Jump to content
aberdeen-music

Synths/keyboard


Larsen B

Recommended Posts

slackware was the second one i used, after redhat (4) in 1997. slackware used to actually be a lot more user friendly than redhat at the time.

Gentoo is great though - it's a lot like slackware, it just has brilliant package management (based on the bsd ports system) and builds everything from source. it's not so great if you are not on broadband though. the important thing is that Gentoo automates the whole software download and build process, meaning that getting the latest update of audio software isn't a big pain in the rumplestiltskin. With Gentoo you can take as much or as little as you like, which is what really appeals to me about it. I have a couple of servers dotted around places that are running Gentoo, and it makes them so much easier to remotely administer and update. It's the way forward.

I find Slackware and a lot of its users to be quite a purist bunch, not elitist but definitely minimalist techs. Gentoo users by generalised profile are just people who want their machine to do exactly what they want with the best compromise of usability alongside performance. Sure, you can run kde 3.2.2 or gnome 2.6 and all the toys with it, but you can also run a minimalist install using blackbox or windomaker (which i use for audio stuff).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Stripey
slackware was the second one i used' date=' after redhat (4) in 1997. slackware used to actually be a lot more user friendly than redhat at the time.

Gentoo is great though - it's a lot like slackware, it just has brilliant package management (based on the bsd ports system) and builds everything from source. it's not so great if you are not on broadband though. the important thing is that Gentoo automates the whole software download and build process, meaning that getting the latest update of audio software isn't a big pain in the rumplestiltskin. With Gentoo you can take as much or as little as you like, which is what really appeals to me about it. I have a couple of servers dotted around places that are running Gentoo, and it makes them so much easier to remotely administer and update. It's the way forward.

I find Slackware and a lot of its users to be quite a purist bunch, not elitist but definitely minimalist techs. Gentoo users by generalised profile are just people who want their machine to do exactly what they want with the best compromise of usability alongside performance. Sure, you can run kde 3.2.2 or gnome 2.6 and all the toys with it, but you can also run a minimalist install using blackbox or windomaker (which i use for audio stuff).[/quote']

Yeah slackware appeals to me because it is a purists distro and doesnt try to hold your hand, I'm used to stuff like Solaris and TRU64/DGuX/HPUX all of which I run at home aswell... I'm not a big fan of package management tools (although slackware now has one). I'm quite happy downloading and compiling source (mostly cuz it gives me a chance to look over the code for vulnerabilities, I never use binary distributions of packages). I'm a big fan of afterstep too, its the only WM ive used for years, and the only things you see on my desktop are loads of transparent xterms, xmms, and mozilla ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, at least with Gentoo you can review the source before/as/after it is built; the problem with compiling everything individually outwith the package management system (purely in relation to the audio software spoken about) is that they have a lot of specific options to enable that aren't default, i.e. JACK, ALSA, realtime support, etc.

I'm a big fan of WindowMaker too (it's GnuStep at least...) , I've started using it at work now because KDE's xinerama support is all over the shop. And it always makes me laugh when people use my computer not realising the sloppy focus settings, and say, "What the fuck's wrong with your mouse?"... :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

ok, here's part of that track i've been doing in linux:

http://affronted.org/cg.mp3

in case anyone is interested, this is what the track contains:

drums - from the drum machine, hydrogen

piano - from a softsynth (qsynth) using a soundfont file

guitar - live, through wah-wah, then big muff, then desk for signal boosting

synth - from zynaddsubfx (either default presets or a downloaded one)

synth verse - from a softsynth (qsynth) through a wah-wah pedal

the tracks were each recorded live, track at a time, except for the drums. there's a little delay on both the piano and the guitar, and also eq on both; boosting highs on the piano, cutting highs on the guitar.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Stripey

Suprisingly impressive results there! (and a neat tune aswell) What app are you using to put it all together?

ok' date=' here's part of that track i've been doing in linux:

[url']http://affronted.org/cg.mp3

in case anyone is interested, this is what the track contains:

drums - from the drum machine, hydrogen

piano - from a softsynth (qsynth) using a soundfont file

guitar - live, through wah-wah, then big muff, then desk for signal boosting

synth - from zynaddsubfx (either default presets or a downloaded one)

synth verse - from a softsynth (qsynth) through a wah-wah pedal

the tracks were each recorded live, track at a time, except for the drums. there's a little delay on both the piano and the guitar, and also eq on both; boosting highs on the piano, cutting highs on the guitar.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Suprisingly impressive results there! (and a neat tune aswell) What app are you using to put it all together?

alas' date=' i can't take credit for the tune, it's a cover of 'cornflake girl' by tori amos that i'm working on.

it was all recorded in ardour ([url']www.ardour.org). it's the multi tracking HDR program that is quite pro-tools alike. the hardest thing about audio in linux is getting started and working it all out. so much of it isn't explained for novices, like a crucial program called alsa-patch-bay that links midi devices to programs that take midi input. it's very simple and incredibly efficient to use once you do know what you're doing though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Stripey
alas' date=' i can't take credit for the tune, it's a cover of 'cornflake girl' by tori amos that i'm working on.

it was all recorded in ardour ([url']www.ardour.org). it's the multi tracking HDR program that is quite pro-tools alike. the hardest thing about audio in linux is getting started and working it all out. so much of it isn't explained for novices, like a crucial program called alsa-patch-bay that links midi devices to programs that take midi input. it's very simple and incredibly efficient to use once you do know what you're doing though.

To be honest I won't be migrating to linux for audio until there is a port of fruity/cubase/logic to linux and full native vst support :p

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
Yeah the way you described it sounds quite modular' date=' which is something i've always liked about linux.

A really neat amp modelling vst is Amplitube [url']http://www.amplitube.com

They also do a special zero (well close to zero) latency version for live use.

just wanted to add, i tested amplitube with ardour this morning, and it works. had a bit of trouble twisting knobs, but all the presets load correctly.

edit: oh my god, i was just being a nob myself, the knobs work perfectly, and oh my god, this plugin is amazing

Link to comment
Share on other sites

it's amazing. i thought it was quite good, and then i found those little fx and stomp buttons, and now i think it's truly cool as. some of the sounds that are coming out of this thing are truly amazing, it's the best recording tool i've obtained so far. makes me think of cancelling my order on the the pod pro rack...

i did notice the t-rack thing on the amplitube website - what exactly does it do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Stripey
it's amazing. i thought it was quite good' date=' and then i found those little fx and stomp buttons, and now i think it's truly cool as. some of the sounds that are coming out of this thing are truly amazing, it's the best recording tool i've obtained so far. makes me think of cancelling my order on the the pod pro rack...

i did notice the t-rack thing on the amplitube website - what exactly does it do?[/quote']

6 band parametric EQ

Tube modeled Compressor/Leveler

MultiBand Limiter

Soft-Clipper

Alternatives are Yamaha Final Master and Akai Quadcomp, I prefer the Yamaha.

Have you got any other VST's working under linux? PM me if you want some to test.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i tried the Warp VST but the UI never got drawn, so i suppose it does not work. i have to say, the amplitube one is a godsend at the moment.

The LADSPA plugins that exist (freely) are actually remarkably good, for example the dynamics, EQ, reverb, pitchshift, etc. What was missing was something like amplitube.

I don't really need anything else now VST wise, but if there's any VSTs that you want tested to see if they work in Linux then I'll happily test them for you. Infact, just give me the names and I can try to download them. Purely for evaluation purposes, naturally.

edit: bugger me, the warp vst is even working now

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...