An audio-to-MIDI transcription plug-in for Mac, available in AAX and designed for ARA 2 workflows: an innovation that deserves proper real-world testing.
From audio to MIDI without a subscription
INSEKTIQ's TONIQ promises to turn audio recordings into MIDI notes, including passages where several notes sound together. Piano, guitar, voice, drums or even a full mix: the developer advertises several transcription modes, velocity and pitch-bend export, and no duration limit in the free edition.
Why this is particularly interesting in Pro Tools
The software is offered as an AAX plug-in on Mac and as a standalone application. The manufacturer also advertises ARA 2 workflows in several DAWs, including Pro Tools. It is essential to distinguish AAX plug-in availability from the details of ARA integration, which may depend on the DAW and installed versions. We will verify this at Studio 2.0 in actual sessions.
From note transcription to re-orchestration
Imagine recovering a piano idea and turning it into a string part, analysing a bass line or rebuilding a rhythm. Polyphonic conversion could save considerable time, but results will inevitably depend on harmonic complexity, reverb and the number of overlapping sources.
Can it match Melodyne?
It is too early to say. Melodyne has a mature ecosystem for pitch and timing editing, while TONIQ separates free MIDI export from advanced audio-note editing, which belongs to its paid Pro edition. We want to compare it on simple recordings, piano chords and much denser material.
What the free version can actually do
The developer highlights polyphonic transcription, chords, percussion-to-MIDI conversion and analysis of complete tracks. Supported audio files include WAV, MP3, AIFF and FLAC; MIDI can be dragged directly to a DAW track. This MIDI export must not be confused with detailed editing of notes inside the audio signal, which the developer reserves for paid TONIQ Pro. This distinction is essential when comparing it with Melodyne.
ARA 2 in Pro Tools: the potential time saving
TONIQ lists AAX operation on Mac and Windows and offers ARA 2 integration with Pro Tools. In a host that supports this integration, the plug-in can analyse the clip at its position on the timeline without an intermediate export. We will still verify its behaviour on our Pro Tools version, synchronisation, tempo changes and complex polyphony before reaching any conclusion.
Our planned comparison protocol against Melodyne
To avoid a superficial verdict, we would transcribe acoustic-guitar chords, a piano performance with pedal and an isolated bass, followed by recordings with noise and several simultaneous sources. We will inspect wrong notes, octave errors, timing and how easy the material is to correct. TONIQ has already made a historically expensive process more accessible, but its accuracy on difficult sources remains to be measured.
Direct link to the official website, without an intermediary store.
Official source & information
Official information from the manufacturer: insektiq.com
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