How to install LinuxSampler.

Link to good samples/soundfonts at http://wiki.linuxaudio.org/wiki/free_audio_data

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dchurch24
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How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by dchurch24 »

Hi all,

Every year or so, when I upgrade or do a fresh install of UbuntuStudio, I have the problem of how to get LinuxSampler installed.

I simply don't have the memory capacity to remember how to do it.

I managed to get it installed from source, but it would only work with alsa, there was no Jack option available.

Can someone please point me in the right direction?

Failing that, am I simply out of date, and there's another sampler program that people are using?

PS. Why isn't it compiled and included as default in UbuntuStudio distros?
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by Michael Willis »

dchurch24 wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 11:29 am Failing that, am I simply out of date, and there's another sampler program that people are using?
You can try sfizz or liquidsfz. Both of which are relatively newly developed. I really like sfizz; it is easier to use than LinuxSampler, and I it implements the sfz opcodes better for the some of the sample libraries that I use (VSCO and VPO both have instruments that do not sound as expected using LinuxSampler).
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by Bella »

If you're having issues compiling, I think the kxstudio repository has a version you can install. It might be an older version of LS though, so if you want latest you'll have to compile.

I think the LS site has a list of dependencies you need to install first. Maybe one of these got missed and is causing an issue with Jack not showing up?

Or you can try Michael's suggestions (been curious about sfizz myself). Do you need to be able to run Gigasampler patches or just sf2&sfz? I think LS is the only Linux option to run .gig files, though I could be wrong about that.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by Michael Willis »

Bella wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 7:24 pmGigasampler
Oh yeah, that's right... GIG files don't work with sfizz, it only supports sfz.

With that said, libgig is licensed with the regular GPL (instead of the weird LinuxSampler license that claims to be GPL with a commercial exception), so it probably wouldn't be too hard for somebody to develop a stand-alone plugin for GIG files.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

linuxsampler is included in kxstudio repos
linuxsampler/bionic,now 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio2 amd64 [installed]
realtime audio sampler

linuxsampler-dssi/bionic 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio5 amd64
realtime audio sampler (DSSI Plugin)

linuxsampler-lv2/bionic 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio5 amd64
realtime audio sampler (LV2 Plugin)

linuxsampler-lv2-32chan/bionic,now 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio5 amd64 [installed]
realtime audio sampler (LV2 Plugin, 32 channels)

linuxsampler-static/bionic 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio6 amd64
realtime audio sampler (static)

linuxsampler-vst/bionic 5:2.1.1-1kxstudio5 amd64
realtime audio sampler (VST Plugin)


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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

Michael Willis wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 2:33 pm
dchurch24 wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 11:29 am Failing that, am I simply out of date, and there's another sampler program that people are using?
You can try sfizz or liquidsfz. Both of which are relatively newly developed. I really like sfizz; it is easier to use than LinuxSampler, and I it implements the sfz opcodes better for the some of the sample libraries that I use (VSCO and VPO both have instruments that do not sound as expected using LinuxSampler).
As I can see on screenshots, sfizz is a quite simple one comparing to linuxsampler (I may be wrong though)

- just one SFZ file per instance
- 2 channels output
- no LSCP, no NKSP
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by Michael Willis »

lazyklimm wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 9:56 pm As I can see on screenshots, sfizz is a quite simple one comparing to linuxsampler (I may be wrong though)
Yes, that's why I like it. All I want to do is load my sfz file and get on with it.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

Michael Willis wrote: Fri Jun 05, 2020 4:20 am
lazyklimm wrote: Thu Jun 04, 2020 9:56 pm As I can see on screenshots, sfizz is a quite simple one comparing to linuxsampler (I may be wrong though)
Yes, that's why I like it. All I want to do is load my sfz file and get on with it.
It's a no go as a drum sampler then :(
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by Michael Willis »

lazyklimm wrote: Fri Jun 05, 2020 2:32 pm It's a no go as a drum sampler then :(
What are you wanting in a drum sampler? Do you want anything that isn't provided by Drum Gizmo?
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

Michael Willis wrote: Fri Jun 05, 2020 10:38 pm
lazyklimm wrote: Fri Jun 05, 2020 2:32 pm It's a no go as a drum sampler then :(
What are you wanting in a drum sampler? Do you want anything that isn't provided by Drum Gizmo?
Yes, I want it to be a sampler, Drumgizmo sounds unnatural, at least for the drumkits they have on their own homepage. While Linuxsampler works almost perfect
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by studio32 »

something
Last edited by studio32 on Mon Jul 27, 2020 4:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by JamesPeters »

lazyklimm wrote: Sun Jun 07, 2020 11:29 pm Yes, I want it to be a sampler, Drumgizmo sounds unnatural, at least for the drumkits they have on their own homepage. While Linuxsampler works almost perfect
DrumGizmo is a sampler. It may not have features of some other samplers since it's more about one-shot drum sounds (plus velocity layering, round-robin, etc.) and less about shaping the envelopes, pitch shifting, and so on. But it's a sampler. Making a kit isn't like using what some would consider a "sampler" since it means working with XML files, so I understand that. But for drum sounds, DrumGizmo is perfectly cable of sounding natural. It has some features other samplers don't, including being able to have multiple output channels running simultaneously (which helps for room, overhead, bleed etc. channels of drum mixes).

There's a link for a DrumGizmo kit in my signature. Maybe that would work better for you than the ones on the DrumGizmo site.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

DrumGizmo is a sampler.
I know, I had been looking after its development almost from the start .
It may not have features of some other samplers since it's more about one-shot drum sounds (plus velocity layering, round-robin, etc.)
Yeah, they finally implemented round-robins, after all these years 😃
and less about shaping the envelopes, pitch shifting, and so on.
I don't care about envelopes and all that stuff when programming drums
Making a kit isn't like using what some would consider a "sampler" since it means working with XML files, so I understand that.
I'm ok with text file editing (LinuxSampler works with SFZ files, which are plain text ones), I'm a software engineer, after all.
But for drum sounds, DrumGizmo is perfectly able of sounding natural.
Maybe, but until it got round-robins (though the kits from DrumGizmo still didn't and looks like they never will) - it required much more work when programming.
It has some features other samplers don't, including being able to have multiple output channels running simultaneously (which helps for room, overhead, bleed etc. channels of drum mixes).
Have you ever used LinuxSampler?

Code: Select all

 2004-04-26 schoenebeck
    * implemented multi channel support
AFAIK it supports unlimited(?) channels, though LV2 plugin is limited by 32 (still twice as many as DG has).

Besides that, it supports almost [all the features SFZ2 has](https://sfzformat.com/misc/sfz2) + [NKSP scripting language](http://doc.linuxsampler.org/Instrument_ ... _Language/), so it's possible for users to program sampler behaviour themselves on the fly, and not waiting for years for new features.
There's a link for a DrumGizmo kit in my signature. Maybe that would work better for you than the ones on the DrumGizmo site.
Yeah, I know, thanks to you, finally we have a great sounding (I think it needs more demos, though) kit for DrumGizmo. The only thing is my workflow is built around LS and my main recording PC isn't powerful enough to use two plugins simultaneously.

Besides that, I had been waiting for "Battery/DFH/Younameit killer" from DG team for too long. LinuxSampler just works, supports much more features(and did that for many years) than DrumGizmo has (even drum programming related), so, frankly speaking, I see no reason to use DG.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by lazyklimm »

It's in KXstudio repos
Afaik LinuxSampler is a powerful application and much further in development then Sfizz is.
And I don't see why it should change
Best thing would be to make Linuxsampler full GPL and let the community improve the SFZ part probably.
I don't see why the commercial exception is bad. The much better (for community improvements) thing would be to put its development on Github.
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Re: How to install LinuxSampler.

Post by JamesPeters »

I'm glad you like the kit! There are a couple more coming (also with round robins), using new samples from the same drummer (different drumkits), but this time without separate room/OH buses. A room sound is "baked in" to the recording, so it'll have fewer outputs.

I've tried LinuxSampler a while ago but getting it working in the DAW was a bit frustrating for me. I prefer loading a VSTi and not having to deal with a shell and then a separate thing "outside" the DAW, patching to/from it, and so on. (I also don't use any bridging, Wine, Jack, etc.: it's all native Linux for me, and all contained within the DAW. I open the DAW and in 1 second it's ready to go.) If LinuxSampler worked at a "normal" VSTi and could do what DrumGizmo does and more (and also isn't as complicated to make a bank with many output channels and round robins etc.), I'd give it a try. Last I checked though, that's not really how it works.

It's possible to build DrumGizmo with as many outputs as you like. It's just an option to add during the configuration stage of the build. Add this to the ./config line: --enable-custom-channel-count=X (where "X" is the number of outputs you want).

I made a version with 50 outputs so it could handle all the separate room/OH buses from each set of kit pieces in that kit...and have a few channels left over. :) The devs say perhaps they'll make a version with more outputs as an alternate version people can download, so that people don't have to build it themselves if they want more than 16 outputs. I don't see much of a problem with this since it uses the same CPU if you use the same number of channels. The only potential problem might be that in some DAWs, having a plugin with 50 (etc.) outputs might seem strange to someone expecting fewer outputs. But then again, a plugin with 16 outputs should also seem strange to them...so I still really don't see a downside. :)

When DrumGizmo got "normal" round robin functionality, I could finally complete that kit. Their approach (besides round robin) can work great, but you need a lot more velocity sample layers for it to sound natural. If you "only" have around 15 layers like I do for this kit, their "neighboring velocity layer" method of sample selection sometimes sounds weird. I'm glad it can do round robin now.

As for using LinuxSampler versus DrumGizmo: you can use both. :) I know the temptation to reduce the number of plugins you use, but sometimes it's worth having another plugin for a specific reason. And it's free.
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