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Old 02-16-2018, 07:17 AM   #1
grimaila
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Default Easiest Linux Distribution for Just Recording from Behringer X32 Mixer

I would like to install a Linux distribution on a spare laptop and run Reaper to record ~20 channels from my Behringer X32 mixer. I currently have a new Windows 8 laptop, but would like to repurpose another unused laptop for this purpose. It would only be used to record and then I would transfer the files to my desktop DAW. Based upon what I have read so far, it sounds as if Unbutu Studio would be the easiest way to accomplish this goal. One concern I had was that I had to install drivers so the X32 would be seen as an audio interface in Windows. Does anyone have any experience, suggestions, or advice to help me in my quest?

Thanks,

Michael
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Old 02-16-2018, 08:01 AM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by grimaila View Post
I would like to install a Linux distribution on a spare laptop and run Reaper to record ~20 channels from my Behringer X32 mixer. I currently have a new Windows 8 laptop, but would like to repurpose another unused laptop for this purpose. It would only be used to record and then I would transfer the files to my desktop DAW. Based upon what I have read so far, it sounds as if Unbutu Studio would be the easiest way to accomplish this goal. One concern I had was that I had to install drivers so the X32 would be seen as an audio interface in Windows. Does anyone have any experience, suggestions, or advice to help me in my quest?

Thanks,

Michael
Try out a few distros and see which one works best and is the easiest for to set up for you.
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Old 02-16-2018, 08:06 AM   #3
grimaila
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Try out a few distros and see which one works best and is the easiest for to set up for you.
Thanks!

I found a bunch of good videos on YouTube. It seems that Jack supports the X32 as an audio interface, so its likely I will be good to go with Ubuntu Studio.

I will report back my experiences.

Michael
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Old 02-16-2018, 08:25 AM   #4
Jack Winter
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Note that if you are just going to record audio from the x32, you probably don't need jack either. But I guess it might be a good idea to enable realtime privs. Also if you are using high latency you might not need any special kernel, but probably best to install at least a low latency kernel.

Also checkout Behringer's x32util program, it's nice for configuring the x32.

So install a distro, enable rt privs, install reaper and possibly install a lowlatency kernel, that ought to be all you need in such a scenario.
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Old 02-16-2018, 08:52 AM   #5
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If you go to DistroWatch there is a list of the most popular Linux distros. The most popular distros usually have the larger support base, which is almost necessary when setting up a Linux DAW. Ubuntu is very popular and has a huge user base but it is also a fairly bloated distro - Linux Mint, Fedora or Debian are other well-supported options that are equally easy to set up. Ubuntu Studio has most of what you'd want to get started but there is also LMMS which works on most distros. There used to be some distros that were specifically built for audio recording and included most of the system tweaks you need to make to record audio but I haven't used Linux as a DAW for a while and you'd need to do some research to find them.

It looks like your X32 is supported under Linux so you should be good to go with that. Installing the drivers so it would work with Windows is normal, and you'll need to do the same for Linux.
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Old 02-16-2018, 10:09 AM   #6
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The best Linux distro according to a very recent 10,000 reader vote:

https://www.linuxjournal.com/content...x-distribution

1. Debian
2. openSUSE
3. Fedora

Of those I have only used, and can recommend Fedora.
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Old 02-16-2018, 10:47 AM   #7
Jack Winter
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It looks like your X32 is supported under Linux so you should be good to go with that. Installing the drivers so it would work with Windows is normal, and you'll need to do the same for Linux.
No, on linux there is generally no need to install drivers at all, it's all in the kernel if it's supported.
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Old 02-16-2018, 05:03 PM   #8
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Quote:
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No, on linux there is generally no need to install drivers at all, it's all in the kernel if it's supported.
That doesn't sound right. For example I have had to install printer drivers with Linux.
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Old 02-17-2018, 04:23 AM   #9
Jack Winter
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That doesn't sound right. For example I have had to install printer drivers with Linux.
Yes, that is one of the exceptions and has always been a hassle with linux. Also drivers for the GPU, but most other drivers like for mice, soundcards, network cards, etc are already in the kernel.

In the case of using the x32 there is no need for a driver, as it's already covered by the class 2 compliant soundcard drivers already in the kernel.
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Old 02-17-2018, 04:30 AM   #10
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Let's hope REAPER in Linux isn't shot down by stupid hardware manufacturers (I'm looking especially at you MOTU!) who actively refuse to release any drivers for their interfaces and do their best to hamper any open source development of drivers by backwards engineering.

I mean... only reason I've used REAPER in Windows is because there are no supported drivers for any of my interfaces.

Get on it!
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Old 06-30-2018, 08:28 PM   #11
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Ubuntu Studio is reasonable well polished, adequately maintained, and installs low latency kernel standard. It has a few quirks here and there, some things that work on the mainstream Ubuntu may take some effort to do, but in general it can double as a general purpose Linux laptop.
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Old 07-01-2018, 08:13 AM   #12
Matt Mayfield
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Every week at rehearsal my band still uses my old 2008 Dell Mini 10v netbook running Ubuntu Studio 16.04 to record 32 simultaneous tracks from an X32. No drivers need to be installed. This is with Ardour rather than Reaper though, using ALSA drivers at 1024 samples buffer size. (That netbook was slow even when it was new 10 years ago, but it can cope with 32 tracks no problem.)

If we want to mix the multitrack recordings we will usually just grab the .wav files from the project folder and put them into whatever DAW the person mixing them wants to use.
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Old 07-18-2018, 03:03 PM   #13
songshop
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I use AVLinux with great results.Strongly recommend it for nubies in particular -RT Kernel and great community support.

http://www.bandshed.net/

g
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Old 07-18-2018, 04:00 PM   #14
songshop
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Winter View Post
In the case of using the x32 there is no need for a driver, as it's already covered by the class 2 compliant soundcard drivers already in the kernel.
There is also good support under FFADO for the original firewire/usb card in the X32. I helped dev that with Jonithan Woite some years back.

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Old 07-19-2018, 02:48 PM   #15
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Default Kxstudio is alos a great tool

Another voice about audio on linux, I'm heavily using kxstudio repository (Cadence tool is IMO the simpliest tool to manage Jack sound server).

So either you can directly download kxstudio iso or you can just use any debian/ubuntu based distro you want and add kxstudio repositories to have the same tools.

More informations here : https://kxstudio.linuxaudio.org/
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Old 07-19-2018, 04:40 PM   #16
songshop
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Default There is only one Linux

As there may be many who wish to play around with this new build option for Reaper, I think it's important to maker this clear.

For anyone who has no experience in Linux, it's important to note that there is only one Linux. There are however many ways of creating a Linux environment which can have a highly specialised work focus. eg: Server, Desktop, Multimedia, Commerce, Scientific etc etc.

They are all Linux, but have an environment specially tailored for a particular purpose. The point of difference between these various flavours is called a Distribution. It is important to look for a distro that has the correct build philosophy for your work target.

Choose wisely. Get this wrong and you'll experience a world of pain! And you'll not see the advantage a well constructed Multimedia-centric Linux has to offer.

There are differences but many, many correlations between all OS's. I am a strong supporter of AV Linux as it has everything (Including the fabulous KX Repos built in) and ships with a RT kernel. You need this. You also get a dazzling array of plugins and Video apps etc. It's a foolproof way of getting a full blown RT environment up in a few minutes.

hth

cheers

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