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Getting started

This page takes you from nothing to your first take: an account, the app on your Mac, a working talkback mic, and your DAW answering to your voice. Set aside ten minutes. If you get stuck at any step, Troubleshooting has the fixes.

What you need

  • A Mac — Apple silicon or Intel — running macOS 13 or later.
  • A supported DAW: Logic Pro, GarageBand, Reaper, or Cubase / Nuendo.
  • Headphones (recommended). The engineer talks back to you, and if their voice comes out of your speakers, your talkback mic can hear it. Wearing headphones prevents that. Make sure your engineer output is sent to your headphone channel. Prefer speakers? Set Listening on: Speakers so the mic mutes while the engineer talks, or use push to talk.
  • A microphone. Your audio interface works, and so does any mic your Mac can see.

1. Create your account

Sign up at heyjude.studio/signup — email and password, no credit card. We send a six-digit code to confirm your address; enter it on the signup page, or just click the link in the email. The moment you confirm, your 14-day trial starts, with 3 studio hours on the meter. More on how time works in Studio time & plans.

Didn't get the code? Check spam — the sender is no-reply@heyjude.studio. The signup page can re-send it.

2. Download and install

Your confirmation email includes the download link. It's good for your whole 14-day trial; if it ever lapses, request a fresh one on the sign-in page or write support@heyjude.studio and we'll send one. Open the DMG and drag Jude into Applications, like any Mac app.

3. Sign in

Launch Jude and sign in with the email and password you just created. Tick Stay signed in on this Mac and you won't see the sign-in screen again on this machine. Forgot the password already? The sign-in screen has a reset link.

4. Set up your sound

Open Settings → Audio and make two choices:

  1. Talkback microphone — the device and the exact input channel Jude should listen to. It can be the same interface your DAW uses, or another audio input.
  2. Voice output — where the engineer's voice comes out. Pick your headphone feed so the mic never hears the engineer. If you route it to speakers instead, also set Listening on: Speakers (same tab) so the mic mutes itself while the engineer talks.

Apple AirPods will work for both input and output, but they're not recommended — Bluetooth adds latency to your monitor mix.

The first time a session starts, macOS asks for microphone permission — allow it. There are also three talk modes to choose from (always listening, push-to-talk on Space, or the "Hey Jude" wake word), plus a speakers/headphones setting; they're explained in Talking to Jude, and the defaults work fine to start.

5. Take the tour

On first launch Jude offers a short guided tour of everything above — it points at each control as it goes, and every step has a button that reads it aloud. You can skip it; nothing in it is required, and everything the tour points at lives in Settings.

6. Connect your DAW

In Settings → DAW, pick your DAW, then follow its page for the one-time setup — each takes a couple of minutes:

  • Logic Pro — Logic finds Jude by itself; you just confirm the order of the surfaces.
  • GarageBand — no DAW configuration at all; grant one macOS permission.
  • Reaper — add one control-surface entry in Reaper's preferences.
  • Cubase & Nuendo — add a Mackie Control device in Studio Setup.

Launch Jude before your DAW. Jude publishes the connections your DAW looks for, so they need to exist when the DAW starts. If your DAW is already open, that's fine — each DAW page shows how to make it rescan. The one exception is Reaper over OSC: launch order doesn't matter there, Jude finds Reaper either way. When the link is up, the DAW light in Jude's header turns green.

7. Start your first session

Open a project in your DAW, put your headphones on — or set Listening on: Speakers — and press Start Session. Your engineer introduces themselves and asks what you're working on. Let them know the details of your project, such as the name and the instrument you're recording — these appear later in the session notes. Then try the basics:

  • arm the drums
  • let's do one
  • play that back
  • that's the one — keep it

When you're finished, say "that's a wrap" — the engineer signs off and closes the session — or press End Session. And if you get pulled away and forget, the meter pauses itself after a few quiet minutes — idle time is free.

Next: Talking to Jude — what to say, and what the engineer can do for you.