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State of Hard Disk Recording in Linux?
Madfishmonger asks: "I'm putting together a live computer rig for a band to play back backing tracks as well as simultaneously transmit MIDI program and control changes to various synthesizers and digital mixers. Are there any Linux-based apps (especially Linux PPC ? , since we'll be running an older PowerBook) which can replace software like Logic, Cubase and ProTools for simpler tasks like managing MIDI ? program changes and audio playback simultaneously, or which are even capable of rudimentary hard disk recording tasks, and will also work with the more common multi-IO MIDI interfaces from makers like MOTU and Emagic? I haven't heard of anything comparable to the current Mac and Windows-based technologies like TDM ? , VST ? , RTAS and ASIO, but is there anything in the works which could give the music community a third platform to work on, or do I have to wait for the big name proggies to come out on OS X?"
I have been pondering this myself. I have no answer but let me post my similar related idea about using linux, bsd or OSX as a hard disk based personal hi-fi audio recorder. The reason I limited my selection to these OS's is I want a Tivo like stability. When I press record, I want to know it is recording. What I want is a Olympus style dictaphone that will work in the confines of my home. A little 2" x 4" note taker. But unlike the Olympus, which records with crappy 8Khz or 11Khz sound, I want 44Khz, 16bit sound, so I figured why not carry around a small wireless transmitter with on/off switch. I figured I would plug the receiver in the audio inputs of a *nix box. Then I need to find 1) single channel 44Khz, 16 bit linux/bsd recording app 2) a wireless transmitter/receiver (which possibly has a serial port trigger). 3) The app needs to poll the voltage on the audio input jack and start/stop recording accordinly. This would have the added advantage that the little RED broadcasting LED on the transmitter would by definition correspond to the actual recording state of the linux box. Alternatively, use a transmitter that possibly has a serial port control, although it seems to me that you'd be sacrificing the LED. Heck maybe the simplest thing is to just buy a 2nd tivo for this purpose, and a leapfrog for whole house use. Only downside is no LED so no visual confirmation on the transmitter that you are recording...
There really isn't much out there ... There is a decent hard disk recording package (x86 only?) -- but it has no midi functionality ... how many channels of audio do you think a *powerbook* can record simultaneously? :) Im gonna guess its a small integer under 5 :)
... the hourly crashes, unstable midi I wished cubase ran under linux ... But, cubase runs like a *dream* under Win2k. *rarely* crashes (won't say never), midi accuracy/percision is dead on...
... Cubase is your bread and butter, but DX/VST plugins make the cake (to use a bad pun). Im going to speculate wildly that there are probably less then 1000 people in the world with the knowledge to write *professional quality* effects ... And they're pulling 6 figure salaries from Steinberg, TC, Antares, Roland, Novation, KORG, GEM, etc :) They're not writing free plugins for a plugin architecture that dosen't exist on an OS that dosen't have a decent sequencer.
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For years, suffering with win98 and cubase 3.5
This being said, even if there was a cubase clone *today* it still wouldn't be that usefull
Anyways, thats the state of things as they are
For a second oponion, pose your question to the linux audio developers mailing list:
http://www.linuxdj.com/audio/lad/
they may tell you differently, but remember, they're advocates
dan
thg music group
Free Techno/Jazz/DNB/MI Music by guys obsessed with monkeys!