Sorry for another "software" post, but..

[Uladine]

I thought I had finally narrowed down my software search to Sonar, but then I started hearing how wonderful Vegas audio was, then I saw it at best buy for 200 bucks. Is this the same program that everyone talks about? Its the only vegas audio program I found on the sonic foundry website besides vegas audio LE. Also whats this N-track thing all about?

Can anybody give me some pro and cons on these programs? Im trying to stay within 300 bucks and still have enough power to record at least 8 tracks at once and use effects, etc...

 

[brzilian]

My personal view on this is that what does it tell you if you can buy Vegas at BestBuy, but not Sonar? Think about the target market there...

Best Buy also sells Casio and Yamaha portable keyboards and I would hardly consider those studio tools.

Are you doing pro level work or just a hobbyist?

 

[Tom Hicks]

This n-track "thing" is a great value at $35 for 16 functionality or (if you have a 24 bit card) $50 for that level of use.Try the demo to see if you like it.
http://fasoft.com
I have Cakewalk and Logic Audio also but I use n-Track exclusively.Here is a link to a blues mp3 I did to give you an idea.

Take the money you have left over and buy a mixer and a mic.
Number of tracks will depend on your soundcard.A typical 16 bit stereo soundcard is two channels.More expensive cards can have more inputs and record at higher resolution.I have the c-port which is a 24 bit card capable of 10X10 full duplex.Be prepared to shell out the money for that kind of functionality however.
Good luck in your search.
Tom

 

[version2]

My personal view on this is that what does it tell you if you can buy Vegas at BestBuy, but not Sonar? Think about the target market there...

Best Buy also sells Casio and Yamaha portable keyboards and I would hardly consider those studio tools.

Are you doing pro level work or just a hobbyist?

Wow. Now thats a statement. I am no fan of Best Buy but I do know that they do sell some good hardware, although their prices leave a lot to be desired. I am also no fan of any music hardware found in Best Buy. But to ride something off just becuase it 'comes' from Best Buy is crazy. If you can find a deal...then jump on it.

If you are looking for most bang for the buck you might actually look at N-track. I have never used it but a lot of people seem to love it.

Try doing a search here for Vegas and a search for n-track and read a little more about them both. For more info on n-track go to:

http://www.fasoft.com

 

[Uladine]

I am pretty much a hobbyist for now, but I definitely want room to expand, which is why I'm going the PC route. I am selling my Roland VS-1880 with two effects cards and a CD burner and if I reach my desired price ($1825) I will have enough to get my PC DAW. I plan on getting a $900 PC with 512 mb RAM, 1.4 GHZ processor, two 7200rpm hard drives (one 20 gb and one 40 gb) and the ST audio dsp2000 interface (I think its the same thing as the C-port mentioned above.) I think I will go with Sonar as it has midi capabilities and supports direct x plugins an can use converted vst plugins as well. Thanks for the help everyone. Wish me luck on selling my 1880.

 

[tdukex]

From what I've read from reviews and from the members of this BBS, Vegas is indeed a very good audio tracker. Actually, Vegas Video (which contains a full version of Vegas Audio) has been selling for about $150 because the next version is soon to come out. This is a $600 piece of software!

The drawback of Vegas is that it doesn't do MIDI. That's the only reason I won't buy it. But if you don't need MIDI, Vegas Video is a very good deal.

 

[brzilian]

I am pretty much a hobbyist for now, but I definitely want room to expand, which is why I'm going the PC route. I am selling my Roland VS-1880 with two effects cards and a CD burner and if I reach my desired price ($1825) I will have enough to get my PC DAW. I plan on getting a $900 PC with 512 mb RAM, 1.4 GHZ processor, two 7200rpm hard drives (one 20 gb and one 40 gb) and the ST audio dsp2000 interface (I think its the same thing as the C-port mentioned above.) I think I will go with Sonar as it has midi capabilities and supports direct x plugins an can use converted vst plugins as well. Thanks for the help everyone. Wish me luck on selling my 1880.

If you are a hobbyist and serious about a Cakewalk products, consider Home Studio 2002 ($69) - it has enough of the features from Sonar (including new interface) to keep you busy for a while. Once you outgrow it, you can upgrade to Sonar (at a discounted price). I own HS2002 and have been very happy with it so far.

One limitation with HS2002 is no support for multi input sound cards - not a big deal for me yet. I am not familiar with the card you mention, but if it is a multi input card, just disregard this message.

Just a word of wisdom:

Don't think greater expandability and versatility equals greater ease of use. I find myself spending more time trying to make the tools work rather than making music. Recently I have wished I could go back to a single music workstation type setup and forget about all this computer crap sometimes. It can get REALLY distracting.