Moving from GarageBand to a browser: record, program MIDI, and export in LA Studio

If GarageBand is unavailable on your current setup, or you want to continue making music in a browser, start by rebuilding a small project in LA Studio. Import a usable recording, add a new take, program a MIDI part, and export the result. This guide follows that migration task through to a listening file. LA Studio publishes these instructions from its own implementation; they are not a ranking of competing DAWs.

Separate the project, its recordings, and its notes

Apple describes a GarageBand project as a .band package containing project files. See Apple's project packaging instructions when preserving the original. LA Studio's audio importer is not a converter for that project package. Keep the source project separately and prepare the actual recordings you intend to reuse.

If GarageBand is still available, follow Apple's song export instructions to make a reference recording. When preparing separate part recordings, give them a common start and retain leading silence. If you only have a stereo mix, you can arrange new material alongside it, but its individual notes do not become editable MIDI simply by importing it.

Keep any MIDI files you already have separately. MIDI represents notes; an instrument supplies their sound. Another instrument can make the same notes sound different, so preserve a reference audio render. Decide which parts to carry as audio, which to rebuild as MIDI, and which to record again before moving the whole song.

Create a project and establish how you will save it

1. Open the editor from the browser DAW page. If it restores earlier work, save or export what you need before starting another project.
2. Open Projects in the editor menu, enter a name, and choose + New Project. This starts an empty session; it is different from adding material to an existing arrangement.
3. Enter and commit your tempo in the transport's BPM field. Match the time signature to your material.
4. Import a short recording and check Play and Stop. Establish a working save and reopen procedure before moving the rest of the song.

The regular Save button asks signed-out users to sign in. Cloud saving has account and project-slot conditions. Project creation also has a local path, but seeing a song in browser storage alone is not a verified backup. Keep an editable project and a separate WAV, then follow the save and recovery guide to confirm reopening.

Place your recordings and check alignment

After import, identify each waveform and track name, then align recordings to their common start. Listen near the beginning and later in the song. A constant offset points you toward placement; increasing drift calls for checking tempo and source duration. Check for a duplicate import before adding the same file again.

If you include the original full mix as a reference, mute it during normal playback of the separate parts. Playing both together changes the level and sound. Add parts gradually after the first recording plays correctly so that you can identify which addition introduces a problem.

Choose the recording target and input

Create an audio track, make it the recording target, and select your microphone or interface in the recording input controls. Grant the browser's microphone permission and confirm an active input. Selecting a track for editing does not necessarily arm it for recording. If Record is unavailable, inspect both the target and the input.

1. Use headphones to keep the backing out of the microphone.
2. Press Record and perform a short phrase after the countdown. Stop and check that a new audio region appears.
3. Play the recorded region itself. Check its first syllable, distortion, and timing against the backing.
4. If monitoring sounds doubled, check whether the interface's direct monitor and browser monitoring are both active.

A missing microphone calls for checking browser and operating-system permissions. Silence calls for checking the selected device and target. Distortion already recorded into a take is not fixed by a higher export setting: reduce input level and record again. The home recording guide covers this diagnosis. Monitoring latency depends on your device and setup; no universal latency measurement is claimed here.

Build a MIDI part and choose its instrument

Open Piano Roll. In its empty state, use + Add MIDI track & region, or + Create MIDI region for an existing MIDI track. Double-click an existing MIDI region to edit it. Choose Draw and place a short note. Use Select to move its pitch or timing, and drag its end to adjust length. Check the snap step and distinguish moving a note from moving its containing region.

Choose the sound in the selected track's DEVICES instrument slot. Start with a GM piano and audition the same note. The InstrumentSelector's SoundFont (GM) category also selects GM programs. The normal GM playback path loads the GeneralUser_GS SF2 bank, so allow its initial download to finish. The piano roll edits notes; it is not an instrument-file import area.

For silence, check that playback crosses the note, its velocity is audible, the track is unmuted, its level is up, and the instrument has loaded. Establish one sounding note before repeatedly switching instruments. For percussion, select the GM drum instrument and check how note pitches select different drum sounds. Continue with the MIDI programming guide for detailed editing.

Balance the rebuilt arrangement

Play the recording and MIDI together and adjust track levels first. Decide whether an important part is too quiet or another part is covering it. Before inserting an effect, read the target name in DEVICES. Processing the MASTER affects the combined mix.

Rebuild tone decisions by listening against your reference rather than assuming that GarageBand patches or plugin settings transferred. Native VST/AU plugins have a different setup path from browser instruments. If your project needs an external plugin, read the bridge workflow checks and establish playback and output for one part first.

Export a WAV and verify the migration

Choose Export, WAV, and Full mix. The dialog defaults to 44.1 kHz and 24-bit, within the free plan's export settings. The 48/96 kHz and 32-bit float choices have Pro conditions. This describes audio export, not free access to every cloud-saving or AI-generation feature. MIDI export is for note transfer and does not include recorded vocals or instrument samples.

Check Normalize, export, and open the file in another player. Listen to the opening, densest section, and final decay. For missing sound, check source loading, mute, solo, and unsupported master devices. Resolve an export error before treating the file as a deliverable.

Your migration check is concrete: the new recording is audible, MIDI plays through your chosen instrument, the parts align, and the downloaded audio matches the arrangement. Reopen the project and confirm its required material remains available. For broader decisions about production environments, use the separate task-based DAW selection guide.