
First off. I must point out that I absolutely and completely LOOOOOOOVE GNU/Linux.
I have used Linux (Ubuntu, Debian and Fedora) as my main OS for several years now.
That is. I have used for “almost” everything but last weekend I had an idea.
What if I just try and run my trusty Reaper program in wine and get myself out of the Winz rut? I will use Linux only for a while and see how it goes.
Unfortunately. The idea was far better than the actual facts. Reaper does run, as do most of my plug ins, but the performance is far from perfect.
GUI is slow as molasses and the Real Time kernel had some issues with my NVidia drivers that required some tweaking.
Other programs performed allright, but I need a better than average solution. I need a reliable ( I know Linux is reliable on just about everything else) and sturdy system which Windows can not provide on the same level as any Unix based OS and Linux was not helping me out………….
In the end I decided to try a real audio production distro. I tried to install 64 Studio and somehow I messed up the install and rendered useless both my Linux and Windows partitions. To the point of not being able to open any of the disks to recover my data and having to resort to data recovery tools. I am quite certain that I did something very wrong during the install. I can’t figure what, but I am sure it was my fault as I have never had any install crap on me on its own.
One more point I want to clear out is. I know Linux has some very interesting musical projects that I could use for music making like Muse, Ardour, Trasverso and Energy XT2. But what is needed is for more developers to look at the way the Wins applications work. They have been around for a bit longer in the general market and have learnt great lessons from us, the users.
I could do with fx like CamelSpace, or the likes of KJaerhus or synths like Poizone, Sytrus, ManyBass et al. I have spent quite some money to support those small independent developers and bought their products
EnergyXT2 is an odd species as it is a development in progress which is happening in the 3 main OS platforms, but it is still a bit buggy and oddly enough, the wins version works better under wine in Linux than the native linux version.
I have been told that being locked is the price I have to pay for working in a closed environment, but it is not so much the fact of being stuck in Windows for making music as it is not being able to use Linux for the same.
Maybe we need more development in this area, but instead of wanting to reinvent the wheel. We should see what kinds of wheels others are using and learn from their past errors. Cumbersone, hardware-like apps are not the best approach. Let’s break away from the past while keeping the things that work.
I have not given up completely on Reaper in Linux. I reinstalled everything in my PC including REaper and keep trying every now and then just to have a bit of peace of mind.