Avid Pro Tools 9 Software

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

I am a recording engineer, musician and composer. I have a small studio in my home where I track bands, solo acts, commercial work and I compose music for theatre.

I have been an audio professional for 25 years and used Pro Tools in studios a bit when it was in it's infancy.

For most of its history, Pro Tools has been out of reach for most medium to small studios as the software would only work with their high end hardware. So, early on I switched to Steinberg products, Cubase then Nuendo and then back to Cubase. I am currently using Cubase 6.

Now, with Pro Tools 9, Avid has finally gotten on the ball and created a native version of Pro Tools that will work with most any third party hardware.

So, since I occasionally get clients who are coming from or need to go to Pro Tools studios, I thought I'd bite the bullet and assumed that I would eventually convert completely from a Cubase studio to a Pro Tools Studio.

Now, I have been working with Cubase/Nuendo for nearly fifteen years so there was bound to be a learning curve where I would think "this is lame" because I just wasn't used to the new software. And there has been a fair amount of that.

But I was surprised and disappointed to learn that Pro Tools, the most respected DAW on the planet, is missing some of the important things that I've taken for granted in Cubase.

For example, while Pro Tools does have an extensive list of keyboard shortcuts, they are not customizable. Cubase's keyboard shortcuts, as well as its much more extensive preferences are completely customizable and savable.

Also, Pro Tools does not offer offline bouncing. When you mix down a project, Pro Tools must do it in real time. Cubase will do this in real time but will produce the same results in "computer time" or offline, in a fraction of real time. This is especially important at the end of a tracking session when you need to make rough mixes for clients.

And probably the biggest disappointment was discovering that in Pro Tools you cannot turn off input monitoring. I monitor tracking and overdub sessions directly from the source through an analog mixer. This eliminates the need to deal with latency inherent in computer recording when monitoring through the software. Working in this way, I need not worry about buffer settings or computer performance. Without the ability to turn off input monitoring in Pro Tools, one is forced to deal with the latency issue. Many of my clients have had trouble dealing with even the shortest latency settings.

Searching the forums, it is clear that all of these issues were concerns for many users. So, I thought, hey, they're new at the native thing so I'll hang in there and see if they address these issues.

Now, just a couple of months after I purchased this software (about the same price as Cubase 6) instead of a maintenance update, they've released Pro Tools 10 and the upgrade price? $300. And it doesn't address any of these issues that are important to me.

Not a chance I'll upgrade. I'm staying with Cubase.

My advice, unless you are exchanging sessions often with other Pro Tools studios, go with Cubase.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

Perfect if you want to use it for personal or client purposes. Takes a little bit to get used to but once you learn the basic layout, it's an invaluable tool.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

If you are like me, you have used other programs like Logic, Cubase, Sonar, and others.
The most fun for me was Logic with it's living arrange page. It was always fun to move all those regions around and perform all kinds of edits, sometimes on the wrong regions!
In Logic, you could "park" audio clips on midi tracks if you like. Then you could click on the "instrument" or audio track to maybe open up an editor. Whoops! you clicked on the unmarked "guestimated" wrong place, now you lost your track object. Hopefully you can get it back because you can tell what it was from the chronological order of your arrange page. Not in order? Good luck! Or, you selected the track using the arrow button and automatically selected every region in that track but you thought you were only working on one region. Oops!! A recipe for mayhem!
So sometimes fun can become futility in a hurry.
Cubase had a little more guard against errors from wrong mouse clicks as well as not allowing audio region parking, than Logic did but the potential was still there.
Enter Protools 9. I couldn't find my way around for a while because the program is not as click happy or is it? I started reading the manual, in particular, the key commands or shortcuts. I learned about the smart tool. I found out ways to navigate in Protools that was all new to me but really felt I was gaining more ground then I ever did on any other program. There is something to be said for NOT having custom key commands. I enjoy how easy it was to use markers, very fast and markers can have their own zoom setting and more and of course, the commands are easier to remember since you can't change them for the most part(they do have a one key mode).
Why I came to PT 9: The biggest reason was Elastic Audio. I had to add virtual drums and other midi instruments to a singer/songwriters tune which was just a live recording of acoustic and vocals with varied tempo. I could do this in all the other software packages by making a tempo map by playing a note on a keyboard to the timing of the song with whole notes or quarter notes then have the program use this midi track as a tempo reference. All great right? The singer didn't like his own tempo changes so I attempted to stretch and contract the timing of each measure to smooth out the tempo by making each bar an anchor point. I ended up with so many pops and clicks that it became useless. I had heard about ProTools Elastic Audio feature through a user. He let me export my project and try Elastic Audio. Unbelievable! I was able to smooth out all the tempo changes to anything he wanted. We decided to have a barely perceptible increase in tempo as the song progressed. This was the intention of the original performance. One line was drawn from point A to B using the line tool. 2 clicks and I was done. There are some artifacts that can be produced from this if you add fade files but all you have to do is commit the changes to the file then add your fades. I have noticed some slight warbles here and then when working with long notes from a piano track. I was able to not use elastic audio and just slice up the region and crossfade like I always used to do. This process is made graceful with the smart tool in conjunction with one key command.
Why I am staying with Pro Tools: It's the industry standard! I am sending a session folder through Drop Box or Pando to a remote mix house. Pro Tools automatically puts everything in one folder by default so all you do is send the folder. They will load the session file and all the tracks will come right up. All the Pro Tool plugins should load too. You would have to bounce any virtual plugs like drums or a special guitar sound that is integral to the song. That's it.
I'm enjoying the work flow in Pro Tools. There is a solid consistency, The mixing board is just a dream to work with. It's all about management too. You can group your tracks in any way you like, title it, group tracks in editing(haven't explored that yet). The group list can be seen on the left side of the screen and one click changes your grouped track configuration. It was a real timesaver when trying to mix guitars, vocals, and separate drum tracks with their aux channels all with one fader.
Another amazing feature is the group region feature. Wow! Any edit, time stretching, cutting and pasting can be done to multiple regions by editing only one region, while not being hidden in a "folder". What I mean by folder is that some softwares allow you to tidy up your tracks by allowing you to create folder tracks. This was the coolest thing until you needed to edit tracks in the folder while still looking at tracks that are not in the folder. A second monitor or side by side window was needed to accomplish this. In Protools, you can just minimize the size of the tracks except for the one you are applying edits on and never leave the edit or "arrange" page as other softwares have it. As of this writing, other softwares have climbed aboard.
Comping and auditioning tracks is so fast and ridiculously easy using the playlist. After you are done with one composite track made from 3 vocal tracks or takes for example, you can just create a new playlist on the same track and start another composite. This is priceless if you want to give a client a few possible versions of comps to choose from.
The Native effects are very usable and quite capable with useful presets.
The midi side of the program has been vastly improved with it's separate editing window. I still find myself editing in the track edit page. I learned all the key commands to make that work. But the piano roll editor really makes it easy and it's much easier on the eyes and mouse.

In conclusion, there are some things I miss but Avid has bigger ears now! There are somtimes errors that needlessly pop up like memory issues even on computers with staggering amounts of ram. It sounds like Pro Tools doesn't always maximize resources or has to low of a threshold for error warnings.
Pro tools won't render or bounce a mix with effects, offline. Instead you have to play the whole song through. However, I do remember having problems with a few plugins when using other software that could render offline. Anything with look ahead features would get messed up like maximizers. I can understand people involved in film or classical/concept music not being too happy waiting around 45 minutes for their 45 minute piece to render.
I wish you could add crossfades and fades without worrying about pops or glitches showing up where the fade starts when using Elastic Audio. I'm sure these things may be addressed.
More midi tools like logical editing could be a nice add on although there are quite a few hidden features and commands. Logic is the most fun when dealing with midi logical editing. Steinberg seems to geeky' for me. I wouldn't be surprised if all these features are in Pro Tools but just not that obvious. It took me a few minutes to figure out how to edit midi as regions like we do in all the other programs. Pro Tools, by default uses a "note" editor which is just a small piano roll editor. Just change the view and there you go!
I'm here to stay!

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

Key so this software is to put it in a desktop system that you don't switch hardware out all time direct to the computer..such as a sound card.

I have a project mix and a portable mbox..

Once I figured just to use the one project mix..and a few installs..it worked solid.

This software is definitely not user friendly at first..I consider myself an expert but I had no clue how to add and record instruments. I had to swallow my pride and go take a class on pro tools. This is not cakewalk, acid 7 or ableton. To make a long review short, after the class I find protools to be even easier and more fluid then the rest of the software out there. The region lists are genious. I can now build a song almost as fast as ableton.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

I've used Pro Tools for years, but never had my own system. I had been using Motu Digital Performer because I was able to use interfaces that weren't Avid. When I heard that Pro Tools 9 FINALLY let's you use your own hardware, I jumped on it. I'm so glad I did. It is superior and easier to use.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

as a professional with decades of experience, i have NO TIME for fooling around, and PT9 worked PERFECT, RIGHT AWAY. jobs are moving forward, and i couldn't be happier. the combo of PT9 with the iMac 21" is perfect for editors, and i'm using a ECHO audio interface , and it sounds fantastic. No complaints, other than the skimpy little manual, which is why i paid for the full version. i don't care about some trees, i want a manual, haha. great product.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

Pro Tools 9 is a great platform for any audio production. The interface is easy on the eyes, and includes all the tools you will ever need to create your own project. Even the plug-INS are great, and there is a ton of help and tips in the online community. I would recommend Pro Tools to anyone looking for quality software for recording, mixing, and mastering,

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

This is what I should have been using for the last 5 years. Of course, I didn't want Digi hardware, so that kept me from Pro Tools, until now.

Seamlessly integrates with my Metric Halo 2882. Automatic Latency Compensation is my new favorite thing in the universe: MioStrip on any track, Lexicon PCM60 on an Aux, whatever hardware compressor, etc, etc, wherever I want it, all in sync and ready to be bounced whenever I feel like it.

After using Digital Performer for years, this is like taking cotton our of your ears. I had long been aware of DP's sound engine problems, the muddied sound, but why I didn't do anything about it, aside from trying the flaky Cubase 5, I don't know. Pro Tools rocks. Pure and simple.

On my external OWC drive (5400 rpm, 2.5", WD Scorpio Blue), I am able to playback 48 tracks at 24/96, which is as many voices as PT 9 will do anyway. Currently, that's over a USB bus, as the Mio 2882 doesn't play well on the same bus as the recording drive (Expresscard FW800 on the way to rectify this).

I have only spent a week with PT 9, so I haven't delved into the deepest caverns yet. But as far as general recording and mixing, it's amazing.

The only thing I wish it had was a printed manual. But who doesn't wish for such things these days. They say one is available on demand, but as of yet, no such thing exists. The PDF's included contain a wealth of info though and are well laid out, so no complaints. And there are a number of videos on youtube for those unfamiliar with the Pro Tools layout and functions. As usual, the problem isn't knowing what you want to do, it's just finding the button to do it.

Some would complain that there is no way to customize the keyboard shortcuts. I know I was a bit miffed at first. But this is sensible, since this software is used in virtually every studio in the world. And, aside from a few things being dependent on a keypad (which I don't have--apple wireless keyboard here), the assigned shortcuts are really great.

The basic color schemes are pretty easy on the eyes. Unlike DP 7, where the back of your brain will be sunburned. And flipping between mix and edit windows is a single shortcut, and speeds work flow immensely.

On the mac, you will want to remap a few system keys, like spotlight. I had gotten used to Spotlight's command+space key, but in PT that is Record+Play. Since I had started hitting command space at rather inopportune times anyway, seeing it go was no big deal. I remapped it to Command+', which has proven to be much, much better. The other things like Spaces, or whatever, I don't use anyway.

So...

If you want to merge your analog gear with the digital world, this is the thing to get. If you want to make some serious records, this is the thing to get. If you want a grilled cheese sandwich, make it yourself, what, do I look like your mother? I'm sure she's a handsome woman.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

[...]. Make sure you have a computer that can run it. I had to upgrade mine, having used mostly Logic on it.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

You think for [$] they'd give you a manual to go with the software. Instead you have to download a PDF and scroll through that nightmare. Otherwise it's a great product but a little glitchy at times.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

Been a Pro Tools user for years, didnt necessarily want to upgrade to Pro Tools 9 (flashyness isnt really what Im concerned with), but with the ability to connect with third-party audio interfaces, automatic delay compensation and many other perks, im glad I did!

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

I'm using PT 9 with the Apogee Symphony system, and it's working seamlessly. All of the OS problems with 8.x have been solved. Stable and easy to install/setup.

Comments about Avid Pro Tools 9 Software:

I bought this product because I needed gear with not just more sound or beat creator, but also easy to use and has as many loops as possible, great sound and based on some reviews that I read from other users, I chose protols. So far I am very satisfied with this product, and it works good with other music programs that I have on my pc. My instincts didn't fool me and I am greatful too for all those who write reviews about their purchases...very helpful folks, keep it up.
Thanks.