Ware for sequencing, recording, editing?

[~David Vesel]

Hello all,

Okay, I've really been kinda stuck here, because I'm not as knowledgeable as I'd like to be on this. Heck, it hasn't been all that long that I gave up on dedicated recording hardware.

I have a PC-based system in my studio. I did my last album with Cakewalk 9 Home Studio, and I have eMagic SoundDiver 2.0 for editing and Cool Edit 2000 for effects and post production. I'd like some advice on where to go with my software situation.

I have grown to completely despise Cakewalk. The sequencer is, to me, unintuitive. My 1989 copy of EZVision was much easier to use. And for digital recording, I find it intensely frustrating. If I record the way I'm used to, I have no headroom for effects. It digital-clips like a maniac unless I limit my peaks to about -6 dB!!!!! And if I'm digitizing at 16 bits, am I not losing a lot of resolution at that point?

Not to mention that Cool Edit seeming has no problem whatsoever with handling the hotter signals and adding effects anyway. In fact, I got into the pattern of recording the raw track in Cakewalk, then bouncing out to Cool Edit every frelling time I wanted to add an effect.

Cool Edit 2000 is great but it's not a replacement because it only does stereo.

Now that eMagic has been bought by Apple and they've announced the end of Windows development, I do not want to put more money into SoundDiver.

So what are my options?

I really don't know what the MIDI sequencing scene is these days. It doesn't appear that Opcode is publishing anymore, so Vision is out.

There seems to be a bit more out there in digital recording. Cool Edit Pro got a good review in the last Keyboard, but the fact that on playback it preprocesses to MP3 bothers me -- I'm worried about loss of quality. Is that a legitimate concern?

The only other editor/librarian I know of out there is MIDI Quest, which looks really really good but it's quite expensive.

Can you guys help me out? What do you all use? Please keep in mind that I'm on a Windows platform, not Mac.

[~Hajas]

Try Fruity Loops 3.40.

Is easy and fast to use, and you can add effects alive.

Really nice, seams a upgraded FT2.

So you can also use as a Sampler. :)

Freddy

[~skylla]

i know e-magic is done supporting the pc-platform, but i honestly think that i would still go for logic as a sequencer... perhaps if i could find a bargain on a version 5.0 or 5.2 now that it won't be updated. i think the greatest asset of the logic sequencer is it's intuitivity (at least i find it very intuitive and musician friendly). and i'll definately still be using sounddiver as long as logic is my sequencer. cubase i great to, and will probably surpass logic sometime, but as of present it still has some flaws... or rather some things about the user interface that really annoys me.

as for the editor cool-edit pro is a very good program. however i prefer to use wavelab, but that's just a matter of work preferences (which is probably also the case for logic/cubase).

[~intro]

Steinberg Cubase SX. It's a dream come true.

-Mark
www.djintrovert.com

[~David Vesel]

Man, and I thought my computer was pretty powerful.

At 800 MHz and 256 MB, it's barely meeting the requirements that Steinberg recommends. But I'd be happy to upgrade to Windows XP....

It will be nice to have the option of software synths in the future.

Does this package do MIDI sequencing and digital recording both?

[~intro]

Cubase SX is well worth upgrading and powering up your system. However, I recommend Windows 2000 Pro if you can get that. You may have issues with running some of your non-musical software, but it's really the most rock solid Windows-based operating system on the market. And SX is amazing in it.

SX is a full-on sequencing, recording, production system. It will do it all. You can hook up some soft synths, some nice effects (the Waves plugins are great), and write, record and mix the entire thing in SX. Then dump it to like Sound Forge or Wavelab for mastering and you're done.

There's a little bit of a learning curve, but there's a getting started guide that will help you out. And I'm always happy to answer SX questions on the board here. I've become sort of an SX guru. I learned how to make music in the first place on Steinberg Nuendo, started when it was first released, and SX is just a slight variant on that. So I've had a couple of years' experience with it. So, ask if you need help.

-Mark loves Steinberg very very much =]
www.djintrovert.com

[~kenporter]

And I assume those are legal copies you have! :-)

Ken

[~David Vesel]

Um, well, the Cakewalk, Cool Edit, and SoundDiver are all legal.

Just not Windows. ;)

[~intro]

Ken, quit chatting on Electrogarden and get back to work!

-Mark is dying for a full MP3 of "Two," dammit
www.djintrovert.com

[~kenporter]

I am only trying to get some participation credits :-) I must be the only one left with negative numbers.

Take care
Ken

[~admin]

Originally posted by kenporter
I am only trying to get some participation credits :-) I must be the only one left with negative numbers.

Take care
Ken

Just as an FYI:

Posting is not your sole resolve to get participation credits. You can also rate tracks and provide feedback to get your points up, especially if you are just posting to that end.

Ultimately, if you browse a lot and contribute very little, the participation credits will always reflect so.

[~intro]

Originally posted by kenporter
I am only trying to get some participation credits :-)

Hehe, I was just teasing. But I've had that song of yours stuck in my head. I want to hear the full version!

-Mark
www.djintrovert.com

[~slitscan]

Out of curiousity, has anyone tried Sonor (sp?) yet?

I'm solely a Mac guy, and I switched to Logic about this time last year from MOTU's Digital Performer. I can't begin to express how much more powerful Logic is, but my I've never used Cubase, and DP could have just been a crappy program to begin with ;) (although, I still use it for midi sequencing from time to time)

What are the options for PC users?

[~intro]

Now that Emagic has gone Apple only, the only viable solutions for PC users are Cubase SX and Sonar. There are a few others, but neither offer the flexibility and power of those two. I don't really know much about Sonar, to be honest. I've only read a few reviews on it.

But I've had experience with Cubase SX, and some with Logic, and while Logic is more powerful, it is far more cumbersome and confusing. Cubase SX runs circles around Logic in terms of interface and ease of use. And that, to me, makes up for the few random tricks Logic can do (like that audio > midi thing, and a few others) that Cubase can't.

-Mark
www.djintrovert.com

[~slitscan]

I'll tell you one thing though, I spent a good few hours ripping my poor hair out trying to figure out Logic's enviroments.. I planned on porting to logic all along, so I got myself Emagic hardware (amt 8, audiowerks 2, etc). Well, since the AMT claimed to be native and faster than OMS, I tried setting it up that way.

It kinda worked. Kinda.

I just recently switched back to OMS so I can use my neat lil' Oxygen 8 controller, and now Logic swears that there's no midi interface.. Although it works fine.