Need Help to Add Carla to LMMS in Windows

[FadhilKwan]

First of all, greetings everyone! I'm a new user in this forum.
Well technically yes, I've been checking in this forum from time to time, but decided to sign up now since I might gonna need alot more help, and a better way to do that is to ask y'all directly. My name's FadhilKwan, nice to meet ya!

Excuse me beforehand if this has been anwered before, but I've tried to look around everywhere for a solution to this, and yet everything I tried didn't seem to work.

So, I want to integrate Carla into my LMMS on Windows (specifically Windows 10, which is my OS). And I've tried methods that I've found online (including this forum), such as
A. extracting contents of Carla and add it's folder location to Windows PATH in 'Environment Variables';
B. several methods of copy and replacing stuff from this issue ticket https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/issues/5984; and
C. Loading it via KushView's 'Element', as written here in a forum post viewtopic.php?p=79927&sid=922bea7cd207b ... 908#p79927
And yet, I still can't get Carla to show up.

Seems that method A should do just fine based on this comment from a github issue https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/pull/5713# ... 1891101459 . But I've followed that step carefully, and no dice.
As for method B, it is the same. Haven't tried all of them yet, but I have tested most of them, no result. So I just immediately concluded that the rest might not gonna work either.

Method C however, I can get it to work. BUT, Carla didn't seem to work properly with 'Element'. I tried to load a plugin in Carla after I loaded it in 'Element' VST, but nothing happens (oddly enough, trying to load the same plugin(s) twice freezes this Carla). In contrast, Carla still works properly when it is run from its standalone exe.
(also I'm using different more recent version for both Element and Carla. I tried to replicate the steps one-to-one, but the recommended version for both softwares aren't available anymore, especially for Carla 2.4.1)

And yeah, I am pretty much at a dead end now.
So I'd like to ask for a bit of assistance on how to get Carla work on LMMS properly in Windows. Is there a step that I missed? Do I have to be more specific with adding Carla's PATH in 'Environment Variables'? Do I have to install the softwares in specific filepaths? Or am I using the wrong versions for all the softwares? Heck, maybe even the wrong version of LMMS? (which btw, I'm usng the most recent nightly release - alpha1.3.0+g360254fd8).

If anyone can help me out, please let me know, because I dont.....

Thanks alot in advance~

[yvonne910rhodes]

First of all, greetings everyone! I'm a new user in this forum.
Well technically yes, I've been checking in this forum from time to time, but decided to sign up now since I might gonna need alot more help, and a better way to do that is to ask y'all directly. My name's FadhilKwan, nice to meet ya!

Excuse me beforehand if this has been anwered before, but I've tried to look around everywhere for a solution to this, and yet everything I tried didn't seem to work. MyMilestoneCard

So, I want to integrate Carla into my LMMS on Windows (specifically Windows 10, which is my OS). And I've tried methods that I've found online (including this forum), such as
A. extracting contents of Carla and add it's folder location to Windows PATH in 'Environment Variables';
B. several methods of copy and replacing stuff from this issue ticket https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/issues/5984/; and
C. Loading it via KushView's 'Element', as written here in a forum post viewtopic.php?p=79927&sid=922bea7cd207b ... 908#p79927
And yet, I still can't get Carla to show up.

Seems that method A should do just fine based on this comment from a github issue https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/pull/5713# ... 1891101459 . But I've followed that step carefully, and no dice.
As for method B, it is the same. Haven't tried all of them yet, but I have tested most of them, no result. So I just immediately concluded that the rest might not gonna work either.

Method C however, I can get it to work. BUT, Carla didn't seem to work properly with 'Element'. I tried to load a plugin in Carla after I loaded it in 'Element' VST, but nothing happens (oddly enough, trying to load the same plugin(s) twice freezes this Carla). In contrast, Carla still works properly when it is run from its standalone exe.
(also I'm using different more recent version for both Element and Carla. I tried to replicate the steps one-to-one, but the recommended version for both softwares aren't available anymore, especially for Carla 2.4.1)

And yeah, I am pretty much at a dead end now.
So I'd like to ask for a bit of assistance on how to get Carla work on LMMS properly in Windows. Is there a step that I missed? Do I have to be more specific with adding Carla's PATH in 'Environment Variables'? Do I have to install the softwares in specific filepaths? Or am I using the wrong versions for all the softwares? Heck, maybe even the wrong version of LMMS? (which btw, I'm usng the most recent nightly release - alpha1.3.0+g360254fd8).

If anyone can help me out, please let me know, because I dont.....

Thanks alot in advance~

Hello,

Integrating Carla into LMMS on Windows can indeed be tricky, but I’ll do my best to assist you. Here are a few steps you can try:

Ensure Compatibility: Make sure that both LMMS and Carla are compatible with each other. The most recent nightly release of LMMS you’re using (alpha1.3.0+g360254fd8) might have compatibility issues with certain versions of Carla. It’s often recommended to use stable releases for better compatibility.

Check PATH Variable: Adding Carla’s folder location to the Windows PATH in ‘Environment Variables’ is crucial. Ensure that the path is correctly set without any typos and that it points to the directory where the Carla executable is located.

Use Correct Versions: Using the most recent versions of software can sometimes lead to compatibility issues. If possible, try to find and use the versions of Carla and Element that are known to work with LMMS, even if they are not the latest ones.

Filepaths: Installing the software in the default filepaths is usually the best practice unless specified otherwise by the software documentation.

Run as Administrator: Sometimes, running LMMS as an administrator can resolve issues related to plugin recognition.

Check Dependencies: Ensure all necessary dependencies for Carla and LMMS are installed on your system. Missing dependencies can prevent plugins from functioning correctly.

Consult the Community: Engage with the LMMS community on forums or GitHub discussions. Other users might have encountered similar issues and could have solutions.

Review Documentation: Revisit the official documentation for both LMMS and Carla. There might be specific instructions or notes about the integration process.

I hope the information may helps you.

[musikbear]

First off, Welcome to the Forum yvonne910rhodes & FadhilKwan!
Here are all important links:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4740
-A few rules and useful forum instructions
If you like to introduce yourself, to the community, go here:
http://lmms.io/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4480

Tutorial

Thanks!

Carla in windows

In my notes i have the following for Carla in windows10
Carla for windows
1. Install a version of LMMS with Carla support both 1.22 and Alpha1.3 does.
2. Download Carla for windows
3. Extract Carla to a permanent location
4. Add Carla.lv2 to your PATH environment variable (e.g. C:\Carla_2.2.0-win64\Carla.lv2)
5. Start LMMS

I would be valuable if you would report back on your progress.

[Gps]

I cant help, but maybe there is some use full info in this thread ?

https://linuxmusicians.com/viewtopic.ph ... on+windows


One question. you are using lv2 plugins build for windows ? Not the lv2 Linux ones?

The Linux ones wont work on windows.


I have Carla inside lmms, but I am on Linux, that why I probably can't help.

[FadhilKwan]

Hello there everyone!! Sorry for not replying back for quite awhile. I didn't get any form of notification at all, so I thought this thread was still in a dormant state. In hindsight, I probably should've setup a notification beforehand ._.v
And btw, thanks alot y'all for your suggestions!

In my notes i have the following for Carla in windows10
Carla for windows
1. Install a version of LMMS with Carla support both 1.22 and Alpha1.3 does.
2. Download Carla for windows
3. Extract Carla to a permanent location
4. Add Carla.lv2 to your PATH environment variable (e.g. C:\Carla_2.2.0-win64\Carla.lv2)
5. Start LMMS

Thanks for the help, musikbear, nice to meet ya! ^-^/
Yes, I've tried this before, unfortunately this didn't work either. ><

One question. you are using lv2 plugins build for windows ? Not the lv2 Linux ones?

The Linux ones wont work on windows.

Yup, it is confirmed Windows build. Though I'm not using the lv2 version of it, as you'll find a little further. I will be using Carla's main folder instead (the folder that you get after extracting Carla), as it is the only one that works.

Consult the Community: Engage with the LMMS community on forums or GitHub discussions. Other users might have encountered similar issues and could have solutions.

Yes, hello yvonne! This was exactly what I had in mind after posting this thread.

While I was waiting for some responses, I managed to ask someone on github regarding this exact issue (started here: https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/pull/5713# ... 1962311492). And after a little bit of consultation, I finally got it to work..... in a quite bruteforcing method.

I got some help from tresf on github. He have tested it out and this method below should, in theory, work everytime (as written here https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/pull/5713# ... 1962971588):

Steps:
1. Install LMMS nightly 64-bit from https://lmms.io/download
2. Download and extract Carla 2.5.8 64-bit from https://kx.studio/Applications:Carla
3. Extracted to C:\Carla-2.5.8-win64
4. Add an environmental variable to PATH for C:\Carla-2.5.8-win64\Carla
5. Start LMMS
6. Drag Carla into LMMS
7. Click "Allow" on Firewall Prompt
8. Carla is working

Oddly enough, I couldn't get this to work on my pc at first, even though I've followed all the steps carefully, numerous times. This was very surprising and confusing at the same time, to the point I kept second-guessing myself.
But after a little while I thought, "Maybe my device just couldn't load all of the Environment Variables for some reason?".

So I went ahead and created a .bat file that forces my Windows 10 to load all of the 'Environment Variables' (adding Carla's path into the mix following tresf's step as well) before then starting LMMS. I gave it a shot and..... it worked very well!
here's what I wrote in my .bat script (also for reference: https://github.com/LMMS/lmms/pull/5713# ... 1971652319)

Code: Select all

cd "%~dp0\"

SETLOCAL 
IF EXIST "D:\Program Files\Carla-2.5.8-win64\Carla" SET "PATH=%PATH%;D:\Program Files\Carla-2.5.8-win64\Carla"

start "" "%~dp0\lmms_program\lmms.exe"

pause

note:
0. You should probably Only do this if the steps provided by musikbear or tresf don't work for you
1. replace [D:\Program Files\Carla-2.5.8-win64\Carla] with the path where Carla's main folder is stored (again, the one that you get after extracting Carla's zip file)
2. you might have to alter this part a bit [%~dp0\lmms_program\lmms.exe]. It's basically tells the .bat to run 'lmms.exe'. The 'lmms_program' bit is just how I installed it in the first place, nothing too crazy.
3. The [pause] line can be omitted if you wish. It just keeps that .bat file from closing. But it could also be useful for debug purposes, such as to check if anything happens to LMMS, especially its Carla (or Carla-LMMS).
And in case you are still including it, please keep this in mind; DO NOT Close this .bat window as it will Force Close LMMS as well! I'd recommend to just minimize it instead as it is alot safer and still does the same thing.

So with that said, I think this issue is solved for now. I'm still unable to figure out why that .bat file was necessary in the first place, while adding the PATH normally should've worked just fine. Part of me suspecting it has to do with my OS having too many 'Environment Variables', but it is best to leave it to the experts to figure that out, I guess.

(Also as I found out later, turns out that not all vsts work with Carla-LMMS. Most VST3 that I've tried just freezes Carla-LMMS, even though they all work in Carla's standalone program. Still yet to test it on LV2. I'll save those findings for another thread if necessary, maybe I can make a list of plugins I've tried that work or break in Carla-LMMS).

Again, thank you so much everyone for your helps & advices! And really sorry for not replying soone enough. I'll make sure to setup a notification next time (if I can do so)~

[Gps]

Congrats on getting it to work.

Your post should help other windows users, in getting Carla to work in LMMS on windows.

[FadhilKwan]

Congrats on getting it to work.

Your post should help other windows users, in getting Carla to work in LMMS on windows.

Thank you so much Gps, I really appreciate it!!

Oh also I do have another question, regarding Carla-LMMS;

Have you tried using or loading VST3 into it before? Did it work, or it just freezes Carla-LMMS indefinitely?
From my tests, I've only managed to get it to work on one VST3 out of about 4 or 5. So yeah, not exactly a great start.... ._.;

Or what about Lv2? From what I've heard around the forum and github, they should fare much better.
Haven't tested them myself as I don't have one yet. Though I did manage to get my hands on a few of them, so hopefully I can try those later on.