I don't know JACK

Okay I think I'm just about nearing the end point of my current audio equipment buying spree[1]. I usually don't consume so much beyond the day-to-day (food + bills, maybe a new novel from time to time), but when I landed my new job and moved into the new flat I just really had the drive to make some purchases to get my personal soundsystem up to scratch - and potentially get more into DJing which I've done a little in the past and really enjoyed (*somehow*, I don't know how, given how introvert I am).

The new gear:

Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 speakers

NAD C 316BEE V2 amplifier

Mission stance speaker stands

Native Instruments Audio 8 DJ audio interface

x2 Ortofon MK2 Concorde DJ Cartridge

A handful of new RCA split cables

x2 12" Serato timecoded vinyl

And this is matched with the gear I've had for around 10+ years now:

x2 Technics 1210 turntables

x1 gemini ps02 mixer (with USB I/O)

Tonight I got around to wiring up the turntables to the mixer and the audio interface using the RCA split cables. It's a real spaghetti junction back there[2] but the setup means I don't have to change the inputs on the mixer when I switch between analogue and digital vinyl (DVS). I can just flick the line/phono switch on my mixer to change inputs. It's all working fine on the hardware front. The only thing I don't like about the gear is the fact that the Audio 8 is USB powered from the laptop. I'm not entirely sure why this bugs me but it does; I'd rather this had a separate power source and a switch. Anyhoo, now that the hardware is all in order, the next step will be getting my head around ALSA, pulseaudio, pipewire and JACK.

Honestly, I'm new to this level of digital audio control and I'm finding it a bit overwhelming. I've never previously paid much attention to the sound configuration of my linux devices - all I know is that... the sound works. I've been using pulsemixer or pavucontrol for years to switch between audio profiles, but my knowledge ends around there. I have managed to confirm the DVS can technically 'work' by spinning up JACK with a messy config that I don't yet fully understand, and running the turntable as an input into live digital mixer application Mixxx. So far, I've only managed to get one input via JACK working so I'm missing one turntable channel. And so now I can see there's a whole bunch of learning I need to get my head around for ALSA soundsetup and its servers/controls in pulseaudio and JACK, and work out how to run and configure these correctly so I can run both turntables as DVS inputs into Mixxx or xwax.

Perhaps it'll be simpler than it currently seems to me, but after spending a couple hours just trying to tweak different config settings using Cadence and Mixxx, and not getting very far, I know I'm going to have to commit some time to learning these different audio software systems and how they interelate, so I can put them to use and start properly putting my kit to use.

Right now it's enjoyable just being able to use the audio interface as a DAC to output my digital music through the amp and speaker setup, and to DJ with analogue vinyl and broadcast online as I have done a couple of times. But the completion of this setup will be when I crack the digital vinyl system alongside all this.

Okay here goes, time to learn JACK... (and ALSA, and pulse, and all the rest..)

~ flow

=>../media/ni3.jpg Turntables, mixer + audio interface beneath laptop stand (photo)

=>../media/ni1.jpg Native Instruments Audio 8 DJ Interface + RCA splitters into the back of the gemini mixer (photo)

Tags: #hifi