What do you use?

[ootini]

Hey all,

I'm just curious as to what software you folks use?
I've not used a computer for music for many years. I started off with Cubasis (blast from the past) then progressed to Cubase SX, before making the switch to MOTU Digital Performer 4 on the Mac. Then I completely stopped using computers for music, nothing wrong with the software i just started to lose interest in sequencing and recording and concentrated on live work.

I'm going to be getting back into it all soon and am investigating the software available. I know the best answer is download all the trials and see what I'm comfortable with, which I will do, but was curious as to what everyone here uses.

I must admit I really like the look of Reaper, especially given it's very low price.
http://www.reaper.fm/

But then I've still got a soft spot for Cubase too, unless ofcourse the up to date versions are utterly bloated.

 

[The Y_man]

Anvil Studios and Kristal. (Both freeware)

The Y-man

 

[ootini]

Do they run on windows boxes?

 

[The Y_man]

Do they run on windows boxes?

Anvil: XP, Vista and 7.


http://www.anvilstudio.com/

Krystal says XP, but I have run it on Vista

http://www.kreatives.org/kristal/


The Y-man

 

[Vctor]

Sibelius for writing sheets
Cakewalk for working around with midi files
Cubase...only when I have to, for example multi track recording/arranging
Kontakt 5 for loading samples
Awave Studio for converting tones from various keyboards
Extreme Sample Converter - same like Awave, but I found out you can get the sounds from a VST with it
Audacity - It's FREE and you can record multitrack, edit sounds, change the tempo, apply effects, load VST's like an expensive D.A.W. just it doesn't have midi sequencing. I'm using it when I am trying to hear a song in a slower tempo.
ASIO4ALL v2 audio driver for Cubase, Kontakt were you can control latency.

 

[ootini]

I've just installed the trial version of Reaper. I just need to grab myself an audio interface.
Does anyone know of an audio interface that can act as a standalone mixer? I know the MOTU UltraLite Hybrid can but it's a bit pricey. I "hope" the presonus Frestudio Mobile can, as it ticks all the right boxes. I just can't find confirmation on it's standalone capabilities.

 

[Vctor]

Why do you want this? Reaper doesn't have it's own mixer??
I never used it, but as seen in the pictures, it has...of course it has, it's a DAW.

 

[ootini]

Ahh what I'm after is an interface to work with Reaper or any DAW when I'm at home, but I'd like a rack mountable digital mixer too, which the MOTU 828 MKII can do. So basically when I'm at home it's acting as an interface, then when I'm on stage it's an 8 in 8 out digital mixer with Scene recall.

Very handy!

 

[ootini]

And I've just noticed, that to make it even more AWESOME it has 8 channels of ADAT input on an optical socket, so if I suddenly need more analogue inputs I can grab a cheap AD box, like the Behringer ADA8000 and slam that in the rack above it hooked up with the lightpipe and bingo! 8 more channels!

 

[b3maniac]

Muse Receptor.
Don

 

[MDMK]

I use Reaper. I used to work with Sony Acid Pro but the current version became outdated and had problems with some new VSTis + major restrictions in routing possibilities. So I had to search a new DAW to work with. I tested the Ableton Live and FL Studio, but ended up with Reaper. Reaper offers incredible versatility of options. The price is incredibly low (until you make more than $20 000 annually with your music) . Updates are frequent. Ultra frequent actually. If there's a bug they will fix it soon. It lacks bundled VSTi:s and loops, but for me it wasn't an issue since I already had a bunch of VST:s and the samples I need. Since you have previously used Cubase, I think you find Reaper's work flow and GUI quite easy to adapt to.

Other (main) options are Cubase, Sonar, Logic Pro, Pro Tools and Studio One. They are probably all very good too and I guess you can do about anything with any of the DAWs mentioned here. Ableton is the only one that has a dedicated session view that's excellent if you do live performances and might be good for improvising too. Sonar and Studion One might offer some usable VSTs for mastering (limiter and such) and Studio One includes a "light" version of Melodyne (a pitch correction software like Auto Tune). Only the most expensive packages include those extras though.

 

[elwoodblues1969]

A friend of mine turned me onto Reason 4 & it was by far,the best recommendation that was ever brought to my attention & since then I've upgraded to Reason 6.
For the purpose of having universal VST support,I also tried my hand at Presonus S1 Pro,so that I could run NI-K6 & Alchemy...as well as for having the convenience to make high quality MP3's within the same program.
With the purchase of my Yamaha MOX6,I was really excited over the prospect of having a fully functional DAW included with my purchase(Cubase AI5) that was supposedly,designed to work seamlessly with the MOX6...but nothing could be farther from the truth.

Trying to install & activate AI5 was a nightmare,after having to f**k around for days trying to get the e-license installed.
To make matters worse,there was absolutely no way of comprehending the set up configurations for the keyboard,as despite all of my correspondence with Steinberg & the Motifator forum,I couldn't get AI5 up & running properly.
What compounded matters even worse still,was how maddening & tedious it was to transfer the MOX6's on-board midi sequencing to AI5,because in order to do this,you have to send the data to a USB stick,turn the f**king keyboard off,unplug the USB stick,& then plug the USB stick into the computer and THEN transfer the data(despite the fact that there is an existing USB connection that transfers audio & midi data).

Oh...by the way,if you have any other DAW besides Cubase,Logic,Digital Performer or Sonar...you can forget about using any of the transport controls on the MOX6,for DAW control.

All this being said,Reason in my opinion,was and is,the best DAW ever conceived...as it's incredibly easy to set up,very easy to use(& yet,it can get as deep and complex as you care to make it),it's very CPU-friendly,it gives you virtually everything you need to begin with,you can re-install it as many times as you like and it's very reasonably priced.

I have nothing against programs like Reaper,as I think it's a fantastic low cost option & it seems to be ideal for people who are primarily guitarists who need some basic backing track production...but for people like me who are humongous sound-creation-synthesizer freaks,I have found Reason 6 to be a priceless,invaluable commodity...as program stability & compatibility is paramount to me.

In terms of sequencing,I do like the MOX6's on-board sequencer,but I'm not happy about it having two less insert effects than my previous Korg keyboards.
I also have yet another sequencer,which is in my Kurzweil PC3LE6,but the effects routing is terrible,so I haven't been using it and DAW integration is a joke as well.

 

[rianlogan]

for those of you who cant play drums id recomend a programe called izotope drum... i think its awesome and easy to make beats, i then transfer the midi over to protools.

 

[Vctor]

I just discovered Reaper, and it's very good for audio recording. Even with my cheap audio card (on board), I can record without noise.

 

[heyitsjimi]

Since you have DP 4, why not upgrade to the current version. There have been lots of upgrades since DP 4. I'm guessing it would cost you a lot less to upgrade than trying to find something else with anywhere near the power. The User Forum ( www.motunation.com) has a very large membership of very intelligent & helpful people, many of them seasoned pros.
Before making a decision to spend money on something else, check out the MOTU website (www.motu.com) & the user forum. I think you'll be glad you did. Hope this helps.

 

[Travst]

I'm using Reaper and a Saffire Pro 24 interface. That works pretty well for me, but I'm running out of inputs and am looking for an ADAT capable converter box that will give me some room for growth. My computer is a quad core AMD rig with all the music apps on a SSD, under 64 bit Win7.

 

[ootini]

Just switched from Reaper to Cubase 6, I'm just happier with the interface and workflow.

 

[KeysDude]

Don't think you can go wrong with Cubase, its always been my favourite DAW along with Nuendo. But I use Sonar X1 now, I've only got the LE version (which came free with my Roland keyboard controller) but will update it to the studio version soon. I really like the workflow on Sonar and everything is accessible from one main screen which is a real advantage when recording. I've used reaper before but I didn't like the GUI much and looked a bit amateurish.

By the way, MOTU Performer 8 is coming out on Windows and I reckon MOTU will be uping there game with more rock solid WIN drivers for their hardware. I think if you want to put all your eggs in one basket, MOTU DP8 for Win7 along with an MOTU 896mk3 Rack and MOTU MachFive3 is all you'd need, a nice powerful system.

My software used is :

Cakewalk Sonar X1 LE (soon to be Studio)
Modartt Pianoteq Stage 4 + Rock Collection addon
GSI VB3 Organ
Vir2 Electri6ity (Electric Guitar Library) with Kontakt 5 Player
Tone 2 Electra X

I will get more Kontakt 5 Player based libraries as well for Drums, Bass and more synths at some point.

 

[happyrat1]

I run a Linux setup and don't really use virtual synths. Under Linux I run an old copy of Cakewalk Home Studio 9.01 that I bought almost 15 years ago that still works great for my MIDI sequencing and is still compatible with modern INS files so both my synths are supported.

The old Cakewalk works better under Wine under Linux than it did on Windows 98 when a service pack update totally broke the program. I shelved it for a few years, then dragged it out again and holy schlamoley if it didn't work just fine under Wine.

In the between times and occasionally still I also run Rosegarden which is a Native Linux Sequencer.

My biggest issue is transferring songs between RGD and WRK formats because my current workaround is to export from either app as a MIDI and then import and tweak all the voice and synth settings by hand.

I really wish software vendors could figure out some universal format that builds on the MIDI standard to unite all the weird formats and standards. Or at the very least if some sharp young programmer could write a universal conversion utility that could convert the major sequencer formats back and forth between each other.

THAT is a tool I'd find really useful.

For my audio recording I have a small, cheap 10 channel Behringer Mixer patched into my soundcard and I generally use Ardour which is an amazingly sophisticated piece of recording software and SoundConverter to covert the WAV to OGG or MP3 format.

Again, all my work is done on a Linux machine and I haven't paid a dime for DAW software in almost 15 years

 

[Josef_K]

I've used Cubase LE 4&5 for some time and about seven months ago when I decided to buy a better laptop for music production I also decided it was time to buy Cubase 6. I like it a lot, sure there are some things that can be a bit messy but overall it's nice to work with and has very professional sounding features. Depends on what kind of music you make I guess, I have no use for the featured VST instruments at all for example.