ABSeq help manual

ABSeq: Reference test your music on the go

ABSeq is a tool for referencing your music on the go.

Musicians, producers, and audio engineers all know the feelings of "Analysis Paralysis" that arise with any project. Often, changes to a song result in a new version

• Made a change to an instrument, vocal or effects? That's a new version.

• Received a new mixdown from your mixing engineer? That's a new version.

• Just got your master back from your mastering engineer? That's a new version.

But how do we make sure that new version is better?

• Traditionally, you would flip back and forth between audio files in your document browser - comparing old and new versions

• However, you have to seek back and forth, sync up the tracks, press play, etc.

• A lot of time and contextual information is lost in this process, leaving you in a state of decision fatigue

With ABSeq, you load in your audio files, press play, and swap back and forth to hear the difference. It's that simple.

First Steps

Load in files from your device's document browser to begin testing

1. Press the "Load File" button on a Track A and select your song

2. Press the "Load File" button on a Track B to select a track to compare to

   • This can be:

     • a new or old version of the song, featuring changes to production

     • a new revision from your mixing or mastering engineer

     • a reference track

3. Press "Play"

   • Both tracks will play simultaneously, in sync.

     (* this works best with files of the same length)

4. Press the "A/B" button to swap between tracks

   • The current playing track is denoted by the colorful border around the track button

   • You can also tap on the track letters ("A", "B", "C", etc.) to hear a specific track

5. That's it! You just referenced your first track.

The human ear is very sensitive to change. Even a musician with minimal ear training can pick up on subtle differences in feel and tonal quality. ABSeq takes advantage of your ear's sensitivity, helping you decide which version is better, so you can release faster.

Sequencer

With the built in sequencer, you can automatically switch between tracks, allowing you to focus on the music.

HOW TO:

1. Turn on the Sequencer with the "ON/OFF" switch

2. Select a Tempo and Beat Division (the default is 1/1 or 1 Bar)

   • This controls the rate of switching

3. Press play!

TIP: Close your eyes, let the sequencer run and try to listen for differences between the two files

To sync the sequencer to the tempo of a track,

1. Open the sequencer

2. Select a track from the "BPM Detect"

3. ABSeq automatically detects the Tempo of your track, and syncs the sequencer accordingly

Adding more tracks

1. Press the "+" button (and "-" to remove)

2. Load a file into the new track(s)

   • Add up to four tracks!

When you add more than 2 tracks, the "A/B" button changes to "Step" mode.

• Press "Step" to hear the next track in the sequence

Sequence Order

1. Press the "Order" button to change the sequence order. Choose from:

   • Forward - left to right

   • Backward - right to left

   • Random - plays a random track each time

Get Creative

As you may have realized by now, this sequencer opens a world of creative possibilities.

• Try loading in different audio files into ABSeq and discover new musical patterns!

Autogain

Often times, different versions of songs will vary in loudness. When comparing a song to a new mix or master, it's easy to be fooled by the old adage "Louder is better".

This is called Loudness Bias.

To eliminate this, ABSeq includes an AutoGain feature.

1. Press the "Autogain" button.

   • ABSeq handles the rest!

Autogain analyzes the loudness levels of all tracks in ABSeq, and sets them to be equal, without clipping. This way, you can be sure you're hearing differences in audio without the bias introduced by loudness

Display Controls

The display section includes a few useful controls:

Track Title

• Press the Track Titles button to toggle display of track titles

• When on, the title of the current playing track will be displayed

Party Mode

• Press the Party Mode button to cycle through fun animations

• Enhance your listening vibe, or create engaging content for your music (via screen recording)

Settings

• Press the Settings button to enter the settings menu

• Select your preference for Light or Dark Mode

• Select from fun themes to personalize the look and feel of ABSeq to suit your taste!

Still stuck?

Send a question, bug report or feature request from ABSeq support.