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    JACK Audio Connection Kit

    Sophisticated real-time, low latency routing of audio and MIDI data between apps.

    • Free • Open Source
    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    ▼

    What is JACK Audio Connection Kit?

    JACK is a professional sound server daemon that provides real-time low latency connections for both audio and MIDI data between applications that implement its API. The API can be used through either JACK1 or JACK2.

    JACK provides a basic infrastructure for audio applications to communicate with each other and with audio hardware. Through JACK, users are enabled to build powerful systems for signal processing and music production. Jack 1 and Jack 2 are equivalent implementations of the same protocol.

    JACK2 aka jackdmp is a C++ version of the JACK low-latency audio server for multi-processor machines. It is a new implementation of the JACK server core features that aims at removing some limitations of the JACK1 design. The activation system has been changed for a data flow model and lock-free programming techniques for graph access have been used to have a more dynamic and robust system.

    • uses a new client activation model, that allows simultaneous client execution (on a SMP machine) when parallel clients exist in the graph (client that have the same inputs). This activation model allows to better use available CPU on a smp machine, but also works on mono-processor machine.

    • uses a lock-free way to access (read/write) the client graph, thus allowing connections/disconnection to be done without interrupting the audio stream. The result is that connections/disconnections are glitch-free.
    • can work in two different modes at the server level:
    - synchronous activation: in a given cycle, the server waits for all clients to be finished (similar to normal jackd)
    - asynchronous activation: in a given cycle, the server does not wait for all clients to be finished and use output buffer computed the previous cycle.

    For more information on the differences between JACK1 and JACK2, see https://github.com/jackaudio/jackaudio.github.com/wiki/Q_difference_jack1_jack2

    It is often used with a frontend such as qjackctl.
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    Said about JACK Audio Connection Kit as an alternative

    ubster super lite and opensource, also paying attention to latnecy
    Positive comment • over 3 years ago • as an alternative to  Loopback Loopback

    Ugotsta While JACK Audio involves a more complex setup and needs the server to be started to work, it's functionally the same as it allows audio routing between applications. Routing can be done between any app providing an option to select the JACK Audio driver.
    Positive comment • almost 2 years ago • as an alternative to  Virtual Audio Cable Virtual Audio Cable

    Ugotsta JACK Audio is much more complicated and requires actually starting up the server for routing to take effect but it fundamentally addresses the same issue of routing which Soundflower does.
    Positive comment • almost 2 years ago • as an alternative to  Soundflower Soundflower

    Categories

    System & Hardware • Office & Productivity

    Platform details

    Linux: Best support and widely used.

    Tags

    • audio-over-ip
    • system-audio

    Lists containing JACK Audio Connection Kit

    Windows •  Audio
    Screenshot
    JACK Audio Connection Kit

    Links and Download

     Official Website

    Other

    GitHub, Ubuntu Software Center
    JACK Audio Connection Kit

    Summary

    Our users have written 0 comments and reviews about JACK Audio Connection Kit, and it has gotten 43 likes

    • Developed by JACK Dev Team
    • Open Source and Free product.
    • 17 alternatives listed

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    JACK Audio Connection Kit was added to AlternativeTo by JamesJRH on Jun 30, 2011 and this page was last updated Jan 23, 2022. JACK Audio Connection Kit is sometimes referred to as JACK.

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