First of all, I would like to thank the Ardour developers for their work.
Would it be possible to create an Ardour SuperLite edition?
This version could be based on the current Ardour release but include only a limited set of features.
It could be a lightweight version designed specifically for live use , where VST3 plugins can run in the background, process audio coming from a microphone through effects, and output the processed audio in real time.
The main goal would be to provide an ASIO-supported version optimized for minimal resource usage. Users could enable one or more VST3 plugins (or other supported plugin formats), configure their plugin settings, and then run Ardour in the background while using as little RAM, CPU, and disk activity as possible.
This could make Ardour useful for a wider range of users, including those who need it for live audio processing as well as users who have a virtual microphone and want to use Ardour primarily as a system-wide equalizer or audio effects processor.
Such a lightweight version could provide the benefits of Ardour’s powerful plugin support while being much more suitable for running continuously in the background.
It needs about 500MB of RAM, plus 10 - 30 MB or so per track (depends on buffering preferences). There is little to no CPU usage as well if you don’t load any plugins. It runs fine even on systems with limited resources (e.g. Raspberry PI with 4GB RAM).
In short, if you don’t use a given feature of Ardour, that feature does no add any overhead.
Below, you can see my test results comparing Carla and Ardour. These results are the average of five tests. Only one VST3 plugin was used during the tests. However, the results are not always exactly the same or even approximately consistent, but I would still like to include them as they may provide a general idea.
PROGRAM
DISK WRITE
CPU TIME
CPU
RAM
THREADS
HANDLES
GPU
LATENCY
CARLA
103
0.36
0.51
180
19
845
0/15
10
ARDOUR
240
1.35
1.21
220
47
1104
0/15
10
Although Carla is lightweight, it is not the lightest application or the one that uses the fewest system resources. However, among the DAWs and plugin hosts I have tested, it is generally among the top five in terms of low resource usage.
Carla is already a good standalone application, but its development seems to have slowed down for now, and it appears to be missing several features. For example, it does not provide information about I/O latency, audio interface latency, or the latency introduced by a plugin. It also lacks the ability to adjust the plugin window size.
Nevertheless, thank you again for your recommendation. I wish you continued success.