Subject: Re: [linux-audio-user] Newbie introduction
From: Jörn Nettingsmeier (nettings_AT_folkwang-hochschule.de)
Date: Fri Apr 12 2002 - 15:59:26 EEST
just picking a few nits...
Paul Winkler wrote:
>
> Good values in analog mixers:
> Mackie 1202 or 1402, Soundcraft Spirit Folio series.
> I have both, they sound about equivalent in quality. The Spirits
> are cheaper and larger, and possibly less durable.
go mackie !
the folio is a toy.
(i have used both. the folio falls apart when you compare it
directly to the mackie with really good mikes - that is, if it
hasn't fallen apart already due to its shabby construction)
> I've heard reports that the SB Live! has pretty decent analog input and output.
> So you could probably make do with a $50 soundcard for now,
> and it *might* prove adequate for your production system.
i've been one of those reporters, but after using the sblive for a
while, i'd like to withdraw my vote :)
the card has a nasty way of companding when you drive it too hard,
and it has quite a "sound" of it's own, which is ok, but not as hifi
as you would like for serious audio. i have taken to listening to
the ad-da loopback when doing analog mixes to the card to compensate
for this, but it's not the way it should be.
> Streaming audio over the web is not exactly the most demanding
> hi-fi application... neither is FM radio, for that matter...
well, a degrading medium at the end of the chain is one thing, but
hearing your mixes falling to pieces right before your eyes is
another ;)
> > I've been reading about ALSA. I believe that the latest S.U.S.E. distribution has
> > integrated it. I much appreciate your offer to help install it. I'll look into
> > S.U.S.E. and study to docs, then see where I stand.
>
> I don't know about SUSE, but I think some distributions are still
> shipping alsa 0.5.x, which is ancient history. You want the current
> beta series, 0.9.x. Debian Unstable offers it, I don't know about
> other distributions. But it's not really that hard to compile
> and install from source.
suse 80 has alsa 0.9.0-beta12, which is as bleeding-edge as you can
get without using alsa cvs, and it auto-detected both my cards and
they worked out of the box.
however, the distro is far too much eye-candy for my taste, but it
installs very smoothly, respects the file system standard, and most
annoying features can be turned off. great to get going quickly, but
nothing to convert a seasoned debian die-hard :)
you want at least a 600 mhz machine and 128 mb ram to use the
standard x setup with kde3...
> > I haven't used any of the digital audio tools, so I don't know what's possible,
> > what to expect, or what can be integrated to into a productive work environment.
>
> I think you're in for a bit of culture shock. :)
nah.
> > Years ago I cut 1/4-inch tape with a razor blade and stitched it together with
> > sticky tape; used analog graphic equalizers and filters and stuff.
good to hear i'm not the only fossil on this list.
it's good these old reel-to-reels went out of production years ago,
or they would come with point-and-click "splicing wizards" now. :)
> You're probably going to be using very long soundfiles, so you need
> an editor that can handle it. Snd will do fine there, as will
> many of the more recent editors (glame I think?).
personally, i like glame. it's a little weird to use at first, but
it is quite powerful and comes with - tataaa - some documentation.
> > equalize
>
> LADSPA plugins used in a wide variety of apps...
yeah, but the equalizer stuff is hard to use when you are used to
analog gear, at least for me.
(but i have the same problem using digital mixers or big-buck login
plugins, i guess it's my fault.)
however, some plugins still allow bogus settings that can make them
choke or crash...
but there are some really great plugins already, especially freeverb
and gverb.
best,
jörn
-- Watch out where the huskies go and don't you eat the yellow snow ! - Frank Zappa
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b28 : Fri Apr 12 2002 - 15:46:08 EEST