How do I get started with JackTrip?
Sign up for free at https://www.jacktrip.com
How is JackTrip’s Desktop App different from JackTrip.com?
JackTrip’s Desktop App is free, open source software used to collaborate live with other people online. You can download and install it on Windows, Mac and Linux computers.
JackTrip.com is an online service built and managed by JackTrip Labs that enables you to create studios. You can join studio sessions using JackTrip’s Desktop App to get the best audio quality and latency, or join them using any modern web browser.
What is a JackTrip Studio?
A JackTrip studio (or simply "studio”) is like a meeting room, group or channel on other online platforms, except that it’s built for musicians.
Use your studio to host sessions online with other musicians, which feature very high quality, low latency audio and video.
Use your studio to record your sessions, live stream to fans, post public performances and upcoming events.
Use your studio to upload and play backing tracks, or play back past recordings. You can even select specific stems to play to make up for other members who can’t join you.
Use your studio to find other people to play with. Whether you are a teacher looking for new students, a jazz band looking for a drummer, or just looking for someone new to jam with online, your studio’s profile on JackTrip.com will help you get connected.
Create as many studios as you like on JackTrip.com. Create a studio for your online lessons business, a studio for your choir, a studio for your jazz band, and another studio for your solo career. It’s all free!
What is JackTrip Labs?
JackTrip Labs, Inc. is a company whose mission is to help people make more music together online. It was co-founded by Chris Chafe, the creator of the JackTrip open source software project. As a public benefit corporation (also known as a “B Corp”), JackTrip Labs is legally obligated to respect your privacy and operate in service of the public good. JackTrip Labs owns and operates JackTrip.com, and is the most active contributor to the JackTrip Desktop App.
How is Virtual Studio different from the open source JackTrip project?
Using the open source JackTrip and Jamulus projects without a Virtual Studio requires someone with IT skills to configure and operate servers. Virtual Studio automates every aspect of this so that you don't have to worry about it. Virtual Studios also:
- include video (versus audio only)
- supports recording and live streaming to unlimited devices (both audio and video)
- provides advanced audio processing capabilities to improve the quality and realness of the sound
- enable connections from popular web browsers
- enable connections from bridge hardware devices
What is a Virtual Studio Session?
A Virtual Studio Session (or “session”) enables you to hear and see other musicians online with very high quality and low latency audio and video. It begins when the first person joins and ends automatically after detecting 15 minutes of silence. Each of your Virtual Studios can have only 1 active session at a time.
A free membership on JackTrip.com allows you join sessions hosted by other people as much as you like. You can also host an unlimited number of sessions yourself for up to 5 simultaneous participants, provided you are hosting only 1 session at a time, and they last no longer than 50 minutes each.
JackTrip.com offers paid subscription plans to upgrade your session hosting abilities. Our Essential and Advanced subscription plans both remove the 50 minute time limit, and our Advanced plan allows up to 3 active sessions at a time. These plans also increase the number of participants to 10 and 30, respectively. Please contact us to learn about other per-minute plans available for up to 480 simultaneous participants which also remove the concurrent participant limitations.
What is a Virtual Studio Server?
Every Virtual Studio Session is powered by its own Virtual Studio Server, or additional software running on the Internet that is required for most of JackTrip's advanced functionality, including: video, recording, live streaming, DSP, etc. For the best results, your Virtual Studio Server should be located within about 250 miles of all the musicians who are using it.
If your Virtual Studio is configured to use a "Managed" server, JackTrip works with the top cloud computing companies to transparently provide Virtual Studio Servers at over one hundred locations worldwide. These are strategically located at major intersections on the Internet's backbone to ensure that you get the lowest possible latency. Using a "Managed" server is the default and preferred approach for most people.
If you have strong IT skills, you can alternatively host your own "Unmanaged" Virtual Studio Server. This approach can be helpful for people who are hundreds of miles or more away from the locations that we cover.
Can I get lower latency using Peer-to-Peer applications?
JackTrip uses edge computing to process audio as close as possible to you and other musicians. So long as you are located within about 250 miles from one of our geographical locations, it's unlikely you will achieve lower latency using peer-to-peer.
It's no coincidence that the Internet is frequently referred to as the "Information Superhighway." The structure of the Internet is a lot like the roads our cars drive upon. Some roads are fast highways, while others are slow and made of dirt. Some roads may take you more directly to your destination, while others may meander many miles out of the way. The fastest path from point A to B is often not the shortest path.
Our cloud computing servers are basically located at the intersections of the world's fastest Internet highways, or the same locations most Internet traffic passes by. If you live far away or just happen to be lucky with respect to the other musicians you are playing with (i.e. same Internet provider, down the street, etc.) you can achieve lower latency numbers with peer-to-peer. Otherwise, your audio is likely going to be driving right past our servers anyway.
Does JackTrip eliminate latency? How does it work?
JackTrip minimizes latency by using software that is optimized for the efficient transmission of audio over computer networks. Most people who have tried it so far are able to achieve one-way latency of under 40 milliseconds, using typical home Internet connections.
Most software transmits audio over computer networks by using large buffers at the receiving end. These add extra delay or latency to the signal, often hundreds of milliseconds, which makes music collaboration impossible.
JackTrip uses Artificial Intelligence to build models for every audio channel it receives. For intermittent Internet delays, it uses the models to predict what was most likely lost. This enables JackTrip to use extremely small receiving buffers with minimal deviation from the original signal.
How do I get the lowest latency possible?
Latency is dependent on a number of factors. Here are some things to check to ensure you're getting low latency:
- Use fiber internet if it's available in your area.
- Connect your computer to your router with an ethernet cable. Don't use a wifi extender, ethernet bridge, or mesh access point.
- Use a high quality audio interface. Latency for audio interfaces ranges anywhere from a few milliseconds to over a hundred milliseconds.
- Download the latest drivers for your audio interface.
- (Windows only) Ensure you're using an ASIO driver provided by your audio interface's manufacturer. Only ASIO drivers support low latency on Windows. You can still use JackTrip without ASIO, but you will experience significantly higher latency.
- Use as low a buffer size as your internet connection and audio hardware support. Default recommendation is 128, but a lower number will provide lower latency at the risk of audio dropouts.
- Use as low of a value for Net Queue as possible (leave this on "Auto" if you're not sure what this means)
- Ensure close mic'ing of sound sources. Each foot of distance adds 1ms of latency.
- If you're routing audio through other digital applications like Pro Tools/Reaper/Logic, you can expect those programs to add latency in order to do their buffering and processing
- Use the closest server location available.
Can I use my USB Headset (or Gaming Headset) with JackTrip?
You can, but you will most likely be disappointed. Every USB headset we have tested so far has extremely high latency, in the 60-100ms not usable at all for live music range. We also haven't found any that provide ASIO drivers for Windows users.
It's pricey but we recommend this headset instead. It plugs right into the headphone jack and XLR on any good audio interface, adds zero latency, and sounds great. But at $200, it ain't cheap!
Why is my audio higher/lower pitch than my voice?
Your audio device is probably set to a different sample rate from the JackTrip Studio.
By default the studio uses 48k sample rate- ensure that your Desktop App and audio devices are also set to 48k. Please note that this may require you to change settings through your audio device's driver.
As always, make sure you have the latest drivers for your audio device.
Why am I getting clicks and pops in my audio?
Clicks and pops are usually caused by audio dropouts and can get into your signal for a number of reasons. Here are some things to check:
- Use fiber internet if it's available in your area.
- Connect your computer to your router with an ethernet cable. Don't use a wifi extender, ethernet bridge, or mesh access point.
- Use the same audio device for both input and output. Using a mix of devices can cause audio dropouts.
- Try a higher buffer size. Default is 128, so try 256 or 512. Note that this will increase latency.
- Ensure cables are plugged in securely.
- Close other applications that might also use audio on your computer. In the case of Zoom, leave computer audio while using JackTrip.
Does Virtual Studio enable me to play music with anyone in the world?
Yes and No.
Virtual Studio sends your audio over the Internet, which is limited by the speed of light. Light takes about 67 milliseconds to travel half way around the world, but the Internet is less efficient and in reality it can easily take 150-200 milliseconds.
Even 67 milliseconds is a lot of delay. Research suggests it's very difficult to perform music with a delay greater than 25 milliseconds. However, that doesn't mean it can't be done. Your success will likely depend on the tempo and type of music you are performing. Many musicians are using JackTrip today to perform music over very
How much does Virtual Studio cost?
Virtual Studio offers fully managed cloud audio studios. Our free tier allows you to host studio sessions for up to 5 musicians for 50 minutes. Our monthly subscription plans enable you to host larger sessions for longer periods of time, paying only for the additional resources that you actually need.
The easiest way to get up and running is by using our plug-and-play bridge devices. Total cost varies based upon your selection of accessories, but can be as low as about $200 per musician.
Please note that purchase of a bridge device is not necessary. You can also connect to our studios using the free and open source JackTrip desktop app, or the Jamulus desktop app.
What happens if I run out of studio minutes?
Note: this only applies to pay-per-minute plans. Most subscription plans offer unlimited usage.
If you run out of studio minutes before your monthly term is over, you will still be able to start new virtual studio sessions for the maximum number of participants allowed by your plan. The new sessions will automatically expire after 50 minutes. After your monthly term is over, your studio minutes will reset and the 50 minute limit will be removed. You can upgrade your subscription plan to remove this limitation sooner.
What happens when I change my subscription plan?
If you upgrade your subscription plan in the middle of a monthly term, you will be charged a pro-rated amount for the remainder of your term. For example, if you upgrade from Basic ($10) to Standard ($25) midway through your term, you will pay 50% of the difference, or $7.50.
If you downgrade your subscription plan in the middle of a monthly term, your account will be credited with a pro-rated amount for the remainder of your term. For example, if you downgrade from Basic ($25) to Standard ($10) midway through your term, you will receive 50% of the difference, or $7.50. This credit will apply towards your upcoming monthly payments.
How much bandwidth does Virtual Studio require?
Virtual Studio currently supports two popular network audio technologies:
- JackTrip requires about 2.0 Mbps both download and upload bandwidth for two channels (stereo) of 48 Khz lossless audio (CD quality). Only 1.0 Mbps upload bandwidth is required if you change the number of "input channels" to 1 (send mono).
- Jamulus requires about 300 Kbps both download and upload bandwidth for two channels (stereo) of lossy audio (high mp3 quality)
Note that these requirements are exclusive of any other applications that use your Internet connection, such as Zoom, YouTube, Netflix, etc.
Even more important than bandwidth is the latency of your Internet connection. Unfortunately, very few Internet providers advertise or even talk about latency. Beware that latency and bandwidth are two different measurements, which frequently do not correspond with one another. Many very high bandwidth "gigabit" speed home Internet connections have relatively poor latency.
How do I delete my account?
Please see: How to Delete Your Account
What is JackTrip Labs' privacy policy? How is my data used?
We're serious about respecting your data and privacy. Check out the latest privacy policy at https://www.jacktrip.com/privacy
Can I use other JackTrip and Jamulus clients with Virtual Studio?
Absolutely! You can use Virtual Studio managed devices with JackTrip or Jamulus hub servers that you host externally. You can also use JackTrip and Jamulus command line and GUI clients with Virtual Studio managed hub servers.
How can I get additional help?
Questions can be asked by creating a Help Ticket, and discussions are ongoing in the JackTrip Community Forum.