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Kiwisonic on Linux

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Kiwisonic on Linux — User Manual

Kiwisonic runs on Linux as well as Windows. The melody tools, sequencer, mixer, built-in instruments and effects all work the same way — this page covers the few things that are specific to Linux: what your system needs, how to get sound out, where to put your plugins, and the handful of features that work differently here.

**Linux support is new.** The audio engine, instruments and effects are fully working on Linux. One area is still being finalised — opening a third-party **VST3 plugin's own editor window** (see [Known limitations](#known-limitations)). Everything else behaves as the rest of this manual describes.

What you need

  • A 64-bit (x86-64) Linux desktop — Ubuntu 22.04 or newer, Debian 12, or a recent Fedora / Arch all work. A reasonably modern distribution matters because the app needs glibc 2.35 or newer.
  • An audio system: ALSA, PipeWire, or PulseAudio. Most current desktops ship PipeWire, which Kiwisonic talks to through its ALSA compatibility layer — no extra setup needed.
  • A graphical desktop (X11, or Wayland with Xwayland). Kiwisonic is a desktop app with a window, not a command-line tool.

You do not need to install .NET separately — the Linux build of Kiwisonic is self-contained and brings its own runtime.

Setup

1. Install the system libraries

Kiwisonic's audio engine relies on a small set of standard system libraries for sound, fonts and windowing. Install them once.

Ubuntu / Debian:

sudo apt-get install \
    libasound2 libx11-6 libxext6 libxinerama1 libxrandr2 \
    libxcursor1 libxcomposite1 libfreetype6 libfontconfig1 libgl1

Fedora:

sudo dnf install alsa-lib libX11 libXext libXinerama libXrandr \
    libXcursor libXcomposite freetype fontconfig mesa-libGL

These are runtime libraries — most desktops already have all or most of them.

2. (Optional) Install LAME for MP3 export

Kiwisonic can always export your song to WAV. To also export MP3, install the system LAME encoder:

sudo apt-get install libmp3lame0      # Ubuntu / Debian
sudo dnf install lame-libs            # Fedora

Without it, WAV export still works; only MP3 export is unavailable.

3. Get Kiwisonic

The Linux build of Kiwisonic ships as a self-contained tarball — Kiwisonic-linux-x64-<version>.tar.gz. Download it from the Kiwisonic website, unpack it anywhere you like, and run the app directly:

tar -xzf Kiwisonic-linux-x64-<version>.tar.gz -C ~/kiwisonic
cd ~/kiwisonic
./Kiwisonic.UI

The tarball already contains the .NET runtime and the native engine libraries (libKiwisonicHost.so, libKiwisynthCAPI.so), which sit next to the app and are picked up automatically — nothing else to install beyond the system libraries in step 1.

There is no `.deb` / `.rpm` package or AppImage yet — the tarball is the supported way to run Kiwisonic on Linux. If you'd rather build from source, see the developer build guide in `src/native/README.md`.

Getting sound out

When Kiwisonic starts it opens your default audio output. If you don't hear anything, or you want a different device (for example a USB interface):

  1. Open the audio settings and look at the output device list.
  2. Pick your interface. On a PipeWire or PulseAudio system you'll usually see a single "default" or "pipewire" entry that follows whatever your desktop is set to — choosing it routes Kiwisonic wherever your system sound goes.

If you use JACK for low-latency work, start your JACK server first; Kiwisonic's ALSA output can be bridged to it the same way other audio apps are.

VST3 plugins

Kiwisonic scans the standard Linux VST3 locations:

  • ~/.vst3 — plugins installed just for you
  • /usr/lib/vst3 and /usr/local/lib/vst3 — system-wide installs

Drop your .vst3 plugins in one of those folders, then run a plugin scan from the instrument browser. Found instruments appear in the catalog like the built-in ones.

Use **Linux builds** of your plugins (a `.vst3` containing a `…/x86_64-linux/…so`). Windows `.vst3` files will not load on Linux.

Known limitations

  • Opening a plugin's own editor window is still being finalised on Linux. The plugin itself loads and plays normally — you can pick it as an instrument and it makes sound — but its custom graphical editor may not open or behave correctly yet. Kiwisonic's own instrument and effect controls are unaffected.
  • MP3 export depends on the system LAME library (see setup step 2). WAV export always works.

Troubleshooting

  • No sound. Check the output device in audio settings. On PipeWire, confirm other apps play sound, then pick the default/pipewire device in Kiwisonic.
  • App won't start, complains about a missing library (e.g. libasound.so or libfreetype.so). Re-run the install command in setup step 1 — one of the system libraries is missing.
  • A plugin doesn't appear after scanning. Confirm it's a Linux build placed in one of the folders above, then rescan. Windows-only plugins won't show up.
  • MP3 export fails. Install libmp3lame0 (setup step 2) and try again. WAV export works without it.