Music - DAW Software

Ted Calver

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Trying to put together a basic home studio on the cheap and am amazed at all the Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) software out there. So far I've seen Sequel, Reaper, LMMS, Cubase, Protools, Digital Performer, FL Studio, Cakewalk SONAR, and Ableton Live. There may be more. Reaper has been mentioned here and I'm wondering if that's the best bang for the buck for a basic simple system. Any thoughts?
 
I've got CuBase, which came with my Tascam US-200. I don't use it since it can't be installed on more than one PC.

I tried out Audacity for a while, it worked fine, but just wasn't as refined as others, but the price is great.

Reaper is the one I stuck with and though it is a 30 day trial, it will allow you to use the full version after waiting a few seconds and then click the "still evaluating" button for as long as you want. I "evaluated" it for about a year off and on before I finally paid for a license ($60 for personal use), but mostly it's been stable, they have 32 and 64 bit versions, and seems to get frequent updates (active development and community). I've been able to install the software and license key on both pc and laptop to work on tracks (using dropbox to share between computers). There seems to be plenty of "how-to" videos on youtube and other sites, several commercial tutorials as well.
 
I've used Cakewalk for so many years, I've kind of gotten locked into buying the upgrades every year. But getting into it can be a bit expensive.

I know Darren uses Reaper. I was thinking of downloading it and see what it's like, just for kicks. In actuality, they all probably do a pretty good job of letting you lay down a few tracks and play them back.

It's really a question of all the other stuff (vst plugins and such) that get bundled with them that allow you to add effects, synths, play with midi, pitch shift, etc...
 
I kinda wish I had tried out Brent's Cakewalk while I was out there for BW. That whole weekend was a blur ( or maybe it was all of the barley pop ;) ). I'll try to spend some time testing out CuBase again and report back.
 
I too, started with Audacity, soon switched to Adobe Audition and have been completely satisfied with it's offerings...Not sure of some of the others but AA allows video & audio editing which was a bonus for this user.

One thing they all have in common is that dreadful learning curve, but a little persistence & patience pays off quickly enough. Best of fun with which ever D.A.W. you choose.
 
Thanks Darren and Brent. I'm trying to avoid making mistakes setting this up so your insight is very helpful.

....One thing they all have in common is that dreadful learning curve....
Yet another one to look at. I don't have that many learning curves left in me Ken, so these are going to be looked at carefully.
 
If I were to choose one to learn, I think I'd bite the bullet and buy Pro Tools. It's pretty much the industry standard almond the pros. But it's not inexpensive.
 
............I don't have that many learning curves left in me Ken, so these are going to be looked at carefully.

LOL, I hear you Ted, remember most daw's are basically the same other than lay-out,terminology & added bells & whistles:thumb: Once your familiar with the ins & outs of one, figuring others will only be half as mind-numbingly confusing :D. There seems to be plenty of folks around here to help thru any of the beginning stumbling blocks as well as advanced techniques. Besides that, some of us may be looking forward to collaborating on a tune or two :thumb:

Here's a little terminology page I've found helpful during some of my head-scratching moments...

and Here's a short vid on choosing a DAW...

hope this helps somewhat :wave:....feet first screaming Geronimo!!!!
 
Ken....thanks so much! Those are great links and the Lynda vid was really helpful. I've been looking at the Adobe CC offerings and I like the Adobe products I've used (Photoshop and Illustrator). The video editing option with Audition is tempting.
 
Darren,
Nice vid. It looks like the free download is available only to those who previously purchased the C2C software...am I reading that right?
On a separate but related note: Is the Sure beta SM57A the right mic to buy?
 
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I tried that CS2 link as I'm using an 'old' version of Audition....here's where my signing up ended > A_CS2.jpg

And I'm not sure if I looked at the Adobe CC stuff correctly, but if I did, no way could I justify a $50.00 per month usage fee, especially if I'm only going to use 1 or 2 of their apps, be better off buying the rights{actual program} out-right...but hey, I've read things wrong before :eek::rofl:
 
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...On a separate but related note: Is the Sure beta SM57A the right mic to buy?

I put a lot of miles on a bunch of SM57s and their cousins, the SM58 back in the day. They are excellent live performance mics...pretty much bulletproof One of the gold standards, although their technology has not changed much in the past 35-40 years. They should do nicely for home recording, but there might be other, newer designs available that are as good or better for about the same money. (I've not really stayed up on home recording mics.)

A lot of it depends on what you want to use it for. I recently picked up an Electro-Voice ND767A, but mainly because that's what the other guys in the band are using, but also because it tends to get better reviews as a live vocal mic than the SM58. But there are better choices for mic'ing drums or amplifiers, and better studio vocal mics, too. That all said, something like the SM57 would be a pretty versatile all-around mic.
 
I tried that CS2 link as I'm using an 'old' version of Audition....here's where my signing up ended > View attachment 80125

And I'm not sure if I looked at the Adobe CC stuff correctly, but if I did, no way could I justify a $50.00 per month usage fee, especially if I'm only going to use 1 or 2 of their apps, be better off buying the rights{actual program} out-right...but hey, I've read things wrong before :eek::rofl:

I may the download link that still works, will check when im back at my laptop.

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk 4
 
Don't go to any trouble on my account Darren...the link & signing up works fine, just with the screen shot I posted needing an 'I agree' button push, I gave up, never bought the original pieces and with this 10+yr old pc I'm using, won't be long until I'll be upgrading and they mentioned that there's a good chance the app{s} won't work on newer equipment.

This old version of Audition{1.5} has been keeping me smiling, while continuing to wreak havoc on any listeners of my creations :rofl:
 
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