MIDI-over-Bluetooth LE is supported natively in iOS

We distinguish between pairing OffGrid to Apps that support:

• Native MIDI-over-Bluetooth
• Standard MIDI

Pairing OffGrid with Apps that support native MIDI-over-Bluetooth

We will show you how to pair OffGrid to GarageBand, a DAW included with every iOS device by default.

First off, let's make sure Bluetooth is enabled on your iOS device.

1. Open GarageBand and tap the settings "gears" icon.
   
   
   
   A settings menu will open. Scroll down to "Advanced" and tap it.
   
   
   
   Scroll down to "Bluetooth MIDI Devices" and tap it.
   
   
   
   A window scanning nearby available Bluetooth LE MIDI devices should appear as follows:
   
   
   
   
2. Turn your OffGrid on by holding the SHIFTER 1 button for two seconds. 
   
   
   
   After a short light animation, your OffGrid will enter the Wait-to-Pair mode signified by PAD A (upper left PAD) on the 2x2 Transport Matrix blinking blue.
   
   
   
   Your OffGrid is now discoverable over Bluetooth LE.
   
   
3. You will see OffGrid appear in GarageBand's list of Bluetooth LE MIDI devices.
   
   Confirm that you want to connect by tapping the discovered OffGrid in the panel.
   
   
   
   After tapping "Connect", the button will display "Connecting" for a few moments followed by "Connected".
   
   
   
   
   
4. Your OffGrid is now paired to GarageBand on your iOS host device.
   
   It will confirm a successful pairing with the following animation where it goes from a "Wait-to-Connect" state to "Paired".
   
   
   
   You can now tap the "gears" icon to close GarageBand's settings and start playing!
   
   OffGrid's Transport Matrix pads PAD A (lit Green) and PAD B (lit Red) are pre-mapped to GarageBand's Play/Record controls.

Pairing OffGrid with Apps that do not support native MIDI-over-Bluetooth

Many wonderful Apps in the app store are already MIDI enabled, however they might lack a native MIDI-over-Bluetooth implementation. This is easily solvable using a free, helper utility App that routes MIDI-over-Bluetooth to iOS' virtual MIDI port.

We will show you how to pair OffGrid to Koala Sampler, a very popular App for Beatmakers and Samplists. We recommend switching to PRESET DRM-Default (Pad 2) as it is finetuned to the App.

First off, let's make sure Bluetooth is enabled on your iOS device.

1. Please download midimittr for your iOS host device.
   
   Launch midimittr and go to the "Devices" Tab.
   
   
   
   A scan of nearby available Bluetooth LE MIDI devices will appear.
   
   
2. Turn your OffGrid on by holding the SHIFTER 1 button for two seconds. 
   
   
   
   After a short light animation, your OffGrid will enter the Wait-to-Pair mode signified by PAD A (upper left PAD) on the 2x2 Transport Matrix blinking blue.
   
   
   
   Your OffGrid is now discoverable over Bluetooth LE.
   
   
3. Your OffGrid should now appear in midimittr's MIDI Bluetooth LE devices. 
   
   
   
   Tap the panel to pair OffGrid to your host.
   
   
   
   After tapping the panel will display "Connecting" for a few moments followed by "Connected".
   
   
   
   
4. Your OffGrid is now paired to midimittr on your iOS host device.
   
   It will confirm a successful pairing with the following animation where it goes from a "Wait-to-Connect" state to "Paired".
   
   
   
   
5. In midimittr tap the "MIDI Ports" bar.
   
   You will see a panel titled SOURCES and a panel titled DESTINATIONS.
   
   
   
   In SOURCES you will see iOS' virtual MIDI (output) port titled "Network Session 1" by default as well as your OffGrid and any other device that might be connected to your host at that moment.
   Next to each source, there's a toggle.
   
   You'll likely see the same devices in the DESTINATIONS panel where those represent the MIDI input ports of those devices.
   
   We are going to set OffGrid as a SOURCE and iOS' "Network Session 1" input port as a DESTINATION. This is done by activating the toggles accordingly (see image above).
   
   
   
6. We're done with routing and can now launch Koala Sampler.
   
   
   
   Depending on how you've previously mapped the pads in the App, you should be able to play the pads on OffGrid and see/hear the impact in the App already.
   
   
7. Whenever you want to check Koala Sampler's current MIDI mapping of the pads, tap the "hamburger menu" icon.
   
   
   
   Navigate to "SETTINGS" and tap on it.
   
   
   
   You'll see the current MIDI mapping of the pads in Koala Sampler. You can change that at any point by tapping a pad in the App and then hitting a pad on your OffGrid to see the change take effect immediately.
   
   
   
   If you're not sure how the current preset on your OffGrid is mapped, reference the Preset Definitions here.
   
   
   
8. Of course, you can also explore other mapping options and for example map OffGrid's Transport Matrix pads PAD A (lit Green) and PAD B (lit Red) to Koala Sampler's transport controls.
   
   
   
   When you're done mapping OffGrid to your Koala Sampler controls, simply tap the "STOP MAPPING" button on the bottom right.

Here's a video displaying Koala Sampler on an iPad being controlled by OffGrid utilizing the pad's velocity sensitivity as well as OffGrid's Motion Controller to modulate the Highpass/Lowpass Filter in Koala Sampler's effect section.

How do I know if OffGrid will play nice with my App?

The question should always be whether an App is MIDI compatible, not whether OffGrid is compatible with your app as OffGrid is simply an advanced, class-compliant MIDI Controller.
Hence the compatibility pre-requirement with MIDI should always be answered on the App's side first.

The two possibilities to connect OffGrid to Apps in iOS shown above are applicable to any other MIDI-enabled App by principle. We encourage you to research the release notes of music-making apps for references to MIDI connectivity.

Example, Koala Sampler on the app store:


If your App can see incoming MIDI, it will be compatible with a class-compliant MIDI controller and conversely compatible with OffGrid. Ideally, the App also supports MIDI-over-Bluetooth LE, at which point you won't even need to re-route through midimittr or any other MIDI routing App on iOS.

We encourage you to contact the App developers or reach out to the App community before making assumptions about an App's compatibility with MIDI controllers.

Further notes:

• Don't forget to disconnect your OffGrid in the last used App if you want to pair it with a different host device or application.
• Some Apps have more advanced features that can include MPE, Audio Buffer Settings etc.. We encourage you really spend time and learn the ins/outs of your App to get the most out of OffGrid's extensive possibilities, as well as consult the Factory Preset Definitions.