Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Talk about your MIDI interfaces, microphones, keyboards...

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steevc
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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by steevc »

I see an issue was raised against the app last week for deprecated GTK objects:

https://github.com/geoffreybennett/alsa ... /issues/50

I hit this too on Ubuntu Studio 23.04. I actually just got my 4i4, so I'm interested in any way to get it working.

UPDATE: Maybe someone saw this, but that page has a workaround that fixed it for me. Seems to be working fine now.

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by kraus »

Hello! Wow, it's been 3-4 years since the start of this thread.

I was wondering if we could have an update on the current status of the drivers? I noticed that Linus Torvalds has been making several commits recently, and I'm wondering, does that mean this works out of the box now? Or do we still have to bake this into the kernel? If so, how do we do that?
Thanks!

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by arvidb »

First: A big thank you to everyone involved in writing the control drivers and getting them into mainline!

I'm looking for an audio interface with at least 4 independent line outs that can all be controlled by the volume knob. (This is for a desktop sound setup with 2 subs, with all channels EQ:ed individually using CamillaDSP.) The Scarlett 18i8 3rd Gen seems to be one of very few interfaces available that can do this? (Any tips about alternative, smaller/cheaper/less complicated/maybe bus powered interfaces that can do this?)

And a question for owners of the 18i8 3rd Gen out there: how much of a pop/thump is there on the line outs on power on/off/reboots?

Thanks!

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by geoffrey »

kraus wrote: Wed May 17, 2023 4:09 pm

Hello! Wow, it's been 3-4 years since the start of this thread.

I was wondering if we could have an update on the current status of the drivers? I noticed that Linus Torvalds has been making several commits recently, and I'm wondering, does that mean this works out of the box now? Or do we still have to bake this into the kernel? If so, how do we do that?
Thanks!

Hi Kraus,

https://github.com/geoffreybennett/alsa-scarlett-gui has the current status of the driver:

  • Scarlett Gen 2 support has been in the kernel since 5.4
  • Scarlett Gen 3 support since 5.14
  • Clarett+ 8Pre support since 6.1
  • Clarett 8Pre USB support is in my Git only
  • I hope to start work on Scarlett Gen 4 support soon

As of Linux 6.5, although the driver is present in the kernel, it is still disabled by default and needs to be enabled at module load time.

Regards,
Geoffrey.

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by buscon »

thanks for the great work!

I just got a 4th Gen 4i4 and I hope you manage to add support for it.
Everything seems to work out of the box with Linux, of course there are no alsamixer controls for this soundcard.

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by zeiktuvai »

Hello,
I saw this post and made the conclusion that since the Clarett+ 8pre is supported the lower models might be as well. So like a dummy without confirming I went and bought one and it seems all that ALSA can see is the internal clock. Have I screwed myself? Should I return it and get a 4i4 4th gen?

I had a 2i2 but my new keyboard needed more than just the one input (the other one was used by a mic).

Thank you kindly =)

(Also I'm new here, hello everyone!)

dailyherold
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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by dailyherold »

@geoffrey , sent you some help for 4th gen. I have a 8i6 currently so won't upgrade until the bigger interfaces are updated, but hoping getting you a 2i2 will help get you a head start! Thanks for all the help.

To any others interested in scripting changes to the interface, or what I'd call having "presets", I wrote this script (https://github.com/dailyherold/dotfiles ... carlett.py) that calls amixer directly to recall some saved presets I have. Using the GUI was incredibly helpful to figure out desired state, then could read the values used, and codify for recall as a preset. Probably much cleaner ways to do it, but now I have a quick

Code: Select all

scarlett.py -v -p atem

available to automate however I'd like. I use BitFocus Companion for example to automate the "preset" change when my atem is powered up or down from the emulator (or future hardware controller).

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by geoffrey »

buscon wrote: Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:52 pm

thanks for the great work!

I just got a 4th Gen 4i4 and I hope you manage to add support for it.

You're welcome, and thank you, I hope so too!! :D

buscon wrote: Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:52 pm

Everything seems to work out of the box with Linux, of course there are no alsamixer controls for this soundcard.

Excellent! (the first bit at least :) )

Last edited by geoffrey on Thu Sep 07, 2023 5:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
geoffrey
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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by geoffrey »

zeiktuvai wrote: Wed Sep 06, 2023 7:16 pm

Hello,
I saw this post and made the conclusion that since the Clarett+ 8pre is supported the lower models might be as well. So like a dummy without confirming I went and bought one and it seems all that ALSA can see is the internal clock. Have I screwed myself? Should I return it and get a 4i4 4th gen?

I had a 2i2 but my new keyboard needed more than just the one input (the other one was used by a mic).

Thank you kindly =)

(Also I'm new here, hello everyone!)

Hi zeiktuvai!

I'm sorry, the 4Pre and 2Pre are not supported by the mixer driver or GUI app yet. Each model is different and needs to be investigated individually. I see you found the issue in github that blueberry created for the 4Pre: https://github.com/geoffreybennett/alsa ... /issues/59

A bit more information, things to consider:

  • All the Focusrite interfaces are USB audio class-compliant, meaning the recording/playback functionality works just fine in Linux already.

  • So if you don't need dynamic mixing/routing functionality, you can set it up once using Focusrite Control and the settings will stay fixed as you put them while you use it in Linux.

  • The 4i4 has four inputs, but only two mic preamps. For a mic (or two) and a stereo keyboard it is a great little unit.

Regards,
Geoffrey.

geoffrey
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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by geoffrey »

dailyherold wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 2:21 am

@geoffrey , sent you some help for 4th gen. I have a 8i6 currently so won't upgrade until the bigger interfaces are updated, but hoping getting you a 2i2 will help get you a head start! Thanks for all the help.

Thank you so much for that! Do let me know if you prefer I start with the 2i2 or the 4i4 as I've raised enough for either now.

dailyherold wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 2:21 am

To any others interested in scripting changes to the interface, or what I'd call having "presets", I wrote this script (https://github.com/dailyherold/dotfiles ... carlett.py) that calls amixer directly to recall some saved presets I have. Using the GUI was incredibly helpful to figure out desired state, then could read the values used, and codify for recall as a preset. Probably much cleaner ways to do it, but now I have a quick

Code: Select all

scarlett.py -v -p atem

available to automate however I'd like. I use BitFocus Companion for example to automate the "preset" change when my atem is powered up or down from the emulator (or future hardware controller).

Yeah, that's neat!

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by zeiktuvai »

Thank you for the information @geoffrey!

I have been able to use it mostly.. I do have a windows VM that I used focusrite control (awful application) to get it set up but it would be great to be able to not have to do that.

The only thing I haven't figured out is how to get computer audio to come out of the headphone jack... it shows as an audio device in windows and linux but no audio comes out of the headphone jack from any application on the system. (Even from ardour)

I saw your reply on GitHub so when I get paid next week I will send you the funds to grab a Pre4. I'm happy to invest in someone that knows what their doing for the greater good. (Because it would probably take me forever to figure it out) :lol:

Greg

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Focusrite Scarlett Gen 4

Post by geoffrey »

Hi all,

For those who would like to see full Linux support for the Scarlett Gen 4 (and maybe even Focusrite Vocaster and the remaining Clarett+ devices), I've set up a fundraiser. Details in this thread in the marketplace subforum.

4i4gen4-sm.png
4i4gen4-sm.png (28.54 KiB) Viewed 8060 times

Thanks all for your support and encouragement!

Regards,
Geoffrey.

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by buscon »

geoffrey wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 4:58 pm
buscon wrote: Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:52 pm

Everything seems to work out of the box with Linux, of course there are no alsamixer controls for this soundcard.

Excellent! (the first bit at least :) )

yes, at least the basic functionality is there :)
In case you need some testing and bug report with 4i4 4th gen, I am up for that.

and I will also add myself to the fundraising :)

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by geoffrey »

buscon wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 7:04 am
geoffrey wrote: Thu Sep 07, 2023 4:58 pm
buscon wrote: Wed Sep 06, 2023 5:52 pm

Everything seems to work out of the box with Linux, of course there are no alsamixer controls for this soundcard.

Excellent! (the first bit at least :) )

yes, at least the basic functionality is there :)
In case you need some testing and bug report with 4i4 4th gen, I am up for that.

Once I've got the hardware & started working on it I'll be sure to post and ask for help testing!

buscon wrote: Fri Sep 08, 2023 7:04 am

and I will also add myself to the fundraising :)

Thank you 🙏

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Re: Focusrite Scarlett Gen 3 4i4 (and others)

Post by zeiktuvai »

@geoffrey I sent you the money needed for the Clarett+ 4Pre to the go fund me.

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