Start a 1-on-1 session

What a session is

A SoundAssist session is a two-person room where you and a collaborator can:

• Share audio in real time (you play, they hear).
• Chat with timestamps anchored to playback position.
• Drop files into a shared folder that persists after the session ends.
• Optionally record the whole session as a single audio file. Only the host can start a recording, and everyone in the room sees when it's on.

It's not video. It's not screen-share. The product shape is "we're both listening to the same thing right now, can we talk about it?"

Starting a session as the host

1. Sign in.
2. Open the menu and click Stream your DAW under Work together. Its line reads Listen and work together, live.
3. Click Start in browser to open a room with your camera and microphone, or Download Connect if you want to stream audio straight out of your DAW.
4. You land in the room. It has a code like SA-7K3M9XQ4.
5. Open the ⋯ menu, click Copy invite link, and send that link to your collaborator.
6. They knock; you get a prompt with their name. Click Admit.

You're now both in the room.

Joining a session as a guest

You don't need an account to join.

1. Open the link the host sent you.
2. Type your name. That's the name the host sees. An email address is optional. If there's an archive of this session, we'll email you the link.
3. Click Knock to enter, and wait for the host to let you in.

What happens inside the session

The room has:

• Audio controls. Host plays / pauses; guest hears the same playback position. Pause syncs across both sides.
• A chat panel. Messages anchor to playback position so "the snare feels late" timestamped at 1:23 stays linked to that moment.
• A shared folder. Drag files in from either side; both see them immediately. Files persist after the session ends.
• A "use this" mark. Guest can highlight a specific take they prefer, host sees it.

Ending a session

The host opens the ⋯ menu and clicks End session. It stops the audio. If the host recorded, the button reads End session & download and it also downloads the recording. A guest leaves with Leave. The shared folder + chat history stay accessible from both sides' archive.

If both parties close the browser without clicking End, the room expires automatically after ~5 minutes of inactivity. Files + chat still persist.

What if my collaborator can't hear?

Common causes + fixes:

1. They didn't click Play. Audio doesn't auto-start on join (browser policy blocks it). They have to click the play button at least once.
2. Browser muted the tab. Some browsers (Edge especially) mute tabs that play audio without prior interaction. Click the speaker icon in the tab to unmute.
3. Audio output is wrong. If they have multiple audio devices (laptop speakers + USB interface + Bluetooth headset), the browser might be routing to the wrong one. Check OS audio settings.
4. Their network is slow. Live sessions need ~256kbps each direction. Below that, audio cuts. Test on a hardwired connection if cellular.

Room codes are case-insensitive

SA-7K3M9XQ4 and sa-7k3m9xq4 both work. We sanitise to uppercase on the server side. Don't worry about whether your collaborator typed it in caps.