Hi all. I'm not a professional musician but I'd describe myself as a serious amateur. Until July I enjoyed playing jazz solo on the piano, and I still enjoy that, but after buying BIAB two months ago I realize it has given me options that I didn't have before. But the tinny sound from the MacBook Pro laptop leaves a lot to be desired. I do have a sonos speaker but it only connects through Sonos, so I have to convert to MP3 first. I'd like to be able to connect my laptop directly to a speaker system but I know zilch about the mechanics.

The laptop has 4 Thunderbolt3(USB-C) ports, and headphone/mic jack. I have connectors that convert the ports to USB3 and HDMI ports.

Basically I'd like to play the piano with the backing tracks I've developed using BIAB. I wouldn't be recording and it's unlikely I'm going to play with other musicians but I intend to get a MIDI keyboard at some point and the ability to plug in a microphone (not for me!) would be good as I want to keep these options open.

Some ideas on a basic setup would be appreciated.

The simplest way is plug a 3.5mm to RCA Audio Cable in the headphone socket and the other in the stereo line in/AUX/CD.
Turn the laptop volume down low to start with.

Thanks pipeline. I'll be back home in about 24 hrs so I'll try that with the older stereo system I have. I'm comfortable with computers and I'm picking up the BIAB software OK but I've never really understood audio or audio hardware. When people start talking mixers and stuff my eyes start to glaze.

But your suggestion seems simple enough. I'll be back.

It’s not as simple or inexpensive as Pipeline’s suggestion, but I never use the headphone jack. I suggest an inexpensive USB audio device instead. Those mini headphone jacks wear out and can cause a horrible loud sound over your amp and speakers when jostled. Just a killer mistake at a gig. Also, the level of the headphones is not line level; it varies with the volume control, which itself is often really scratchy sounding. And the impedance is wrong for optimal audio quality.

Yea, for how he is going to use it that will be simplest, easiest, cheapest way..
You can get leads that bring it to line level, but just keep the volume low on the laptop and use the volume on your stereo.
On most it should ask if you want Line Out or Speaker Out when you plug the jack in.

Thanks for responding. I feel as if I'm in a canoe for the first time trying to figure out which is the front end.

Is this what you mean? I googled "USB audio device" and got this:
https://www.cnet.com/how-to/make-the-most-out-of-your-computers-usb-audio-port/
I may have misled Pipeline a bit. I'm not just looking at the cheapest way to get sound out of my laptop although I'll definitely try his suggestion. I guess I'm asking for ideas for a blueprint to start a basic music studio, with the flexibility to add in a midi keyboard and microphone later. I had in mind something like an electrical wiring diagram showing me the components I needed to do so. Does that make sense? Alternatively, if anyone has links to basic tutorials on audio setup I could start there too.

Aye,
Genghis

Yes, that basic article tells why a USB device is better than the built-in connections. Since you are selecting for a studio, I might suggest a Focusrite Scarlett 6i6. $250. Whether you get this or not, looking at the user manual you can download will give you a diagram that should really make things clearer to you. Try looking that unit up on Sweetwater’s site. https://www.sweetwater.com

I've looked over the sweetwater site and I'm slowly getting a better idea of what I need. I never thought I'd ever say this, but the piano that I love (and that you will have to pry from my cold dead fingers) really limits me in my progress in jazz, and at some point in the future I'll need to go looking for a midi keyboard if I want to get more out of BIAB and its possibilities. But there isn't any point if I have no idea how to actually use it and don't have the equipment to make it all sound good.

Thanks Matt / Pipeline

Not necessarily true; some MIDI keyboards can sound good out of the box if you use the sounds that came with it instead of the computer.. but you still need an interface.

There are plenty of folks here who can help you with piano/computer questions. I’m not one of them, but ask away. Glad we’re getting you closer. We fully understand how mysterious all this can seem to those starting out.

Absolutely you want to use a USB audio interface.

Essentially for 2 reasons.

First..... better quality audio. You get studio quality sound.

Second..... two way transfer. The headphone jack is one way..... audio out only and shaky quality and performance, as others have pointed out. With the USB interface, you can not only hear the audio coming out, but you can also record in while playing along with the music you hear.

Thanks GT. I decided on the focusrite 2i2 bundle, which starts me off with headphones and a microphone too. Ordered it today from our local music store and it should be in within a week. Also got all the leads to make the connections to my HiFi stereo system.

I got the 2i2 rather than the 6i6 because I play on my own and the chap at the music store told me that if I do buy a midi keyboard it would be connected to my laptop anyway rather than directly to the interface, so I shouldn't run out of inputs.

In the meantime I'll get some more music into BIAB and read more of the manual. Thanks all. I'll let you know how it goes.

remember that the hi-fi stereo system has biased speakers. Essentially that means they tend to reproduce some frequencies better than others intentionally. You'll want to keep that in mind when mixing. And at some point, you'll want to budget for some studio reference speakers that are self powered to get a better representation of the actual mix.

Using a stereo system and speakers for playback isn't bad.... but just understand the limitations and be careful when using it to monitor a mixing session. Headphones might be a better option depending on the model.

Either way.... yeah... the focusrite is a big step in the RIGHT direction. Good luck and keep us posted on how it goes.

Will do. Thanks for the advice.

My Focusrite 2i2 bundle arrived just over 2 weeks ago after a month on back order from the local music store. Unfortunately it arrived one day before I was booked for a total hip replacement! So I wasn't able to check it out until yesterday.
It works well. It was straightforward and intuitive to set up, even for someone who knows nothing about mixing and audio. The bass was overwhelming, probably because of the hifi speakers but after some experimentation the output sounded really good. It's a long time since I played with a band so it took some getting used to, but I'm really happy with BIAB.
I don't have any ambition to play professionally (my father and uncle did) but I get a great deal of satisfaction out of music as a hobby, and I think BIAB will add to the pleasure I get from playing.

Glad things are working out. I believe the above statement by the salesperson is wrong. Laptops do not have MIDI inputs. You would want to connect the MIDI keyboard to the Scarlett.

Hi

Yes it is true that laptops do not have midi sockets.
But I think what the guy in the shop meant, was if you buy a musical or controller keyboard you will get a USB to HOST connection and midi can be sent to the laptop that way via one of the usb connections.
Some Yamaha keyboards no longer have normal midi skts only usb to host

The DGX660 piano for one.
To my mind this is a backward step, not every one wants to connect to a pc. You may want to connect via midi to another midi device external to the pc.
I wish manufactures would not consider a new way of doing things as a replacement instead of an extra option.

I well remember when I first got a DGX 620 some years back being so disappointed that it only had usb to host, I had just assumed it would have normal midi as well.
That taught me to scrutinise the specs of new models not to see what was new but see what they had left off that you would expect to be there.
Rant over
Have fun
Mike

Correct.

Yep!

Sorry to be late to the discussion here, but why can't you just hook up a bluetooth speaker? Personally, I have a fairly ancient MacBook Pro and just bluetooth into my home receiver. I practice that way all the time. I've tried hard wiring from the headphone jack into the audio input of the receiver, but the sound quality isn't noticeably better. Bluetooth is a lot easier.

Give that man a cigar. K.I.S.S. works every time.


Regards,


Bob

Having had problems already with Sonos speakers (you can't output sound directly to them from the laptop) and with two hi-fi speakers in my stereo system doing nothing, it made more sense to me to see if they could be hooked up. The focusrite is hooked up through the stereo amplifier. The speakers don't have self power and I think this is the reason the volume has to be increased to about 75% on both the focusrite and the amplifier to approximate real instruments. But I'm happy with the result so far.


Aye,
Genghis

I'm not arguing with the solution. I used to do that myself until I discovered that my stereo amplifier has bluetooth capability. But, I don't understand why you can't output directly from your laptop to the Sonos speakers. They're bluetooth, aren't they? I've got a similar Bose Soundcloud II speaker and use it the same way for exactly the same purpose.

I'm not a technical person, but my laptop doesn't recognise the sonos speaker as a bluetooth device. AFAIK, Sonos speakers are designed to connect only with an internet connection. There's quite a bit of discussion about it on the internet and many users have been quite miffed that they can't use their computer directly as an input device to the speakers. You have to go through the sonos APP which recognises the speakers and can then stream your music through their program. But the sonos app doesn't recognise BIAB files as "music", so they have to be converted to .wav or .MP4 before they can be played, which I did, but then you can't adjust or alter the backing track while practising or playing.

There is, I understand, an open source program for Macs that gets around this, but I believe it also causes and audio delay, so I didn't try it out.

Bottom line is I would caution against getting a Sonos speaker if using BIAB, although I'd be interested to know if anyone else has managed to make them work directly with the BIAB program.

Thanks for sharing that. Sometimes bluetooth just doesn't work. No telling why.

I’m a few years late in this post, BUT, I have questions that are very similar to yours. I use BIAB as my backing band while playing my Mason and Hamlin piano. I use BIAB “songs” from Norton Music which he has produced from entire and various fake books. I frequently modify them slightly and away I go.

My set up is Mackbook Pro 2021, to a small self powered mixer via the headphone jack then to speakers which are not self powered. I recently purchased a Focusrite 212 3rd gen. I’ve hooked it up between my mixer and speakers. I don’t seem to be able to tell much difference in sound quality.

I’d be interested in your comments.

Thanks,
Bud