cubase to pro tools???

[cliff richard]

hi folks,

i currently record using cubase sx and reason. i read alot about pro tools being the leading application when it comes to recording. ive been thinking about making the switch and my local college will be running a short course in september. however, would i see a difference in the quality of my mix, and also if i bought a mac would i see any difference??? cheers.

 

[Raw-Tracks]

Whether you use ProTools or Cubase is not going to make any difference in the quality of your mixes. The quality of your mixes comes from you, not the software. The main differences between the 2 platforms is in the user interface. You may find one easier to use than the other. I would say take the course, then decide if you like to work in ProTools or Cubase.

 

[cliff richard]

ok firstly thanks for the advice, i guess the thing that was puzzling me is that i always see pro tools on the equipment gear list of professional studios and never cubase.

 

[xstatic]

This is part of the problem with Pro Tools. LE and HD are COMPLETELY different beasts. Pro Tools HD is certainly the leading application when it comes to digital recording in the professional arena. LE however is not even close. The software is very similar, but the advantages of an HD system are not so much in the software, but in the hardware implementation and the way it integrates with the software. There are many professional studios that have now added Nuendo rigs right alongside their Pro Tools HD rigs. I cannot think of a single respected professional studio though that uses Pro Tools LE at all. Almost all of the major studios do have HD rigs though (or at least an older TDM rig). It isn't fair to compare any current software though to an HD rig. The hardware advantages and processing and I/O advantages in an HD rig are amazing. They don't come without a price though. On average you are looking at $7500 for and HD1 PCI card, and then around $3400 for every 8 channels of I/O, $3500 for a decent G5 setup, and then about 30% more on plugins than would cost you on a native system. Consider also that most pro studios run between 4 and 8 of the I/O, midi etc... units bringing the I/O cost to around 12k to 30k, they run nicer monitors bringing the G5's cost up to around $7000, and they usually run HD3 which bumps the PCI card cost to about $13k I believe. The good news is that the software comes with HD for free This brings a full blown Pro Tools rig up to about $45000 for HD3 with only 48 channels or so of I/O, a nice G5 with great dual monitors, and no plugins (except the fairly considerable sized plug in bundle that comes with HD3). This may sound like a lot of money, but to a major studio, that is very affordable when you consider the power of the system, the flexibility, and the raw reputation. Also consider that many of these studios paid more than that for a single 2" 24 track back in the day.