this post was submitted on 28 Dec 2023
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Gaming for me is mostly fine on Linux, it's running Ableton with standard plug-ins that doesn't work, surprisingly. Basically the only way I can run my own hardware for a music rig is through Windows. Also the odd thing like "run this firmware update utility" for various devices, then you'll have to go forum diving where people have tried all the workarounds to realize the workaround is just "use winblows."
I'm a mixed environment sysadmin for almost 15 years so Windows doesn't bother me as a product as much as others, I don't like Microsoft's business practices, but I can pretty much disable anything I don't like on Windows Enterprise. Like they are compliant with security regulations regarding critical infrastructure, as much as people justifiably rant about privacy concerns they try and force on to end users, but you can get around a lot of that with the same old commands. Our isolated environment isn't sending data to Microsoft or anything from our workstations for instance, and this traffic is heavily monitored and audited.
Considering that Digital Audio Workstation software requires a special low-latency sound subsystem (including kernel support) to work properly, not being able to correctly run a Windows one in WINE doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Bet it'd work if you switched to something like Audacity or Rosegarden, though (assuming you've got all the PulseAudio/JACK/PipeWire stuff I don't understand set up correctly, anyway).
Oh also Linux can be great at audio! I have two raspberry pi based devices specifically dedicated for music which run puredata and supercollider, both synthesis engines. One uses Lua scripts as its presentation and development layer with a Foss community around it, the other is similar but more puredata "patch" based. Incredibly interesting musical applications, so Linux is really at the heart of what I do.
When it comes to recording and "production" though I really rely on Ableton's workflow because it's very conducive to "live" creativity and there is very little in the way to get basic ideas down. And gaming is simpler still on Windows, as are many other mundane tasks that become forum-diving exercises on Linux. The only machine running windows is my main desktop because of this. I work on computer systems all day and at home I just want that machine I don't have to think about and just does what it does. Windows is shitty for many reasons but it fulfills that for me. Laptop and everything else is all Debian all the time, with the exception of my routers and switches. The first computer I ever built when I was 11 was initially Fedora before trying many distros so Linux is truly my first love. Windows is just better at certain things still, sometimes I just wanna be user.
I use Audacity and Reaper as well but Ableton Live is special in how the workflow is, also Ableton does seem to run in Wine, but not VST plug-ins which are key.