Sound has been a problem for me in the past. I found that the sound seems to work slightly better on Fedora than on Ubuntu. Ubuntu 12.04 has worked better for me, but I think things are still a little more flakey than I would like. Some of my problems might come from a USB docking station that has a sound plugin and some of the problems definitely come from Skype.
Anyhow, these are the tools that I am currently using:
- Audacity
- Sound Settings — switching between devices
- MuseScore
Installing Audacity
Audacity is the Gimp of the sound work, at least in my mind. This is a great place to test sound record and playback. It can change the pitch of music or clean up static out of the file. You install it from the Software Center.
I tested recording a couple of tracks, and everything seemed to work pretty well.
Adjusting the Volume
At first, my recording was a little weak. I can easily adjust the output volume from the notification area. To adjust the microphone volume, you need to open the Sound Settings. You can do that from the notification area:
The microphone settings are on the Input tab.
On the output tab, I have had a few issues where my sound doesn’t work. I found that the wrong output device was selected. So, periodically, I need to adjust the output device.
MuseScore
I am not a composer, but I have made a few changes to some songs for choir and hand-bells. I found this MuseScore program very helpful. You can install it from the Software Center:
