First ever DAW software?

[terminal3]

Originally Posted by Monarch

I cannot imagine making music on a four track.

Things really have come a long way. Coming from that kind of starting point one can surely much better appreciate the current software offerings we have and the flexibility they offer us although too much choice can cause another set of problems

I think I would always prefer more choice though.

I would still love a proper tape machine. Don't have the ability to maintain it, though, and probably couldn't justify the cost to bring someone in all the time to do it for me. Maintaining the DAW computer is enough of a pain in the a**!

[sijarvis]

My first audio workstation was an early 90's multi-timbral synth and a drum machine synced together via midi on an atari running Notator then later Cubase version 1.5. Once i'd learned to use the basics, I joined a band and we incorporated drum triggers via a cheetah MD16R drum module. We also had a 303 and 606 but couldn't sync them up until I later got a Roland SBX80 sync box that had Sync 24 capabilities (used by 303, 606) and midi, as well as Smpte. I later got a 707 drum machine and another member of the band had a 4 track.

Anyway, the method here was, Record a stripe from the SBX 80 onto 1 channel of the 4 track, you would play this signal back into the SBX 80 which would then keep your sequencer in sync allowing you to build up your song pattern by pattern.

You had 3 channels left on your 4 track for laying down vocals and instruments....guitar and such like. It was archaic to say the least but once you got your head round it, it was workable. Just.

The only drawback was that it was a pain if you wanted to change your arrangements after having laid down your vocals/instrumentation.

There were several kinds of sync signal, sync 24, FS and Smart FS were the ones i remember using. FS would only sync when the stripe was played from the beginning of each tune and smart fs was capable of locking into sync at any time during the stripes playback...this was possible as the stripe signal was embedded with song position information.....bar 78, bar 79 etc. Also embedded was a basic resolution, I can't recall off the top of my head but I think it was 48ths of a beat.....Advanced technology or what!!

Well it was in the 80's.

The SBX 80 was also capable of smpte sync, though that was more for syncing to Film (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers - SMPTE)

All your Duran Durans and Paul Hardcastle NN 19 stuff was recorded with this technology. Not even 30 yrs ago now.

Pretty soon all todays young users will be saying "I remember back in the days of beat warping".

[Failed Muso]

My first sequencer was Electrosound on the Commodore64. I then progressed to Notator and Cubase on the Atari ST.

After that it was Cubase on PC and then I got disillusioned with it after each release/update set me back another £100 for more complicated things that got in the way of my creative flow.

I then moved onto hardware sequencing for a bit and back to software with Reason & Live. I have dabbled with many others, but I keep coming back to Reason & using it ReWired into Reaper nowadays.

[JAYDMF]

Started off on Cubase 3 then went to 5 in 6th form, went to college and started on Pro tools, hated the MIDI side of it so bought cubase SX2 just after release and have been there ever since, really after Nuendo now tho just got sooo much other stuff on the list before that tho. Just really after a super high quality chain. The base is great but once i have some better monitors and better room the flexibility of nuendo with the setup i wanna put together would be perfect.

[Monarch]

Definitely a heavy Cubase presence here. Quite a few of you started with an early version of Cubase on an Atari and or Notator. I guess at the time (and it is a guess as it was before my entry into Music Software) those two were the only real options software wise.

Originally Posted by sijarvis

Pretty soon all todays young users will be saying "I remember back in the days of beat warping".

That made me laugh! But it is probably very true...

[I_Am_Bic_Pentameter]

Guitar Tracks Pro 3.

Basic. It gave a good learning curve on how to set up, get good sound and taught me to buy a decent soundcard.

I was 4 tracking to tape before that - which is great sound - and still sounds better than a CD (honestly).

Digital is massive now and much improved and so easy and what's more, it inspires you.

I use Sonar now but have tried the other too

[sijarvis]

"those two were the only real options software wise."

Yes that was pretty much it.

I suppose the Amiga was a pretty popular alternative but it never had midi ports built in, which is why the Atari took off like it did.

I wish I knew how to use the multi-quote thing. Any chance of an explanation of how to do it?

[Dave Boulden]

Originally Posted by terminal3

I would still love a proper tape machine. Don't have the ability to maintain it, though, and probably couldn't justify the cost to bring someone in all the time to do it for me. Maintaining the DAW computer is enough of a pain in the a**!

I still have my Fostex R8. I used to stripe track 8 with timecode using the matching MTC-1 and always marveled at how well the song position pointer worked in the time code.... fast forward Cubase to a certain point and watch the spools spin up to the same point and wait a couple of seconds for it to sync and away you go.

Sadly the R8 fell into an unusable state some years ago... the pinch roller badly needed replacement and possibly one motor (though quite possibly that may be only down to the pinch roller not working properly). I don't think I could actually go back to tape, my workflow has developed beyond the linear nature of tape and I think I'd find it too much of a hindrance these days. Maybe it'd still work for recording bands, but for my own writing & recording it'd be frustrating.

[Monarch]

Originally Posted by sijarvis

Yes that was pretty much it.

I suppose the Amiga was a pretty popular alternative but it never had midi ports built in, which is why the Atari took off like it did.

That would explain the high number of Atari users, thanks

I wish I knew how to use the multi-quote thing. Any chance of an explanation of how to do it?

Sure no problem

If you want to quote someone click on the Quote button on that forum members post that will automatically wrap quote tags around the text and open up the message editor for you correctly. The name of the forum member is also included in the quote as well.

You can also...

a. Select any text in a post...

b. Pick the speech bubble icon (directly under the redo arrow) next to the number or hash sign.

c. That will also wrap quote tags around text.

To also manually add the name of a forum member to any quote (if you want to quote multiple members in one post)...once you have wrapped the text in quote tags you can simply copy the name of the poster and place it inside the first quote tag...

So instead of this

[QUOTE]

You type ="name of forum member"

and copy that inside here...


[QUOTE]

paste inside the brackets just after the letter e you will then see this...

Originally Posted by sijarvis

test

... once you preview your message or post it. I just added the "test" text as an example.

That is the way I do it but there may be an even easier way but this does work

HTH

[tyronehowe]

Originally Posted by bluebearddub

pro 12 then pro 24 by steinberg using an atri 520 and a 1040
then c-lab then cubase in 90
then i left it all alone for 20yrs

My story is remarkably similar to yours!

I started with Pro-24 on an Atari ST and stayed with it for a while, then had a 20 year gap. Went to SX3 for a while, then Sonar, Logic, DP and now back to Logic!

[modz1]

Originally Posted by tyronehowe

My story is remarkably similar to yours!

I started with Pro-24 on an Atari ST and stayed with it for a while, then had a 20 year gap. Went to SX3 for a while, then Sonar, Logic, DP and now back to Logic!

Hi Tyrone
Welcome to the DV Forums.. Why not post a bit about yourself in the 'Introducing' section.. Here

[tyronehowe]

Originally Posted by modz1

Hi Tyrone
Welcome to the DV Forums.. Why not post a bit about yourself in the 'Introducing' section.. Here

Hi modz1

Good idea - I've just posted there. And thanks for the welcome.

[bluebearddub]

Originally Posted by tyronehowe

My story is remarkably similar to yours!

I started with Pro-24 on an Atari ST and stayed with it for a while, then had a 20 year gap. Went to SX3 for a while, then Sonar, Logic, DP and now back to Logic!

hi tyrone, my reasons for leaving all the computer scene was simple, there was no real outlet for guitar players back then unless you had a midi guitar which to me are were a kin to a variax, i found myslef getting bogged down with keyboard stuff that i had no intrest in and all the sampled sounds back then were rubbish
alan.

[tyronehowe]

Hi Alan

Ah well I was different – my guitar playing was only ever ok – it was never (and still isn’t!) that good.

I loved the synthesizer and early sampler age – all that ability to make odd music, brilliant! But it was also a lot more expensive!

[cane creek]

My first was

ACID PRO 2.0 (sonicfoundry at the time)
ACID PRO 3.0

Reason 2.0
Reason 2.5

Cubase sx2
cubase sx3
cubase4

now i use Logic 8 since jumping to Mac and very happy with it.


all the above i used deeply , i did buy Ableton live 3/4/5 but got fed up with them updating to a new version before ironing out bugs in earlier versions so gave up on them.
Ableton was kinda like my toy to show off to my mates 'wow look what this does' but when they went home id bootup cubase to make tracks.

I demo'ed Sonar some years back but at the time i didnt find cakewalk forward thinking enough having to use VSTwrappers and pushing the dying Directx format at you, im aware this has all changed now but to late now for me to be converted.

Ive also bought Reason 3 & 4 however never made a single track in them , when reason 5 arrives ill buy that yet probebly never use it , i just automatically upgrade as i loved using reason 2 & 2.5 ,
Its a shame it still sounds very boxy/plastic sounding maybe its me and the presets just have to much reverb on them ?.

If somebody wanted advise as to what DAW to use id point them towards cubase or logic.