Multi-computer Ableton + Nome II architecture over RTP-MIDI

[swirl_bridge]

Hi !

We’re building a touring live system with five Macs.

* One master Ableton computer
* Four additional Ableton performers
* iConnectivity mioXL RTP-MIDI network between stations
* Stations are physically separated, so direct MIDI cabling isn’t practical

Our proposed architecture is:

Master Ableton
→ USB
→ Master Nome II
→ MIDI Clock Out
→ mioXL RTP-MIDI network
→ remote mioXLs
→ MIDI into a Nome II at each station
→ USB into each local Mac running Ableton

Our main questions are:

1. Can a remote Nome II receive MIDI Clock on its MIDI input and regenerate that clock over USB for the attached Ableton computer?
2. Is this a supported or recommended topology?
3. Would you recommend a different architecture for a five-computer touring rig?

We’re trying to eliminate our dependence on Ableton Link because a DJ Pro instance on the network is causing instability, and we’d like Nome to become the primary timing backbone.

[simntonic]

That's an awesome setup, glad you asked, and welcome to the community!!

How far apart are the stations? I would suggest a setup with multiple Nomes actually, syncing them together using audio.

Each Nome gives the clock to the station's mioXL and to the local Ableton over USB. The mio then spreads the clock to all machines of the station.
Each mio is connected to each other over Ethernet so that non-clock MIDI data can be spread across the setup as well.

One of the Nome has to be the master, but anything on the network can set the tempo and time signature by sending a MIDI CC message to the master Nome

The only challenge will be that the audio sync between Nomes is unbalanced, so if you plan on having 50 meters of cables between the stations, you will need extra balanced/unbalanced converters.

Simon

[RadekPilich]

What would be the benefit of the slave Nomes? They seem mostly redundant, unless desired for the utility functions such as metronome or customised analog CV sync.I know there are supposed to be some use cases for multi Nomes, I need to check that out, my imagination is failing me.

[beastnode]

Greetings! Thank you for making this amazing device!!


I am also going with your multi-Nome approach and dropping the RTP-MIDI clock idea. Plan in short: bi-directional U-SYNC on the master Mac only, so tempo lives in one Ableton and nothing else can change it. The other machines run U-SYNC one-way and just follow their local Nomes. For the sync lines, a transformer-isolated split off the master's audio out, balanced cable for the distance, converting back right at each INPUT jack.

A few things I couldn't find in the manual:

1. Do the sync pulses pass cleanly through isolation transformers, and what signal level does the INPUT like to see?

2. Through tempo changes mid-set, do the followers stay bar-aligned with the master? And does play/stop ride the sync signal itself — saw it mentioned in the FW 4.5 notes.

3. If a follower loses its sync cable during a show, does it freewheel at the last tempo and re-lock cleanly when the signal comes back? Also curious if there's a smart way to keep a spare unit pre-configured as a master backup.

thanks!!!

[simntonic]

@Radek: the main benefit, on top of the small utility functions you named, is the fact that the clock has a dedicated channel. You could indeed spread the Nome's clock through the RTP network but that will definitely add jitter, and potentially even sync issues if there is a lot of traffic. Using one Nome at each station ensures each mio gets a stable clock.

bi-directional U-SYNC on the master Mac only, so tempo lives in one Ableton and nothing else can change it. The other machines run U-SYNC one-way and just follow their local Nomes.

One-directional U-SYNC can only be from DAW to Nome. To sync the DAW to the Nome (the other direction) without bi-directional U-SYNC, you'll need to use the DAW's usual MIDI Clock sync ("EXT" in Ableton), following the Nome's clock sent over USB. Note that this sync is not as precise as U-SYNC (the clock is very precise, but the actual sync is up to Ableton), but there is no other way to get DAWs to follow.

1. Do the sync pulses pass cleanly through isolation transformers, and what signal level does the INPUT like to see?

Yes that will be fine. The signal is low-level line audio, about +/- 1V.

2. Through tempo changes mid-set, do the followers stay bar-aligned with the master? And does play/stop ride the sync signal itself — saw it mentioned in the FW 4.5 notes.

Follower Nomes are always on time with the master, including the bar. They even follow time signature changes.
You can configure play/stop to either follow (i.e. play on the master "presses" play on the followers automatically), or not (independent play buttons on each Nome). But play will always start on time with bar, that's a core feature from the very first firmware.

3. If a follower loses its sync cable during a show, does it freewheel at the last tempo and re-lock cleanly when the signal comes back?

Yes it does Also with U-SYNC, if Ableton crashes, the master Nome will continue smoothly without even losing the beat, and then reconnect when Ableton is back up again (there will be a minor glitch as it reconnects, as it has to sync to Ableton's timing again).

Also curious if there's a smart way to keep a spare unit pre-configured as a master backup.

There is no automatic backup unfortunately. But with the coming U-SYNC (not released yet) you'll be able to sync multiple Nomes, so you could set one extra one already sync'ed to the master Ableton, and already connect its audio output to a mixer. Then if the main master Nome has an issue just unmute the spare channel on the mixer. Maybe one could set a smart detection to unmute the channel automatically, then you have a fully automatic backup.

Simon