Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 on Linux help!

[Gulliver]

On the first round I installed elementary os next to my windows 7. Installed reaper with wine. I wanted to set the audio device, and there is ASIO and so on but no Focusrite... I have jack installed as well. Ok, then I was searching on youtube how to do it but the default elementary os web browser sucks on youtube and flickers. So I wanted to install firefox. Went to the app center start downloading but nothing happens, it says in quote and stays there. Then I wanted to updated the app center, same thing, does nothing. I'm really frustrated. Why does it have to be so difficult on linux?

[MattKingUSA]

Please do not be discouraged. There is surely an experienced elementary os user on the board here. If not, the elementary community will surely be able to assist.


https://elementaryforums.com/index.php

[wjl]

Hi Gulliver,

while I don't know Elementary, I use Debian since quite a while, and got back into audio, midi etc. earlier this year.

There are some excellent resources to get everything going. You might be interested in:

http://libremusicproduction.com/answer/ ... esoundcard
http://libremusicproduction.com/article ... arted-jack and/or
http://libremusicproduction.com/ as the starting point to that site.

I have the Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 2nd generation since February, and on Linux it's really plug & play. No drivers like Asio needed, these devices are class-compliant, means the Linux kernel knows about them as soon as you plug them in. The rest is a bit of setup and understanding of the realtime stuff like Jack and so on.

You might also want to download a bootable usb version of distributions like UbuntuStudio, KXStudio, or AVLinux to have a look at how these people do it - normally, everything runs out of the proverbial box when booting into one of these. Oh, and the AVLinux manual with its 85 pages is one of *the* best resources on how to get it all going:

http://bandshed.net/pdf/AVL2017.3UserManual.pdf

Reaper, Wine etc. is a bit more advanced already, since for now you're basically trying to emulate Windows on Linux (Reaper will be available as a Linux-native version, but isn't yet AFAIK). So also try some alternatives like Ardour, QTractor and so on; theyre definitely worth a look.

Hope that helps,
and cheers,
Wolfgang

[noedig]

If the app center doesn't work for you, install Synaptic and use that.
sudo apt-get install synaptic
App centers never seem to work for me.

[CrocoDuck]

I'm really frustrated. Why does it have to be so difficult on linux?

I see what you mean, it was the same for me more than 10 years ago. But keep on trying loving Linux and it will love you back eventually .

Also, be aware that the learning curve on Linux is pretty slow, especially for audio. So, expect to have to invest a bit of time to get accustomed to. This is a brief review of the Linux audio anatomy I put together, maybe it will help you clarify the audio Linux environment. wji suggested very good material I recommend looking at.

Running Win audio applications through Wine is not my cup of tea anymore (the last time I did it was 6 years ago), so unfortunately I am not able to help. It is usually trickier tho. If win applications are what you need my advice would be to use them on your Win 7, as that is the perfect environment for those (there isn't any advantage in running Win programs on Linux when Win is available to you, unless you have other compelling reasons I think).

If you feel like you want to explore the Linux audio environment I recommend exploring Linux native applications. I prefer them over most of commercial applications, I think they are pretty good, but often with somewhat different design with respect mainstream products.

[Gulliver]

Please do not be discouraged. There is surely an experienced elementary os user on the board here. If not, the elementary community will surely be able to assist.
https://elementaryforums.com/index.php

Yeah, I actually posted on the elementary stackxhcange

[Gulliver]

Hi Gulliver,

while I don't know Elementary, I use Debian since quite a while, and got back into audio, midi etc. earlier this year.

There are some excellent resources to get everything going. You might be interested in:

http://libremusicproduction.com/answer/ ... esoundcard
http://libremusicproduction.com/article ... arted-jack and/or
http://libremusicproduction.com/ as the starting point to that site.

I have the Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 2nd generation since February, and on Linux it's really plug & play. No drivers like Asio needed, these devices are class-compliant, means the Linux kernel knows about them as soon as you plug them in. The rest is a bit of setup and understanding of the realtime stuff like Jack and so on.

You might also want to download a bootable usb version of distributions like UbuntuStudio, KXStudio, or AVLinux to have a look at how these people do it - normally, everything runs out of the proverbial box when booting into one of these. Oh, and the AVLinux manual with its 85 pages is one of *the* best resources on how to get it all going:

http://bandshed.net/pdf/AVL2017.3UserManual.pdf

Reaper, Wine etc. is a bit more advanced already, since for now you're basically trying to emulate Windows on Linux (Reaper will be available as a Linux-native version, but isn't yet AFAIK). So also try some alternatives like Ardour, QTractor and so on; theyre definitely worth a look.

Hope that helps,
and cheers,
Wolfgang

Thanks for your answer. I'm really keen on Reaper, because I love it, the first DAW I actually love using. So I wouldn't want to use another one. You don't need an ASIO driver so what's your audio device setting in your DAW? Thanks for the links, I'll check them out.

[Gulliver]

If the app center doesn't work for you, install Synaptic and use that.
sudo apt-get install synaptic
App centers never seem to work for me.

I'll try that. So synaptic is another software manager?

[Gulliver]

I'm really frustrated. Why does it have to be so difficult on linux?

I see what you mean, it was the same for me more than 10 years ago. But keep on trying loving Linux and it will love you back eventually .

Also, be aware that the learning curve on Linux is pretty slow, especially for audio. So, expect to have to invest a bit of time to get accustomed to. This is a brief review of the Linux audio anatomy I put together, maybe it will help you clarify the audio Linux environment. wji suggested very good material I recommend looking at.

Running Win audio applications through Wine is not my cup of tea anymore (the last time I did it was 6 years ago), so unfortunately I am not able to help. It is usually trickier tho. If win applications are what you need my advice would be to use them on your Win 7, as that is the perfect environment for those (there isn't any advantage in running Win programs on Linux when Win is available to you, unless you have other compelling reasons I think).

If you feel like you want to explore the Linux audio environment I recommend exploring Linux native applications. I prefer them over most of commercial applications, I think they are pretty good, but often with somewhat different design with respect mainstream products.

Thanks for the encouragement, I'm glad it works for you. What do you set as audio device in your DAW? I really love reaper, just got used to work with it so fast and effective.

[ufug]

Gulliver, I feel your pain, and ditto what all these folks have told you.

My advice is to keep it simple. These are just my thoughts after going through the same struggles getting started. It would have saved me a lot of struggle:

1) Maybe it's not possible for you, but to make things much, much easier, see if you can find an unused box you can experiment with instead of worrying about dual booting or messing up your current setup. Craigslist, eBay, a friend of a friend, somebody close to you has an extra tower they want to get rid of if you go hunting for it. If it's a couple years old, it's more likely all your hardware will work well with Linux.

2) Then install a distro that's *not* Elementary. I've tried it a few times and love how pretty it is, but it never worked well for me. Glitch city. Install something easy, popular and Debian based. Ubuntu Studio 16.04 is your best first stop for easy audio.

3) Reaper is cool, but before you get into Wine and trying to set all that up, try one of the incredible native DAWs like Ardour or Qtractor and explore the world of LV2 plugins. At least for a few long sessions. Trying to bring all your old made-for-Windows tools along with you makes it soooo much harder to switch (and really, what's the point?).

That's my two cents. I've used the 2i2 on several distros with no problems.

Don't forget you are in a niche world of another niche world when you decide to use Linux for audio production. Almost everyone here has been though the same frustration you're going through now. Start simple and make some music. After you you've done that, exploring Wine stuff and adding KXStudio or going the Arch way or what have you will be so much easier.

[CrocoDuck]

What do you set as audio device in your DAW? I really love reaper, just got used to work with it so fast and effective.

I configure JACK to use my Scarlett 2i4 (old gen), which works pretty well. Then, once JACK is running, I just start the audio software and connect it to the sockets I need (the guide posted above about JACK will show what I mean). I use mostly Ardour, which is perfect for a guy like me (I started doing audio stuff with Sonar 4 and Nuendo, they are similar programs). I really like Calf plugins and Guitarix for effects and plugins. There are many more out of there.

Maybe it's not possible for you, but to make things much, much easier, see if you can find an unused box you can experiment with instead of worrying about dual booting or messing up your current setup.

Another idea could be to create a live pendrive with an Audio Distro on it and just have fun in Live mode without installing, just to see what the software has to offer and get accustomed to how it works. I would recommend using Ubuntu Studio or AV Linux if you go down this path. Here a list of audio distros.

[wjl]

Hi Gulliver,

I'm really keen on Reaper, because I love it, the first DAW I actually love using.

I see what you mean. Having read lots of good things about it (the best being that it will be integrated into Linux soon), I wanted to see it - so I tested it on Windows. Cool program. If I would love it as much as you, I would run it on Windows at the moment, and on Linux once it's available there. But I love Qtractor, Ardour and the likes. Oh, and the Calf plugins which are fantastic. For these, Linux is the natural habitat, and for some, the only one.

If you have lots of commercial VSTs, even ones with copy protection like dongles and such, keep using Reaper on Windows - it will save you lots of headaches. But if you want to explore our world, you're more than welcome.

You don't need an ASIO driver so what's your audio device setting in your DAW?

No. What Crocoduck said - on Linux, it's Jack which manages almost everything. And with good graphical tools like QJackCTL or even the Cadence suite (like Carla, Catia, and whatnot), it gets even easier. Our daughter is 12 and can manage her notebook with Ubuntustudio (plus the KXStudio repositories) almost entirely by herself. Ok; most of the time MuseScore is all she needs, but still. And she loves that boot message about "for creative humans" or so

Thanks for the links, I'll check them out.

That would be advisable if you want to understand how Jack, Alsa, and Pulseaudio work. Again, also read what Crocoduck wrote about the Linux anatomy - it's one of his excellent articles. Likewise, the other links like the AVLinux pdf, or LibreMusicProduction.

Hope that helps,
and cheers,
Wolfgang

[asbak]

Lots of good advice on this thread.

Rather go with a Debian based distro, Ubuntu / Mint is probably the easiest and most developed environments. Perhaps consider something like AVLinux because all the configuration hard work has already been done for you, and it's Debian based. Audio can be made to work on other Linux environments but the configuration, maintenance and frustration factors tend to increase. Probably not the best way for a beginner to get started.

Whilst running Windows apps is possible under Linux the performance isn't as good as on native, it can be hit and miss and extremely frustrating to get things to the point where they work well, after updates it can break or perform poorly etc. The other good advice here was to rather move to Linux written code. If you must use Windows audio apps, your best bet is to run them on a Windows PC. They can sometimes be made to work with passable results on Linux but it's a step too far for inexperienced users.

The best approach imo is to follow a hybrid strategy. Keep Windows nearby and start exploring and learning Linux audio instead of trying to make an instant transition. There's a lot to take in and there aren't any easy, concise and organised instructions to explain it all.

[Gulliver]

Guys, thanks for all your answers! This is definitely a great community. I was bogged down... Now, my dual boot Elementary is good, they had a bug but not it's fixed.

For now I'd like to try Reaper on Elementary. If this won't work then I'll look at other recommended options.

So the first thing I'd like to resolve is the audio hardver connected to Reaper. Reaper is installed but when I want to set 2i2 it's not listed under audio devices. What am I doing wrong? Is it because it's running on Wine?

[MattKingUSA]

I am pretty sure wine will default to pulse audio. So if pulse is using your usb audio then wine will as well. As far as performance I would think it would be terrible. You may as well run a virtual install of windows.