Cool Edit Pro versus N-tracks

Which do you prefer?

  • Cool Edit Pro

    Votes: 18 66.7%
  • N-tracks

    Votes: 3 11.1%
  • Drilling a 5/8 inch drill bit into my forehead

    Votes: 6 22.2%

  • Total voters
    27

Jack Russell

I smell home cookin!
Has anyone used both Cool Edit Pro and N-tracks? If so which do you prefer and why?

[Here's a poll for voting also]
 
Or for that matter, if you have other digital audio editing programs that you think are all the rage, please share.

There don't seem to be a lot of people who have used both.
 
I've paid for and used both. For my $, CEP (Audition) is the more robust program with a lot more attention paid to interface and details and sound quality. N-Tracks has more feature, but was a lot less stable.

N-Tracks is much more concerned with multitrack work than just editing. Audition has a great full editing capability.

Just to confuse the water, if you really want primarily editing and $ is an issue, don't forget Audacity -- its free and pretty darn good.

I use Sonar for primary multitrack work, and Audition for editing.

-lee-
 
laptoppop said:
I've paid for and used both. For my $, CEP (Audition) is the more robust program with a lot more attention paid to interface and details and sound quality. N-Tracks has more feature, but was a lot less stable.

N-Tracks is much more concerned with multitrack work than just editing. Audition has a great full editing capability.

Just to confuse the water, if you really want primarily editing and $ is an issue, don't forget Audacity -- its free and pretty darn good.

I use Sonar for primary multitrack work, and Audition for editing.

-lee-

Sorry to sound dense here, but can you please elaborate on what you mean by 'multitrack work' versus 'editing'?

After all, I'm one who voted on option #3 above... :D
 
Its actually quite a reasonable question.

When I talk about "multitrack work" I'm talking about core recording and mixing -- applying non-destructive effects, mixing, adding automation, etc. Sonar is a lot more powerful in this regard than Audition.

When I talk about "editing", I'm talking about destructive editing on a particular audio file, such as noise or hiss reduction, or taking out a cough using Auditions frequency space editing, etc. Audition is VERY useful for these things -- when you want to edit the actual sound, as opposed to the work done while combining it with other sounds.

-lee-
 
Thanks for the explanation.
The terms 'destructive' and 'non-destructive' are alien to me. I see them used in N-tracks.

I have N-tracks, but I haven't used it, as I'm building a studio in all my free time. So I've been out of the editing thing for awhile.
 
"Destructive" editing is where, when you click "save", the original file is changed -- i.e. destroyed. (using a typical "destructive" editor, Save As is your friend! )

"Non-Destructive" editing is where the sound changes when it is played back, but the original file data is still there and able to be accessed. For example, in Sonar, I can chop off the front part of a sound file and if I want it back later, its trivial to drag it back out.

-lee-
 
IF I have to choose between only those 2 then I would go for CEP/AA. But it is a very limited choice. There are other apps that can get about the same job done.
 
Well I'm going to cheat a bit... I don't use N-track for recording I record to my Boss recorder. I use N-track for mixing, track grouping, some editing and application of some effects and then I send to Sound Forge for tweaking and applying track portion effects... a little reverb here a little delay there etc. then back to N-track to apply track group compression/limiting/panning or some kind of enhancement.... bounce down to 32 or 24 bit stereo wav... send to Sound Forge for the Ultramaximizer - done.
So I guess I'm saying, the Sound Forge/ N-track combination fits the bill perfectly for me for production and finishing.
I have always found Cool (which is definitely a good product) to be cumbersome and a memory pig so I dropped it.

regards,
tulsa
:eek:
 
I bought n-Track in 2002 and I was very disappointed. I ordered it from www.fasoft.com, their home site, and the program was on a burned CD-R with a (poorly) printed label in a plastic sleeve and a tiny piece of paper with a serial # on it. Not to mention, it crashed all the time. There was no hope for editing. The sound effects were crap. You could use VST but it was hardly worth it due to the host. You could also use MIDI but it was really confusing and annoying.

Bottom line: Absolute garbage.

Cool Edit Pro 2.0, on the other hand... It's the best program I have ever used! Recording is 1,000 times easier in CEP. If you ask me, there are more features in CEP than in n-Track. Sound quality is so much better... er... I mean, you can get your sound quality better. Editing is outstanding! I love the way you can zoom in on a track and pin point exactly what you want to change/hear. The sound effects are top notch (kinda). And apart from there being high quality effects, there are lots of them. You can only use DX sounds but with a "VST Wrapper" you incororate all of your VST effects as well.

Stability is great! You just got to know when CEP is struggling or not. If you can hear your HDD grinding away, try not to do too many things at one time. If you do, you will get some kind of error and it will freeze on you. Luckily for you CEP has a session recovery system built in! If CEP crashes and you have to restart the program before you can save, you'll have the option to start right where you left off prior to the crash.

Bottom line: Recording app sent from the heavens! Use it and be... Godly.

n-Track: 3/10

Cool Edit Pro 2.0: 9.5/10
 
hybridsound said:
I bought n-Track in 2002 and I was very disappointed. I ordered it from www.fasoft.com, their home site, and the program was on a burned CD-R with a (poorly) printed label in a plastic sleeve and a tiny piece of paper with a serial # on it. Not to mention, it crashed all the time. There was no hope for editing. The sound effects were crap. You could use VST but it was hardly worth it due to the host. You could also use MIDI but it was really confusing and annoying.

Bottom line: Absolute garbage.

Cool Edit Pro 2.0, on the other hand... It's the best program I have ever used! Recording is 1,000 times easier in CEP. If you ask me, there are more features in CEP than in n-Track. Sound quality is so much better... er... I mean, you can get your sound quality better. Editing is outstanding! I love the way you can zoom in on a track and pin point exactly what you want to change/hear. The sound effects are top notch (kinda). And apart from there being high quality effects, there are lots of them. You can only use DX sounds but with a "VST Wrapper" you incororate all of your VST effects as well.

Stability is great! You just got to know when CEP is struggling or not. If you can hear your HDD grinding away, try not to do too many things at one time. If you do, you will get some kind of error and it will freeze on you. Luckily for you CEP has a session recovery system built in! If CEP crashes and you have to restart the program before you can save, you'll have the option to start right where you left off prior to the crash.

Bottom line: Recording app sent from the heavens! Use it and be... Godly.

n-Track: 3/10

Cool Edit Pro 2.0: 9.5/10

Thanks for the insight. That was an informed post! I wonder if the latest versions of N-track are better than your 2002 version?
 
I just got n-Track, and you can't really compare it with CEP. Cool Edit Pro 2 is all that's been said here about it- great for close-work, and easy to get around in after just a short time. Assignable key-strokes for almost everything, so you can tailor it to your own gig.

I dig n-Track just because it's very simple for use as a multitracker. I do actually like the way it sounds, the compressor's good, and the Reverb is great! Not a lot of plug-ins bundled in, but the essentials are in there, and you can buy or get free downloads all over the place. And even though there are quite a few other features, they don't seem to clutter my head the way a few other apps have (like Sonar, nice as that is). Maybe that's just my hang-up, but n-Track is also only $75.00... and for a program that is plenty adequate and is able to produce very nice sound, it's the bargain.

I do call up Cool Edit for significant or tight editing chores, can't beat it, I think. But n-Track is somehow more "fun" for tracking and mixing. For me, that's fine- I'm a carpenter for a living! The pressure's off!

If you aren't Bruce Dickinson, but are creative and resourceful, n-
track is a great program. And- in n-Track you can assign an external editor.
 
I tried to use N-tracks sometime ago. My biggest complaint was that it crashed all the freaking time!!!! I went back to AA 1.5 quickly.
 
hybridsound said:
I bought n-Track in 2002 and I was very disappointed. I ordered it from www.fasoft.com, their home site, and the program was on a burned CD-R with a (poorly) printed label in a plastic sleeve and a tiny piece of paper with a serial # on it. Not to mention, it crashed all the time. There was no hope for editing. The sound effects were crap. You could use VST but it was hardly worth it due to the host. You could also use MIDI but it was really confusing and annoying.

Bottom line: Absolute garbage.

Cool Edit Pro 2.0, on the other hand... It's the best program I have ever used! Recording is 1,000 times easier in CEP. If you ask me, there are more features in CEP than in n-Track. Sound quality is so much better... er... I mean, you can get your sound quality better. Editing is outstanding! I love the way you can zoom in on a track and pin point exactly what you want to change/hear. The sound effects are top notch (kinda). And apart from there being high quality effects, there are lots of them. You can only use DX sounds but with a "VST Wrapper" you incororate all of your VST effects as well.

Stability is great! You just got to know when CEP is struggling or not. If you can hear your HDD grinding away, try not to do too many things at one time. If you do, you will get some kind of error and it will freeze on you. Luckily for you CEP has a session recovery system built in! If CEP crashes and you have to restart the program before you can save, you'll have the option to start right where you left off prior to the crash.

Bottom line: Recording app sent from the heavens! Use it and be... Godly.

n-Track: 3/10

Cool Edit Pro 2.0: 9.5/10

I ditto that. It is superior to anything else I have used. I dont use anything else. Does any other programs have a 128 track mixer?!!!?
 
exojjl said:
I ditto that. It is superior to anything else I have used. I dont use anything else. Does any other programs have a 128 track mixer?!!!?

Actually, yes. Some have "unlimited" tracks. Which rocks! If you have HAL in your studio... :p
 
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