Subject: [linux-audio-dev] audio card for linux (and audiality ?)
From: Benjamin GOLINVAUX (golinvaux_AT_benjamin.net)
Date: la elo 28 1999 - 12:12:56 EDT
Hi,
I've been following mith much attention these discussions about plug-ins
interfaces and in particular, audiality.
I'd like to break in to ask a _very_ silly question :
although it would be very nice to have a good architecture for low-latency
plugins, do you know of a _single_ good audio card running under Linux to
use them professionnaly ?
What I'd like to have is a very straightforward direct-to-disk application
with the same kind of reliability found on early direct to disk systems
running on ST (that is, a very elementary system)...
The purpose of this is to record (and process real-time with some fancy
effects I'd like to write) audio and play it back, possibly during live
performances...
To achieve that, what I need is a stable OS (with low latency if I want to
do processing in addition of basic recording/playing).
stable : Linux
low latency : RTLinux (audiality ?)
the problem is : on which device am I going to record and play sound ?
You guys seem to be deeply involved in Linux audio... Do I understand you
are working with game devices such as SB PCI 128 or Opti931 ?
Well... don't get me wrong : one doesn't need a zillion dB SNR do make good
stuff... but I'd really like to have sync'ed multitrack (that is, not
putting more than one clock for ADC and DAC in my system <-> ONE card) with
pro quality and connectors (24 bits with sym. XLR or adat/spdif).
If no good card is supported, does someone know of a _single_ good card (all
digital is ok) with specs released somewhere ? (zefiro ZA2 ?).
OSS commercial promises support for some cards but not a single good card is
supported, am I wrong ? (sonorus audi/o : any clue ?)
ALSA does not support good cards either (although ALSA people have made
great work)
This is why I'm hacking with BeOS at the moment (promised driver for Echo
Layla)... but the soft-real time caps don't suit me (furthermore, although
the OS is stable, the audio server is not that stable)...
I have another question that's still more stupid (Don't flame me, being
given I'm not _at all_ a driver programmer)... Would it be theoretically AND
practically possible to use BINARY DirectSound, Multimedia (Wave) or ASIO
drivers under linux with some compatibility layer ? I've heard David saying
that his audiality engine can use oss commercial binary drivers provided it
uses a restricted set of commands... Could it be possible ? (with the
windows DDK manual)
Thanks for reading.
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