[ubuntu-studio-devel] Virtual Instrument Gap

[Peter Reppert]

TLDR: The inability to run a wide spectrum of music software on Linux is
getting worse to the point many will throw in the towel.

  I know this is an old saw and may be the wrong forum to even mention it,
but here goes.  I am a keyboard player and I like virtual instruments (VST
plugins). As nice as all the other capabilities of a DAW are, the ability
to use VST synths is possibly the best feature.  There are hundreds of free
ones, and while very few run natively, it's possible to use them via Wine.
I think you know where this is headed...
  The latest VSTs, both free and commercial ones from companies like
Spectrasonics and Arturia, do not run on the older versions of Windows
supported by Wine (Vista is the latest).  I have encountered other problems
listed below, but the inability to run up-to-date plugins is getting to be
a show stopper for any keyboard player who wants to move beyond vintage
sounds and outdated sample libraries. This isn't just gear lust - the newer
instruments are *demonstrably* better with richer sounds, better
interfaces, etc.  Running Ubuntu Studio feels like being walled off from a
cornucopia of options, whether or not one takes the plunge with this or
that product or freebie.

*Other issues*

   - Can't run the 64-bit version of (non-Linux) VST plugins.
   - Using - even brushing against - the mod wheel or anything other than
   volume on the controller crashes Carla.That did not used to happen.  Not to
   mention almost always having to configure MIDI CC mapping for each new VST
   (and I've never had any luck storing these, so add "on every session")
   - GuitariX hums like a cheap tube amp the second you plug in a guitar.
   - Numerous other annoyances, crashes, and general clunkiness, some
   degree of which we can all put up with (and can of course happen in Windows
   or MacOS).


Now I am looking to get an 88-key controller, and there again, any bundled
software won't run on my Ubuntu Studio laptop.  MIDI controllers often map
onboard knobs, faders, and transport controls to a handful of popular DAWs
- never Ardour (luckily Reaper is supported).
    If I want to run any contemporary commercial music software, they are
recommending 8 GHz, which means it's time for a hardware upgrade. I don't
need to be on the cutting edge of everything, and appreciate all the work
that's gone into Ubuntu Studio, not to mention the seemingly limitless
free/shareware out there. But I am going to hold my nose and at least start
out running Windows. I suspect the same chain of reasoning is going to
happen for a lot of other keyboard players as they upgrade their systems.
   Again my apologies if this is old news. I'm sure musicians have been
switching operating systems as long as digital recording has been around.
It just feels like Ubuntu Studio is going obsolete vis-a-vis current
not-terribly-expensive yet mind-blowing software, especially for keyboard
players and music producers.
  Hobbyists and non-musicians can do a lot on their phones and you can even
run a DAW on a tablet. Pro and semi-pro musicians and engineers are going
with ProTools or similar without giving Linux a moment's consideration. If
you can afford a computer, you can almost certainly afford a commercial DAW
without the need to change OS.  Who is Ubuntu Studio for?

Is there the remotest hope that more software will come out in three
flavors?
  My guess is the software companies can't justify supporting Linux.  Has
anyone approached them?  Is there anything on the horizon to solve the
problem of running recent Windows/Mac applications, maybe without a bridge?

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