Your first MIDI recording

Start here

Welcome to the Bones MIDI beta — available through TestFlight for iPhone and iPad. Here’s the quick path from playing something to exporting MIDI.

Bones MIDI turns a recording into editable MIDI, right on your iPhone or iPad. Play a riff, melody, or chord part, or sing a line; then check the detected notes and export them to your music app.

Install #

1. Install TestFlight from the App Store.
2. Open the invite link you were sent, or enter your code in TestFlight.
3. Tap Install next to Bones MIDI, then Open.

You’ll need iOS 17 or later on iPhone, or iPadOS 17 or later on iPad.

Your first transcription #

1. In the Library, tap Record, choose Click or Free, then tap Record to capture a short phrase. Or Import an audio file you already have.
2. Tap Stop. At Take saved, tap Continue to Detection to transcribe. For a Free take, you can first choose Create Beat Map and tap along with the recording to mark its beats. Imported takes are ready to open from the Library.
3. Set Mode: Mono for a single line, Poly for chords, or Voice for singing.
4. Press play and use Compare to check Source against MIDI. Adjust detection, then select notes to move, trim, or delete them.
5. Open Export and tap Save MIDI or Share. Confirm or change the filename, then tap Export. With Save MIDI, choose where to save the .mid file in Files; with Share, choose AirDrop or another app.

For the best results #

• Record one instrument, up close, in a quiet room.
• Play with clear attacks. For singing, try “bah” on each note in Voice mode.
• For quantize or swing, record with Click, which creates a Beat Map automatically. For a Free or imported take, open Timing → Create Beat Map and tap along with the recording.

The user manual covers recording, beat timing, detection, editing, and export in detail.

Inside your music app #

The included AUv3 audio effect captures audio inside GarageBand, AUM, Logic Pro for iPad, or Cubasis. In the plugin, tap Capture, play your phrase, then Stop. Capture is capped at four minutes; available editing buttons depend on window size.

The plugin has three delivery controls:

• File saves MIDI to iCloud Drive → Bones MIDI for your host’s file picker. It is hidden when iCloud Drive is unavailable.
• App saves the take to the Bones MIDI library. Tap the notification or open Bones MIDI yourself to keep editing.
• MIDI lets you drag the file into hosts that accept it. GarageBand does not keep MIDI dragged from Bones MIDI; use File and import it instead.

In GarageBand: after saving with File, open Loop Browser → Files → Browse items from the Files app, then choose your .mid from iCloud Drive → Bones MIDI. Drag the imported file from the Loop Browser into empty space below the tracks or onto a software instrument track—not the Audio Recorder track used for capture. Set the song section length to Automatic so the whole phrase fits. The GarageBand import guide explains these steps.

Read section 13: using the plugin for GarageBand and AUM setup, editing, and delivery instructions.

On the Mac #

Bones MIDI for Mac is coming later. The initial release is for iPhone and iPad. See Mac availability.

Tell us what went wrong #

If a take transcribes badly, tap the recording’s name at the top of the editor and choose Report this recording. You can also long-press the recording in the Library. For general questions or suggestions, open Settings → Help → Help & feedback → Send feedback.

Write what happened. Add your email if you’d like a reply. Include audio and transcription is off by default; turn it on to attach the take and help us reproduce the problem. Nothing is sent until you tap Send.

How to report a problem →

The app, manual, and support are in English. Questions or trouble? Email contact@bonesmidi.com.