Minnesota-based music tech company Lutefish aims to make online music collaboration easier, better, and more musical. Founded by musicians who know the pain of laggy jam sessions and clunky digital tools, the company has just launched the Lutefish™ Stream, a new device designed to tackle one of the biggest challenges in the world of remote music-making: latency.
Unlike traditional software-based solutions, the Lutefish Stream is a plug-and-play hardware device that connects directly to your router via Ethernet. It streams ultra-low-latency 48K audio in real time, offering musicians the ability to rehearse, write, or jam together from hundreds of miles apart—as if they were in the same room. With latency as low as 30–35 milliseconds, it’s fast enough to make tight, real-time collaboration possible.
A statement from the company notes that the device was “created by musicians, for musicians,” and is designed to “make it easier than ever to rehearse, jam, and create music together across distances (up to 500 miles apart).”
But Lutefish didn’t stop at just solving the latency problem. This week, the company introduced a new feature for the Stream: the In-Session Metronome, designed to help musicians stay in sync, without stepping on anyone’s creative toes.
A statement from the company discloses that the metronome allows users to “stay perfectly in time while jamming remotely,” with customizable tempo, volume, and sound options. Importantly, only the user who activates it hears it, preserving the organic flow of a live session without introducing a distracting global click.
“Rhythm is critical when you’re making music,” said Patrick Finn, business manager at Lutefish. “With the Stream, and now the in-session metronome, we’re giving musicians tools that make online collaboration not just possible, but musical, connected, and fun.”
The metronome supports a range of features typically found in professional studio tools: adjustable tempo from 30 to 252 BPM, multiple sound types (including click, wood block, and cowbell), and on-the-fly activation. Whether you’re locking in a groove or working through a complex time signature, the feature is built to give musicians more control without disrupting the group’s vibe.
The Lutefish Stream also supports professional audio gear, including microphones, instruments, and mixers. Its design skips the need for complicated software installs or unreliable wireless connections, making it a practical solution for musicians at any level who want to collaborate more often and more effectively.
Lutefish describes itself as “more than a company—we’re a community of musicians driven by a shared passion for creativity, innovation, and the power of music.” That ethos is embedded in its mission to break down the barriers that prevent musicians from making music together—whether they live across the street or across the state.
If remote collaboration has felt frustrating, impersonal, or just plain impossible, Lutefish’s Stream might be a game-changer. It’s not just about playing together; it’s about making the experience feel authentic again.
More information is available at www.lutefish.com.
Published since 1977, Music Connection magazine is a monthly music trade publication catering to musicians, industry pro’s, and support services. Music Connection exists to serve artists and music people, to offer connections to the unconnected and to provide exclusive information that can help our readers take their music to the next level.
Founded in 1977 on the principle of bridging the gap between “the street and the elite,” Music Connection has grown from a popular print publication into a spectrum of products and services that address the wants and needs of musicians, the music tech community and industry support services.
Lutefish’s New Device Aims to Solve the Biggest Problem in Remote Music Collaboration – Music Connection Magazine
