Recording/Mixing/Mastering Software
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Posted on Apr 21, 2007 09:58 am
Shenanigans
Member Since: Apr 05, 2007
Well I've recently got into recording and in the last two weeks I've managed to buy a Yamaha MG16/4 and a M Audio Delta 1010. So now that I have some gear (still need mics but i know what i want for those already) i need some software.
What's good software for each of these? Either one software for each specific part or if their is any good ones that work really well with all 3. Thanks!
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Apr 22, 2007 02:28 am It's really too broad a question. All the standard software is going to work with that gear.
Personally I use Acid and Sound Forge with Ozone for mastering. All these have free demo's
Many use Sonar, Cubase, Garageband and Logic on the Mac.
For lower prices there's Kristal (for free), Reaper, nTracks.
All of these will "work" but it depends on what exactly you're trying to do
Tony
www.homemadehitshow.com
Apr 22, 2007 09:14 am Basically just record music and be able to edit it to as good of quality as I can. I knew it was broad. I've heard alot of good things about Cubase LE and Sonar. I have a PC not a mac.
Don't all of these pretty much do more then just recording and include the tools for mixing and mastering?
meltdown5Faze 2 StudiosMember
Since: Aug 15, 2005
Apr 22, 2007 02:37 pm I was using Pro-tools LE 7.1, then had to switch to Sonar 5 PE. Thank god that happened. I love Sonar, its interface is easy to use, and there are great options for it. Comes with some VERY nice plug-ins, goo denough where i have no need to buy any. it hasnt ever crashed on me yet. simple to edit and drawn in automation. It can do way more then pro-tools can ever do, and people say protools is the Stardard soo...
I vote for Sonar 5 PE
-Melty
Apr 22, 2007 02:42 pm Yeah, I vote for Sonar...it rocks...
Do you plan on using MIDI? if not, if it's all audio, try Kristal Audio Engine...it's FREE www.kreatives.org/kristal/ and quite impressive for on-MIDI type work...it'd be a good, free way to get your feet wet in the ways of digital audio. The knowledge you gain will transfer to most any other audio app as it largely works the same as the major players in the space. Here is a screen shot of it.
Apr 22, 2007 02:53 pm Well I'd like to be experienced in everything some day, and our bassist is looking into getting an Alesis Micron. So MIDI would be nice. The only trouble with that one though is that you'd have to download it correct? The computer I plan to use for my recording is upstairs and not connected to internet. It's a Windows 98 Dell and its not suited for recording but it will do for learning until i can afford a new computer. We have one computer with internet and i was interested in getting WiFi but Win. 98 is too old to be compatible with WiFi, id have to upgrade it to XP which for what it woudl cost, might as well get a new computer.
Apr 22, 2007 03:08 pm Ever heard of a flash drive? Of burnable CD? There lots of ways to get fixes from one PC to another...
Apr 22, 2007 03:10 pm burning cds would work but ive tried flash drives with that computer but it doesnt have the necessary drivers...I really do wish i had the money for a totally new computer.
Apr 22, 2007 03:11 pm I dunno, man, I am a big fan of just making do with what you got, better to make music with what you have available than not make it at all...
Apr 22, 2007 03:19 pm very true very true, well so I hear some people use like different software for different things. Is there certain software that are good for recording and some for mixing and then some for mastering or is it just basically personal preference? I'll probably be going with Sonar or Cubase LE, but i hear cubase isn't as user friendly as Sonar but is Cubase better quality?
Apr 22, 2007 03:26 pm All the major names are pretty even in terms of audio quality, the audio engines are so fine tuned today it's impossible to tell the difference, regardless of what gear-snob-know-it-alls will tell you...they lie. SOnar, Cubase, Kristal, Audition and the like are tracking and mixing apps...things like Sound Forge, WaveLab, GoldWave and Audacity are more for mastering.
Apr 22, 2007 03:31 pm Win 98 doesn't like flash drives.
Apr 22, 2007 03:32 pm Well I probably really don't NEED mastering as in a past bulletin i had told you im just beginning. I'll probably go with Sonar. What's the latest version? Meltdown5 said Sonar 5 PE is good.
Apr 22, 2007 03:33 pm It depends, I have had flash drives work on 98...some need drivers, or USB updates or things like that...you are right though, it is fickle.
Apr 22, 2007 03:37 pm Sonar 6 is the latest, though 7 is development I have no idea of any release date. I won't upgrade to 7, anything past 5 is gravy...some cool features added to 4 and 5, 6 is nice, not a huge change in usable features (for me)...
Most applications any more are getting so feature packed the newest version have enhancement a small percentage of people would use and one or two widely usable ones...many are just getting to be bloatware of features us caveman recording folks won't use.
meltdown5Faze 2 StudiosMember
Since: Aug 15, 2005
Apr 22, 2007 03:47 pm I have Sonar 5 Producers Edition. I know Sonar 6 is the latest, but i feel no need to upgrade. My guess is that your only going to be able to find Sonar 6 for sale, so id just buy that, unless you can find 5 somewhere for cheaper. its like DB said, they are the same thing, they just keep adding "features" that i doubt a lot of people have a use for.
If Soanr 6 is a lot more then Sonar 5, i wouldnt recommend going up to 6. though its up to you
-melty
Apr 22, 2007 05:35 pm Ok cool thanks, heard anything about Reason 3? I heard some good things about it from the band Thrice.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 23, 2007 10:33 pm Sonar 6 PE added a few goodies that now make it possible or make it much easier to finish/master a product without leaving Sonar. The VC 64 Vintage channel is a killer piece for mastering. I actually just tried it on a stereo final mix and it really did a pretty decent job of pumping it to that final level with a nice polish.
Reason 3 is not a full on DAW. It will do a lot of things but act as a full on recording application it will not.
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Apr 24, 2007 12:01 am I gotta through the Reaper thing out there.
It's small (2.3meg) but has lots to offer: great plugs, great routing, very low CPU hit, plus great utilization of older cpu, so that might be a real plus for you on an older machine.
It's fully open shareware download, asking for a license after 30 days, but never crippling anything, so you can continue to use if you feel inclined (I slowly tested for 6 months before reg).
The midi is coming along, but I still like FL studio better for midi work.
It doesn't have a drum solution. * edit below *
Recording and mixing are well supported, with workflow quickeners all over the place.
Mastering may be a stretch, but there's plugins that are included that may get you pretty close. I haven't tinkered much with them, but they've been getting good reviews.
reaper.fm
* edit * It does now have some sort of drum solution, but I'm not sure what it is. I haven't had time to investigate.
RigsbyUltra MagnusMember
Since: Nov 13, 2004
Apr 24, 2007 02:27 am I don't think it's a lie that software sounds different, i've totally found this with Cubase and Logic. Because LE only has 48 tracks (yeah i know, only 48, how spoilt we are these days) i've taken some things over to Logic to overdub and the sound is very different. Cleaner but not entirely in a nice way, for some things it is but not always.
WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Apr 24, 2007 09:28 am I'm addicted to Cubase. Just got my control room configured and tested with a group over the weekend. WoW....simiply WoW.
Apr 24, 2007 09:34 am Quote:
I don't think it's a lie that software sounds different
Yes I shouldn't have painted with such a broad brush, they can sound different, but on the whole, I have found that the major players in the space are all very high quality. I used to HATE Cakewalk's sound back when their flagship product was the "Pro Audio" series...so I used Cubase, which was horrible to use, but sounded better...in the years since the high end software engines have been so refined the gap is narrowing all the time. I can tell when I listen to cheap off-the-shelf software you get at CompUSA or something pretty easily sometimes, and I can't speak for Logic as I haven't touched it since it for YEARS. But Sonar, ProTools, Cubase, Vegas...they all are very clean, hi-rez, sound...get into the cheapware, shareware and freeware, yeah, you'll start hearing differences.
That said I have found Kristal and MultitrackStudio to be among the greatest sounding shareware/freeware...good stuff.
TallChapAnswer:On a good day, lipstick.Member
Since: Jun 24, 2004
Apr 24, 2007 07:06 pm Quote:
I dunno, man, I am a big fan of just making do with what you got, better to make music with what you have available than not make it at all...
Talking my language.
I'm hooked on Cubase/Steinberg software. More for familiarity reasons than anything. I did look at Kristal, and Reaper, and they're very good.
Start small, see where the walls start closing in on you and strike out from there. Don't invest $600 on something only to find you hate it down the road.
There are a million (there are...I've personally counted them...) VSTs out there that will get you close to where you wanna be - or even past where you expected to be. Most are inexpensive or free (I love that word....Free....it's a happy word).
TallChapAnswer:On a good day, lipstick.Member
Since: Jun 24, 2004
Apr 24, 2007 07:07 pm Woohoo! I used the UBBCode to do the quote thing....
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 24, 2007 09:53 pm And remember you can always download a demo of the bigger dollar apps like Sonar and I believe Cubase even has a demo now.
I still opt for Sonar as I use the 64 bit double precision audio engine which make a big difference when doing fine editing for me. And so far Sonar is the only app out there that will run 64 bit natively right now. It will even utilize a 64 bit processer even if your running in a 32 bit windows environment. They somehow built a work around for using the 64 bit CPU even if the OS is only 32 bit. And the 64 bit double precision engine is the other work around for running on a 32 bit system using a standard 32 bit CPU. Not sure how they do it but it works.
Apr 25, 2007 06:29 pm I just looked into Sonar and Cubase, I can't use either because my computer is windows 98, unless the older versions are compatible. I checked out the newest versions, but duh not thinking, they probably arent compatible with win 98 because thats not the current common system.
Which versions of Sonar and Cubase work with win 98?
Apr 25, 2007 07:28 pm How many tracks do you need? ProTools free version works on 98, but it's limited to 8 tracks...I think...
Not sure about how far one would have to go with Sonar or Cubase...
www.multitrackstudio.com works on Windows 98 and is a seriously powerful app for the price, I've used it a lot at times...I did hear rumblings of some cool new features getting released for it before long too...it's not one of the big name players in the area, but the app rocks...seriously.
Apr 25, 2007 09:17 pm Hmm well I talked with the rents and I think i may be able to just get a whole new computer. I'm getting a good paying job hopefully next week at a nursing home and summer isnt to long away :P so i think i'll probably go on dell and get a computer with the exact specs i need.
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Apr 26, 2007 01:24 pm Reaper works on 98, and is also 64bit engine, as well as the included plug-ins are 64bit.
# Portable - supports running from USB keys or other removable media
# 64 bit audio engine
# Excellent low-latency performance
# Multiprocessor capable
# Direct multi-track recording to many formats including WAV/BWF/W64, AIFF, WavPack, FLAC, OGG, and MIDI.
# Extremely flexible routing
# Fast, tool-less editing
# Supports a wide range of hardware (nearly any audio interface, outboard hardware, many control surfaces)
# Support for VST, VSTi, DX, DXi effects
# ReaPlugs: high quality 64 bit effect suite
# Tightly coded - installer is just over 2MB
Some of the edit features:
* Tool-less mouse interface -- spend less time clicking
* Drag and drop files to instantly import them into a project
* Support for mixing any combination of file type/samplerate/bit depth on each track
* Easily split, move, and resize items
* Each item has easily manipulated fades and volume
* Tab to transient support
* Configurable and editable automatic crossfading of overlapping items
* Per-item pitch shift and time stretch
* Arbitrary item grouping
* Markers and envelopes can be moved in logical sync with editing operations
* Ripple editing - moving/deletion of items can optionally affect later items
* Multiple tempos and time signatures per project
* Ability to define and edit project via regions
* Automation envelopes
Apr 26, 2007 09:36 pm Well parents wont let me get a computer till i pay back the $716 i borrowed for the recording equipment i got so I'll probably just stick with Kristal until then. Shouldnt be more then a a couple months.
Tim NUh, at least one more time . . .Member
Since: Feb 07, 2007
Apr 26, 2007 10:09 pm Yeah, just practice until you get the new
computer. That 1010 is a fine piece of equipment
--my next (and last upgrade). Check out the review here: www.zzounds.com/a--884907/item--MDOD1010E
SmurfMember
Since: Aug 13, 2005
Apr 27, 2007 11:52 pm Hit the Kristal Forums and find the posts from Smurf...tons of info, and links to editors like Tiny Wave, Wavosaur, Audacity, Sound Engine Free, VST effects.....stuff that works great with Kristal.
Or go to
thejcsproject.50webs.com/_sgg/m6m2_1.htm
and read up on a setup that I have used for close to 3 years that works find with Win98.
Apr 28, 2007 12:01 am Well now i heard Reaper works better then Kristal. So i've downloaded that to and im gonna give both of them a test run tomorrow and see how they both do. Do the VST effects work in both these softwares? Because I'd like to download some for whichever software i decide to use. And Audacity is a free mastering software correct?
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Apr 28, 2007 10:57 am Reaper has a ton of free plugins, like 50 or so, but some are redundant.
Very good quality too, but they don't have the fancy interface like some do, so it might be a challenge to figure out how some of them work. They do sound good though.
Course, there's other vst effects and instruments that work in reaper, lots of them free.
kjaehus is a good place to start, great stuff, that.
www.kjaerhusaudio.com/classic-series.php
Apr 30, 2007 07:59 pm Anyone know a good mastering software? free would be preferable and that works with windows 98.
Is Audacity a good, user-friendly software? I see a lot of people mentioning it.
neoificIdiot KidMember
Since: Sep 27, 2006
Apr 30, 2007 08:26 pm My votes are for Cubase 4 and Soundforge.
