Ardour (audio processor)
From Free net encyclopedia
Ardour is a hard disk recorder and digital audio editor application released under the GNU General Public License as Free Software. It currently runs on GNU / Linux, Solaris, and Mac OS X.
Its main author is Paul Davis, who is also the main author of JACK Audio Connection Kit. His intention is to make a digital audio workstation suitable for professional use.
Live or recorded streams of audio can be patched through other programs individually without loss of synchronisation between the streams.
Since Ardour 0.9beta5 there is support to operate in conjunction with Animatrics, from the Center for Music Technology at the University of Glasgow.
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Features
Audio
Any sample rate is supported to the extent of the hardware's capabilities. All sample data is maintained internally in 32 bit floating point format. Native file format is standard IEEE 32 bit floating point Broadcast WAVE or WAVE. Ardour supports up to 30 different file formats.
Mixing
MMC and generic MIDI control surfaces can be used to control the mixing surface. All plugin, fader and pan controls are automatable.
Editing
Ardour has some interesting variations on the usual set of audio editing functions. Fades, for instance, instantly apply as they are changed. Several different region layering models are also supported. Ardour also features unlimited undo/redo and a snapshot facility to store interesting or useful versions of a session.
Plugins
Ardour relies on plugins to enable many features from FX processing to dynamics control. Ardour supports the LADSPA plugin architecture.
Compatibility
Ardour is an open source application. This means that anyone can read the "source code" to the program to find out exactly how, when and why it does certain things. It's this openness that allowed the first port of Ardour to Mac OS X to be carried out by someone previously uninvolved with the Ardour project. Ardour attempts to adhere to industry standards to maximise functionality and ease portability.
Mastering
Ardour can also be used to master a project. Its integration with JACK makes it possible to use mastering tools such as JAMin to process the audio data. Ardour can also export TOC and CUE files which allows for the creation of audio CDs.