Bome Network is a macOS utility that creates virtual MIDI routing infrastructure across multiple computers, letting you send and receive MIDI data over a standard local network without hardware MIDI interfaces or USB cables.
What is Bome Network?
Bome Network is a dedicated MIDI-over-IP daemon and companion app from Bome Software — the same Munich-based team behind the long-running Bome MIDI Translator Pro. Where most DAW setups confine MIDI to a single machine, Bome Network dissolves that boundary by turning your Ethernet or Wi-Fi connection into a transparent MIDI highway. Install it on two Macs, name each one, and within seconds they appear as MIDI destinations for every app on either side — Logic Pro, Ableton Live, Reaper, Max/MSP, you name it.
The key insight is that it runs as a background service, not as a window you have to babysit. Once you set up your connections, they survive reboots and reconnect automatically when both machines see each other on the network.
What does Bome Network do best?
Its strongest suit is low-latency, reliable MIDI routing between machines on the same LAN. I have been using it to slave a dedicated hardware-synth Mac mini to my main composing MacBook Pro, and the feel is indistinguishable from a local virtual MIDI port — no perceptible lag, no dropouts mid-session.
Other things it handles well:
- Multiclient routing — several apps on Machine A can all send to several apps on Machine B simultaneously
- Named, persistent connections that survive sleep/wake cycles
- Cross-platform operation alongside Windows and Linux instances of Bome Network
- Clean integration with Bome MIDI Translator Pro for filtering or remapping data mid-flight
What it does not do is route audio, act as a DAW bridge, or replace something like Dante for professional audio-over-IP. It is purely about MIDI.
Is Bome Network free?
Bome Network is free to download and use for basic personal MIDI routing. The free tier covers the most common single-connection scenario that hobbyists and bedroom producers need. A paid license unlocks higher connection counts and additional advanced routing features — worth it if you are managing a larger live rig or a studio with several networked machines. Pricing is modest and a perpetual license covers the current major version.
Who should use Bome Network?
Bome Network is aimed squarely at musicians and producers who already understand MIDI and want to break out of the single-computer constraint. If your live rig involves a performance laptop feeding a dedicated synth-hosting Mac, this is almost certainly the cleanest solution available. It is also popular with installation artists and theatre sound designers who need MIDI show-control signals distributed to multiple machines in a venue.
Casual GarageBand users or people just starting with MIDI do not need this — a single Mac with virtual MIDI ports (the IAC Driver built into macOS is free) covers their needs entirely. But the moment you add a second computer to the signal chain, Bome Network earns its place immediately.
How does Bome Network compare to rtpMIDI and MIDI over Bluetooth?
Apple ships rtpMIDI (the Audio MIDI Setup network session feature) natively in macOS, and for two-machine, low-traffic scenarios it works. The complaints I have heard repeatedly — and experienced myself — are fussier session negotiation, less reliable reconnection after sleep, and no straightforward cross-platform Windows support without a third-party shim.
Bome Network's connection model is simpler to configure: you install the app on each machine, give them names, and click connect. There is no Bonjour session advertisement dance to manage. Latency on the same LAN is comparable to rtpMIDI, but the stability advantage is real and noticeable in longer sessions.
MIDI over Bluetooth (built into macOS and iOS) is a different trade-off: wireless freedom at the cost of higher, variable latency. For performance-critical timing Bluetooth MIDI is risky; for a phone acting as a control surface it is perfectly fine. Bome Network is explicitly a wired-LAN-first tool and makes no promises about Wi-Fi timing.
What are the best Bome Network alternatives?
Beyond the native rtpMIDI option described above, MidiPipe handles lightweight local MIDI routing on a single Mac. For complex multi-machine audio and MIDI, Dante (Audinate) is the professional broadcast standard, though it is far more expensive and requires dedicated network infrastructure. For pure MIDI-over-IP with a simpler GUI, some users try ipMIDI (Windows-centric but has a Mac build); it uses multicast UDP instead of direct connections, which simplifies discovery but can be trickier on managed networks. Bome Network's combination of price, macOS polish, and Bome Software's track record makes it the most practical choice for most setups.
