Hi Jim,
On 12/19/2023 2:25 PM, Jim Hicinbothom wrote:
Pro audio world impacted hugely by Apple dropping FireWire support
from MacOS. Seems to me that this is a HUGE opportunity if someone
has funding to invest in Ubuntu Studio to fully support and RESCUE pro
audio FireWire gear.
Ubuntu Studio has supported FireWire since the Linux Kernel and ALSA
(the basis for the audio stack) has supported FireWire. Additionally,
the new audio stack, based on PipeWire, supports FireWire. There's an
additional layer called FFADO that is also supported by PipeWire.
What do you think? Anyone from Canonical monitoring this list? This
resonates STRONGLY with the ethos of linux, IMHO.
Canonical does not financially or directly support the development of
Ubuntu Studio. It is purely a volunteer effort supported by donations.
As an official flavor of Ubuntu, Canonical provides build infrastructure
and assistance, but that's about as far as it goes. There might be some
from Canonical participating or reading this list, but they likely don't
have the power to do what you're suggesting.
Imagine, with a beta of another significant DAW (PreSonus Studio One)
now testing on Ubuntu-based boxes, if a BETTER way to do pro audio, in
real pro audio studios, using massive amounts of old but fully
functional FireWire based gear, with UbuntuStudio running on, say new
AMD hardware with the new XDNA AI Engines and DSP/FPGA capabilities
AMD now has in-house. All for MUCH LESS initial capital than is
required to make a whole studio Apple-hardware-based....
I truly believe there is a significant opportunity here to support a
lot of suddenly otherwise useless gear that's still totally
functional. Leverage this gear for both pro audio and for other
content creators who might also benefit. Lowering the entry price for
MAKING, CREATING, is a key reason I've supported linux since it
started. I presume that's also a key part of why y'all are interested
in UbuntuStudio, too.
Here's the story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCivQie5tME
PreSonus Studio One beta on Ubuntu:
https://www.phoronix.com/news/PreSonus-Studio-One-On-Linux
Disclaimer: I am NOT a pro audio guy, at all. So keep your salt
shaker handy.
While having something like PreSonus Studio One pre-installed on Ubuntu
Studio would be nice, it is, unfortunately, neither open source, and it
carries a proprietary license meaning we're not allowed to distribute it
either. In order to be able to be carried by Ubuntu Studio (or any Linux
distribution), it must be Free (as in freedom) and Open Source Software.
We have to be able to build it from its source code. That cannot be done
with Studio One.
That said, there's nothing stopping anyone from installing Studio One on
their Ubuntu Studio setup once they have it on their system. Yes, it's
an extra step, and one we cannot directly support, but it sounds like
Presonus is willing to support it from their end.
I'd also like to direct your attention to one that we *do* preinstall:
Ardour. It's as professional of a DAW as it gets, and forms the basis
for another DAW created by one of the most renowned names in
professional audio: Harrison Consoles. Ardour forms the basis for
Harrison Mixbus, both the regular and Mixbus 32c. Mixbus is proprietary
software, but every purchase goes toward the development of Ardour.
Personally, Mixbus is a favorite of mine, and I demonstrated both at
Ubuntu Summit 2023 in Riga, Latvia last month: Live Mixing with PipeWire
and Ardour/Harrison Mixbus
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJM-RdA7iZw>
Anyhow, thanks for opening the discussion! I just wanted to clarify what
we can/can't do, and I do encourage others to join in the discussion and
ask questions.
--
Erich Eickmeyer
Project Leader - Ubuntu Studio
Technical Lead - Edubuntu
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