*Why* Do You Use the DAW You Use?

[Anderton]

Is it because you're familiar with it? Because you're collaborating with someone who uses the same program? Or maybe it has some special feature that no other DAW has? Or it's a question of cost? OR...

 

Let us know!

[Jeff da Weasel]

I use the DAW I use because my music has evolved away from the synthetic and over to the organic. That means I use my DAW very much like a tape recorder, capturing performances and doing overdubs. I don't require my DAW to be a synthesizer, I don't use very many effects of any kind, and I require that the stuff that I do here can be used at other studios where I work, and that stuff I do elsewhere can be easily used here as needed.

 

I don't particularly like it all that much, but it works for the minimal stuff I ask of it. Plus, I fear that if I were to use a DAW with more comprehensive abilities in songwriting/composition, I might be tempted to use them instead of picking up my guitar and playing.

[Anderton]

So...don't hold back, which DAW are you using?

[Jeff da Weasel]

Oh, Pro Tools. Sorry, thought that was implied.

[dahkter]

 

I use the DAW I use because my music has evolved away from the synthetic and over to the organic. That means I use my DAW very much like a tape recorder, capturing performances and doing overdubs.

 

 

I use Tracktion for the same reason, I like the computer for audio, and prefer my MPC if I'm playing any midi instruments, the timing is way better (IMO)...

The no menu thing in Tracktion is also great.

 

And BTW, I know I was anti-Live last year on these boards, however I did meet a Live rep over the Winter, and did hear an amazing performance on that software last month (Flying Lotus), so yes, I'm planning to learn Live over the coming weeks and months. I'm a fan of the muting and unmuting of tracks on the mixing console for impact, and that seems to be something that Live is really handy with (along with the time stretching and the new split samples across the midi keys function). I'll let you guys know how it pans out (and probably have some questions for you).

[Magpel]

When Sonar was my main app it because I had climbed onboard relatively early (PA 7) and I was used to it.

 

My switch to Reaper is pretty much complete now...and I can't even say for sure why I switched. I get project set up and routing done a little quicker than I did on Sonar, but frankly if I read and tried all the many "efficiency tips" provide by the likes of our esteemed moderator, I'm sure I would have been just as quick with Sonar.

 

So...kind of arbitrary, really. Stability and efficiency are key, and I get those from Reaper, and now that I've learned a lot of its features, I am none too inclined to try anything new. I am in a productivity phase now, not an upgrade phase...

 

I've also done time with Energy XT, which was fun, novel, and not terribly stable for me, though I'll still use as a omni-headed modular VST synth and run it as a VSTi in Reaper.

 

Stability and familiarity--they all exceed my needs in terms of features and functions.

 

Documentation and support are important too.

[nat whilk II]

Sonar. Still on vs 4.

 

Why Sonar: started out on Cakewalk many moons past. Made a short detour to Logic, but when it went Mac-only, back to 12ToneSystem's stuff. When Sonar started running the table of the pc-based DAWs, I sort of settled in - no more greener-grass curiousity.

 

Why still on 4? Kinda like da Weasel, I've been taking some steps back in the last couple of years regarding fancy computer/sequencing/processing. I finally decided that I liked being a musician far more if I was a player/composer first and a mousing/geek/twiddler second - or third. More play, less automation, less processing.

 

The digital toys were really fun for about 7 years, I learned a lot. But now I see my choice lies between being either:

 

1. really serious digital artist along the lines of Autechre/AFX/Devine, where the wavs are pretty fine tuned and handcrafted as it were, and experimentation is at least half the job, or

 

2. basically a player/composer with some electronic chops and a DAW/DSP/VST trick or two.

 

So far I'm leaning towards #2. If I spend too much time at the pc, my fingers start to ache to just play.

 

Wish I had time for both, but I don't even have time to do one of them the way I would like.....

 

But I might change my mind someday....

 

nat whilk ii

[Ethan Winer]

 

Is it because you're familiar with it? Because you're collaborating with someone who uses the same program? Or maybe it has some special feature that no other DAW has? Or it's a question of cost? OR...

 

 

I use Sonar because it's easy to use, does all I need (and then some), and almost more important than anything else, it's not copy protected beyond a serial number. Copy protection is a big issue for me, and several times over the years the vendor of software I rely on has gone out of business. If the software needed vendor confirmation for installation I'd have been hosed every time.

 

--Ethan

[Anderton]

 

And BTW, I know I was anti-Live last year on these boards, however I did meet a Live rep over the Winter, and did hear an amazing performance on that software last month (Flying Lotus), so yes, I'm planning to learn Live over the coming weeks and months.

 

 

Live without a hardware control surface is likea car without an accelerator. Trust me on this one! You want to have real faders to control levels, and real swithes to mute/unmute. Then use the QWERTY keyboard to select scenes.

 

Live still has no equal for live performance software, period.

[JacieFB]

Great topic. My short answer is in red.

 

I was just on the verge of an argument with a friend of mine about this. He has a project studio that occasionally sees business from bands wanting to cut quicky demos. We also used to be in a band together, and we did a couple of our CD's there. I am often "hired" to mix his demo projects.

Anyways, he's got a great board, decent outboard gear, great mics (a lot are mine, as I have invested in the studio). The room kinda sucks, but we make it sound pretty good. Anyways, he recently sunk a bunch of cash into getting a Mac and the latest Logic software. Probably a good business investment, as he was using an Alesis HD-24. That thing is a tank for reliability and wonderful for capturing the sounds just as they come off the board. However, as I've been harping at him for a few years now, having a DAW to record to and mix with is completely necessary. So, he finally got the compu and the software. He still doesn't have an interface, though, so he records to the HD-24 and we dump it into a DAW and mix from there.

Meanwhile, on my home PC, I've went through Pro Tracks(came with my Lexicon Omega), Cubase LE(came with my FirePod), and now Reaper. I went to Reaper because I was sort of forced into a Vista purchase due to a computer crash, and based on advice I got over in the recording forum, it was a great bargain and worked with Vista. I have completely fallen in love with Reaper. I've not had one little bit of trouble with it. I've even gotten lots more free plugins (recommended by the recording forum, again), and I feel like it does a top-notch job. It's easy to use...very intuitive.

Back to my buddy's studio...after he did the Logic install, I got tasked with mixing a one-song demo that his pals cut in his studio. So I went about trying to mix in Logic. I've barely touched a Mac in my life. That was the initial problem. The next problem was just doing basic things in Logic that on just about every other software I have used, it was completely obvious, or fairly learnable. I've heard that Logic has a steep learning curve, but wow...I felt pretty dumb trying to use it. I flat ran out of time...which was fine, because at a flat rate, I ended up making about $2.50 per hour on that one. I ended up scrubing the tracks and doing a little bit of editing. He did the final mix. Sounded hollow and crappy, but that could have been the band or his impatience with mixing.

Anyways, months pass, we're busy and not doing any projects over there. He called me the other day saying he's got work. He was going to record a band live on his HD-24 and then he wanted me to mix it. I said sure, but I want to mix it on my system with Reaper. He pulls back and is disappointed that I don't want to use Logic. My response was that I WANT to use Logic. I want to learn it, but that I don't have time. I can mix it and make it sound pretty good in about an hour over at my house, versus an hour of travel time to and from his house, plus an unknown amount of time to get up to speed in Logic. His response, and luckily, we both had to hop off the phone so it didn't go into a full-blown argument, but he said, "Well, it will sound better in Logic."

 

What do you make of that statement? I am aware that plugins can make or break you, especially if you don't know how to use them, and that Logic has oodles of plugins. But all things considered and specifically in this case, does one DAW "sound better" than another?

[Lee Flier]

 

I use Sonar because it's easy to use, does all I need (and then some), and almost more important than anything else, it's not copy protected beyond a serial number. Copy protection is a big issue for me, and several times over the years the vendor of software I rely on has gone out of business. If the software needed vendor confirmation for installation I'd have been hosed every time.

 

 

+1 on the copy protection issue! I don't want to use anything that requires anything beyond a serial number, certainly nothing that requires a dongle.

 

I like Sonar and used it for awhile, but I pretty much always use Reaper nowadays at home. Why? It's intuitive to me, does everything I need, it's not a resource hog at all, no copy protection of course, inexpensive, AND I really like their business ethic and responsiveness to user input.

 

I love their routing interface too, which is both extremely powerful/flexible AND simple/elegant. That's very tough to pull off.

[dahkter]

 

You want to have real faders to control levels, and real swithes to mute/unmute. Then use the QWERTY keyboard to select scenes.

 

 

Ok on the faders, and I also have 8 knobs (no switches though). What do you normally use the keys on the keyboard for when using Live? Are you playing midi instruments, or dropping parts in and out (or both)? And if I have a controller that has a lot of buttons, then what is the need for the QWERTY keyboard? The performer I saw simply used a laptop and an M-Audio trigger finger, he was djing with it (triggering songs, fading from one song to the next), and also occassionally would catch a song in the middle, and re-sequence it on the fly (i.e., a groove is playing, on the ninth bar it switches from the song to him retriggering the slices on his own, then goes right back into the song). He also was doing some great filter sweeps, stuttering effects, and dub delays. It was really incredible stuff.

 

Any info you can give on the most efficient configuration would be greatly appreciated.

[Lee Flier]

... he said, "Well, it will sound better in Logic." What do you make of that statement? I am aware that plugins can make or break you, especially if you don't know how to use them, and that Logic has oodles of plugins. But all things considered and specifically in this case, does one DAW "sound better" than another?

 

DAW's do usually sound "different" from one another because their processing engines are different. Whether one is "better" than another is mostly subjective, and it's hard to come up with an objective real-world assessment because of people using different plugins (some of which may not even be available in other platforms so you can't compare) etc.

 

I think your friend is full of it in this case, though. There's no way he can make such a blanket statement as that.

[JacieFB]

+1 on the copy protection issue! I don't want to use anything that requires anything beyond a serial number, certainly nothing that requires a dongle. I like Sonar and used it for awhile, but I pretty much always use Reaper nowadays at home. Why? It's intuitive to me, does everything I need, it's not a resource hog at all, no copy protection of course, inexpensive, AND I really like their business ethic and responsiveness to user input. I love their routing interface too, which is both extremely powerful/flexible AND simple/elegant. That's very tough to pull off.

 

 

 

I'm going to have to point my buddy in the direction of this thread.

 

If you fancy, published industry-types are using Reaper, then it should be good enough for us, right?

 

 

[JacieFB]

DAW's do usually sound "different" from one another because their processing engines are different. Whether one is "better" than another is mostly subjective, and it's hard to come up with an objective real-world assessment because of people using different plugins (some of which may not even be available in other platforms so you can't compare) etc. I think your friend is full of it in this case, though. There's no way he can make such a blanket statement as that.

 

Well, to be fair, he is completely full of it. He sells used cars on the side. Hard-headed, too, just to round out the package. Strangely-enough, he was probably the best drummer I ever played with.

 

I'm pleased to hear you say that if one is "better" sounding than another, it would be a subjective call. I certainly think it's NOT subjective that I'm going to be better on something that I know and know well versus something that just has a little bit better-known name in the industry. I can appreciate him wanting to use his toys, though. So I suppose that's another side to it, psychologically.

[Lee Flier]

Well, to be fair, he is completely full of it. He sells used cars on the side. Hard-headed, too, just to round out the package. Strangely-enough, he was probably the best drummer I ever played with.

 

Ahh, that's OK, he won't be the first or the last great drummer who's full of it.

 

I'm pleased to hear you say that if one is "better" sounding than another, it would be a subjective call. I certainly think it's NOT subjective that I'm going to be better on something that I know and know well versus something that just has a little bit better-known name in the industry.

 

Absolutely, and that has a lot to do with it. You get really familiar with the particular flow of your chosen DAW and that frees your mind up to focus on the sound, not to mention you'll find a lot of little tricks to squeeze better mixes out of your own chosen platform.

 

I can appreciate him wanting to use his toys, though. So I suppose that's another side to it, psychologically.

 

Yeah, I was going to say that was probably what was driving his statement. It CAN be hard sometimes trying to collaborate with someone and working among different DAW platforms. Everybody wants to use their own. I even get pissed off when I work in commercial studios, which all have Pro Tools, and I don't have PT at home nor do I want to. Generally I'll just save everything to zero-relative WAV files and be done with it, then I can edit/mix in whatever platform I want/need to.

[Jimbroni]

I use Nuendo. I think its very intuitive, and I like the sound quality. I started on Cubase and Nuendo just seemed to sound better. Of course now Cubase is using the Nuendo engine so that may not be the case, but like the Weasel I like to use Nuendo mostly as a tape recorder with the occasional vsti and don't need alot of the midi functions present in cubase. I haven't used Logic so I don't know how that compares sound quality wise.

[Jeff da Weasel]

 

+1 on the copy protection issue! I don't want to use anything that requires anything beyond a serial number, certainly nothing that requires a dongle.

 

 

My "dongle" is called an Mbox.

 

Well, at least my musical dongle.

[Billster]

I've been using Digital Performer for so long it's like second nature to navigate. I also like the film scoring tools.

[lowendnyc]

I started out on some super dumbed down version of Opcode Vision that was essentially a very simple midi recording thing. When I graduated to a first gen iMac around 1998 I moved to Cakewalk Metro, largely on affordability and simple operation. I still have affection for that program.

 

I outgrew that around 2000 - no real time effects then - and went to Cubase VST, which I consider to be my first true DAW. It was affordable and easy to operate relative to what I'd seen of Logic. For whatever reason, Motu's offerings never even figured in. Issues of stability and sound quality began to bug me, and I got a taste of Logic from a guy I was working with at the time.

 

So around the time of the great OS9/OSX transition, I knew I would have to make a big shift. I was really tired of Steinberg's crap offerings and questionable Mac support, and Apple bought Logic and started the still on-going streamlining process. I used a competitive upgrade - I turned in my free Audiodesk disk - to get Logic 5, with a free upgrade to 6 when it came out. I've never looked back, although I'm still on Pro 7.1.

 

Logic's got it's problems, but I'm familiar with it and I can get my stuff done. I've used Live and Reason in tandem with Logic for years, and will admit I've been using Live for composition and basic tracking far more frequently. Logic's still where the job gets finished, however.

[Frantag]

Sonar is usually my first choice. It's the one I started with and it's very easy to get around.

 

Live is my favorite to play with and create stuff. I love turning on the transport and not turning it off until a few hours later with some solid ideas and arrangements happening.

 

I recently bought Pro Tools because I am helping another PT user with his overdubs. It took several hours to get up and running but I have to say, now that it's installed, it's smooth running and stable.

[Gus Lozada]

The only real advantage of a dongle is that you can install everything in all your computers, as many times as you want and then just insert the dongle to get them started.

 

For a guy with several computers, this is a better idea than asking for an additional license to install in another computer or because you had to format your drive.

 

That said, I use LIVE for composing, mostly because the loop work you can do on it is unique, rewired with Reason. A blast.

 

 

And then, I use Pro Tools for everything else.

Maybe I'm full of it, but it sounds better than Live.

[MrKnobs]

 

Is it because you're familiar with it? Because you're collaborating with someone who uses the same program? Or maybe it has some special feature that no other DAW has? Or it's a question of cost? OR... Let us know!

 

 

I use Adobe Audition because it used to be Cool Edit.

 

I used Cool Edit because it had a bunch of scientific features that music DAWs didn't (e.g. the ability to measure precisely, generate pink noise with a user specified crest factor, make sweep tones, convert all kinds of sample rates, etc).

 

So I used that at work because it was the best for the job at the time, and very inexpensive compared to "real" scientific software like MatLab.

 

Adobe bought CoolEdit and turned it into Audition. At that moment I began to hate Adobe, as they stripped out some of the features I use and imposed an "Adobe-like" interface on it that's an abomination compared to the simple CoolEdit interface.

 

However -

 

 

• Audition still has the most accurate sample rate conversion algorithms of any non-professional audio software, so far as I've been able to determine

   

• Audition is $75/copy at the university where I work

   

• Audition is rock solid at not losing your realtime data even if the laptop battery dies or the computer crashes

   

• I've finally become proficient at using their strange and clunky user interface

So for me, yes, it's a lot about using an interface I know and about price. I'm sure there's far better DAW software specifically designed for music but Audition does what I need, which is usually minimal given that I still use a hardware based studio.

 

Terry D.

[Magpel]

 

I used Cool Edit because it had a bunch of scientific features that music DAWs didn't (e.g. the ability to measure precisely, generate pink noise with a user specified crest factor, make sweep tones, convert all kinds of sample rates, etc)

 

 

And don't forget the Brain Wave Synchronizer...

[jamesp]

I use Live because I started with it and I don't want to re-learn a bunch of new keyboard shortcuts. I am not kidding. That, and that using Session view has become a workflow paradigm for me. I must haz my Clips!