How to Use AUM to Connect Your Music Apps

AUM is an audio mixer and host for iPhone and iPad that lets you connect your music apps together — loading synths and effects as plugins, routing audio between them, and mixing it all live. To use AUM on iOS, you add channels, load AUv3 instruments and effects into them, route MIDI from a controller, and mix the result, all in one flexible workspace. It is iOS/iPadOS only, and it is a favourite for live performance and modular-style setups.

What AUM actually is

Think of AUM on iOS as a mixing desk and patchbay in one app. It does not make sound by itself — instead it hosts other apps. You load AUv3 plugins into channels, send their audio through effects, and route MIDI so a keyboard plays a synth running inside AUM. If you are new to plugins, read what AUv3 apps are first, because AUM is built around them.

Step 1: Set your audio and create channels

1. Open AUM and check the audio settings — if you use an interface, select it here, and set a sensible buffer size for low latency.
2. Tap to add a new channel. Each channel is a strip with its own input, effects and output.
3. Add as many channels as you need — one per instrument or input source.

If you are using an interface, our guide to audio interfaces for iPhone and iPad covers the hardware side, and audio latency explains the buffer trade-off.

Step 2: Load an instrument into a channel

1. On a channel, tap the instrument slot at the top.
2. Choose an AUv3 instrument — a synth like Moog Model 15 or Animoog, a drum app, or a sampler such as Koala Sampler.
3. The plugin opens inside AUM; you can now play it.

For sound ideas, see the best synth apps for iOS. To play those synths with feel rather than tapping the screen, connect a controller using our MIDI keyboard guide.

Step 3: Add effects

Each channel has effect slots below the instrument. Tap one and load an AUv3 effect — reverb, delay, EQ, compression or something creative. Effects run in series down the channel, so order matters. This is the same idea covered in adding effects in mobile music apps, just inside AUM’s flexible routing.

Step 4: Route MIDI

AUM has a MIDI routing matrix that decides what controls what. Open the MIDI section, then connect your hardware keyboard (or another app’s MIDI output) to the instrument you want it to play. This is where AUM shines — you can split keyboards, layer instruments, and send MIDI between apps freely.

Step 5: Mix and record

• Use each channel’s fader and pan to balance the sound, just like a hardware mixer.
• AUM can record the master output (and channels) so you can capture a performance or jam.
• Save the whole setup as a session to recall every plugin and routing later.

For broader mixing technique on mobile, see how to mix a song on your phone.

Common AUM workflows

• Live performance rig — load your synths and effects, route a controller, and play a whole set from one screen.
• Plugin host for another app — many producers run AUM to host instruments while sequencing elsewhere.
• Audio routing hub — pass audio between apps and an interface, often alongside Audiobus.

Tips for stable performance

• Keep an eye on CPU — too many heavy plugins can cause glitches; raise the buffer if you hear crackle.
• Save sessions often so you never lose a routing you spent time building.
• Lock the screen orientation and use a stand if you perform live.

Frequently asked questions

Is AUM available on Android?

No. AUM is an iOS and iPadOS app built around Apple’s AUv3 plugin format, so it does not run on Android. Android users connect apps in other ways, and many of AUM’s plugin-hosting features rely on the AUv3 standard that Android does not use.

Do I need an audio interface to use AUM?

No, AUM works with your device’s built-in audio. An interface adds better inputs, lower latency and more outputs, which helps for live use and recording external instruments, but you can build full sessions with plugins using just your iPhone or iPad.

Is AUM a DAW?

Not really — it is a live mixer and host rather than a timeline-based recorder. It is brilliant for playing, routing and capturing performances, but for arranging songs on a timeline you would use a DAW like Cubasis or GarageBand, sometimes alongside AUM.