The linux DAW thread

[audiojunkie]

How bad is recording latency when using WINE by the way?

I am not sure that Wine is used anymore for Wine asio. Most people just use the native Linux Alsa drivers which can achieve very good latency if you own a compliant audio interface.

WINE is a compatibility layer. Essentially Windows APIs for Linux. This allows Linux to run Windows apps at near-native speeds. Think of WINEASIO as the ASIO driver that has to be installed on a Windows machine.

So, in short, WINE “and” WINEASIO would both still be required to be used for a native Windows DAW. The good news is that you wouldn’t have to use yabridge for your Windows native plugins. But be aware—your risks are higher if your DAW does run in a very stable manner under WINE.

Somewhere wires have got crossed. Let me explain what I meant,and correct me if I have got things mixed up. Yes, wineasio would be required if someone wished to run a Windows DAW in Linux such as Cubase. I used to use wineasio in that way 20 years ago. But nowadays there is no longer any need for wineasio. Reaper, Bitwig, Studio One and Waveform can all be run using native Linux alsa drivers and plugins. There is no longer any necessity to install Wine. Only install it if you want to use a Windows only DAW, your Windows VST plugins, or some other Windows program that you need.

Yes, this sounds correct.

[GaryG]

There has been a lot of success by others in getting these authorization systems to work. However, I personally only use plugins that use serial number or keyfile authorization that isn’t tied to any hardware and doesn’t have to contact the company for activation. No challenge response for me. This that nearly removes the authorization problem from the equation.

I've had a few CR issues with plugins (generally, not Linux specific) so trying my best to move away from them too. Unfortunately come across a couple of bridged Windows plugs that appear to work but can't register as they don't accept keyboard input, KlevGrand ones for example. The Kilohearts installer too though you can just copy the plugs from a Windows install in that case, guess the authentication is done by the installer, not on a plug by plug basis.

But other license based plugs such as Valhalla, United Plugins and Kuassa have all just worked for me.

Maybe a separate topic purely for windows-bridging experiences could be useful.

[farlukar]

With the last update AudioThing's Things - Motor got a linux build

[glokraw]

Here's the Neural Amp Modeler vst3 from

https://github.com/sdatkinson/NeuralAmp ... n/releases

For a zip archived collection of models, click the green Code button at this site:

https://github.com/pelennor2170/NAM_mod ... hzhoN_gHwQ

I have the Soldano model loaded with a delay and reverb, and it sounds fine! Using windows Reaper 7.09 in a recent AVLinux, with wine-staging 9.0 and wineasio.

Neural-ReaDelay-Solaris.jpg

[surreal]

I suspect that this thread is going to become more and more popular as the microsoft corporation locks out more pcs into a vegetative state by paralysing windows activations only Win 10 and Win 11 activates ( I already could not reactivate a Window7 install on my Legacy Pc and the update path to windows 10 has been closed last year september as I only recently discoverd)

That being said I took the step to learn linux by installing Linux Mint Cinnamon on my laptop but I need now to find drivers for my audio and midi interfaces and to learn how to configure bottles and reaper and my vst paths and files and to get them to see each other and work. The best tutorials I can find on Ytube is that people can get bottles to run notepad on bottles but an DAW with plugins is a whole differant level of complex configurations. Any advice woul be great!

[GaryG]

Using windows Reaper 7.09 in a recent AVLinux, with wine-staging 9.0 and wineasio.

Is there a reason for not using the native version (maybe asio drivers for your hardware?)?

[FranklyFlawless]

Any advice woul be great!

Keep it simple.

[bulevardi]

Using windows Reaper 7.09 in a recent AVLinux, with wine-staging 9.0 and wineasio.

Is there a reason for not using the native version (maybe asio drivers for your hardware?)?

I was wondering too.
I read that NAM would work fine directly under Reaper 6.8 or above, in Linux (without wine).

I want to test that NAM LV2 plugin soon when I have the time.

[glokraw]

I need things to be simple, and work right out of the box, in my case, that means the AVLinux distro, pre-configured for pro audio, that has wine-staging and the Yabridge vst plugin wrapper installed, along with a Reaper demo, and other demo's found in /opt

A key to linux audio is the willingness to get a supported audio interface, and happily, some great progress has been made for several modern Focusrite devices, including a software settings panel, discussed in this topic:

https://linuxmusicians.com/viewtopic.php?t=24281

Many usb devices, class compliant for Mac sake, also work in linux, and many 'drivers' are in the form of kernel modules, so they exist without needing installation, and are ready for duties. Older RME and mAudio pci cards usually work fine.

As things stand this week, for AVLinux, there is a default pipewire audio system up and running, that has a connections gui called qpwgraph. It's author also maintains qjackctl, a jackd based gui for audio settings and connections. This is what I use. I uninstalled pipewire, but there are many reports of positive experiences from the site at the above link.

A second key to linux audio, is getting the daws and plugins and tools that work without issues, so if some favorites won't work, there are so many that do, that it's easy to get overloaded. And once a system is established, just get on with the music, and don't change the linux parts. Make a secondary install for experimenting on an external drive.

There are many linux native things these days, without spending money, there are Surge, Vital, free U-he plugins, Hydrogen drum machine, Rakarrack multi effects, Guitarix amp-sim, DecentSampler, and many effects collections. Reaper supports LV2, vst and vst3 and CLAP. Ardour is nearly free, and has a commercial cousin in Harrison Mixbus. Bitwig is it's own beast, very innovative and powerful, so a bit pricey.

I'll guess that around 90% of the windows plugins that don't require ilok or pace type of authorizations, will work via yabridge and wine-staging. I have things from KV331, Tone2, Melda, IK, and NI, and many bargains from Plugin Boutique. Also, a huge array of 32 bit synthedit plugins work fine in Reaper, many having excellent soundsets made by designers still active in the craft. I have registered a pair of items via Plugin-Alliance, a freebie from Valhalla, and the great Synth1 works fine, with it's amazing collection of zipbank sounds.

The Reaper linux forum has quite a few Arch linux users, who tend to be modernized, and quick to help: https://forum.cockos.com/forumdisplay.php?f=52

There are few reasons for me to prefer one of the linux or windows Reapers. I need wineasio to be around for awhile, as it is critical for some standalone apps, and maybe some plugins with huge capabilities, but yabridge wrapper in linux Reaper does a fine job making vst/vst3 plugins work.

Many people start linux with a general purpose distro version, but for audio, the specialty distros are a treat, and it's simple to have both, since linux installs easier to extra drives or partitions, than windows. AVLinux is available here:

http://www.bandshed.net/ GMaq has worked on it for many years, but for his own purposes, and happily shares it, but some of the support must come from the MX Linux and Debian linux, and various helpful forums.
Cheers

[glokraw]

I have a lot of plugins, and it takes awhile for the

yabridgectl sync

command to do it's thing, so sometimes it's easier/faster to try new things in the windows reaper, rather than wait for a longish sync process.
A nice problem to have
Cheers

[glokraw]

Some misc notes, things to do, and things to have, that may allow you to authorize and use Native Instruments products in a recent AVLinux distro using a recent Reaper, a recent wine-staging, and the latest yabridge plugin wrapper.

When confronted with an NI product that arrives as an .iso file, you must mount it to expose the installer it contains, so you'll want an uncluttered folder in which to do that, so command:

sudo mkdir /mnt/iso (this creates a folder in /mnt where you can mount your .iso files.)

sudo mount -t udf /home/you/.wine/drive_c/Users/you/Downloads/Phasis.iso -o unhide /mnt/iso

(this will expose the Phasis installer for a normal installation routine)

Also, messages that your NI download has failed are almost always false, just filesystem nonsense,
and your download will be found usually at /home/you/Downloads.
Move the archive to /mnt/iso (or your preferred folder) unzip it, and run the above command if it is a .iso, or if an installer, just launch it with

wine ABC.exe or if the title contains spaces, as many NI titles and paths do, use quotes to wrap
the path and or title:

wine "A B C.exe"

You will likely need to install, perhaps in this order,
'NTKDaemon 1.15.1 Setup PC.exe'
the old legacy version of Native Access, 'Native Access 1.14.1 Setup PC.exe'
and also and also 'NI Uninstall RegTool_64bit.exe' (the RegTool is needed sometimes when NI installers need to remove a previous version from windows (wine) registry, before installing the latest version...annoying, but two very different OS's are having at it!

For using Yabridge for wrapping your windows plugins, you give it a list of individual path commands based on your wine setup, (noting the quotes!) and then order it to 'sync':

yabridgectl add /home/you/.wine/drive_c/users/VstPlugins
yabridgectl add /home/you/.wine/drive_c/"Program Files/VstPlugins"
yabridgectl add /home/you/.wine/drive_c/"Program Files/Native Instruments/VSTPlugins 64 bit"
yabridgectl add /home/you/.wine/drive_c/"Program Files/Steinberg/VSTPlugins"

yabridgectl sync

When it is done, start the linux Reaper, and choose the clear-the-cache rescan option,
and most if not all of your windows vst collection should be ready for action. Other daws will likely be able to use them as well, based on their merits.
Cheers

If your distro has it's own repository wine version, not the 'wine-staging' from winehq.org,
and the above steps refuse to work, use your package manager, or a known command, to fully uninstall that wine, and install the one from winehq (they also will have the 'stable' version available, if you desire.

AVLinux, found at the link below, contains a configured wine-staging, yabridge (with a nice gui) and a Reaper demo, as well as many native linux instruments and effects.

www.bandshed.net

[GaryG]

I noticed the old v1 Native Access didn't recognise newer products (GR7 for instance), do you know if it still authorises them even if it can't install them?

[glokraw]

So you have the AVLinux iso, (or some other distro iso) but no dvd burner to create an install medium

No worries mate Linux has a dd command, to burn an .iso image to a usbstick.

Assuming your usbstick is recognized as /dev/sdc, as mine was, this command, as root user or by sudo, would work

sudo dd if=AVL_MXE-23.1-20240115_x64.iso of=/dev/sdc bs=1M status=progress

(the 'if=' is input file, your downloaded AVLinux .iso file, and the 'of=' will be your 'output file',
a bootable AVLinux usbstick. Use your computer's 'early boot' setup to start the linux, have a look around, and then install to an SSD or hard-drive if you like what you see!

The installer will want a username and password, and optionally, a root user and password, and some basic info about which drive and partition to use, timezone etc etc
Cheers

[glokraw]

Public beta of Zebralette 3 (Clap and vst versions in the pic)

https://dl.u-he.com/betas/public/zebral ... nux.tar.xz

Zebralette's.jpg

[glokraw]

The Guitarix dev has been slaving away, now adding Neural and RTNeural model support to his products, and sounding excellent. Soldano, Mesa etc etc

To find the Neural's in the Guitarix vst3, open a new panel with a click of the + widget, select Distortion from the menu, and take your pick, as in the pick below. I copied Neural Amp gear to the Music folder, as it opened by default, and also made an 'Aida-amps' folder there, for the RT Neural gear. But the browser won't be picky where you want things, although 'hidden' folders were not available locations.

The ever paranoid audiojunkie posted links to various gear model collections, scroll down the topic here:

https://linuxmusicians.com/posting.php? ... e&p=165383

guitarix-neural.jpg

RTNeuralSoldano.jpg

From his post at www.linuxmusicians.com:

"Here are the RTNeural captures:

https://cloud.aida-x.cc/all

Here are the NAM captures:

https://tonehunt.org/all

"