My KVR 'What stops you switching to Linux' thread

[AlexTheBassist]

Don't underestimate the kind of musicians who spend lots of their time playing around with DAWs, effects, compressors and reverbs and produce hardly one song.

You're goddamn right. Currently I'm one of this kind, and there's a huge reason: I don't wanna depend on some sound engineer when recording any of my bands. My goal is to achieve some level in sound engineery at which I will not need any help from the outside. I have some good gear right at my rehearsal place, so why not use it? Also, I don't fancy paying some guy every time I gonna make a decent recording. So, I'll start to release my stuff only when I'll become familiar enough with the sound engineering thing. As I think, there's no point in putting lo-fi recs on the Internet.

[linux-lover]

What plug ins i miss mmm no idea , and i use linux for years ! Play with arduino so not a total noob. But what we miss in linux are simple ways to do things there are no easy manuals.Some are to old and not for the linux flavor you use. I have try to use rosegarden but give it up, it never worked. I use Ardour and Lmms and the work ,problem with lmms is that most reply,s on the forum are based on WC,s . Guess i miss a linux audio for dummies
Why many not go to linux is look at advertisings for hardware ,the make it as if it only works on a WC
ubuntu studio 14.04 sb audigy

[ssj71]

So, I'll start to release my stuff only when I'll become familiar enough with the sound engineering thing. As I think, there's no point in putting lo-fi recs on the Internet.

Kinda OT: Of course you should decide what standards you want to hold with what you publicly share, but I did read some advice that I consider quite good: "finished is better than perfect." Don't waste your life spending months on trying to get a single song perfect, tweaking and retweaking knobs. Better to just move along finishing projects, learn as you go, and come back and remix after you've learned some. Don't know if that's what you're doing, but I wouldn't have anything "complete" without following that mantra. I'm not 100% happy with the production quality, but I'm still proud of the song-smithing. Some more than others.

[glowrak guy]

learn as you go, and come back and remix after you've learned some.

Very good advice, and the learning opportunities abound. It's pretty funny to hear
ones own oldies, and wonder who is to be blamed for such shoddy productions

[AlexTheBassist]

Don't waste your life spending months on trying to get a single song perfect

Currently I'm working on three projects at a time. Maybe two of them will merge into one, but anyway it's not the "single song". It's a full-length pop-rock album, a kinda prog/math-rock EP and a stoner metal EP which will be recorded by me and a vocalist. I hope I'll have enough time for all of them. Tweaking knobs isn't all I do. Also, I've got work which is not related to music at all. Still, your point is totally true.

[ssj71]

kinda prog/math-rock EP

Sounds like my kinda music. I hope you release it sometime!

[bazsound]

So, I'll start to release my stuff only when I'll become familiar enough with the sound engineering thing. As I think, there's no point in putting lo-fi recs on the Internet.

Kinda OT: Of course you should decide what standards you want to hold with what you publicly share, but I did read some advice that I consider quite good: "finished is better than perfect." Don't waste your life spending months on trying to get a single song perfect, tweaking and retweaking knobs. Better to just move along finishing projects, learn as you go, and come back and remix after you've learned some. Don't know if that's what you're doing, but I wouldn't have anything "complete" without following that mantra. I'm not 100% happy with the production quality, but I'm still proud of the song-smithing. Some more than others.

this is good advice often i find that spending more time than is actually needed either results in something that was no better or sometimes worse than what it started out as.

Another helpull tip is to spend the time getting it right at the source, this will save time later on on having to fix poorly recorded poorly sounding tracks later on and will allow you to use eq and compression how they should be as an effect rather than a correction tool. Just as an example with vocals getting the mic in the right rooom that has good acoustics (watch out for reflections coming back to the mic of hard shiny surfaces you can build a make shift surround around the mic to absorb reflections) also distance to the mic aswell.

when micing instruments like drums and guitar bass cabs experiment moving the mic around

[AlexTheBassist]

this is good advice often i find that spending more time than is actually needed either results in something that was no better or sometimes worse than what it started out as.

Definitely, yes. Two hours in a row is the maximum for a sound engineer. Having a rest every 1.5 - 2 hours is necessary.

Another helpull tip is to spend the time getting it right at the source

It's the first rule in recording. There's no that magical "make-it-awesome" button. Unfortunately, many people think that it's present on Windows or Mac. Some people even said me that input sound quality varies depending on OS used for recording. That's weird, but it's beginners' majority's opinion. There's even a story about this. About a week ago I was at rehearsal place playing with a simple guitar setup (a Hiwatt head, some cab and two average-quality mics). Some guys came from other room being interested in what we do, and I showed them Ardour in work. At this time we've recorded about a minute or two. The line output of my beloved Scarlett was connected to a mixer and played through vocal monitors, so I unmuted the reverb bus, switched off the metronome and played it loud. Those guys were laughing at me first, then like: "Whoa, dude! Holy f**k! How did you get that cool sound in Linux?". Then I showed them Calf Equalizer 12 band, KlangFalter and other stuff I use. So, if we come back to the subject, the main reason why people don't switch to Linux is lack of knowledge and basic recording skills. They still think that Linux is a server-only OS with no multimedia software. Lack of tools is secondary.

[cowboystitching]

I don't feel like signing up for KVR audio's forums just to throw in my two cents, so here goes: I think that the main reason alot of technical people don't switch over to Linux is because they are too invested in/well-versed in certain applications that are only available for Windows or Mac. I know a guy who records that is also a graphic designer, and he says that he's just gotten to the point of being fluid enough with Ableton and Logic, as well as Photoshop that he doesn't want to have to relearn how to do everything again. Same for a couple other musicians that I know. Hardware support is also an issue for some people I've talked to. Can't say I blame them; as at one point I was a hardcore Logic user, but I really believe in the philosophies behind Linux and Free Software in general, so the learning curve wasn't too much for me. I've gotten a few friends and family members into Linux; but they're very casual users who just use the internet, e-mail, Youtube, etc., and aren't committed to one software paradigm or another.

[briandc]

It's the first rule in recording. There's no that magical "make-it-awesome" button. Unfortunately, many people think that it's present on Windows or Mac. Some people even said me that input sound quality varies depending on OS used for recording. That's weird, but it's beginners' majority's opinion. There's even a story about this. About a week ago I was at rehearsal place playing with a simple guitar setup (a Hiwatt head, some cab and two average-quality mics). Some guys came from other room being interested in what we do, and I showed them Ardour in work. At this time we've recorded about a minute or two. The line output of my beloved Scarlett was connected to a mixer and played through vocal monitors, so I unmuted the reverb bus, switched off the metronome and played it loud. Those guys were laughing at me first, then like: "Whoa, dude! Holy f**k! How did you get that cool sound in Linux?". Then I showed them Calf Equalizer 12 band, KlangFalter and other stuff I use. So, if we come back to the subject, the main reason why people don't switch to Linux is lack of knowledge and basic recording skills. They still think that Linux is a server-only OS with no multimedia software. Lack of tools is secondary.

I've had the same experience. It's true that there are people who think that linux is "command-line only" and "for servers only." I suppose this is partly due to lack of correct "advertizing." People who use linux know that there are indeed applications that are very good for making music. And a lot of stuff from Windows can be ported to linux well through Wine, so that should be of help.

It's also, imo, a question of computer experience. Changing operating systems is about the biggest "jump" that one can make. It might not be the first choice for some people until their PC starts becoming too slow, or they're fed up with performance issues, etc. If not, it's easier to just stick with the tried-and-true and not venture into new territory too much.

Making good music and getting it out there for people to see, might open a few eyes though.

brian

[AlexTheBassist]

a lot of stuff from Windows can be ported to linux well through Wine, so that should be of help.

Maybe, but there's still no good way to run Windows VSTs inside Ardour. Carla-Rack LV2 can be a solution, but not yet. Ardour-VST is extremely unstable, so I won't recommend it even to biggest enemy of mine.

Changing operating systems is about the biggest "jump" that one can make.

For me, it wasn't a big deal despite I'm not an engineer at all. I just read something about Linux, decided to try it, bought a pack of CDs with some rpm-based distro in our local computer store and installed it. Yes, I work as an IT specialist now (I'm a system administrator in one of the oldest print-shops of Moscow), but I've got familiar with this thing after I switched to Linux, not before.

Making good music and getting it out there for people to see, might open a few eyes though.

I'm afraid it's the only way to promote Linux to those "big guys", though it's not bad at all.

[lvbfire]

If you are making a bit of money with your studio apple is not so cost consuming at all , hardware is high quality . software works always well .

For the starting recorder , i always try to get them using linux. Simple fact that most of the software is free , and wenn they dont have to buy high cost software , they can spent it on better hardware.

for an "ideal" situation in my studio i combine windows with osx and linux. All my backups run on a linux server , same with my project storrage. For composing i use osx and windows , for recording i use ardour on ubuntu for editing i use presonus on osx . i must say im recording quite a while now and used manny systems.

Linux is a great alternative, the software on linux matured , and i recomend it to anyone who starts a studio.
Osx is in my view still the leader on multimedia proccesing
Windows is better to avoid , there are good daws out there but windows is in my view a bit too unstable and memory eating.

My linux setup is , ubuntu server 12.04 , ardour 3 , lmms , rosegarden , linux-sampler , jack , calfs-plugins and some other stuff , im running it on a fluxbox desktop (windows manager) with lightdm login manager.
Its fast , no heavy load , and i can get done what i want. Is it beautifull with the 3d cubes and what have you more , no !!!! but thats not importent to me.

linux is a great replacement for audio but it has its pro's and Con's ... lack of plugins is one of them.
Still linux will hold up to osx or windows in the final audio product to be created .

Windows is to busy sticking there "vision" into peoples behinds instead they better should lissen to the enduser and create a product a bit less commercial and user friendly.
I dont think windows is user friendly at all.

(im new and live in germany , but i am native dutch so my english could be a bit off sometimes , please forgive me for that)

[glowrak guy]

I hope I never ever have to boot into windows ate.
My lego skills have degraded severely over the years.

[briandc]

If you are making a bit of money with your studio apple is not so cost consuming at all , hardware is high quality . software works always well .

For the starting recorder , i always try to get them using linux. Simple fact that most of the software is free , and wenn they dont have to buy high cost software , they can spent it on better hardware.

for an "ideal" situation in my studio i combine windows with osx and linux. All my backups run on a linux server , same with my project storrage. For composing i use osx and windows , for recording i use ardour on ubuntu for editing i use presonus on osx . i must say im recording quite a while now and used manny systems.

Linux is a great alternative, the software on linux matured , and i recomend it to anyone who starts a studio.
Osx is in my view still the leader on multimedia proccesing
Windows is better to avoid , there are good daws out there but windows is in my view a bit too unstable and memory eating.

My linux setup is , ubuntu server 12.04 , ardour 3 , lmms , rosegarden , linux-sampler , jack , calfs-plugins and some other stuff , im running it on a fluxbox desktop (windows manager) with lightdm login manager.
Its fast , no heavy load , and i can get done what i want. Is it beautifull with the 3d cubes and what have you more , no !!!! but thats not importent to me.

linux is a great replacement for audio but it has its pro's and Con's ... lack of plugins is one of them.
Still linux will hold up to osx or windows in the final audio product to be created .

Windows is to busy sticking there "vision" into peoples behinds instead they better should lissen to the enduser and create a product a bit less commercial and user friendly.
I dont think windows is user friendly at all.

(im new and live in germany , but i am native dutch so my english could be a bit off sometimes , please forgive me for that)

Yes. There is a difference between "user friendly" and "foolproof." Both Windows and Mac are quite foolproof (probably a result of LOTS of testing and locked-down files).

But user-friendly, no. The best user-friendly (genuinely friendly) platform is what is open-source. Aisi, anyway.


brian

[Eino]

Yes. There is a difference between "user friendly" and "foolproof." Both Windows and Mac are quite foolproof (probably a result of LOTS of testing and locked-down files).

But user-friendly, no. The best user-friendly (genuinely friendly) platform is what is open-source. Aisi, anyway.


brian

A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.
User Friendly and Foolproof, is to much to handle for any designer. You need to split the difference..
Myself I'm sticking with Linux for sound processing. Lighter and faster than Windows anyway.
When it come to Linux being foolproof, I would let a 5 year old play with Linux, before letting him play on Windows any day. It's impossible to damage the OS without root privileges. I can't say that about Windows.