WindozeXP test station: why must it be so hard??

[OneyedK]

If there was a Linux equivalent of AudioTester I'd use that.

Give REW (roomeqwizard) a spin, don't let the name fool you.
I only have experience with it on Win7 and macOS, no idea on how well it's linux version works.

 

[P.O.]

Yes, I know this one, it's on the candidates list. I use an ancient copy on the Macintosh.
The experimentation has taken a whole new turn: I'm experimenting with windoze 2000!
AudioTester is working, (I think I found a trick) but the MBOX part is proving to be a real challenge.

P.S. oh, there's a linux version of REW!! Thanks for the tip, I was no aware of that, gonna try it.
Clearly, however, I'm not gonna be able to use the MBOX there, nor the touchscreen...

 

[FIX]

I use Mac OS Catalina, which screwed me out of my owned Photoshop, but it was worth the upgrade. I also run Parallels and WIN7 and WIN10 to run SolidWorks and Altium. WIN10 has a program called OPEN SHELL that turns the interface into WIN7 look, which gets rid of all the stupid useless flipping tiles that waste processor room. Windows never stops amazing me as how stupid they can make an interface to try to be "hip" against Apple.

 

[FIX]

One thing that kills Windows is the registry. They, many moons ago, made it an active running program, instead of a look up directory, to be able to hide the Newley released pile of shit Internet Explorer Virus Attracting program's bookmarks so Netscape couldn't access them when it went "Import your bookmarks from...", which created a fertile place for the inventors of the virus industry to make programs to screw you. They encrypted the bookmarks, which was the incentive to create viruses the same way. The Registry constantly grows and slows everything down. Running a WIN OS in Parallels, you can redirect all internet activity to the MAC side and stop that nightmare...

 

[P.O.]

MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH!!!
I just succeeded at last in making my target system run AudioTester!
Since I had AudioTester running on a laptop with the same XP install, I embarked on a perillous journey of analysing what goes on with Dependency Walker. On my target system I found out that AT stumbled on the absence of msvcr90.dll. At first I just copied msvcr90.dll to the audT30 folders, but it's not simple like that... On the working system I found out with Dependency Walker that msvcr90 is associated to a library living in the winSxS folder. I transplanted this bunch of files (X86_Microsoft.VC90.CRT & associates) from the working to the target system. I feared that it would require authorizations, installers, endless frobnicating, but it worked right away!
Next step is to have the MBOX recognized-shouldn't be too hard, it worked before.
For now I am running build 7 of AudioTester. Will have to experiment to find out up to which build will work with XP.
It will also be interesting to find a way to install the needed msvcr90 library...
hehe!

 

[Disco Volante]

Switched to Linux back in 98 or 99. Never looked back. Stable as in rock solid, no nonsense, everything is documented and a great community. Kernel updates takes a reboot a couple of times a year.
No memory leaks, no virus BS, no updates blocking the machine for a half hour when you need it...
Worth mentioning also the vastly lower obsolescence factor (when did a win or mac run faster after installing the latest release/update?)
Running cutting edge Debian on a 10 year old Thinkpad X220 (last model with good keyboard).
I do keep a dual-boot W520 with Windows just for the few things that won't run on Linux.

REW runs great on Linux, just a bit fiddly because it's compiled on an older Java, so you have to keep a double Java if you're running up-to-date Linux (needed for e.g. FreeCAD). One of these days John Mulcahy might start compiling on a newer platform;-)

Congrats on your success ;-)

 

[P.O.]

Well, it's partial success: AudioTester runs OK now, but it doesn't want to play with the MBOX: FFT displays a very low -35dB noise floor, input doesn't display what it should. I can have AT run with the MoBo's internal sound interface and it basically shows what it should, but that interface has poor performance that is not on par. MBOX's installer is supposed to have a "wavedriver", but all I get is an ASIO driver. maybe with ASIO4all?
As for linux REW, I tried it and it doesn't work. can't install the .sh package I downloaded:says there's a "bitness" problem or something of the sorts when I try to install on my Ubuntu system.

 

[flashlamp]

check out kxstudio they have a linux asio driver for wine.

KXStudio : Repositories

 

[P.O.]

Well, I'm far from success: despite having AudioTester finally working on target system, I'm not having much success with the audio interfaces.
MBOX is clearly not working right. Oscilloscope display is full of spikes and glitches, even with volume all the way down. tried three different "standalone driver installers" with same results. I even installed ProTools LE 7.4, where the MBOX records and plays fine....
I also tried a M-Audio MobilePre USB. Despite trying with three different drivers, the MobilePre is never ever seen by the system...
I also have a little Creative SB0270 USB interface. No results from this one.
The ONLY interface that behaves correctly is a lowly plastic-clad, dinky-looking Edirol UA-20. Reasonnable 24-bit performance, but not on par with MBOX. No balanced I/O nor Phantom power for test mic. But it looks like the one I'll have to use. Driver is ASIO, so software that don't support ASIO are out.
I have four other interfaces (one stereo, three 8-channel) that are firewire. The touchscreen computer does not have Firewire nor any means to implement it.
I'm appalled that whole process is plagued with non-working garbage: Confusing installers that don't install, drivers that don't drive. At least in the Macintosh world things usually work.

 

[P.O.]

Am I just plain unlucky, or is it always like that?
when I embarked that train I sure didn't expect to have to grease the wheels and shovel a ton of coal at every stop...

 

[P.O.]

CONCLUSIONS
It's been something like three weeks I've been on this project on (sometimes entire days!) and off, it's time I pass on to other projects and do some real work done...
Last week I have tried different Windoze XP packages and did the same with Windoze7. Honestly it did not get me any advanced than when I started, so I reverted to my initial XP install. The MBOX interface will absolutely NOT work right with AudioTester in any circumstances (although it works perfectly well with ProTools 7.4 in the same system), so I have to abandon this idea. Likewise, I could not go anywhere with the M-Audio MobilePre USB interface (never "found") and the Creative SB0270.
The AudioTester problem that it would not start in XP after install has been solved by the installation of winmls2004ver1.07installation.exe which installs the needed libraries.
The system works well with the Edirol UA-20, which has 24 bits but only 44.1KHz SR. It has both ASIO and DirectSound drivers. Edirol's driver development appear to be a notch above the others, so I think I'll stick to them. I have a UA-5 on the way which has extended sampling rate options.
I really like the touchscreen operation, which is fast and streamlined. Some operations are, however, really infuriating such as window resizing and selecting/ajusting tiny check boxes and sliders.
Of the lot of programs I tried, AudioTester continues to be my favorite, but Visual Analyzer seems a very capable contender. I cannot get used to the non "live" approach of Right-Mark analyzer, and I just cannot figure how to set REW's reference levels from SPL to electrical scale. This is a preliminary conclusions, YMMV.

 

[flashlamp]

have you tried ardour or mixbus.

 

[P.O.]

I have a copy of Harrison mixbus for Mac OS9 that I hope to try someday.
But I don't see what these programs have to do with the subject here...

 

[flashlamp]

I have a copy of Harrison mixbus for Mac OS9 that I hope to try someday.
But I don't see what these programs have to do with the subject here...

it runs on linux also.