Best Recording Software ?

K

Kirbstone

New member
OK, I know that is a loaded question.. depending on so many variables and preferences.
I have been researching intensely for the past two weeks or so and still can't see the forest through the trees.
The 5-6 DAWs that I have in focus all seem to have great qualities. CuBase, Reason, Reaper,Pro Tools, Sonar Etc. for example.
I have been doing home recording for about 15 yrs off and on. First Fostex Cassette machines and now Boss BR 1600 digital. I realize the shortcomings with the Boss machine and need to upgrade to the next level.
I am impressed with the production from Don Was studios, Bonnie Rait, Waylon Jennings absolutely beautiful stuff.
Don Was highly recommends Reason and its visual mixing table screens..that appeals to me also as that is what I'm used to looking at. Pro Tools has a great reputation of course. A friend has CuBase and has labored for years to get it under control.
Any way I am retired, on a limited budget and don't want to avoid getting a DAW that I may regret.

Any comments on which DAW offers ease of use? and getting to fairly quick results? I am doing mostly Blues style, Rocking country ( ala Waylon Jennings ) no techno space music...just some nice keyboard effects mixed in to full it out... and vocals with harmonies...
All comments appreciated for a DAW beginner...Thanks Guys
 
As you said it's a matter of personal preference and I think you're going to get a bunch of different answers, but I'm a recording newbie and I use Presonus Studio One almost exclusively. I've tried Cubase LE (it came with my audio interface) and I used Reaper before that, but Studio One is very simple to use and has a lot of great features for the "project studio". I've considered dropping the $200 on Logic Pro X, but I'm not sure I want to stick myself with the Mac platform just yet (I do run my recording DAW on a Mac now).

For me Studio One made it very easy to get up and running and create music. I don't really have any reason to try something else, but if I were to look at another DAW I think it would be Reason (ha, see what I did there?). Just because I hear they've made things so easy for "home recording" and for guitar players in particular (which I am).

Good luck.
 
Same exact thing here. I am mainly like to operate in the analog realm, however i have a digital rig. I tied Cuebase and just could not come to grips with it. Then I got studio 1 and I found it very easy to get my head around.
 
As everyone does! You have missed Samplitude off that list.

I strongly suggest you download and try the demo of Samplitude ProX. Has been said to be everything you could want in one DAW.

Reaper is so cheap and such a small system hit that you might as well get that anyway.

Dave.
 
Hi Kirbstone,

I found that the best DAW is the one you get used too.

Personally, i love Reaper. If you don't have got a lot of cash to spend it may be the choice. But that doesn't mean that any other DAW is better than it. There's a lot of guys using Reaper and it rocks.

I love Pro Tools also. As i said in the first line, i think it's a ''taste thing''. But i recommend Reaper!

Hope this helps.
-T
 
Reaper is good for people moving from other methods into PC-based recording as the workflow is very easy to pick up.

I had a recording journey like the OP's and found it quite easy to understand. That said, I haven't tried any others.

As it has a free to try unhobbled version... why not try it and see?
 
In the last ten years I have tried a bunch of DAW software.

I still remember the very first one I tried called n-Track. For my surprise it still exists and seems that it has improved a lot, but I don't know if it is good. It is cheap for sure -- USD 19.

Also, I remember to have tried Samplitude but I never managed to make it work properly on my system (but it was years ago). I tried also Sonar and Cakewalk but didn't like them. After some attempts I got using Cubase SX 1 (yeah, the version ONE) for some time but never really enjoyed it. But it all was among a lot of comes and backs from/to the recording world since I am not a pro and do it just for fun.

Two years ago, when I decided to take it seriously (not as a business but I finally got into make my first album come true) was when I found Cockos Reaper and really fell in love with it. It has everything you need, it is very light weight, it works (doesn't has fag reactions against your hardware) and it is so simple that you can even install it in a pendrive and bring it with you anywhere. The best part of all is that it is very cheap. Still better that if you don't want to pay for that you can try it forever in its full functionality because there is no restrictons and it won't stop to work. Ever. I am in shame to confess that I didn't register my version yet, but will do it very soon -- it is only $60. I think that it would worst you a try. It is at version 4.7, although I still use the 4.2.

Good luck!

:)
 
I will second the recommendation you got for Reason. Since 6.1 (now on 8.0 (I'm still on 7.1) we've been working with this beautiful SSL 9000J series desk, the rack is utterly simple, and the instruments are fantastic. The one downside is plugs. If you want to use aftermarket plugins, you are limited to what propellerhead.se has to offer (unless you ReWire). If you ReWire you can use another software (like Reaper) as an aux bus and run whatever you want. Currently I'm getting SSD4 up and running in Reaper and then I'll hook it's outputs/sync the timing/set the variables, and be able to play my piano to Reason and have SSD play (and output) in Reaper back into Reason. That's the plan.
Reason by itself served me for many, many years, though. It has been a very fun ride. It is the closest thing I've found to actually touching a desk and a rack full of devices. Give the free download a try and see what you think.
 
You haven't said what it is you want it to do. They all record. They all do it pretty well. Cubase, you mentioned - as in a friend who has laboured with it for years. Sounds about right. I've been a user since 1994, and have progressed with it and each version takes some effort to appreciate the new features. As a result, for a new user, there are probably hundreds of menu options you won't even understand or use if you don't do certain things. Keep in mind that Cubase was MIDI first, and then grew audio, so it's users are generally producing music using more devices than just mics - so it's virtual instruments, external MIDI samplers, synths and maybe even a bit of music printing. Cubase is pointed at musicians, so it can handle score editing too - many of it's features involve producing music, not just recording it. If you want to use it as a replacement for a recorder, then its probably in the full version, a bit OTT and complicated. Some of the others on your list are pointed at different aspects of production - so what you want to do is pretty vital.
 
Thanks all you guys for taking the time with your helpful comments !!!
Lots of very good info for a beginner..some of the systems mentioned I hadn't yet heard of...Samplitude, Pro Sonus....
I think I am leaning towards Reaper or Reason based on your comments.....Reapers price is great and seems fairly easy to come to grips with...Reason is very attractive for me because of the visual interface and mixing table graphics..not sure if having limited plugins will effect me much ( Rewire can cure this apparently)...Not sure if I even need "plug ins".. what do they do ??
I have tons of effects foot pedals and amp sounds that seem to be adequate so far for my Blues style of playing and production.
One area that I have found in mt Boss BR 1600 machine is the lack of a punchy compressed sound, band width ? when mastering and final burning the CD.
Do Reaper and Reason do a good job and produce a professional tight sounding product ?....Mastering.
Also does anybody know if Reason "Essentials " is necessary for setting up multiple track...or what is it for actually?
Thanks again for all the thoughtful feedback !!!
 
And yes, Reason, straight out of the box, will do just about anything you could want it to do. Comes with a mastering suite of Rack Extensions including the MClass 5 band parametric EQ, Stereo Imager (to widen the sound), Compressor and Maximizer (limiter). It has the RV7000 reverb (as well as a digital reverb RE), pitch adjuster, vocodor, digital delay, tape delay, unison, phaser, chorus, phlanger, envelope control filter, several different types of distortion, from guitar screamers, to a warm tube distortion called Pulverizer that's made for way more than guitar. It has a graintable synth, additive synth, analog synth (sim), (Malstrom & Thor are exceptional synths). It has a sampler and an advanced sampler for manipulating the samples. It has a drum loop player, a drum kit generator (using pressure sensitive pads), and a drum computer that can also be used to trigger samples. Plus midi in/out, ReBirth input and ReWire (which is supported by every major DAW I've worked with or heard of). All-in-all a pretty good start on recording electronic music. Add to that the ability to record live multitrack (which any daw can do) into an SSL simulation with full 4 band eq per channel, gate/compressor/limiter per channel, unlimited busses, parallel channels, side chaining, full CV manipulation, synchronous effect modulator (kind of like a pedal board on steroids), and a whole raft of other toys and you've got quite a package.
The other Rack Extensions that you can buy from Propellerhead include more synths, including a rotary synth (Rotor), a subtractive synth (can't remember the name), compressors, limiters, eq plugs, sample packs, effects, and so much more. Reason is as simple as you want it, and as complex as you want it to be.
You are going to have a learning curve with whatever software you buy. So be prepared to spend some time whichever you buy.
Happy Recording! :D
 
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