Linux Open Source Sound Project (L.O.S.S)

May 8, 2006 3:11 PM

The Linux Open Source Sound Project. Music made with open source software, published under a Creative Commons Sampling License, to download (or if you've created some yourself, upload). Each track lists the software used in it's creation. Download are mostly Ogg Vorbis (naturally). Mostly electronic music (in case you were wondering).
posted by drill_here_fore_seismics (7 comments total)

Good on them - they clearly put some work into the tracks. I've barely been able to squeak a note out of any Linux-based open source music software I've ever tried. Even Audacitiy, the best of the best, is seriously deficiant. The lack of any real progress in decent opensource music software is why I haven't booted into Linux for over a year now.
posted by Jimbob at 4:41 PM on May 8, 2006

I've used tools on Windows like Acid and Reason.
I've never looked into any OSS equivalents though.
It would have been handy if a site dedicated to open source/creative commons music promotion actually contained some references, and possibly links to OSS tools one could use to create contributions.

All in all it's a nice effort though. I'd like to see things like this to get to the level of being able to seriously cut into the incomes of the various worldwide recording cartels.
posted by Dillenger69 at 5:30 PM on May 8, 2006

Dillenger, this site is a bit of a portal for OSS sound apps. Warning, they are not equivalents to Windows software. Most of them, from my experience, are barely functional console apps, and ugly unstable graphical applications that resemble Reason v0.0001 alpha.

Look maybe I'm being too hard. Some more mature programs, like pd, can do amazing things if you know how to use them. But I'm still just waiting for the Linux version of FruityLoops or AudioMulch.

(note, AudioMulch can actually run quite well inside Wine, with only a few graphical defects).
posted by Jimbob at 5:44 PM on May 8, 2006

Audacity is not the best of anything. For anyone who wants to diss linux sound, check out DeMuDi first.
posted by phrontist at 6:09 PM on May 8, 2006

Wow, you're right, phrontist. DeMuDi is less attractive than Audacity.
posted by redteam at 8:08 PM on May 8, 2006

From the DeMuDi FAQ:

If you've not used a text interface before (i.e. are new to GNU/Linux) spend a while getting used to it, you're going to need it. A GUI (Graphical User Interface) is great, but nothing beats a command line terminal for speed and flexibility.

Yes, I remember all of those tracks my band cut where I thought, "if only I could raise the level on the bass drum track with a command line instead of this virtual slider... I would have much more speed and flexibility."

The DeMuDi site actually is a good encapsulation of what's wrong with the linux/opensource set as pertains to widespread adoption. Most people don't give a shit about whether the software they use will be a "uclibc based version" or whether or not the software is a separate form the OS or what tools you used to build it. They care what it does, that it's easy to install (tip for budding developers: if I have to manually edit a config file in the /usr/local/config dir, you need to work on your installer), and that the interface is transparent enough that you can eventually forget about it and get your work done.

The DeMuDi site tells me (on the front page) what linux distro it works with, that it "mainly deals with sound and music software, but it will eventually include state of the art video tools too," how to install it and that the purpose of the project is to "help increase awareness of Free Softwares ideals and scope."

What it should tell me is the main features of DeMuDi, why I would want to use it, and maybe some notes about the team and the community/ideology at the bottom. Most people don't have the patience to wade through 10 pages of obfuscated language just to figure out what the software does.

Which is why Vista will eat my dog. Happy, linux?
posted by illovich at 6:49 AM on May 9, 2006

No, Audacity is not the state of the art in Linux sound. Check out Ardour or Rosegarden, for example.

There are a few available sound & music - oriented Linux distro's available. One that I've been playing with for a while is Musix.

The nice thing about this distro is that you simply download the CD-R image, burn it, and then just boot on the CD-R. It boots up, auto-detects and configures for most audio cards, and most audio & music apps are already installed and preconfigured on the CD-R and ready to try. In this mode, it does not do anything to your harddrive and primary OS (except for recording and saving files).

This distro is an easy way to check out Linux audio, or testing a PC & soundcard for Linux compatibility. If you decide you're likin' it, you can also install to your hard drive for better performance and customization.
posted by Artful Codger at 7:25 AM on May 9, 2006