Any Linux bros here? (Axe-FX III as interface)

swartzfeger

Member
I'm going through my yearly "threatening to drop macOS" phase again and it got me thinking... has anyone used their Axe-FX III as an audio interface under Linux?
 
I'm going through my yearly "threatening to drop macOS" phase again and it got me thinking... has anyone used their Axe-FX III as an audio interface under Linux?
Let me talk you off the cliff. There is no reasonable argument to be made to use Linux to manage your Axe Fx 3 or use it as a audio interface.
Also I have a Linux machine as well. Just a waste of time.
Just play your guitar………
 
I am, as I don't own a Mac or machine which runs Windows. Everything works just fine in Linux, including running AxeEdit using Wine (you can easily find install/setup instructions).

I'm using jackd for all my audio and MIDI routing in Linux, using a Presonus interface for the non-AxeFX things (drums, keyboards, etc), so I needed to add the AxeFX as a separate interface into the same Jack layout. This is also easy too, using the program 'alsa_in'.

I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
 
Let me talk you off the cliff. There is no reasonable argument to be made to use Linux to manage your Axe Fx 3 or use it as a audio interface.
Also I have a Linux machine as well. Just a waste of time.
Just play your guitar………
Why not? It's a matter of personal preference. If it works and you enjoy the OS, why not use it? Besides, linux users aren't afraid of a little troubleshooting.
 
Why would your drop MacOS for something that you will have to spend hours getting to work?

Not a criticism, but rather than play with drivers, distro variances, and patches built by 'Biff' for a bug that has not yet been patched, you can stick with MacOS and actually play your guitar.

IMO.
 
To be fair, I installed no drivers, did not change distros, patched nothing. I plugged in the AxeFX and it was immediately detected as an 8-channel audio device.

Not saying this is how things work in all cases, and certainly your experience level may be relevant, but the days of having to patch kernels to make USB audio work are long gone.

And of course, you can go play your guitar without turning on your computer at all :)
 
Why would your drop MacOS for something that you will have to spend hours getting to work?

Not a criticism, but rather than play with drivers, distro variances, and patches built by 'Biff' for a bug that has not yet been patched, you can stick with MacOS and actually play your guitar.

IMO.
I'm dealing with an audio crackling issue on a T2 MBP 16" i9 2019 that cost $3000 USD, an issue that Big Sur did not correct. The T2 chip just caused an absolute clusterf*ck of issues. So, politely, and with respect, I'm really in no mood to discuss macOS's stability when their hardware 5 years prior to the M1 were dog crap.

Apple have corrected the T2 usb audio interface issues, but unfortunately normal audio continues to distort in persistent but limited cases. I believe the T2 second monitor/fan issue still exists as well.

The Apogee Element drivers... same. We were essentially beta testers for Apogee and then et voila, they discontinue the Element. Great interface but the promised Logic integration was only half-baked/realized.

Logic Pro still has PDC issues 10+ years running and extant bugs from the emagic days (20+ years? I've lost count).

Having to xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine blah blah or codesign -f -s - --deep blah blah blah? Lol, yeah, I'm already dealing with the crap that people say you have to do with Linux. Which goes back to apple clamping down on the eco system and using the T2 as an interim solution until they had their SoC ready for the M1 chip.

I deeply apologize for the apparent snark and I don't intend to sound like an ass -- but yeah, I'm kinda done. You're talking to a guy that's used a Mac since '91 and probably made Guy Kawasaki look like a rookie. I've plowed $30k plus into Apple hardware and software.

When your $3000 i9 MBP has crackling audio when listening to youtube, you kinda get over it quick. I've spent way too much time messing with this stuff and I'm familiar with *nix.

Any people with experience using the Axe-FX III as an audio interface in Linux and their experience is appreciated :)
 
I am, as I don't own a Mac or machine which runs Windows. Everything works just fine in Linux, including running AxeEdit using Wine (you can easily find install/setup instructions).

I'm using jackd for all my audio and MIDI routing in Linux, using a Presonus interface for the non-AxeFX things (drums, keyboards, etc), so I needed to add the AxeFX as a separate interface into the same Jack layout. This is also easy too, using the program 'alsa_in'.

I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
That pretty much covers it! Do you use the Axe-FX for any mix monitoring or do you only use it for laying down DI guitar?

My frustration with Logic's PDC led me to Bitwig and I'm pretty much hooked on its deep modulation system. As long as I can use the Axe-FX as a basic usb compliant interface I should be good to go.

Which distro are you using? Is it a real time kernel?
 
I've used the Axe-Fx as the output a little, really just verified it worked. I've been using my Presonus 1824 as the primary interface, especially since Axe hasn't even been here a week yet. Upgraded from a couple of old Pod XT units :)

Not using realtime, it's Fedora 33 on my old work laptop plugged into a Thunderbolt dock. I don't monitor the audio that's been run through the computer though - I've got a cheap old Behringer mixer I use just to send everything to my speakers directly, I only really output from the computer to the speakers (via presonus) for playback or software synths.
 
I'm dealing with an audio crackling issue on a T2 MBP 16" i9 2019 that cost $3000 USD, an issue that Big Sur did not correct. The T2 chip just caused an absolute clusterf*ck of issues. So, politely, and with respect, I'm really in no mood to discuss macOS's stability when their hardware 5 years prior to the M1 were dog crap.

Apple have corrected the T2 usb audio interface issues, but unfortunately normal audio continues to distort in persistent but limited cases. I believe the T2 second monitor/fan issue still exists as well.

The Apogee Element drivers... same. We were essentially beta testers for Apogee and then et voila, they discontinue the Element. Great interface but the promised Logic integration was only half-baked/realized.

Logic Pro still has PDC issues 10+ years running and extant bugs from the emagic days (20+ years? I've lost count).

Having to xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine blah blah or codesign -f -s - --deep blah blah blah? Lol, yeah, I'm already dealing with the crap that people say you have to do with Linux. Which goes back to apple clamping down on the eco system and using the T2 as an interim solution until they had their SoC ready for the M1 chip.

I deeply apologize for the apparent snark and I don't intend to sound like an ass -- but yeah, I'm kinda done. You're talking to a guy that's used a Mac since '91 and probably made Guy Kawasaki look like a rookie. I've plowed $30k plus into Apple hardware and software.

When your $3000 i9 MBP has crackling audio when listening to youtube, you kinda get over it quick. I've spent way too much time messing with this stuff and I'm familiar with *nix.

Any people with experience using the Axe-FX III as an audio interface in Linux and their experience is appreciated :)
Yeah, not sure I can advise keeping a 2019 Macbook Pro 16. I know I dumped mine.
Straight up garbage hardware. The fans cranking up while just watching a YouTube video was unbelievable.

I have a new M1 iMac and MacBook Pro and they are fantastic compared to older hardware.
If you have religious reasons to avoid Windows 10 then yeah Linux will work fine.

Wine is your friend.

However the move to Linux will require some effort and not everything will work straight away.
 
I used Linux Mint 20.x for several months and the Axe-III works just fine with no additional drivers or tweaking. Axe Edit worked ok under WINE, but I had to do a hack to get the mouse cursor to show up properly. I wanted to stay with Linux, I really did, but there were other applications I use regularly that either didn't run as well under Linux or didn't have a Linux equivalent, so I came back to Windows a couple months ago.
 
I used Linux Mint 20.x for several months and the Axe-III works just fine with no additional drivers or tweaking. Axe Edit worked ok under WINE, but I had to do a hack to get the mouse cursor to show up properly.
I did have to do that mouse hack thing, yep.
 
Which DAW software do you use on linux?
And how satisfied are you with it?
I'm using Ardour, it works decently well. I've got zero experience with anything else though - I've always used Linux (never owned a Mac and never been a Windows user), so I can't really compare to Pro Tools or Logic or all that other stuff.
 
Just play your guitar mate.
Yes because guitar is the only thing that matters in life.

Back on topic, try dual booting a distro of Linux you like with MacOS, then you can toy around with Linux for a while and if you decide it's not for you, to back to Mac without much hassle. Find whatever makes you happiest and most productive. I found switching to Linux made me work best and actually play guitar more (contrary to some advice above) because my system was snappier, I could work my dawn easier, and I wasn't dealing with the windows instability I had been as well as random updates and other Microsoft things. YMMV
 
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