linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

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PhinuxSpearmint
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linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

Hi there!
I recently changed my OS from WIN8 to Linux Mint 20.1. (I'm completely new on Linux)

I tried to install ableton lite 9 because I still had it on a cd but the .msi-file could not be opened - not even with wine.

I found chats here in the forum in which it was mentioned that ableton live 10 might work on linux. However, that didn't sound very convincing.

Maybe I'll download the trial version of ableton live 10 and check out if that works.

But actually, my current concern is to be able to use my akai mpk49 controller with a recording program again.
Therefore: do you have experience with it and tips for programs with which it runs?

Thanks in advance! ;)
cheers
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by sysrqer »

I've used the MPD 32 and a few other controllers with various software. As far as I know the Akai controllers are class compliant so they should work ok with any program that accepts midi input. Are you having particular problems?
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by tavasti »

PhinuxSpearmint wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 9:11 am I tried to install ableton lite 9 because I still had it on a cd but the .msi-file could not be opened - not even with wine.

I found chats here in the forum in which it was mentioned that ableton live 10 might work on linux. However, that didn't sound very convincing.

Maybe I'll download the trial version of ableton live 10 and check out if that works.
At least for me, Ableton Live 10 Lite works ok in linux. For installing from msi file, use program 'msiexec'. For me online registration did not work for Ableton, but they do have offline registration, and it worked ok.

And with 'works ok for me' I mean it starts and looks like functional. Have tested it lightly, but really used.

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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

sysrqer wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 4:01 pm I've used the MPD 32 and a few other controllers with various software. As far as I know the Akai controllers are class compliant so they should work ok with any program that accepts midi input. Are you having particular problems?
Well, no particular problems so far as I'm still searching a way to use the akai with linux. So far I just made some accoustic recordings with audacity.
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

tavasti wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 4:07 pm
PhinuxSpearmint wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 9:11 am I tried to install ableton lite 9 because I still had it on a cd but the .msi-file could not be opened - not even with wine.

I found chats here in the forum in which it was mentioned that ableton live 10 might work on linux. However, that didn't sound very convincing.

Maybe I'll download the trial version of ableton live 10 and check out if that works.
At least for me, Ableton Live 10 Lite works ok in linux. For installing from msi file, use program 'msiexec'. For me online registration did not work for Ableton, but they do have offline registration, and it worked ok.

And with 'works ok for me' I mean it starts and looks like functional. Have tested it lightly, but really used.
All right, then I will try out the msiexec. Thanks!
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by Harry_Krishnerd »

PhinuxSpearmint wrote: Sun Jul 11, 2021 11:29 am Well, no particular problems so far as I'm still searching a way to use the akai with linux. So far I just made some accoustic recordings with audacity.
A couple of suggestions:

If you haven't already done so, install jack and qjackctl which will simplify routing/controlling your audio/MIDI signals regardless of which DAW, sequencer, synth, etc. you ultimately decide to use.

You have several options for recording and sequencing:
Qtractor https://qtractor.org
Rosegarden https://rosegardenmusic.com/
Reaper https://www.reaper.fm/download.php
Ardour http://ardour.org/
Muse https://sourceforge.net/projects/lmuse/
The above seem to be the most popular, but there are others as well.

There is an almost endless variety of Linux native synths and audio/MIDI processing plugins available as well.
Use the search function in Synaptic to see what is available in your distro's repositories.

Some suggested keywords:
lv2 ladspa vst synth midi dssi daw sequencer sf2 soundfont mp3

If your distro's repository doesn't have what you want, consider adding the KXstudio repo https://kx.studio/ to your apt.repositories list.

Also, many or most Win synths/plugins/etc. will run under WINE in Linux.
Simply Installing carla from KXstudio is probably the easiest way to ensure that WINE and related dependencies are installed/configured correctly.
(I personally find carla to be incredibly useful even w/o the win stuff as it allows you to host plugins in formats that may not be supported by whatever software I'm using ATM.)
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JackQtl-Settings?? mpk49 controller works with ableton 9 but won't with Interface (Steinberg UR22)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

Hei guys!

I eventually got to install ableton Live 9 on Linux Mint 20.1! yeah! AND I got to run the MPK249 too! Yeahh! ;)) I'm using JackQtl...

BUT my Interface (Steinberg UR22) won't connect although it's shown in the soundsettings-window. The sound is coming out of the laptop-speakers. And of course the latency is unsatisfying without the interface. I tried everything I could... I hope you can help me! ;) I'll attach a picture of the JackQtl connections, the audible settings and the sound-settings too.

PS: Normally the Interface connects and works. The problem just appears now, while the MPK249 iis connected and audible is running.

Thank you in advance!
Lisa ;)
Attachments
Interface_MPK-Problem3.jpeg
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Interface_MPK-Problem2.jpeg
Interface_MPK-Problem2.jpeg (98.12 KiB) Viewed 15920 times
Interface_MPK-Problem1.jpeg
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by asbak »

You're showing a pulseaudio device window and you're trying to use jack.
Pulse & Jack will be fighting for control over your hardware, unless you have taken measures to avoid this.

To be more clear, your version of Linux uses ALSA as the main audio back-end.
Pulse was added later by distros as a kind of audio subcomponent to manage audio IO and devices.
Pulse was a terrible audio solution for people trying to make music with Linux, although - eventually after many fixes - it worked reasonably well for consumer audio purposes.

Jack is an alternative audio subcomponent that sits atop of ALSA. It offers much lower latency and better features for music production. ALSA + JACK is basically the best way to do audio.

Jack & Pulse can co-exist, in a variety of configurations, but when you just blindly attempt to run both they're going to clash.

If you wanted to use jack then you'll need to first stop pulseaudio, or alternatively, learn how to send pulseaudio through jack while jack is running.

There are many possible configurations for different usage case scenarios. The simplest way to get up and running is to just stop the pulseaudio daemon when you are doing music production. The implications of that is that your browser audio (youtube and other applications that rely on pulseaudio) will not work any longer. However, your sound card should now be available for use in jack.

The process is reversible by stopping jack daemon and restarting pulse daemon.

More advanced configurations will allow pulse to run via jack when doing music production, and switch back to pulseaudio when not doing music production.
Some Focal / 20.04 audio packages and resources https://midistudio.groups.io/g/linuxaudio
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

Wow, thank you! That sounds absolutely new to me! And can you tell me how and where I stop the pulse audio daemon?
Cheers! ;)
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by asbak »

The answer depends on your Linux distribution and the version of that distribution.

On Mint 20 before using jack you can try first stopping pulseaudio from the shell with the commands

systemctl --user stop pulseaudio.service
systemctl --user stop pulseaudio.socket

then start jack.


After finishing using jack, stop it and to get consumer audio back start pulse again with

systemctl --user start pulseaudio.service
systemctl --user start pulseaudio.socket
Some Focal / 20.04 audio packages and resources https://midistudio.groups.io/g/linuxaudio
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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by PhinuxSpearmint »

Thank you very much! I will try that out now :wink:

The "latency" of my reaction is due to the fact that I moved out of my old flat, went travelling and recently moved into a new flat, with today reinstalling my music equipment for the first time again :lol: ...as time goes by :P

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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by bluebell »

You can run jack permanently as your main audio system and have Pulseaudio output to jack instead of grabbing an audio interface.

Magic word is "PulseAudio JACK Sink"

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Re: linux software to use an akai mpk49 controller - (ableton lite 9 on linux?)

Post by tavasti »

PhinuxSpearmint wrote: Thu Dec 28, 2023 4:01 pm

Thank you very much! I will try that out now :wink:

The "latency" of my reaction is due to the fact that I moved out of my old flat, went travelling and recently moved into a new flat, with today reinstalling my music equipment for the first time again :lol: ...as time goes by :P

It is pretty normal that latency with Ableton in Linux is huge, but now it is something like 1.5 years! :-D

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