FOSSPicks
FOSSPicks

This month Graham looks at Mixx, elfcat, Plover, and more!
DJ software
Mixxx
Mixxx started life more than 20 years ago as an application to help DJs organize and play their playlists, and it has since evolved into an incredible, fully fledged, live performance user interface for budding and professional DJs, podcasters, and radio hosts. It's a worthy competitor to the proprietary (and Linux incompatible) Native Instruments Traktor Pro, with both applications using the same user-interface paradigm. That paradigm involves two or more decks split horizontally across the main window with a bank of virtual faders and controllers in between them. The number of controls you see here depends on the number of decks you add.
A deck is akin to an old vinyl record deck or turntable, now popular again in their own right. Nightclub DJs would typically arrange two decks side-by-side with a mixer in the middle, so tracks could be switched between them with no delay. It's this configuration that Mixxx emulates, albeit for the 21st century. Instead of records, the virtual decks load one or more audio files for playback, with the virtual faders used to mix between opposite decks. Audio files can be loaded individually, dragged and dropped, or queued as a playlist. This configuration allows you to seamlessly blend between various audio tracks, whether they are breakbeats or advertising jingles, and either record the output as a single audio file or use it as the source of a live mix or broadcast.
To make transitions as seamless as possible, Mixxx is able to analyze the audio files to detect their tempo, frequency range, and even key. All of this is shown on the waveform, with the tempo highlighted as vertical bars, frequency range as color, and key as an annotation. Pitch controls can then change either the key, playback speed, or both, making it incredibly easy to match different audio files for a more integrated mix. If you still yearn to exercise those old DJ skills, you can drag your mouse across the waveforms to virtually scratch the needle across the record, producing beautifully authentic sounds. This can be taken even further by using a real turntable spinning a timecode vinyl record, which can be tracked by Mixxx inputs to accurately map your scratching to changes in playback speed. Everything can also be automated, either by the many keyboard shortcuts or via MIDI automation, where every knob and slider can be assigned a MIDI control value for external control. These can be scripted for even more control.
Modern effects can be added, chained together, and even isolated to certain audio buses or a headphone mix. You can also keep a microphone channel clear of other effects so you can announce you're running Mixxx on Arch Linux. All of this can be configured with Jack and the comprehensive settings. The latest release adds to these effects with color options for tracks, intro and outro marking, multithreaded analysis and more accurate key detection, and support for lots of physical deck controllers. Twenty years of development have enabled Mixxx to become a one-stop solution for playing, tracking, and DJing music. It's remarkable that this kind of software is being made and produced under an open source license.
Project Website

Binary explorer
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you've found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Fedora 39 Beta is Now Available for Testing
For fans and users of Fedora Linux, the first beta of release 39 is now available, which is a minor upgrade but does include GNOME 45.
-
Fedora Linux 40 to Drop X11 for KDE Plasma
When Fedora 40 arrives in 2024, there will be a few big changes coming, especially for the KDE Plasma option.
-
Real-Time Ubuntu Available in AWS Marketplace
Anyone looking for a Linux distribution for real-time processing could do a whole lot worse than Real-Time Ubuntu.
-
KSMBD Finally Reaches a Stable State
For those who've been looking forward to the first release of KSMBD, after two years it's no longer considered experimental.
-
Nitrux 3.0.0 Has Been Released
The latest version of Nitrux brings plenty of innovation and fresh apps to the table.
-
Linux From Scratch 12.0 Now Available
If you're looking to roll your own Linux distribution, the latest version of Linux From Scratch is now available with plenty of updates.
-
Linux Kernel 6.5 Has Been Released
The newest Linux kernel, version 6.5, now includes initial support for two very exciting features.
-
UbuntuDDE 23.04 Now Available
A new version of the UbuntuDDE remix has finally arrived with all the updates from the Deepin desktop and everything that comes with the Ubuntu 23.04 base.
-
Star Labs Reveals a New Surface-Like Linux Tablet
If you've ever wanted a tablet that rivals the MS Surface, you're in luck as Star Labs has created such a device.
-
SUSE Going Private (Again)
The company behind SUSE Linux Enterprise, Rancher, and NeuVector recently announced that Marcel LUX III SARL (Marcel), its majority shareholder, intends to delist it from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by way of a merger.