Blog

With all the different DAW (short for Digital Audio Workstation) software packages out there, it’s hard to know where to start when thinking about recording music on a computer. While the technical aspects of computer recording are beyond the scope of this article, a quick presentation of the top software packages available should help you in choosing a DAW for your studio.

I’ve broken up the list below into a few sections: Mac-only, PC-only, cross-platform and misc. The misc. section contains DAWs that are used primarily as songwriting tools or that are less full-featured than their pro counterparts.

It’s also interesting to note that most DAWs hover roughly around the same price. You get their entry level offering (usually a limited version of the pro package) for a couple hundred dollars while the premium package is about $500-$1,000 or more.

Mac

Digidesign Pro Tools Mbox 2 Factory Bundle
No discussion of DAWs would be complete without Pro Tools. Interestingly enough, Pro Tools is unique on this list in that you’ll have to use approved Digidesign hardware to run Pro Tools. That may turn off some users, but it’s not really that big a deal since you’ll need a specialized audio interface for any DAW (no, that Sound Blaster won’t cut it). Regardless of the choice allowed by other DAW platforms, Pro Tools is easily the pro audio standard, at least at the professional level. So if you have aspirations of working in a commercial studio someday, Pro Tools is probably your best bet.

MOTU Digital Performer 6
While not as popular as Pro Tools, many people swear by DP. In addition to audio editing, Digital Performer touts itself as an all-in-one solution for MIDI, mastering and even film scoring. It also plays nice with other platforms such as Final Cut Pro and Pro Tools|HD.

Apple Logic Studio
Quickly rising in pro audio circles, Logic Studio bills itself as the Apple alternative to Pro Tools. The GUI is a bit more user friendly and intuitive than many of the other DAW platforms, and it includes a wealth of plugins, instruments and loops that make it usable right out of the box.

PC

Steinberg Cubase 5 DAW Software
One of the first DAWs, and made by the guys that brought you ReWire and the VST protocol, Cubase is a full-featured audio and MIDI platform. Long a favorite of electronic music producers, Cubase aims itself at the engineer/producer with its advanced audio and MIDI capabilities. Version 5 brings a few new developments to the table including built-in pitch correction, a beat designer and loop mash-up tool.

Steinberg Nuendo 4 Advanced Audio and Post Production System
Developed by the same guys that brought you Cubase, think of Nuendo as Cubase + video.

Magix Samplitude 10 Pro Software
A relative unknown outside of pro audio circles, many engineers swear by Samplitude and its powerful audio editing and mixing capabilities. Samplitude is also a legitimate mastering platform, allowing you to take your project all the way to CD in one package. The bundled plugs are also some of the best available, reducing the need to rely on third-party effects.

Cross-Platform

Ableton Live 8 Full Version
Ableton Live markets itself as the creative person’s DAW. While this may be more a marketing ploy than anything else, Live attempts to establish a more creative work flow and process than some of the more cumbersome interfaces found in other DAWs. Strict musicians interested in quick editing and an easy interface might want to consider Live. Engineers will probably want to look elsewhere.

Cakewalk SONAR 8 Producer
As yet another audio+MIDI DAW workstation, Sonar is a 64-bit platform with VST, DX and ReWire support. Sonar also provides loop editing, a step sequencer, several virtual instruments and Guitar Rig 3 LE in its bundle.

Misc.

Sony Sound Forge 9 Digital Audio Editing Production Suite
Primarily a two-track (stereo) digital audio editor, Sound Forge focuses on its no-frills, powerful interface to detect, fix and enhance stereo and multi-channel audio files. Sound Forge also supports the use of third-party plugins.

Bias Peak Pro 6 Single
Technically more a mastering tool than a full-featured DAW, Bias Peak Pro edits audio, video, and also supports VSTs. Bias is popular with mastering engineers and in post-production work.

Propellerhead Reason 4 Premium Edition Bundle
While Reason doesn’t support the ability for you to record your own audio (MIDI in only), and therefore isn’t technically a DAW, it does support sending its audio into a DAW via ReWire. Think of Reason as the world’s biggest rack of synthesizers and sound generating modules, all packaged in a very intuitive plug-and-play interface.

Image Line FL Studio 8 Producer Edition Software 5 Pack
What started out as a simple drum machine has evolved into a feature-packed music composition software package. Most similar to Reason, FL Studio does, however, record audio.

Sony ACID Pro 7
Billed as the re-mixer’s platform, ACID gives you extensive loop editing tools in addition to standard audio/midi recording capabilities.

What I Use

Personally, I use Cubase. I don’t think it’s necessarily better than the other DAWs out there, nor do I think another DAW is better than it. But Cubase has been stable, extensible and powerful enough to handle everything I’ve thrown at it. Cubase works well for me — I especially like its advanced MIDI support and external hardware integration — and switching at this point would probably be more a step sideways than any sort of measurable step forward. If I were to switch, however, there’s definitely no shortage of platforms to choose from!

Closing Thoughts

While just about all the DAWs listed above include their own effects and plugins, some engineers (myself included) prefer the sound and capabilities of third-party plugs. If you’re looking to go this route, make sure that you factor these costs into your budget when choosing a DAW.

Once you’ve picked a digital audio workstation, stick with it. Read the entire manual — yes, cover to cover — and use it for at least a few projects. Once you get to know the platform, you’ll develop a working knowledge of all DAWs and the differences between each package will start to fade. If, at that point, you find yourself frustrated by your DAW, then, by all means, switch. But know that it’ll take a while to get up and running again.

Happy recording!

Note that this list is not intended to be a complete list of digital audio workstations available. These are just DAWs that I’ve used or are familiar with. If your favorite DAW isn’t in the list, feel free to bring it up in the comments.