Reviews, DAWs
Bitwig Studio
$399 USD + $120 USD per year
Bottom line:
Bitwig Studio is a breath of fresh air in a very crowded market, and though much of the hype is old news for the competition, I feel Bitwig Studio is on course to develop a nice little niche community for themselves.
Reviews
PreSonus Audio Studio One Professional v3
$399 USD
Bottom Line:
With such a massive list of changes to v3, I’m wondering if current users are going to be frustrated or enthralled. Other companies typically introduce new features to their DAW’s slowly over time, giving users time to let the changes sink in. Studio One 3 is a huge leap forward from the previous release, it’s almost a totally new DAW.
Reviews
Propellerhead Reason 9.5
From $125 USD
Bottom Line:
I’m instantly in the zone when I start dropping in rack units, plugging in synths and tweaking the mixing console – I just love that, it’s my happy place, and it shows in the music I make with Reason.
Reviews
Ableton Live 9.5
$300-$800 USD
Bottom Line:
If drag-and-drop, sample-based loops, and MIDI sequencing is your thing, Ableton Live 9.5 is easily your dream production tool. If you’re totally new to digital audio Ableton is a solid choice for starting out with and I can see why it is so popular with remix producers and electronica musicians.
Reviews
Harrison Mixbus 3
$79 USD
Bottom Line:
Mixbus 3 is a wonderful little gem, and if like me you’re finding digital mixing to be too sterile and you miss the good ol’ hardware mixing days you are in for a treat.