13 Dec
2010
13 Dec
'10
4:26 p.m.
2010/12/13 Robin Gareus <robin(a)gareus.org>
Lucky you :) The information on the alsa-wiki is very good, but not
every user is diligently following instructions as you do.
It is also much easier to make a custom kernel that runs on one (your)
system only, than tackling the task of compiling one that can be
distributed.
let's say I learned to be careful the day after I forgot to put the --initrd
option in a make-kpkg command line statement and got a kernel panic after
rebooting my first brand new... not-working-at-all-kernel :)
agree...
you're right but as a statistician I prefer to call it *law of large numbers
*... same results but more complicated to explain :)
it is much easier to screw up a
kernel by blindly applying patches and generating a .config if you don't
know what you're doing (and sometimes even if you know what you're
doing). Also, one needs additional tools (like rtirq) to make good use
of RT-linux, while -bfs runs OOTB.
However these days most distributions do that setup for the users.
well, I always followed
http://www.alsa-project.org/main/index.php/Low_latency_howto and never
screwed up a kernel I don't care so much about speed. The important
issue in pro-audio is
reliability. It's not the smallest possible latency that counts, but the
max. latency of the system.
I really did not understand this statement and anyway I would not why anybody should be safe knowing that his box
max latency is 20ms
instead
of 50ms or 70ms?
The max. system-latency determines the audio-latency at which you will
never have any x-runs. (The minimal and avg. latency determines the
speed and reactivity of your Desktop.)
Without the RT-linux patch you may be good at 99.9% of the time, but
since there is no guarantee for system-latency: there may be drop-outs.
And Murphy says that this 0.1% chance will always become real when
you're on stage in the middle of a performance. The resulting click will
not only kill the PA but half the audience will sue you for becoming
deaf ;-)
An other use-case is a studio: It's not about
low-latency there but
about no x-runs at all, they are just unprofessional. YMMV.
I agree about unprofessionality of xruns but what about our ears?
I trust my ears and bless them, thanks to them I can appreciate music from
Ella to Jimi and so on... but do they betray me when I realize I can't
recognize an xrun in a mix? How long is an xrun? Can we hear it when it
occurs only 3,4,5 times in a mix?
I guess I am going off topic now but I am a fan of "if it's sounds good then
it's ok"
Regards
--
*L'unica speranza di catarsi, ammesso che ne esista una, resta affidata
all'istinto di ribellione, alla rivolta non isterilita in progetti, alla
protesta violenta e viscerale.*