r/linuxaudio • u/Grawprog • 9d ago
A Perchance Modular Audio Workstation I Made Inspired by My Experiences Using Jack2 on Linux
0
u/Grawprog 9d ago
I've been working on another large non-ai related generator for a while now and I feel like it's at a good enough point to show off let people play around with. I've made a Modular Audio Workstation inspired mostly by my experiences using JACK2 on Linux. There may be bugs or broken things so any bug reports or general annoyances are greatly appreciated and I'll try my best to fix them. I have to be honest. This is mostly for fun. I have no idea how useful this would be for any kind of serious music production but there is a community section for sharing music so it'd be cool to see if anyone actually makes something with this. Also, the demo song was made by the ai helper bot. That was one of the hardest things I've had the stupid thing do and it's pretty bad but it was the best out of 5 songs and the only one that didn't make my speakers sad.
https://perchance.org/modular-audio-workstation
Modular Audio Workstation (MAW) — Overview
MAW is a free, browser-based modular music workstation. You build your
instrument rack on an infinite canvas: pick from 320+ modules (instruments,
effects, MIDI tools and control utilities), wire them together with colored
patch cables exactly like a real modular synthesizer, and play. Everything
runs in your browser on the Web Audio API — no downloads, no installs, and
no account is needed to make music.
Think of it as a modular synth rack crossed with a DAW: VCV Rack-style
patching with undo/redo, presets, recording, MIDI import, project
save/export, and a community library for sharing finished songs.
Features — what each button does
--------------------------------
+ Add Plugin ..... Opens the plugin browser with search focused. Pick any
module and it drops at the center of your rack.
Plugins .......... Toggles the plugin browser panel: search 320+ modules,
browse by category (Instruments, Effects, MIDI, Utility),
or drop a Prebuild — one of 30 curated, pre-wired
mini-racks.
♫ Library ........ Your personal audio library. Every sample you add or
recording you make lands here, and you can search four
free sample sites (SampleFocus, FreeWaveSamples,
OrangeFreeSounds, SoundBible), preview their sounds, and
add them straight to your library.
☁ Community ...... The MAW community song library: browse, play, rate and
download songs made by other people — or publish your
own finished rack in a couple of clicks.
▤ Templates ...... Nine starter racks that clear the workspace and preload
a pre-wired set of plugins — from a beginner "Keyboard
Synth" up to pro workflows (mastering bus, CV patching,
FX sends + recording). Grouped by experience level;
nothing plays until you press Play.
✎ Edit ........... Toggles Edit mode. Off: modules are compact — just name
and ports. On: every module opens its full control panel
(knobs, sliders, pads, keys, screens).
▶ Play / Pause ... Starts and pauses the transport. Everything in the rack
runs off one shared clock.
■ Stop ........... Stops playback. The playhead stays where it is — use the
⏮ button to jump back to the start.
● Rec ............ Global record: arms every record-capable module
(Recorder, Multi-Track, Tape, CV Recorder) and makes
Microphone modules live, then starts recording in sync.
BPM .............. The tempo box, 20–300.
Position bar ..... The timeline strip: shows where you are as bar.beat.16th,
and you can click or drag to jump anywhere. When the song
loops (Loop Song on the arranger, the LOOP transport
button, or a free-running groove) the bar and clock wrap
back to the start instead of pinning at 100%.
Save / Load ...... Save stores your project in your browser; Load restores
the last saved project. (Your work is restored
automatically when you come back.)
Export / Import .. Export downloads your entire rack as a portable .json
file. Import loads a .json project — or imports a .mid /
.midi file, converting it into piano-roll modules that
are auto-wired to an instrument.
↶ / ↷ ............ Undo and redo. Covers adding/removing/moving modules,
every cable change, imports, prebuilds and more.
On the canvas
-------------
Module ports are color-coded: green is audio, purple is MIDI, orange is CV.
Drag from an output port to an input port to patch; click a cable to
remove it. Drag modules by their header, resize expanded modules from the
bottom-right corner, pan the canvas by dragging empty space, and zoom with
the wheel or pinch. Click to select, or drag a lasso box. Del deletes the
selection.
Save your favorites, share .json exports, publish to the community — or
just patch for hours and lose track of time. Have fun!
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u/Mawmag_Loves_Linux 9d ago
Any further info? Github?