Linux-audio-tuning January 2010

linux-audio-tuning@lists.linuxaudio.org

3 participants
3 discussions

RT kernel for audio and dynamic vs static ticks

by Lars-Erik Helander

In móst guides on how to build an RT kernel for audio you advised to untick the Dynamic Tick selection and change the default tick period from 300 Hz to 1000Hz, during kernel configuration.. I have built an RT kernel without unticking the Dynamic Tick selection, i.e. the kernel has a dynamic tick length. With this kernel I do not experience any audible difference from the same kernel but with static tick at 1000Hz rate. Is the advise to use static ticks at 1000Hz still valid? Anyone that has insight on this are more than welcome to share their knowledge :) Kind Regards Lars

14 years, 11 months

Re: [LAT] Setting up a performance synth

by Brian Bergstrom

I use an old Thinkpad T21 P3-900MHz as a live MIDI controlled synth and sampler. It has been working well with 64 Studio 2.1 on it using Jack, AMSynth and Specimen. I use a Ozone USB audio interface and MIDI controller in one. I just installed the new Karmic Ubuntu Studio on my beefy production machine and it is working great there, but it does have a larger footprint. -Brian On 1/14/10 11:00 AM, linux-audio-tuning-request(a)lists.linuxaudio.org wrote: > Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:55:42 -0500 > From: David McClanahan<david.mcclanahan(a)gmail.com> > Subject: [LAT] Setting up a performance synth > To: linux-audio-tuning(a)lists.linuxaudio.org > Message-ID: > <977676ab1001131355x1ec62682mf78b8faa15dc68cd(a)mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Hi, > > I'm trying get a Dell 7000 laptop(with about a 3G harddrive) to be a > synthesizer. Yes it's older(How old is tooo old?) Yes its slower(How slow is > too slow?) But it's what I've got and I'm not convinced it can't do the job > yet. > > Anyway when I say "synthesizer", I mean > > 1. It's tweakable(like a minimoog etc) as in has ADSR, filters, and the like > that can be controlled(via midi) on the fly. > > 2. It doesn't crack and wheeze(or xrun all over me) > > 3. It's doesn't lock up when I bend over to tie my shoes. > > 4. It's midi controllable > > I have managed to install Ubuntu and crippled piece of Ubuntu Studio(Karma I > think). I say that it's crippled because a full installation took up more > disk space than I had so I took some things off(using the normal packaging > mechanisms 'apt' etc). The realtime kernel is still present however along > with the Jack stuff. The sound works-I can play an mp3. > > But soft synths like Bristol either don't work or lock up the machine. I > managed to get Bristol to partially work by starting the network loop > interface, but even then it was sluggish and eventually locked up the whole > machine. Same goes for PD and Zyn. > > Fluidsynth(qsynth) works but it's pretty easy to cause xruns(and the pops). > > So here's my question/comment. > > Is it worth trying to get something working on this(or another) > distribution? > > I'd like to just get something working but these distribution(Puredyne, > Ubuntu Studio, etc) seem to have a heavy footprint and they don't seem very > configurable. Ubuntu seems heavily coupled to GNOME, PulseAudio, LASH and > stuff for which I have no clue what they're for. As a side question, from > the perspective of sound synthesis, is Jack useful? It seems to provide > interprocess communication between audio apps. I can see it being useful if > you have multiple apps talking audio to each other. But if you have a single > process soft synth and ALSA what's on top of the hardware how does Jack > help? m-dist might be an exception. It worked on my desktop but locked up > on my laptops. > > OR would it be better to build a dedicated synth on a hard realtime > platform. > > Has anyone just adapted Linux to just boot a computer as a dedicated > synthbox(or engine) with little or no other I/O concerns to get in the way? > I don't care if I can play Space Invaders and write my resume at the same > time. I've got a Roland JV1010 tone box and I doubt it has 10th of the > processing power or memory of the Dell and yet it doesn't crack or wheeze. I > don't even care if it drove the display. As long as it acted like a stable > hardware synth and was midi controllable I could get along. Maybe such a > thing already is out there. I've looked but had no success. >

14 years, 11 months

Setting up a performance synth

by David McClanahan

Hi, I'm trying get a Dell 7000 laptop(with about a 3G harddrive) to be a synthesizer. Yes it's older(How old is tooo old?) Yes its slower(How slow is too slow?) But it's what I've got and I'm not convinced it can't do the job yet. Anyway when I say "synthesizer", I mean 1. It's tweakable(like a minimoog etc) as in has ADSR, filters, and the like that can be controlled(via midi) on the fly. 2. It doesn't crack and wheeze(or xrun all over me) 3. It's doesn't lock up when I bend over to tie my shoes. 4. It's midi controllable I have managed to install Ubuntu and crippled piece of Ubuntu Studio(Karma I think). I say that it's crippled because a full installation took up more disk space than I had so I took some things off(using the normal packaging mechanisms 'apt' etc). The realtime kernel is still present however along with the Jack stuff. The sound works-I can play an mp3. But soft synths like Bristol either don't work or lock up the machine. I managed to get Bristol to partially work by starting the network loop interface, but even then it was sluggish and eventually locked up the whole machine. Same goes for PD and Zyn. Fluidsynth(qsynth) works but it's pretty easy to cause xruns(and the pops). So here's my question/comment. Is it worth trying to get something working on this(or another) distribution? I'd like to just get something working but these distribution(Puredyne, Ubuntu Studio, etc) seem to have a heavy footprint and they don't seem very configurable. Ubuntu seems heavily coupled to GNOME, PulseAudio, LASH and stuff for which I have no clue what they're for. As a side question, from the perspective of sound synthesis, is Jack useful? It seems to provide interprocess communication between audio apps. I can see it being useful if you have multiple apps talking audio to each other. But if you have a single process soft synth and ALSA what's on top of the hardware how does Jack help? m-dist might be an exception. It worked on my desktop but locked up on my laptops. OR would it be better to build a dedicated synth on a hard realtime platform. Has anyone just adapted Linux to just boot a computer as a dedicated synthbox(or engine) with little or no other I/O concerns to get in the way? I don't care if I can play Space Invaders and write my resume at the same time. I've got a Roland JV1010 tone box and I doubt it has 10th of the processing power or memory of the Dell and yet it doesn't crack or wheeze. I don't even care if it drove the display. As long as it acted like a stable hardware synth and was midi controllable I could get along. Maybe such a thing already is out there. I've looked but had no success.

14 years, 11 months

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Linux-audio-tuning January 2010