MaxMSP & ICST AmbiEncoder – OSC Communication

• 2025-03-16
• One-minute read
• advanced

Bidirectional OSC Communication with MaxMSP

Level: Advanced | Audience: Max/MSP and OSC integrator.

Generate motion data in Max and send it via OSC to the ICST AmbiEncoder in your DAW. Alternatively, transfer a motion composition from your DAW to the icst.ambisonics-externals.

Required Software:

• MaxMSP v.8.0+ → cycling74.com
• ICST Ambisonics Tools v3 → cycling74.com
• ICST Ambisonics Plugins (VST3/AU) → ICST AmbiPlugins
• Reaper (DAW) → reaper.fm

Setup Guide:

1. Configure OSC in ICST AmbiEncoder

• Open the ICST AmbiEncoder in an FX slot and navigate to Encoder Settings.

• Under OSC In, activate the OSC input port (e.g., 50001).

• Click OSC Out and enable the OSC output port.

  • Uses ICST AmbiPlugins Standard XYZ Index.

• The Max demo patch listens for: '/icst/ambi/sourceindex/xyz'

  

2. Open MaxMSP and Load the Patch

• Find the OSC communication with ICST plugins in DAW patch.

See the demo Gifs:

Next Gif: How it works:

Sending Absolute Angles (Euler Coordinates)

To send absolute angles using Euler coordinates from MaxMSP to the ICST AmbiEncoder, use the following OSC message format:

/icst/ambi/source/euler [ChannelName] [Yaw] [Pitch] [Roll]
/icst/ambi/source/euler 'S1' 30 15 5

For index-based addressing:

/icst/ambi/sourceindex/euler [ChannelIndex] [Yaw] [Pitch] [Roll]
/icst/ambi/sourceindex/euler 1 30 15 5

Note:

• Yaw (Azimuth): Horizontal rotation
• Pitch (Elevation): Vertical tilt
• Roll: Rotation around the forward axis