How important is it to have a Pro Tools rig?

[Jeff MacdonaldModerator]

I have worked with Pro Tools quite a bit, but grew up using Cubase as it was always available and continue to use it today. I am getting to that point where I don't think I would mind a change to a new DAW. It seems Pro Tools is still the major player in the DAW market and that most of large studios you see run it as a DAW. Do you think there is any advantage from a marketing standpoint, or even that of a practical one (being able to import sessions without the buggery of .omf files) of having Pro Tools as a main DAW? Anyhow, I am still on the fence if I want to add another DAW to the mix, but like all things if there is really no benefit to the software I might redirect the money into something more fun.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Rich ZeiParticipant]

These days I am not 100% sure one needs a specific PT rig. I am 90/10 MixBus and Logic. I think as log as the files are exported as .WAVs it doesn't really matter.

[Jeff MacdonaldModerator]

Thanks for the reply. I did a pretty lousy job in my initial post of asking a clear question. Specifically I was looking for thoughts on the importance of remote session players to have the ability to import sessions that have already been rough mixed. Essentially being able to hear what the band was hearing before you get a hold of a project to add parts, so that it's a) quicker to add parts to and send back and b)no time is lost having to re-roughmix, etc.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Cris Sabater SabaterParticipant]

Hi guys, I agree with syklopz that it is not a needed thing in the studio today. Pro Tools is a big player mainly in the US and it is used in Europe but not to the same level. Whether it is individual tracks or stems they can be printed and sent to whoever is mixing. For example I mix and master all my bands songs. I use Studio One 3 but my colleagues in Germany use Ableton Live and my other band mate here in England uses Reason. They send all files printed and with any FX on if needed and vocals are send both dry and wet for my to choose. It always works out great so no need for any D.A.W in particular just what you are comfortable with.

Cheers guys,

Cris

• This reply was modified 8 years ago by Cris Sabater Sabater.

[Steve AParticipant]

I'll just add that until I figured out all of the intricacies of PT, I was lost, coming from another DAW (Mixcraft)
Now I use it almost exclusively, due to the workflow ease, once familiarized...
I looked at StudioOne and Harrison in detail, and love the look of those, but settled on PT once I saw all of the tuts were using PT as well...
I just wish they (Avid) would keep up with the times, and features, of other DAWs
As far as the business side, I think PT is not a liability, put it that way...
Cheers

[Jeff MacdonaldModerator]

Hey 3rdstone,

I made the switch a couple weeks ago myself. I find it a much more intuitive platform than Cubase and for some reason people are liking to see the new DAW even if I am not quite as fluent in the workflow yet.

The cloudbased project collaboration looks interesting as well.

I made the jump and am not regretting it a bit.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Steve AParticipant]

Yea Jeff, I have nothing against any DAW that helps someone create the best music they can, so whatever works.

For me personally, there are four main things that made me switch, two of them I already mentioned, one is that the number of useful tutorials done using PT, probably outweigh the competition by a very large percentage. That is the main reason I switched.
Another is that once you get over the learning curve, it really does help the workflow speed up. (and god knows I need that..lolz..)
Thirdly, so many pro studios use it, the transfer-ability is something that appealed to me as well.
And lastly, it's the DAW that has manufacturers of multitudes of studio products just itching to get PT users to buy them. A lot of products make sure that they are PT compatible, whether it's plugin software, a control surface, an educational book, and/or everything in-between.

I still own my copy of Mixcraft, which is like the poor-mans Logic, with tons of great samples, loops, included plug-ins and other assorted goodies that help in the creative process, all for less that $175 for the pro version. I also own Reaper, which will do certain things other DAWs can't (yet) ..it has a great community that is very helpful too. It also doesn't hurt that it's less than $100.. so there's that.. and the fact that the licencing for both these DAWs can be used without an I-lok, and can be used on a number of machines.
Thing is, when I go back to them now, it just seems like there's 'something missing" ...so yea, Pro Tools is going to remain my primary DAW now that I have gotten used to it...
Cheers
-Steve

[Chris SweetParticipant]

I know PT is sort of the industry standard but I've never taken the time to learn it. I've been using logic for over 10 years and for me workflow is the most important thing. I just know how to get what I want out of it and get it quickly. Probably should take the time to atleast know how to work PT though.

[Jeff MacdonaldModerator]

I made the switch from Cubase Pro 2 weeks ago and frankly I don't think I can go back. PT is a much more intuitive system at least for me, especially for buss routing and automation.

I agree though, it's not the tool it's the how you use it, but for me I find PT to be a slightly better tool for my work flow.

Avid does offer a free version of PT if you ever did want to mess around with it for familiarity: http://www.avid.com/pro-tools-first

[Chris SweetParticipant]

Cool I didn't know that was available. Thanks

[Jared ShermanParticipant]

Yes Pro Tools | Free seems great for learning the workflow, but it is so limited its pretty much useless for any real work such as the fact that sessions can only be saved to the cloud and you only get 3. But I guess it could be a good way to learn so you can get off the ground running with Pro Tools once you buy the real thing.

[Loren KnightParticipant]

I recently had an engineer tell me that one should at least have the free version (or the cheapest version) that is able to open a Pro Tools session so that if you get a Pro Tools file you are good. But I would think that normally you'd get the stems from an engineer if just recording at a studio (and mixing at home, for instance).

I don't know.

But I will say this, PreSonus is really targeting Pro Tools users. You can set up S1 with PT shortcuts and there is, IIRC, a video series on transitioning from PT to S1.

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