Linux-audio-user May 2025

linux-audio-user@lists.linuxaudio.org

23 participants
17 discussions

[LAU] FLOSS Audio editors on Linux: are they all dead(-ish)?

by Lorenzo Sutton

Hi LAU and LAD, It seems that (FLOSS) audio editors (not DAWs) are all either dead/obsolate (mhwaveditor, rezound), in strange development states (Audacity, Tenacity). Tenacity, the most promising (albeit with its audacity-inherited idiosyncrasies) has a really annoying bug [1] which makes it take ages to load [1] - IMHO a no go for an audio editor IMHO (plus its multi-track-ness like Audacity makes it overload for a few use cases). The only more-or-less usable one at the moment is ocenaudio which is not free software (and also has some UI quirks, but that's maybe personal). I've been a fan of mhWaveEdit for its mix of simplicity and configurability, but as an abandoned GTK2 application it shows its problems. Is this kind of software not interesting any more? Are people using DAWs for everything? Are people even using, or interested / committed in using Linux Audio any more? As LAC approaches (unfortunately I won't be able to attend, even though it's in Europe), why not try to spark some debate :-P Lorenzo [1] https://codeberg.org/tenacityteam/tenacity/issues/549

6 months, 1 week

[LAU] [Music] When You Smile

by Jeanette C.

Hey hey, I would like to share a new song: When You Smile https://youtu.be/TdJ6H01q5XI This is a love song, an electronic ballad, heavily influenced by the likes of Imogen Heap. This means interesting and self-made sound design. In this case this involves field recordings, mixed and processed samples, completely synthesized material, using soft- and hardware synthesizers. A Csound specific note follows at the end. Used hardware: Behringer Neutron Make Noise 0-Coast Used software: Csound (synthesis, sample editing, FX) LinuxSampler (Csound samples, further drums, piano, guitar and strings) Yoshimi (Pads and various) Midish MIDI sequencing and arrangement Nama Recording, mixing and mastering I tried to use Csound in multiple ways, so I loaded in several drum samples, both from free libraries and my own making and edited and mixed them to export as new samles. There is the first version of the Mbria like physical modelling instrument. I used it as a vocoder, to process live audio with other custom effects and to synthesize other drum sounds from first principles. Csound is also responsible for the harp-like sound. Share and enjoy! Best wishes, Jeanette -- * Website: http://juliencoder.de - for summer is a state of sound * Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMS4rfGrTwz8W7jhC1Jnv7g * Audiobombs: https://www.audiobombs.com/users/jeanette_c * GitHub: https://github.com/jeanette-c Do you even know what I like Just what I'm living for, What I adore <3 (Britney Spears)

7 months

[LAU] Ratatouille v0.9.11 released

by Hermann Meyer

Ratatouille is a Neural Model loader and mixer for Linux/Windows. New in this release: * allow to build as clap plugin * allow to build as vst2 plugin Ratatouille allow to load up to two neural model files and mix there output. Those models could be *.nam files <https://tonehunt.org/all> or *.json or .aidax files <https://cloud.aida-x.cc/all>. So you could blend from clean to crunch for example, or, go wild and mix different amp models, or mix a amp with a pedal simulation. Ratatouille using parallel processing to process the second neural model and the second IR-File to reduce the dsp load. Ratatouille allow to compensate phasing issues between the loaded Models. The "Delay" control could add a small delay to add some color/reverb to the sound. To round up the sound it allow to load up to two Impulse Response files and mix there output as well. You could try the wildest combinations, or, be conservative and load just your single preferred IR-File. Each neural model may have a different expected Sample Rate, Ratatouille will resample the buffer to match that. Impulse Response Files will be resampled on the fly to match the session Sample Rate. Release Page (binaries): https://github.com/brummer10/Ratatouille.lv2/releases/tag/v0.9.11 Project Page (source code): https://github.com/brummer10/Ratatouille.lv2 regards hermann

7 months, 3 weeks

[LAU] NeuralRack v0.1.8 released

by Hermann Meyer

NeuralRack is a Neural Model and Impulse Response File loader for Linux/Windows. It supports [*.nam files](https://www.tone3000.com/search?tags=103) and, or [*.json or .aidax files](https://www.tone3000.com/search?tags=23562) by using the [NeuralAudio](https://github.com/mikeoliphant/NeuralAudio) engine. For Impulse Response File Convolution it use [FFTConvolver](https://github.com/HiFi-LoFi/FFTConvolver) Resampling is done by [Libzita-resampler](https://kokkinizita.linuxaudio.org/linuxaudio/zita-resam… New in this release: - add vst2 support - fix issue with Clap GUI in Bitwig - fix issue with hyper accurate models - fix IR-file not applied to right channel ![NeuralRack](https://github.com/brummer10/NeuralRack/raw/main/NeuralRack.png?raw=true) Neuralrack allow to load up to two model files and run them serial. The input/output could be controlled separate for each model. For tone sharping a 6 band EQ could be enabled. Additional it allow to load up a separate Impulse Response file for each output channel (stereo). Neuralrack provide a buffered Mode which introduce a one frame latency when enabled. It could move one Neural Model, or the complete processing into a background thread. That will reduce the CPU load when needed. The resulting latency will be reported to the host so that it could be compensated. Project Page (Source code): https://github.com/brummer10/NeuralRack Release Page (binaries): https://github.com/brummer10/NeuralRack/releases/tag/v0.1.8

8 months

[LAU] Guitar to USB devices can be quite good

by Len Ovens

There are lots of guitar to USB audio devices out there and it seems they have all done them wrong. I modified one of them and it actually sounds very good. Perhaps better than plugging into the "high impedance" input of many audio interfaces or using a DI box into a mic input. The result is a much more open sound in particular with single coil pickups (or tapped as I happen to have). Why do I think they have likely all done them wrong? The Application notes say: "Please follow the reference schematic for microphone section design." So not only is it easy but it is recomended. I am sure it works well for a computer mic. Anyway, for those who want a good quility direct to usb guitar cable here is my journey to fix a toy into something better. https://www.ovenwerks.net/hardware/GuitarUSBhack/index.html I find it amazing that the manufactures would not reduce their parts count while making a better product. Len -- Len Ovens www.ovenwerks.net

8 months

[LAU] We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes

by david

We’ve Got the Beat—in Our Genes How much we enjoy music, and in what ways, is heritable By Charles Digges May 19, 2025 https://nautil.us/weve-got-the-beat-in-our-genes-1211821/ Wouldn't surprise me. My parents both played instruments. Three of my four grandparents played instruments, too. I suppose me playing instruments was inevitable! How about the rest of you? -- David W. Jones gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com authenticity, honesty, community http://dancingtreefrog.com "My password is the last 8 digits of π."

8 months

[LAU] [ANN] Qtractor 1.5.5 - A Mid-Spring'25 Release

by Rui Nuno Capela

Hi everyone, Qtractor 1.5.5 (mid-spring'25) is out! Change-log: - Fixed negative time values displayed in tool-tips, when dragging the rubber-band (lasso) to the left, over the absolute beginning of the timeline. - A warning is now issued when an audio self connection is made (eg. connecting an output bus (or insert send) directly into an input bus (or insert return). - Files item selection mode switching corrected. - Mitigate or postpone a 'too many open files' condition as much as possible. - Let muted clips show the "[Mute]" tag as the name label prefix, so that it's visible even on small clips. - Stepping up next development cycle (Qt >= 6.9) Description: Qtractor [1] is an audio/MIDI multi-track sequencer application written in C++ with the Qt framework [2]. Target platform is Linux, where the Jack Audio Connection Kit (JACK [3]) for audio and the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA [4]) for MIDI are the main infrastructures to evolve as a fairly-featured Linux desktop audio workstation GUI, specially dedicated to the personal home-studio. Website: https://qtractor.org https://qtractor.sourceforge.io http://qtractor.sourceforge.net Project page: https://sourceforge.net/projects/qtractor Downloads: https://sourceforge.net/projects/qtractor/files - source tarball: https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-1.5.5.tar.gz - source package (openSUSE Tubleweed): https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-1.5.5-12.1.rncbc.suse.src.rpm - binary package (openSUSE Tubleweed): https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-1.5.5-12.1.rncbc.suse.x86_64.rpm - AppImage [7] package: https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-1.5.5-12.1.x86_64.AppImage - Flatpak [8] package: https://flathub.org/apps/details/org.rncbc.qtractor Git repos: https://git.code.sf.net/p/qtractor/code https://github.com/rncbc/qtractor.git https://gitlab.com/rncbc/qtractor.git https://codeberg.org/rncbc/qtractor.git Wiki: https://sourceforge.net/p/qtractor/wiki/ - static rendering: https://qtractor.org/doc http://qtractor.sourceforge.net/doc https://qtractor.sourceforge.io/doc - user manual & how-to's: https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-manual-and-howtos.epub https://download.sf.net/qtractor/qtractor-manual-and-howtos.pdf License: Qtractor [1] is free, open-source Linux Audio [5] software, distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL [6]) version 2 or later. References: [1] Qtractor - An audio/MIDI multi-track sequencer https://qtractor.org https://qtractor.sourceforge.io http://qtractor.sourceforge.net [2] Qt framework, C++ class library and tools for cross-platform application and UI development https://qt.io/ [3] JACK Audio Connection Kit https://jackaudio.org [4] ALSA, Advanced Linux Sound Architecture https://www.alsa-project.org/ [5] Linux Audio consortium of libre software for audio-related work https://linuxaudio.org [6] GPL - GNU General Public License https://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html [7] AppImage, Linux apps that run anywhere https://appimage.org/ [8] Flatpak, next-generation technology for building and distributing desktop applications on Linux https://flatpak.org/ See also: https://www.rncbc.org/drupal/node/2771 Enjoy && Keep the fun! - - - rncbc aka Rui Nuno Capela

8 months

[LAU] Re: We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes

by Susanne Schneider

Nobody in my family played any instrument... my father loved operas though... my own musical - äh, lets say: "wakening" was exclusively driven by Merceybeat and, who else: the BEATLES :-) Am 21. Mai 2025 12:00:12 MESZ schrieb linux-audio-user-request(a)lists.linuxaudio.org: >Send Linux-audio-user mailing list submissions to > linux-audio-user(a)lists.linuxaudio.org > >To subscribe or unsubscribe via email, send a message with subject or >body 'help' to > linux-audio-user-request(a)lists.linuxaudio.org > >You can reach the person managing the list at > linux-audio-user-owner(a)lists.linuxaudio.org > >When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific >than "Re: Contents of Linux-audio-user digest..." > >Today's Topics: > > 1. We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes (david) > 2. Re: We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes (Will Godfrey) > 3. Re: We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes (Roger) > 4. Re: We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes (Bill Purvis) > > >---------------------------------------------------------------------- > >Message: 1 >Date: Tue, 20 May 2025 19:20:50 -1000 >From: david <gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com> >Subject: [LAU] We’ve Got the Beat - in Our Genes >To: linux-audio-user <linux-audio-user(a)lists.linuxaudio.org> >Message-ID: <c5a96b28-d490-4c8b-8a36-d4f6c746720e(a)hawaii.rr.com> >Content-Type: multipart/alternative; > boundary="------------KZkZat10FI08hLLQOQv7HOiR" > >We’ve Got the Beat—in Our Genes >How much we enjoy music, and in what ways, is heritable >By Charles Digges May 19, 2025 > >https://nautil.us/weve-got-the-beat-in-our-genes-1211821/ > >Wouldn't surprise me. My parents both played instruments. Three of my >four grandparents played instruments, too. I suppose me playing >instruments was inevitable! > >How about the rest of you? > >-- >David W. Jones >gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com >authenticity, honesty, community >http://dancingtreefrog.com >"My password is the last 8 digits of π." >

8 months, 1 week

[LAU] Do you think music is getting noisier over the past 50 years?

by david

Turn up the noise: Why distortion in music is growing in popularity by Ethan Kung, University of California, Los Angeles https://phys.org/news/2025-05-noise-distortion-music-popularity.html I guess I did my little bit part in the 1970s, running my Hammond organ output through a wahwah pedal > volume control pedal chain to an amp and making Hendrix guitar sounds. Anyone else? -- David W. Jones gnome(a)hawaii.rr.com authenticity, honesty, community http://dancingtreefrog.com "My password is the last 8 digits of π."

8 months, 1 week

[LAU] 1/4 inch to USB audio interfaces

by Len Ovens

There are a lot of "guitar" to USB "cables" out there. I picked one up just for practice purposes: plug it in to my laptop and run it through Guitarix. My findings: The board inside is a standard phones and mic usb dongle. So pipewire will try to make the phones jack (which doesn't exist on these things) the default output. Lucky for me there is an input only "profile" I can set pipewire to. Next thing I noticed was that my volume pot was scatchy... I just bought this guitar and it is not scratchy on the amp or through pedals. Yeah, the volt meter says 3vdc going to the guitar. The chip inside says it is a C-Media HS-100B. The board inside is like I mentioned, meant for a "computer" mic and seems to have followed exactly the schematic snip in the c-media application notes: Input has a varister and .1uf cap to ground and then goes through two 8.2k resisters, one then goes through another .1uf to micin... so far ok. However, the other 8.2k is followed by 47uf cap to ground (effectively making the input 8.2k) and then through a 2.2k to vbias. NOT a good input setup for a guitar at all. I could not find out what the inout impedance is of micin is but if I can get the case open (enter the dremmel) and remove the R12 to vbias, my input impedance will at least double. I'll let people know how that goes. So, 1/4inch to USB cable are not Guitar to USB cables.... put a preamp in front.... a looper for practice in cludes an aways on buffer. Len -- Len Ovens www.ovenwerks.net

8 months, 1 week

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

Linux-audio-user May 2025