DAW's Does it Matter Which One?

[tyronehowe]

Originally Posted by cane creek

Doesnt matter at all which DAW you use , as long as its either Cubase or Logic

I think the choice is a bit wider than that!

Originally Posted by cane creek

To be honest most DAW's (Pro-tools/Logic/Cubase/Live) will seem better than Sonar , Sonar is just about the only DAW ive demo'ed that i didnt like.

Yes but, come one, there are a LOT of Sonar users that would disagree with that. This is the European thing again. Logic/Cubase/Live are (originally) German based companies – Cakewalk is American. If you were in America right now, you wouldn’t think that Sonar was a minority DAW. It can also depend on what type of music you write. For example, for score writing, usage is roughly Logic first then Digital Performer and Sonar. Only a small percentage for Cubase.

Logic and Cubase have got the WORST reputation for customer service / bug fixing. Both companies give no indication of bugs being worked on, time scales of fixes or even regular updates. Apple is even worse than Steinberg is this respect, they don’t even have a recogonised big list. Steinberg continually upset certain customers by not delivering updates that were promised (even after a year’s wait), and most recently announcing there will be no more bug fixes for Cubase 4. Logic has had no update for 6 months.

Sonar, on the other hand, has a very lively forum that is frequented by actually developers of Sonar. Users can report bugs and make requests. If I was ever tempted back to Windows (and I can’t think of anything that would make me do that), I think Sonar would be my DAW.

The other thing I don’t understand is why Pro Tools is always “lumped in” with the others, it shouldn’t really be because it’s a different animal. It very much depends on what you are doing. For mixing/mastering/tracking and other things Pro Tools is the standard. But for composing 99% of users would choose a traditional DAW such as Logic / Cubase / Sonar / Live. No doubt Samplitude and Reaper should be in that list also, but I have no experience of them.

I’m just saying that the list is a lot wider than just Logic / Cubase.

[asimmd]

Tyrone
Your comments make a lot of sense but I can't help thinking that we are all somewhat biased towards the DAW we use at any given time.

I first started with Notator on the Atari 1040,moved to Logic and stayed till they sold out,I wasn't prepared to buy a new computer so I switched to Cubase,bad move for all the reasons you have stated.

Being totally fed up with Steinbergs attitude,I started to look for an alternative and ended up with Sonar,now after 2 years it is becoming more obvious that all DAW's have their failings,and we need to try different ones in an effort to find the one most suited to our own personal needs.

It's no good someone saying Cubase is the best,what they are really saying is that it's the best for their way of working.
If Cakewalk would increase the notation part of Sonar,then a lot of people, including me would would be quite happy with it.
As it is,Cakewalk are now a part of Roland,and I suppose they have to answer to them in any decisions that are taken.
Hopefully,if enough of us complain about the notation,something will be done,we wait and see.

Alan

[tyronehowe]

Hi Alan

First of all: Yes – I agree with everything you have said.

The more people that understand and accept your post the better.

ALL DAWS have their advantages and disadvantages (and that includes the approachability / honesty of the company). The only answer can be that you have to decide what is important to you personally, and then choose a DAW that has that as an advantage.

Originally Posted by asimmd

Your comments make a lot of sense but I can't help thinking that we are all somewhat biased towards the DAW we use at any given time.

Definitely! A DAW not only constitutes an investment of money but also of time. Anyone that has spent months learning their DAW naturally wants to defend it. But this is sometimes taken to ridiculous extremes with so called “fanboys” defending companies automatically and nonsensically.

Originally Posted by asimmd

I first started with Notator on the Atari 1040,moved to Logic and stayed till they sold out,I wasn't prepared to buy a new computer so I switched to Cubase,bad move for all the reasons you have stated.

I started with Pro-24 on an Atari 1040. Stayed there for a while before taking a 16 year break from music. When I came back four years ago, I purchased Cubase as I assumed that would be the natural choice for an ex-Pro-24er. As you say, bad move.

Originally Posted by asimmd

Being totally fed up with Steinbergs attitude,I started to look for an alternative and ended up with Sonar,now after 2 years it is becoming more obvious that all DAW's have their failings,and we need to try different ones in an effort to find the one most suited to our own personal needs.

Yup – I did that too. Tried Sonar a few years ago. At that time, there were definitely issues with VST compatibility (and UAD compatibility) and so I didn’t stay long. I did, however, enjoy the forum and approachability of the company.

Originally Posted by asimmd

It's no good someone saying Cubase is the best,what they are really saying is that it's the best for their way of working.
If Cakewalk would increase the notation part of Sonar,then a lot of people, including me would would be quite happy with it.
As it is,Cakewalk are now a part of Roland,and I suppose they have to answer to them in any decisions that are taken.
Hopefully,if enough of us complain about the notation,something will be done,we wait and see.

Alan

Yup – and that’s the bottom line. There is no overall best – just a DAW that matches your way of working best. For me, it has turned out to Logic, but only just. I absolutely hate the Apple “wall of silence.” Not even knowing what’s ON the bug list, sheesh. However Apple defends this way or working, to me it is simply unacceptable and not professional. But it’s my choice whether to continue with Logic and although I disagree with how Apple communicates with its customers, I LOVE the complete AU compatibility and efficiency that Logic offers.

But for me, Steinberg would be the last company I would go to.