This will allow you to stream multiple buses from the same application.

Trigger MIDI from Renoise

If a slave has MIDI inputs, you will find them listed as regular MIDI devices in the Renoise MIDI Instrument Settings. This way you could, for example, use Reason synths from within Renoise.

Automating ReWired synths like Reason

As soon as you've created a ReWire MIDI instrument, you can use the "*MIDI-Control Device" in Renoise to automate it. If the synth supports this, the mapped parameters will be shown there so you know which CC number automates which parameter.

Using Renoise as ReWire Slave

First, start the music application that will be designated as the master. After the master application has launched, start Renoise. Renoise will ask you if it should run as slave. Click "Yes".

In many cases you will then have to explicitly tell the master to use Renoise as a slave. In most multi-track sequencers this is done by selecting Renoise as "Audio Input". Please refer to the master's documentation for more details.

Once you have routed Renoise into the master mixer, you are ready to go and the audio signal from Renoise will be routed into the host. Starting, stopping, and navigating though the song will be synchronized in both apps.

Setting up Transport Sync Mode in Renoise

When running Renoise as a ReWire slave, you have two choices regarding how Renoise should sync to the master. This can be set up in the Audio Preferences, but only after Renoise is already running as a ReWire slave:

• Full Transport Sync: Any changes in the time line in Renoise and the ReWire master will be synced. The time-line and transport of both application will always be matched. This is Useful to create a song in multiple applications at once.
• BPM & Bar Sync: You can start, stop and navigate freely in Renoise, while the time-line of both applications is still beat-synced. Very useful for improvisations or live mixing. Its a bit like syncing a drum machine (Renoise in this case) to a sequencer (the ReWire master).

• Automatically compensate latencies: The ReWire protocol unfortunately does not allow to pass over latencies that wither the ReWire master or Slave are currently using. When running Renoise as ReWire slave and your song uses plug-ins which introduce latency, Renoise must shift its time-line by this latency, to make sure that the ReWire master and Renoise are perfectly in sync. This "shifting" unfortunately may lead into missed first notes when starting the song or pattern. Disabling this option will thus, at the cost of a slight latency offset, make sure that notes in Renoise are not lost when starting. This might be more comfortable while composing a song.

General notes about Renoise as Master or Slave

Some ReWire slaves might have limited control over the transport. It's up to the ReWire master to allow transport changes (or not). For example, some ReWire masters might ignore tempo changes, loop changes or position changes. This is not the fault of Renoise, but rather a limited ReWire implementation in the designated master.

ReWire Demo Restrictions

If you purchased Renoise and are a registered user, then there are of course no restrictions whatsoever. If you are using the free demo, then ReWire has some limitations. These are:

1. When Renoise is Master, only the first stereo pair is used.
2. When Renoise is Slave, the demo version will occasionally generate a small subtle hiss.
3. That's it, no time limitations, no silence, you are free to explore and use the demo for as long as you need, and get a decent impression of how ReWire can improved your workflow.