Wanting to make decent multi-track recordings at home with my own music equipment and software and computer. I have an iMac 600 MHz with 512 MB of RAM and I'm running OS 10.2.8. I have the Audiophile USB sound interface. Would want to record music with vocals or without sometimes. Would like to be able to burn to standard CD format (AIFF). Thanks for voting, and thanks for any additional comments!

I voted myself for Tracktion but this is just from reading the features and seeing what each program is all about. Jasmine seems fine but there are very few details about the program and I get no answer from the e-mails I've sent to them.

Metro looks good too, but seems like a stripped down and somewhat complicated version of the more "professional" versions of Metro

Intuem looks very good too. I would have to say I'm tied between Intuem and Tracktion. One feature of Intuem that I don't know if it comes on Tracktion is the ability to convert MIDI to audio. I have read some negative comments about Intuem, but they have been mostly about earlier versions. I would hope that they have some of the bugs cleared up with this newer version.

I suggest Garageband for simple recordings, and some interesting effect works, for loop based work.

thanks for the suggestion of garageband. Unfortunately, it will barely run on my iMac (according to the system requirements from the Apple website) and I will not be able to use any of the garageband instruments unless I have a G4.

for a beginner...if they had a medium grade computer G3 or whatever, and they were running os 9. i would suggest ebay and buy a copy of logic 4 or something like that for like 50 dollars. you would have a seriously good application plus you would be learning to use industry standard daw and technique.

happy recording,

jeremy

can't vote, your options don't include Garageband, nor "none of the above", so I can't vote, since I haven't tried any of the above...

thanks zelen0. I appreciate the feedback. I only put those 4 choices because that is what would seem to work best on my system and with my level of skill, interest, and time. Hopefully those who have used these programs or are familiar with the use of them will vote. Have a great day!

So far only Tracktion and Metro have received votes. I have had discussions about Intuem on my other topic on Multi-track software and some of the pitfalls to watch out for. Anyone voting or browsing this poll, please comment if you feel you have some wisdom to impart to a newbie like me! Thanks!

Just wanted to second or third the previous Tracktion recommendations. I downloaded the demo for curiosity's sake due to a blurb on osxaudio. I was completely blown away by how intuitive everything was. It even looks good to me. I think Live users will like the way the app 'looks', if that matters to you at all. You do end up staring at these things for hours on end..

It also seems to be very 'lean and mean' to me. Example: I run a 400mhz G3 Pismo Powerbook (500+RAM) with a 7200rpm external Firewire drive and a US428 interface. Using DP (my preferred app for over 10 years), I'm lucky to get one iteration of Stylus and a Sampletank running before the system chokes. I didn't really mind; I understand my PB is older, and luckily there's freeze tracks to ease the pain somewhat. But I fired up Tracktion and just starting adding plugins to see what would happen. I've had 6 Stylus plugins, a Sampletank, and 4-5 Plugsound modules running, unfrozen in Tracktion before the processor bar starts to go into the red. Further, latency- both MIDI and audio- is, to my ears, non-existant in Tracktion. Definitely not the case in DP. And this is on a Pismo PB.

That's all great, but what really sold me is how easy it is to use. Adjust volume, add filters (plugins), change MIDI/Audio inputs...even the track freeze is simpler. Now for disclaimers. 1) I think Tracktion will appeal most to people like myself who want pretty much everything they need on one screen. It is definitely setup for that purpose. If you prefer seperate windows, multiple popups, etc., it may not be for you. 2) It does have a way to go in terms of power-editing. I don't think even its creator would put it up against Logic and the others in that department. That's not to say however, that it is a toy; it definitely isn't. And it is continually being improved upon by the designer, but I think his plan is to do so without bloating it. Fine line I guess! 3)No Audio Units yet; just VST. 4) No video window for scoring, yet.

This topic is about software for newbies. I'd say if you're new in the young sense, and growing up with Reason, ACID, Live, etc., you'll love Tracktion. Traditional Pro Tools-types might not, I don't know. Having said that, I'm in my 30s, grew up with 4-tracks, mixing boards, and Peformer on a Mac Classic, outboard synths, etc., I write a lot of country and pop in traditional song-format. I'm not Loop/Dance/DJ guy (although I am a closet-ambient guy). But I love this thing. I don't ever plan on going back. Tracktion doesn't have a 'mixing board screen', and I don't miss it. I don't feel like it is necessary. You can achieve the same things, but they are handled a different way (in my opinion, a superior way).

I beg any of you who haven't tried it to download the demo and give it a go. No blanket statements that everybody is going to love it. I think some will say "That's not for me". For others, I think it might change the way you work with music software.

Dadoo, can you stop bumping this thread?

I'm going to pin it, so it'll be on top till I unpin it… No need to post to bump anymore, I'm sure everyone knows now that you are thanking them

Sorry not to comment, But I don't know all these softwares…

Hands Down Tracktion. I have' nt tried it, but from the looks of what it supports it seems pretty cool. VST and VSTi Support and ReWire.
... Then go buy your self a copy of "Computer Music" magazine.

Includes a cd w/ their free VST instruments that include some real cool soft synths and samplers you can use with Tracktion. ...fo free!www.computermusic.co.uk

i have an idea...

to save money the lastest computer musiic mag seems to have a sequencer and some vst's and an audio editor package for free.
they say they are all full versions. hmm... who knows?

Great feedback and suggestions!

I DL'd the Demo of Trackion, it is a very cool prog. The interface feels a lot like Ableton Live. I tested out rewire w/ Reason and Ableton Live Digidesign edition, both worked. All of my VST plugins were available.
...Very very cool for $80 US.

Dadoo, thanks for doing this poll. I've been something of a fence-sitter myself. The irony is I had just stumbled across Tracktion when you began your inquiries. As others have weighed in I've gone back and taken a second look at my MetaSynth app.'s (something I had given up on as being terribly complex- Logic should be a breeze after this!), and started playing with Tracktion in conjunction w/GB to get the best of both worlds, Vst/AU.

Whenever I thought about starting from scratch w/ one of the BigBoys (Cubase-PT-etc) I've kept plugging w/ the minor-leagues. When the opportunity knocks, i.e.- some money comes into my mitts, this "practice time" should pay off. Beats sittin' with my thumb up me bum

thanks for the reply. I'm not sure if you voted or not, but it sounds like you are using Tracktion now and it is going well. Fair assessment? I'm sitting on the fence, as you say, , since my time is limited and so I need something easy to use, but also with enough features that I can do SOMEthing with it. The big boys seem to have way too much for me anyway and I'm sure I would have to have large blocks of time to put my effort into learning them, especially the jargon and terminology. At this point I need something I can dive into with relative ease and start to use intuitively without spending days pouring through manuals and menus, etc.

If your computer will run OS 9, partition the hard drive and go with the Mbox that comes with Pro Tools LE or better yet create another user in OS X.2 and make a PT User from there. I find it to be straight foward and trouble free. Unfortunately, the Mbox doesn't work the way you'd expect in Garage Band.

I've downloaded Tracktion for OS X and have just started to dabble with it. I hope to have had more experience with it before the week is out. It seems more people are voting now for Tracktion. I'm giving it a good "Newbie" look. Will let you know my feelings about it afterwards.

Keep recording!

Have had a bit of time to try out Tracktion for Mac. So far, it has been fairly easy to use and seems to produce good results, although the demo puts in a periodic "hiss" which interrupts the recorded sound occasionally. I like the ease of adding filters or effects to tracks or individual clips. It seems to have a very easy learning curve, based on my very limited experience in this and the short length of time I have had to work with this program and achieve some results.

A couple of questions, though, if I may. The sound level seems to be low. I'm putting my bass and guitar directly into my Audiophile USB interface. Should I be running it through a pre-amp first? If so, what pre-amp works well for computer recording? I do have a PA system, would that work as a pre-amp or is it too powerful?

Also, how do you get the recording to go on both left and right of the stereo sound when you only have individual left and right input jacks on the USB interface?

Thanks again!

As far as Getting started, with no music experience, I'd recommend Inteum. I've downloaded all three and by far it seems to be the easiest to use. I have some issues with its layout, but overall it does the basic stuff I need it to do.

Well, here's the update on my experience thus far. I downloaded Tracktion (demo) and have found the time to record a short little instrumental piece with an acoustic, electric, and bass. I was able to add effects to the tracks that I wanted and was able to easily adjust the volume of each of the 3 tracks to levels that were complimentary. I was surprised at how quickly a newbie like myself could does this stuff. I have a ton to learn still but so far Tracktion makes it easy. I even learned how to connect my old Yamaha keyboard to my Audiophile USB interface, load a midi file into Tracktion and have it played for my on my keyboard. Probably old hat for many of you, but to me .... amazing!

I did download Intuem (demo) to try it out as well. So far, a big disappointment. Tried to do the midi thing with it and it wouldn't play. It just kept freezing up my computer. And not like just the program freezing up, but its freezing up did it to every other program I tried to open up, so I had to restart my computer (which I rarely have to do in OS 10.2.8). So I'm not impressed with Intuem at all.

Heh. Did you set up your preferences in Inteum? It works fine for me in X.3. I only use Inteum when I'm recording piano music that I'm playing, and when my younger brothers want to record some stuff. As far as editing goes, its lacking. But one thing I do like is the actual display of the clefs and time signature (similar to music, easier to read for me).

Other than that, I can't decide whether to register Tracktion or spend the extra $70 (educational discount) for Logic Express. I doubt I'll be trying to sell anything I make, so the educational label doesn't bother me that much. Any suggestions?

Yes, I did set the preferences. It still didn't work. I was able to get the midi stuff converted to musical notation, which is nice but the program kept hanging up on me (OS 10.2.8, 512 MB of RAM, iMac 600 MHz)

has anyone every heard the saying "time is money". what i get from that is. you can spend a little more money and get a quality app like logic express, or you can skimp and get a budget app that you spend more time with lock-ups, crashes, and put lack of features.

happy recording,

editbrain

If you have a G4 iMac try GarageBand - it runs fine on my 667 tibook. I have never tried Tracktion tho but iLife 'O4 is a bargain...


MacIDOL Mac Music Collective

ONLY if it has a "line level" output. DO NOT plug speaker level signal from any PA or amp into the inputs of any digital recording interface.

Now, a mixer (unpowered), is OK

TD

For bass, I use SanAmp bass driver, it's an awesome piece of kit. Next to my Stingray, it's the single best piece I've added for recording bass guitar. $200 and worth every penny. They also make SansAmp for guitar as well.

Hope that helps,

TD

Which i can highly recommend - i have an original one - it's fantastic.

mac music collective

fingers by 'original' do you mean the SansAmp classic?

Well it was just called the Sans Amp when I got it - it probably is the same as the classic version - but i don't know for sure. It sure looks the same to me...

http://www.tech21nyc.com/

You can probably find an original on ebay cheap.

I hope this helps.

Rich

mac music collective

Yeah, why isn't Garageband on the list?

The Price/Features/Learning Curve really make
Garageband an excellent DAW/Sequencer to start
off with.

Just think for $50 you get:

1. Easy to use interface
2. Audio Unit Support
3. Super Easy Loop Editing
4. Live input channels
5. A decent list of software instruments and effects.

Tried simultaneous multi-track recording in Garageband...
Maybe that is why...

Hey Seth. Thanks for the input. The reason Garageband is not in this survey was because I started this survey and my iMac 600 MHz is the bare minimum requirements to run Garageband, and even then I cannot run anything beyond the basic program without moving up to a G4. Also, the requirements for Garageband say that you have to have a DVD ROM to be able to install it. I only have a CD burner. So I'm hooped either way!

Otherwise, Garageband appears to be a fantastic program for a person's introduction to the world of digital music recording. I know people who use it and are happy with what they have been able to do.

The purpose of this survey was to help me get an idea from others who have used these multi-track programs (that will install and run on my machine) as to which would be the best to get me started. I have downloaded Tracktion and Intuem and looked at Jasmine and Metro. Jasmine seems too basic for going much further with multi-track recording. Metro SE seems to have a steep learning curve with many menus and submenus and multiple windows, etc. The demo of Intuem just kept crashing my machine and so I ditched it. Tracktion was quite easy to pick up on and the demo has worked very well for me.

The thing that puts me off Garage Band and correct me if I am wrong is that it can only play internal Mac Midi sounds .. you can connect your external MIDI keyboard to record from but GB will not play back the sounds on your external Keyboard and to me that sucks big time

Thanks Shane. I'm not aware of whether or not Garageband can play back MIDI through an external player. Someone with experience with that will have to answer you.

I know very little but I saw this written in 2 different places and one of them at least was the apple offical site so it is gotta be right cause i was just gonna buy a mac and use GB but without access to playing external midi sounds it sucks... you can plug an external keyboard in and play midi data in but it doesnt seem set up to go the other way which is kinda wierd.

I have used Metro, Intuem and Traktion.

Intuem has the advantage as far as converting MIDI to Audio, unlimited Audio tracks and Freeze feature. But it has major problems managing AU instruments and Soundfonts. To change from one instrument to another you have to save your composition, close it, change the Preferences/Default MIDI settings and open your piece of work all over again. Limited Audio Editing capacity but you can Export and Import Audio Clips.

Traktion seemed very good at times and awfully frustrating at other times. The Help ballons are annoying but necessary ( I know I contradict myself) because it's an "all in one window" kind of program you don't know what all those buttons are for! Great VST instruments and effects management, great Audio Editing capacities but it just looks like a Videogame and you never get the feeling you are working with Art! If you are patient enough to learn all the tricks and do not mind the visual elements this is your choice!

Metro looks professional, feels profesional but it's a slow turtle compared to the previously mentioned programs. Limited Audio tracks. Good MIDI management. Clumsy interface and in a way it gets boring. The design is not very estimulating.

Audacity should have been on the list.... Not! lol

Heard good stuff about Cacophony, any word on that?

Thanks for your reply garzita and your input. Your findings on Intuem and Tracktion are similar to mine. I have found Intuem to be buggy and slow. Tracktion is simply to use and has many features for the money. I don't mind the interface, and yes the balloon help is annoying (you can turn it off though!) but helpful as you learn it. It's nice to work all in one window for the modest things that I would like to do. Metro SE I have not downloaded, but would like to try it and confirm if it's for me or not.

Cacophony I have not used. Will check it out!

Dadoo,I use a G3 iBook 600Mhz,with 640 MB of ram..thats actually enough to run GarageBand.I use the software instruments too,and there seems to be no lagging,except when playing through songs with more than six midi tracks,when it sometimes stops playing.Its certainly not un-useable,except
the software instruments arent exactly quality.But hey....what can you expect from a £30 program.

thanks for the information Ambeintz. I'm still fiddling around with Tracktion when I have time. It does pretty well. I've just done some simply stuff with guitars and bass. Easy to do with Tracktion. I'm sure Garageband is just as easy. Good to know that it may work for me!

I was fortunate enough to catch the Tracktion free promo when they were running it and was able to get it for absolutely nothing. Version 1 is probably worth the $80 they're asking for it these days - excellent way to get one's feet wet.

iLife '05 with GarageBand 2 is worth getting as well - lots of fun loops and instruments to get you started, and the expansion Jam Packs are relatively cheap. It doesn't work with external instruments/MIDI very well, so if that's your goal Tracktion is probably a better investment.

Righty heres a question for you all. Garageband comes with a load of cool effects, this i know and am loving. Does Tracktion2 come with any cool sounding built in effects? its just i want something abit more powerful than garageband but keeping the effects and the inexpensiveness. Any ideas?
Thanks

Rory

Tracktion ships with quite a few VST Effects and Instruments and can use any VST plug-ins. Check out the Sofware section to see just how many free VST effects are out there.
So effects shouldn't be a problem.
Personally, I find Tracktion supposedly "intuitive" interface, highly unintuitive, especially with regard to project manament.
My vote would go to Cubase SE as the Best Multi-Track Recording Software For Newbies.
$99 and generous upgrade policy plus a familiar interface make it my choice.

Tracktion is now up to version 2. It has a lot of extra features and still maintains its single window interface. Check out www.mackie.com for information about it, links to reviews on it, and a video preview of the program (cheesy, but comical *L*). You can also download a demo of the program. Perhaps it is time this poll is updated with a new slate of choices which includes Garageband 2 as well. My trouble is that I need a new machine capable or running these programs *L*. My old iMac 600 MHz is looking long in the tooth.

Here's yet another possibility to add to the mix: I'm in the process of withdrawing from grad school, and while I still have access to the educational discount I can get LogicPro Express at a very deep discount: namely, $99 US as opposed to $299. My questions: (1) is this starting too much at the "deep end" for a total novice--should I be starting with something simpler like GarageBand? And (2) I have a first-generation eMac: 700 MHz G4, 256 MB RAM. Am I likely to choke my machine by attempting to run LogicPro Express on it?

Thanks!

At first I thought, "99bucks is 200 saved." However, you will need at least a gig of Ram to use Logic Express - go to Apples Web site & check other requirements- Heck, Garage Band may even require more than what you got. My impression is at least an 800mhz processer is needed to do any audio program justice. I'd get Logic & maybe concentrate on getting a faster computer.

I fear you're right, mortalengines--and given that I won't be in a position to buy a new computer anytime soon, I'll probably have to let that amazing price go. I'll probably just get GarageBand and get my feet wet that way.

Thanks for the reply.

For anyone interested in the LogicExpress v. Garageband debate...I would throw my hat to LE any day. The primary reason is in how LE handles audio overhead. I have heard that they use the same core audio engine, however, I am able to have MANY more tracks running in LE without choking the processor than I can in GB2. For instance, I am able to run the "Jupiter" demo file from Jam Pack 4 without any tracks frozen in LE. In GB2 it barely works with just a few tracks unfrozen. Also the load times for some of the Symphony Orchestra sounds take forever to load in GB whereas they take about half the time in LE.

Logic makes a much more intelligent use of the available CPU power. GB is a CPU hog inn regard to its possibilities.

I see that Intuem has gone to version 3.5 and has cleaned up some of the bugs and such that previous versions have had. They have a 30 day free tryout of the program and it is $79.95 US. It seems interesting and I've just started to try it out. It says it works on OS 10.2.8 and higher and a 600 MHz G3 Mac (which is what I have!) but encourages users to try it out on their machine first before buying. Not being a multi-track recording pro, I do not know if it is missing any significant features. It seems pretty complete to me, even down to converting midi to audio and printing out notation with lyrics! If anyone else has any experience in this area, feel free to comment. So far, I like it.

If u want a great DAW just go with Ardour (its free but u should really make a donation) or if u want Audacity is a amazing program. After i started using those programs i cant even see why you would go with any comercial software, but i guess some ppl just think since its commercial its better.