Recommended software/workflow to start with

[glowrak guy]

The only thing that I can recommend is to not use a Windows version of a DAW with Wine. Wine is for running the occasional Win prog. If something goes wrong you never know if Wine's the problem or something else.

Wine is for whatever works in it. Reaper is an exception to your premise. I use the windows reaper as much as the linux Reaper, because some important things work, or work better, in that version and the wine environment.

Each system and distro will have unique content and configuration effecting the linux and windows Reaper versions that are installed. I agree with you, that using a windows Bitwig, Mixbus, or Ardour in wine, when dedicated linux versions exist, will be painful

Some people have FL Studio working, but I have no experience there. I got a couple releases of
Cakewalk By Bandlab working (haven't tried this year) and was able to load plugins, but had no time or will to explore deeper.
Pretty deep daw, but I'm not .
Cheers

[Linuxmusician01]

The only thing that I can recommend is to not use a Windows version of a DAW with Wine. Wine is for running the occasional Win prog. If something goes wrong you never know if Wine's the problem or something else.

Wine is for whatever works in it. Reaper is an exception to your premise. I use the windows reaper as much as the linux Reaper, because some important things work, or work better, in that version and the wine environment.

Each system and distro will have unique content and configuration effecting the linux and windows Reaper versions that are installed. I agree with you, that using a windows Bitwig, Mixbus, or Ardour in wine, when dedicated linux versions exist, will be painful

Some people have FL Studio working, but I have no experience there. I got a couple releases of
Cakewalk By Bandlab working (haven't tried this year) and was able to load plugins, but had no time or will to explore deeper.
Pretty deep daw, but I'm not .
Cheers

Interesting. Can you tell what works better (for you) in the Win version of Reaper? I thought that Reaper = Reaper and LibreOffice = LibreOffice, no matter what OS you use...

BTW, many people say that there are no good and bad DAW's: they're all good. Workflow differs but musicians in general do not agree on "the" DAW to rule all DAWs. For some reason Ableton Live seems to be a bit more used by YouTube channels and musicians that I watch/follow, but that might just be my personal subjective observation. [correction: that IS my subjective observation, yours might be different ]

Additionally, I always wonder what the added value of Linux is if you use Wine and a Windows DAW (Reaper apparently excluded...), but that's another discussion. Some people learn to use a certain DAW for which there's no native Linux version and do not want to switch when they decide to switch OS. Depending on the time you spend using said DAW, as opposed to other "things" Linux, one might be better off staying on Windows/MacOS. But that's a discussion we all will have until the next millennium I'm afraid.

[glowrak guy]

I think that 'predictability in plugin compatibility' would be the big reason to include windows reaper in wine next to the linux version. Then wine allows for the running of standalone executables, which in some cases have extra capabilities compared to their plugin counterparts. The linux version adds LV2 support, which is great to have on hand.

As good as yabridge and lin-vst are at wrapping plugins, their devs are up against a huge array of wine versions and releases, daws with various particular code for scanning plugins, and distros with a bewildering array of graphics libs and code, which are crucial to having functional gui's.

The fact that so many things work so well speaks to the level of genious and tenacity of the coders that make great things possible for musicians.

As to a daw preference, I use Reaper because it takes fewer steps and less time to record a new idea, than the competition doing the same task. Followed by the ease of connection to linux the tools from outside it's boundaries. The small size, speed, features, frequent updates, cross-platform availability, and friendly community support are all secondary to first pleasing the Muse, but very much appreciated.

I suppose everyone has valid reasons for their personal favorites, it's great to have an array of quality choices, and the ability to use them at will, and even together, in some cases
Cheers

[Linuxmusician01]

@glowrak guy: thanks for explaining the added value of Reaper for Windows on Linux. I might have to look into that some day.

[mk1967]

I’ve gone back to Debian bookworm running xfce4 as the desktop. It’s a lot faster and no frills, and I can just install stuff as I need it.

There is also a debian-based multimedia distribution with a special low-latency kernel called LibraZiK Studio Audio https://librazik.tuxfamily.org/base-sit ... nglish.php. I can highly recommend it. Much faster than UbuntuStudio, and more reliable.

[glowrak guy]

In a more direct answer to the original question, and aimed at someone new to linux apps for the coming year,
I would suggest becoming very familiar with these apps, as they will offer a great range for creativity,
and generally work well with each other without requiring a daw to be running. I use qjackctl to
interconnect the outputs.

Yoshimi synth -multi-timbral layering editing of many sound types
DecentSampler -sample playback, with many instruments to choose from via pianobook
Hydrogen -percussion/drum kits, patterns, and rythmic sample playback
Rakarrack -multi-effect panel with many preset examples, easy to customize
Guitarix -amps, stomps, and rack effects for electric guitars and whatever you like
Audacity -editing and playback of tracks and sounds

These are a solid meat and potatoes collection among the many others. Their outputs can be routed into a daw,
or a daw's output can be effected by Rakarrack, Guitarix, and Audacity, and all recorded with Timemachine or other recording utility.
All but Rakarrack and Audacity have plugin versions for use inside a daw.
Happy 2024!