Pro Tools LE Review

[Electronic]

Introduction

This review is dedicated to Tweakheadz Studio Central. The Tweakheadz Guide is an excellent introduction to those who want to get started in today’s music world, and the forum is full of people of all levels.

After reading through a few replies to Pro Tools related subjects, I’m not sure if people have a strong enough reference to refer to (of any sort) regarding Pro Tools... Most of the time, subjects are on this sort of tip:

Why No Pro Tools?

So since I’ve been using Pro Tools for a while now, I felt like I should review the sequencer.

So where to start on such a task? The forum has reviews/views on full versions of other sequencers (typically Logic, Sonar or Cubase) but when we review Pro Tools, it’s the light version of the sequencer called Pro Tools LE that gets the review as apposed to the full version like other sequencers do (Pro Tools HD). So as of this writing, is this going to be a fair review?

Let’s briefly look at both versions of Pro Tools to decide:


Pro Tools HD

- Surround Sound Conscious
- More inputs/outputs (i/o)

-Supports TDM, HTDM, RTAS and AudioSuite Plugins
TDM plug-ins are uniquely powerful because they utilize dedicated, power-on-demand hardware rather than relying on the limited resources of the host computer.) HTDM, RTAS and AudioSuite run on your computer.

- Dedicated processing power
When you buy a Pro Tools|HD system, you choice is one of three Core systems, and also one or more audio interfaces. (Each has progressively more DSP power)

- Requires its own, Digidesign Audio Interface. (Digidesign 192 or 96)

- Much more expensive than Pro Tools LE
Typically, a full Pro Tools HD system could start around $10,000 and can range to $100,000 and beyond. For the UK, the price is about £8,000 / £9,000 and beyond.


Pro Tools LE

- Not Surround Sound Conscious
- Less inputs/outputs (i/o)

- Supports RTAS and AudioSuite Plugins
RTAS (Real Time AudioSuite) plug-ins provide real-time processing and can be assigned to as many tracks as you like within the limits of your system. RTAS plug-ins are often the same as those found in our professional TDM systems, except that they use your computer's processing power instead of specialized TDM hardware. AudioSuite plug-ins are non-real time plug-ins that gives you the option to put effects on the actual audio file itself.

- Relies on your computer
LE systems rely on the processing power of your computer’s CPU exclusively. The speed and power of your CPU and RAM in your computer determine how many plug-in effects and software synthesizers you can use simultaneously.

- Requires its own, Digidesign Audio Interface. (An Mbox 2, a Digi 002, or a Digi 002 Rack)

- Less expensive
Typically, the price for an LE system could be less than $500 and beyond. (Depending on your needs)


NOTE
There is also Pro Tools M-Powered which is basicly Pro Tools LE but M-Audio products are compatible with it as well as digidesign products. This gives you a lot mote Audio Interfaces (AI) to choose from (20+) as well as other M-Audio product like control surfaces. (But beware, Digi002 is not compatible with M-Powered… so there’s the trade off)
Pro Tools M-Powered software is sold separately for about $250, and an M-Audio interface can range from about $100 to about $1300.

Final Summery

In essence, LE has less than half the potential ability compared to HD. But however, Pro Tools LE compared to other systems is still a strong system.

1) Do you need surround sound?
2) Do you need more than potentially 18 i/o?
3) Would you run a high performance application on a weak computer since computer prices are dropping by the second?
4) Are the Audio Interfaces of LE good enough or would you settle for a cheaper AI with a weaker DAC? (Digital to Analog Converter)

Just by looking at the list of 4 points above, most would agree to ask ourselves to find out how it stands next to Logic, Sonar, Cubase, Digital Performer and other applications.
Of coarse, there are situations where the individual has a weak computer, and Pro Tools is very selfish when it comes to CPU power (it wants it all to itself like a spoilt brat), so in this situation I think these individuals first priority should be to upgrade or to buy a new system if they are thinking about Pro Tools LE.

The second situation is the ‘entrapment’ factor. When you buy a Pro Tools application, only Digidesign products are compatible with it (unless you buy M-Powered where M-Audio products are compatible as well), this gives you a sense of ‘entrapment’ in the Digidesign world.
So how entrapped are you? When it comes to i/o’s, Audio Interfaces and things to do with the system, you go Digidesign. Other things like external hardware are not a problem (i.e samplers, sound modules). Is it that much of a problem? This is now down to the individual. But there are benefits from ‘entrapment’… yes, I said it. In order to understand this we should take probably the most fundamental example of ‘entrapment’ – Apple. The Apple MAC has more power in CPU cycles and has much more RAM to offer you than a PC does…. Put it this way, I’m trying to get a system with 2GB RAM setup…. But Apple can offer me 16GB RAM as of this writing… But where’s the trade off? So you want 16GB RAM do you? (Says the devil)

I think the last sentence pretty much sums up Apple in a nut shell. Apple gear is only compatible with other Apple products. Do want to upgrade? Apple products is your only choice (you can’t go anywhere). But the benefits are that you have no compatibility problems… Its the same with Digidesign.

To continue on the point of CPU power, and the fact that you need a strong/fast computer to run Pro Tools efficiently, first up its clear to see that if you have a weak computer or you cannot afford to get a faster computer with a good amount of RAM designed to suit your writing style (Because the more you add into a Pro Tools session, the more RAM it will take up), Pro Tools will be your worst nightmare and therefore, the worst sequencer you’ve ever had the misfortune of coming across. But also there is a view, in which if you leave most of your system resources free for Pro Tools to use, you can still get a good session flowing – despite a some what a ‘weak’ computer…

Again, on computers… what would be the point of doing a review on a sequencer that has all the support it needs from a computer which can offer the absolute power, when most people can’t afford to get the same setup for themselves? Lets test Pro Tools.

The computer system I will use to test Pro Tools is as follows:

- PC
- 128 MB RAM
- GenuineIntel x86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 1 processor (600MHZ).
- Windows 98 (Second Edition)
- System Resources: 90% Free
- Hardrive: 25 GB

Now considering that as of this writing 1GB RAM is standard, with a processor speed of roughly about 2GHz or more on most computers purchased today, along with at least 80GB of RAM in the low end, combined with the ‘standard’ extra power that Windows XP gives you on a PC… I think this shall be a very interesting test indeed… also to add to the mixture, I’m going to test Pro Tools LE 5.1 without the updates (Because this is the version I have currently got, until I setup my new studio). With the updates installed, not much would have changed in terms of how you use Pro Tools generally, so we’ll see what it means to run a Pro Tools version with still some of the minor little bug/limitations present with what would be considered today a disgracefully weak PC. Also, I’ll be using the AudioSuite Plug-ins.


Enter Pro Tools LE

These are the areas that this review will aim brief on:

- The Pro Tools Session
- Working With Tracks
- Audio Recording
- MIDI Recording & Editing
- Working With Audio Regions & Selections
- Automation
- Mixing
- File Management
- Synchronization


The Pro Tools Session

[Pro Tools Edit Window]


When you first open a Pro Tools Session you get an empty session with no MIDI/Audio/Aux or Master tracks present. The aim is that as you build your track, you would introduce new tracks into the session, as you plan to use them.

As you introduce new tracks into the session, tracks will appear in the edit window for you to write notes/modulate on, and at the same time you will be building the tracks in the mixer for the mix window. (i.e. if you add 2 MIDI tracks, then 2 tracks will appear in the edit window organised the way it would look on Cubase or Logic, but at the same time if you switch to your mix window, you’ll also see that 2 tracks have also been created with faders, inserts, bus, pan, etc, for those same 2 MIDI tracks that you plan to write on, so that mixing & writing together). In Pro Tools you build your mixer, while your building your track simultaneously. As a result things are kept tidy and to a minimum.

Below you see a Pro Tools session where 2 MIDI tracks have been created, along with 2 Aux Stereo Tracks and Master Stereo Track. On the left is the Session in the edit window, on the right is how it looks in the mix window;



Tracks are not shown in blocks of little cubes like they are on other sequencers. Instead the tracks are shown as single edit tracks with all your notes standing on the outside. The advantage of this is that you can actually see how each note is bouncing off one another in the separate tracks. This makes it easier to build the track as you can scroll up & down all the notes through the whole session at the same time. (Or even open the mix window at the same time too). See the image below… Can you see how you can tell when everything is happening, against what note or at what destination?



If you’ve used Logic, Cubase or Sonar before, then using Pro Tools will be one of the simplest move’s you would have ever made. Because of the highest level of organisation presented in Pro Tools the transition is like a natural sine wave. (I can personally speak from experience)

If you have not used a sequencer before, at first this sequencer might seem more than what you had expected. But once you get to grippes with it, you’ll be almost forced to write tracks in an organised way and with speeds that you thought you could never reach. This is because the writing style of the individual and the natural progression/building of the session, along with the natural order of the session where everything can be flexibly changed, flows in sync with the user in real time.


Working With Tracks

For this section I’ll use the image below as a ‘Master Image’ for you to refer back to as I review each issue.

['Working With Tracks’ Master Image]


OK, so I launch Pro Tools, Click on File > New Session, Choose my Bit Depth (The choice I got was between 16 - 24 Bit) & Choose my Sample rate (Between 44.1 – 48khz in Pro Tools LE 5.1) and other minor options, save the session at my desired location by clicking ‘save’ which in turn will open up a new session.

Creating tracks was dead easy. I just click on File > New Track, and then select what type of track I want (Audio Track, AUX Track, Master Track or MIDI Track) and then how many tracks of that type I want. (Lets say 3 MIDI Tracks). OK, fairly simple so my tracks come up.

Next, setting the MIDI Inputs and Outputs. My criticism comes in here because although Pro Tools does put the i/o under a single field labelled ‘i/o’ (a), for someone new to the sequencer, its not clear which of the sections below it is for the input and which is for the output. Because although the whole field is labelled ‘i/o’, the actual sections themselves are not named. In this case the 1st section is ‘MIDI in’ and the 2ed section is ‘MIDI out’ (Some might say this is an un-necessary criticism, but I do remember as a Newbie feeling pretty confused by it foe a second) Assigning the input/outputs for Audio Tracks/AUX Tracks (or Master Tracks) is very easy because they are labelled which is the input/output.

Deleting tracks is very easy. Select the track you want to delete by clicking on its name (or more than one track by holding down the shift key), go File > Delete Selected Tracks.

You can also adjust the Pan and Volume settings on track (on the edit window) as well without clicking anything else, which is nice(b). You have the option of colour coding each track or not, grouping tracks in the edit window(c), zooming in and out(d), adding several Marker Points (e) (with the ‘enter’ key on the keyboard), changing the curser from hand to pencil etc… (f), you can change the grid to many different kinds of settings(g), and how much you want to nudge each note via (-) or (+)(h), and also use a quite nice transport bar(i). (Which you can hide with Ctrl + 1)

There are 2 sections on the left and right. The Show/Hide sections on the left (which lets you hide tracks by de-highlighting them with a click, and then clicking back to show them again in the session), and on the right is all the audio files that you would have recorded in the session (using this section, you could delete audio files from the disk and the session at the same time your in instantly, or drag and drop audio files that you’ve written in this section to other Audio Tracks). Hiding your tracks (left section) is a very good feature, because it takes the strain off your CPU from holding extra tracks. I like to have these 2 sections on show most of the time, but you can choose to close them in order to expand your working area.

Also, I love the fact that it has multiple Undo and Redo. (I cannot tell you how many times this has saved me)

Changing Tempo is a breeze (j). I have added about 30+ Tempo changes in my songs before, and it all holds up well. Adding Tempo Changes is easy via MIDI > Change Tempo, and deleting a Tempo Change is even easier. You just highlight the Tempo you want to delete and press ‘delete’ on the keyboard (you can also Undo this if you like as well). Most of the time, moving from location to another is a 2 step process (i.e. MIDI > Tempo Change, or FILE > New Track) Also changing the meter is very, very simply done through MIDI > Change Meter… you can have as many meter changes that you can handle, from 4/4 to 7/8 to 5/6 to 3/6 or anything, you name it. Just change the two numbers in the meters signature, set location of the change and click apply.

I generally have no problems with working with tracks in Pro Tools. Generally I find things easy to get to grips with and once I get going, I can really produce some good work.


Audio Recording

I find that audio recording in Pro Tools is just a Rec/Stop process. If you want to record in mono, just create a Mono Audio Track, press ‘rec’ on that track and then ‘play’ on the transport bar and off you go. You can also setup Punch & Loop Points, and record additional takes.

You can even create the amount of space that you want to record in to just by highlighting any area from bar to bar. (i.e. highlight from bar 5-17, and Pro Tools will start to record on bar 5 and finish on 17). The same goes with stereo tracks. (You can also split a stereo track in 2 mono tracks via File > Split Selected Tracks Into Mono). You can even record on several audio tracks at the same time if you like. The most I’ve ever done is about 4 audio tracks at the same time (I don’t really use Pro Tools for recording that much, I use it more for all its other features)

None the less, if your computer is strong enough to run several audio tracks with effects & EQ on them and record – without latency (which is caused by sample rate & buffer size) then I take my hat off to you. On this computer with a Processor of 600Mhz, the best I could do was run 24 Audio Tracks (which is the limit for version 5.1) but only 4 Tracks with EQ & Reverb (Without Bussing them). Compression & Gate didn’t take up much CPU power and RAM, so I managed to put both of these on each track. But soon, because of this setup of 24 Tracks + 4 tracks of EQ & Reverb + Compression and Gates that was working my poor 600Mhz & 128Mb RAM along with the countless amounts of MIDI Tracks, I frequently ran into dead ends where the sequencer wouldn’t run anymore, wouldn’t record, and would not play anymore… plus when I turned to the mix window (where the mixer shows), I found that Pro Tools had cut the screen into ¼ of what it was before (to save memory I’m presuming). This meant that I now had to scroll up & down or left & right within this tiny little window that Pro Tools had created for me to mix on because of the overdrive that my computer was feeling. (The CPU was crying for help).

I checked how much strain my computer was under via Windows > Show System Usage, and it was way above what my system could handle. Suddenly things became so fragile. I saved, restarted the computer, and opened up the same session again and suddenly found: Its working again! (Or so I thought) With all these Audio Tracks & Effects still up & running, I tried to create and write on some MIDI Tracks again, but the same thing happened again: Won’t play, won’t record, won’t run. It seems that Pro Tools LE can offer some resistance for a while to give you time to take pressure of the CPU by removing effects… but without a doubt, Pro Tools LE is as only as powerful as your computer is. It was designed to be this way, which is one of the reasons why they can charge less for it.

One feature that I adore about Pro Tools is Playlists. Playlists lets you record different takes of audio within the same track. It takes a snapshot of the current track you’ve recorded which you can revert back to, thereby leaving you to experiment with alternative recordings. (This also works with arrangements. You can have different takes of arraignments of audio that you could call up) So you never lose your work, or have to delete a take in order to free up the track.

Moral of the story? Are you thinking of buying Pro Tools LE? Buy a fast computer first with plenty of RAM (more than what the average sequencer demands) I’m not saying go buy a 16GB RAM MAC, but something that is above standard for today’s market


MIDI Recording & Editing

MIDI recording is a delight. I got up to 60+ tracks of MIDI, with 2 AUX Tracks present which each had 4-Band EQ inserted plus Reverb. There was no problem what so ever (even though I was just under the peak level in terms of system usage). Naming all the tracks is as easy as double clicking the track name, and also within naming the track there’s a space for you to write notes about each track. Recording, Editing, Looping, Zooming in & out (for all those minute details) was all a breeze to say the least. Quantizing via MIDI > Quantize (or just putting the note in place with the hand) was too easy (You even use Input Quantize to quantize your notes as you play them). Program Changes, changing Velocity, Duration, Transpose, Repeating Notes, Nudging Notes was all too easy to say the least.

Using Pro Tools LE (with a decent computer) to write MIDI Tracks, gives you the opportunity to write compositions and orchestrations of great complexity.

Working With Audio Regions & Selections

For me, the manipulation of audio files & audio regions in Pro Tools is one of the easiest and most creative things one can accomplish.

Cutting, copying, moving or nudging via shuffle, slide, grid and even quantizing audio regions is all but a very minor introduction to what one can do. If you make a mistake or delete a section of an audio track by accident, you can just heal it via File > Heal Separation to return it to its past form. Moving sections of audio from track to track via drag & drop, repeating of any audio section, deleting unwanted areas and compacting the audio track into a new one (selective destruction), crossfades (at any region) & inserting silences all too easy.

You can also change the size of the Audio Tracks vertically. You can choose from mini, small, medium, large, jumbo or extreme sizes. (Extreme is way, way too big).

One feature that is a nice touch in Pro Tools LE is the ability to draw waveforms. This simply means that you can zoom right into the waveform and draw out any clips that might be present in the waveform. (Follow the figures Drawing Waveforms Below)

[Drawing Waveforms]




The Audio Processing in Pro Tools LE is delightful. Adding Compressing, Gates, DeEsser, 1-Band/4-Band EQ, Invert, Reverse, Duplicating, Add Delay, Normalising, Pitch Shift, Reverb & Time stretching (Time Compression Expansion in Pro Tools LE) to an Audio file or a combination of events is too, too simple and very, very effective. Nice job Digidesign.

The Time stretch in Pro Tools LE is of exceptional quality to say the least. I threw everything at it… Pro Tools was very, very impressive.

On a downside, there can be too many parameters for one to ‘tweak’. But then again, it’s actually more material to explore. It down to the individual… if you only want the necessary parameters, it will frustrate you from time to time.

I think Pro Tools can handle audio processing very well, and the easy-to-use interfaces just makes things simpler.


Automation

You can automate any parameter on a plug-in or any feature in Pro Tools LE that’s in real time. Automating the Reverbs Mix Parameter (so that the reverb fades in) is sweet… or better still, why not automate all the parameters in a Plug-on!? Automate Input Level, Mix, Diffusion, Decay, Pre-Delay, HPF, LPF, from all sorts! But wait… while your at it, automate the panning and the volume (or mute) and throw in all the parameters from all the other plug-ins! Automate all the parameters on Delay, Compression, 1-Band/4-Band EQ & Gates all at the same time! And what’s best is that each of the automations have there own section within a single track. So this means that you haven’t got all these lines going up & down everywhere. You would only call up the automation curves (on any parameter) that you want to see or change within that single track. (Or hide the automation if you like, it’ll still be there)

[Me Automating the Mix Parameter for the Reverb on a mono audio track]



Mixing

The mixer in Pro Tools LE has got all the features of a real life desk. Mono or stereo of up to 5 Inserts (for plug-ins on Aux/Audio Tracks), 5 Sends (sends are returned to the mix via Aux Inputs, and can also be recorded directly onto another track. The sends can be sent out the Audio Interface too & back in naturally). Buses are a delight to create and use. With displays of Input/output, Levelling wit nice faders, Panning, Record, Program Change, Solo, Mute and also the name of the track at the bottom with a section to write notes in just under it. (See the Mixing figure below)

Colour coding for each mix group which acts similar to a bus (indicated just above the fader with letters in the middle of the square - see Mixing below). There’s also parameters to control the automation signals via the desk with choices of Auto Off, Auto Read, Auto Touch, Auto Latch, Auto Write. (Using Auto Write lets you write the automation while the track is playing via the faders or panning parameters or anything else, is just like how it works on a real life digital mixer.)

Creating Sub mix’s, master sends, the final mix down and mastering (via the master track at the end) is all so skilfully executed that its hard to describe the simplicity, but yet the complex sonic picture which results that is possible through such flexible mixing.

[Mixing]



File Management

Bouncing is done simply via File > Bounce to disk… here you just select your file type (i.e. wav), your resolution & sample rate, select if you want the computer to convert the audio file either before or after the bounce is over, and click bounce to select a destination and save to begin!

Importing Audio or MIDI into your session (from other sessions) is easy (yet again) via File > Import Audio or MIDI to track. You can even import a whole track from another tune into yours.

I just find Pro Tools so immensely organised, it’s such a wonderfully designed sequencer. From what shows on the main tracks, to what is hidden, along with the File, Edit, MIDI, Setups, Windows etc… all so well thought out in terms of where everything should be. The information that Pro Tools displays in general are only those that the producer is likely to use the most, everything else is very well organised into their appropriate sections.


Synchronization

Pro Tools LE can generate MIDI Time Code and supports MMC (MIDI Machine Control). Pro Tools can be the master or it can be slaved (or both!). I like a simple MIDI interface connection to sync things together. Synchronization parameters are clear and useful.

This is only a very brief look into this area, but it is beyond the scope of this review to go into further details of sync when our purpose does not suit.


Final Thought

I can personally say that I have matured as a producer using Pro Tools LE 5.1 to compose electronic music. Because of the amount of control Pro Tools has given me over MIDI notes and Audio files, it has made me into a confident, motivated producer and a much more potentially creative artist. Moving from another sequencer into Pro Tools LE has changed my musical mentality forever.

Other than the fact that you need to run Pro Tools LE on a fast computer which also has a good amount of RAM in order for you to use this sequencer to its absolute full potential, this whole application is a brilliant piece of work (even for a light version!). Artists on Novice, Intermediate, Advanced or Hardcore levels will love and admire the amount of thought and time that has gone into such a wonderful sequencer.

This review was designed to give you a idea to how Pro Tools works, whilst providing a variety of brief words on it’s many features… and on a final note, I would like to take time and thank Digidesign for creating such a diverse, sophisticated piece of software, for which one can achieve complex results through easy to use and time saving parameters both with automatic & manual control.

[Pro Tools LE 5.1]


Elec.

[Laughingwalls]

Good Review, a lot of time went in to it. But, Now tell me what protools le does that sonar 6 studio or Cubase SL3 can't ? What does it offer that makes it worth buying over these two systems?

Some Technical notes
1 note.
- GenuineIntel x86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 1 processor (600MHZ) = Pentium III.

[Electronic]

Thanks for the minor update.

On your question:

Good Review, a lot of time went in to it. But, Now tell me what protools le does that sonar 6 studio or Cubase SL3 can't ?

What does it offer that makes it worth buying over these two systems?

There wasn't a sinlge note made about other sequencers being no good in this review. I'm sure that Cubase or Sonar applicants have good features too. Your Question is like asking what’s the difference between a 24 bit / 96 sample rate on one top A/D Conver to another top A/D Converter (Just on the subject of 24/96) They both offer high bit resolutions.

When many features are matched, its more about things like comfort and presentation that work towards writing a huge track the smallest amount of time. The way Digidesign has orgnised Pro Tools LE (or HD for the Godfathers) I find it happens to be too convenient.

Pro Tools has almost a Voodoo about it, as if like what ever your trying to do, what ever direction your trying to go in, you just end up bumping into all the correct tools to use within your music. This is all about excellent design, presentation & organisation.

I personally moved from Cubase to Pro Tools. Looking back, I can see that I was working a lot more un-organised (not that I knew it) than I am now on Pro Tools. If you love other sequencers and feel like you must keep loyalty to them, which in turn makes you want to put down Pro Tools (and its always Pro Tools for some reason most of the time), well then that’s just silly.

Every sequencer has something and considering that Pro Tools LE is a downgrade from its mother sequencer HD, it does push other full feature sequencers to their max. So using this theory (if you want to), start on Pro Tools LE so that if you do progress in your musical life in the future and come to the point that you demand a much more higher performance from your sequencer: You can go Pro Tools HD and not have the trouble of learning the language & feel of a new sequencer.

Pro Tools LE is a strong sequencer that can offer you a lot now and in the future if it comes to it, with (yet again) an easy transition. I’ve always personally thought that Pro Tools HD is the Godfather of all sequencers. So using its light version for a possible future move to HD is an excellent idea.

The sequencer subject is a personal thing and there is no sequencer for all users. Everyone is an individual. But Pro Tools is one option that people won’t regret.

Elec.

[Tweak]

Nice review! It's a sticky.

[Electronic]

Thanks Tweak.

This is a great site.

Elec.

[tomedwards2006]

great review, saves me writing me up one myself now.

Pro Tools is a great piece of kit, there is alot of hostility towards it on these forums, but I dont regret buying my rig.

Organisation was the thing that attracted me most with pro tools. Im quite suprised though that you as an electronic producer rely on pro tools for sequencing though. Many elecetronic music producers I know hate the midi functionality and find another sequencer better for the job. I think the midi is perfectly ample.

[Electronic]

MIDI is MIDI, but I like the control of the MIDI notes a lot more on Pro Tools. I didn't include the MIDI events list where you could alter each note with numbers that represents each modulation (i.e. Pitch Shift, Velocity, etc...)

For me, because the rest of Pro Tools is organised, it also helps with MIDI.

Elec.

[Laughingwalls]

I'm a bit surprised at the kind of power that you can get out of a Pentium III 600mhz. A upper midrange computer today has about a real world performance of 8x's faster than the system in single core apps, 16x if processes took full advantage of dual core, and 16x's the memory, and even 16x's the hard drive space. The system mentioned here is top of the line in 1999. It goes to show you smaller home studios might be better off using older software, and cheaper pcs... to get the job done... rather than dropping a grand on a new system.


Point taken about the protools v.s cubase. The best reason to use a sequencer is you like it, more than anything else. My biggest problem is Digi restricts protools to their hardware, and the track counts. The other reason is they get a lot of sales soley based on the fact they claim the industry standard, and people by it as a motivating factor, which I don't think is a good reason to buy anything. A lot of good products are over looked.

Hope fully taken in consideration the power of todays systems protools 8, may have a track count of 64 or 96, something that is easily feesible.
Again good review on your part its detailed does, a nice over view of the features.

[Electronic]

My biggest problem is Digi restricts protools to their hardware, and the track counts.

Thanks, and also about the restricting the track counts, Digidesign do it on purpose I think, so that if you want more you have to go HD. Business, what can you say?

Elec.

[Electronic]

I'm a bit surprised at the kind of power that you can get out of a Pentium III 600mhz. I mean we sit here recommending 2GHZ Core 2DUO w/2gigs of ram, but really small project studios especially the guys making hip hop vocals... could probably save an astounding amount of money using yesterdays best pc, and a slightly out dated version of hte software.

Yeah, that's true. Have a look at the last picture that I've posted on the review. Near the bottom right, I put the System Usage Display up. The PCI is what my computer can handle (it's not even half of what the system can be), and below it is the current amount the CPU is working.

I tried to keep just below its peek at all times.

Elec.

[mcatalao]

Good Review, a lot of time went in to it. But, Now tell me what protools le does that sonar 6 studio or Cubase SL3 can't ? What does it offer that makes it worth buying over these two systems?

Some Technical notes
1 note.
- GenuineIntel x86 Family 6 Model 8 Stepping 1 processor (600MHZ) = Pentium III.

I thin you got a little out of the line here.

I read the review a bit diagonally, but i didn't see any comment comparing PT with any other soft. And that's correct, or it would not be a fair review. Next step woudl be a side by side... BUT...

My impression is that, if one do that, we will find (beside the fact that pro tools hd implies you to use their own hardware, as also Motu DP only works with their Hardware and worse in Mac pc's) they DO pretty much the same.

The thing is at almost any software you'll have about 2 or 3 different ways to do something. And each software is organised in its form.

[Electronic]

...each software is organised in its form.

I like this comment. I think organisation plays a huge role in sequencing.

Does a sequencers organisation form which matches with your own organisation style more important than its actual features? (Can you do create more with an organised sequencer, than with one that has full features?)

Elec.

[Cybercruz]

Great review.

Thanx

Sean

[jsepeta]

thanks for the excellent ProTools review. i've been on the site for years and have seen a lot of people dis pt but i find it pretty easy to use. because pt has a fairly simple interface that hasn't changed much in 10+ years -- there's only 2 main screens, for editing and mixing -- it's easy to understand and doesn't waste precious cpu cycles on eye candy like other daws. sure, i like a pretty interface as much as anyone, but it's the plain-ness of pt's interface that usually is behind-the-scenes as why some folks don't like protools (one of my buddies complained that it looked ancient and ugly). forgive me, but i don't need pretty bevelled edges on my windows as much as i need the timing to be rock-solid. and that's what i get with protools.

as for track limitations, you're limited to 32 channels of simultaneous audio in Protools LE and M-Powered. Buying the add-on toolkit for syncing to film and video increases your channel count to 48. But most project studios will likely be fine with 32.

digidesign must have really been feeling the heat from people buying host-based daws like cubase, digital performer, logic, and sonar. over the past few years dig's parent company avid (also under pressure from dv systems like apple's final cut pro and adobe premiere) purchased a number of smaller companies to bring more plugins to the protools platform (bomb factory and wizoo). they also purchased m-audio and by bringing out the m-powered version of protools, there's now a lot more compatibility with various interfaces than back when i started using ptle in 2001 (version 5.x).

at first i thought i should complain about using a 600mhz pIII with 128mb ram for doing your review. but after reading it through, i realize that you actually did us a service by limiting the daw so severely. i doubt many other members of the s-c forums are using 128mb in their daw -- you can't hardly even purchase such a system any more -- and the resiliency and efficiency of the ptle system was demonstrated to great effect here by your choice. personally, after using ptle for so long, i'd recommend any newbies make sure that they have 1gb-2gb before getting started with pt, and at least 1ghz cpu. i've worked with slower systems and they're less enjoyable to work with. also invest in a good program for optimizing your hard disk -- like executive software's diskkeeper for pc's. it's way better than window's built-in defragger, and will help keep your free space contiguous -- which helps to keep your audio running smoothly.

as for audio processing, protools is the industry standard for broadcasting and filmmaking and has been for some time. the HD systems, while initially expensive due to the required dsp cards, serve their purpose well because when you buy a pthd system, digidesign can tell you BEFORE your purchase how many audio tracks you'll be able to handle at once, and how many xyz effects you can run at once because the hd systems don't rely on host cpu cycles, they rely on the dsp cards. compare this to steinberg, apple, motu, and cakewalk, who won't make any promises for the number of channels of audio that will run simultaneously. there's just a certain confidence that digidesign has and instills based on their historical market position, and the science behind how much processing power is required of each dsp. and for the broadcast and film industries, which make a lot of money, the 10k spent on a pt hd daw is really no big deal -- how many movies are made with puny 10 million dollar budgets anymore -- not many. so if the cost of the system is .001 or .0001 of a movie's budget, it's really no big deal. but for us hobbyists, 10k is a lot of simoleons. oh yeah, also the hd versions can run RTAS plugins, which WILL use your cpu power not the dsp cards.

you reviewed ptle version 5.x, but the current version is 7.3. digidesign has finally gotten hd, le, and m-powered on the same version level with identical feature sets. that's helpful, especially since you can take an le or m-powered session to an hd facility to do your mastering. not sure what other features to talk about with the new 7.x version, since i haven't been using it that long, but i'm currently running m-powered on my dual 1.2ghz g4 and le on my 2.25ghz celeron daws. to move files back and forth between mac and pc is an important feature for me, especially because i like taking the mbox and pc laptop (2.8ghz P4) out to my buddy's apt or my other buddy's studio for working on film audio and studio recordings/sampling. my only problem has been having to change the cache between recording and playback when running on systems with limited hard disk space (see optimizing comment above).

my most recent project involved recording vintage synths for a sampling project. i sweetened some of the sounds with pt's built in effects, a couple of rtas things i picked up as a complimentary gift for buying the 7.x upgrade, and the korg rtas effects that came with legacy collection. things went very smoothly and thanks to the mixer interface that is modelled after traditional mixers, i was able to bus effects and edit the audio quickly and without hassle. i could have used any system, but ptle + my mbox 2 ended up being the perfect choice. one complaint on Le and m-powered however -- in other daws like cubase, you can bounce down tracks based on the speed of your cpu. le and m-powered force this process to be in real time, so a 5 minute song takes 5 minutes to bounce down. protools hd does not have this limitation built in.

I'll post some screen shots of 7.3 in a little while.

[Electronic]

...pt has a fairly simple interface that hasn't changed much in 10+ years -- there's only 2 main screens, for editing and mixing -- it's easy to understand and doesn't waste precious cpu cycles...

Nice reply.

....i like a pretty interface as much as anyone, but it's the plain-ness of pt's interface that usually is behind-the-scenes as why some folks don't like protools...

Simpleness that can grow very complex, some people don't realize this (you must first learn to walk, before you can fly!)

...as for track limitations, you're limited to 32 channels of simultaneous audio in Protools LE and M-Powered. Buying the add-on toolkit for syncing to film and video increases your channel count to 48. But most project studios will likely be fine with 32...

Exellent point! (even though digidesign are asking for more money here)

...over the past few years dig's parent company avid (also under pressure from dv systems like apple's final cut pro and adobe premiere) purchased a number of smaller companies to bring more plugins to the protools platform (bomb factory and wizoo). they also purchased m-audio and by bringing out the m-powered version of protools, there's now a lot more compatibility with various interfaces than back when i started using ptle in 2001 (version 5.x)...

Nice info! Thanks!

...at first i thought i should complain about using a 600mhz pIII with 128mb ram for doing your review. but after reading it through, i realize that you actually did us a service by limiting the daw so severely. i doubt many other members of the s-c forums are using 128mb in their daw -- you can't hardly even purchase such a system any more -- and the resiliency and efficiency of the ptle system was demonstrated to great effect here by your choice.

Thanks again, excellent analysis, I can tell you've done this before. Most people on the forum seemed to use a computer with good/standard specs alongside Logic or Cubase (and then punch up pro tools for some reason ) I thought, if I could use a computer with what is considered poor specs today using pro tools, but in just the same way people use other sequencers with a good computer , then all the unjustified pro tools critics could start to be questioned. Although naturally there was limits, I think the review clearly showed what can be done with pro tools - even in these situations... so this would leave one main un-answered question: Then I wonder what can be done with a strong computer on pro tools?? I personally feel that pro tools desives it's status as the industry standard.

...personally, after using ptle for so long, i'd recommend any newbies make sure that they have 1gb-2gb before getting started with pt, and at least 1ghz cpu. i've worked with slower systems and they're less enjoyable to work with. also invest in a good program for optimizing your hard disk -- like executive software's diskkeeper for pc's. it's way better than window's built-in defragger, and will help keep your free space contiguous -- which helps to keep your audio running smoothly.

I don't normally qoute almost all of the rely, but this is top advice. I've qouted it here again in the aim to attract attention. I'm all for helping people write music.

...dsp cards, serve their purpose well because when you buy a pthd system, digidesign can tell you BEFORE your purchase how many audio tracks you'll be able to handle at once, and how many xyz effects you can run at once...

I'm buying a HD system very soon (my work requires it) Its perfectly normal for me to run 80+ tracks with a selection of plugins, due to this in the aim of working much faster and more professionally (not that I've ever slipped from this, considering my knowledge at all stages).

...you reviewed ptle version 5.x, but the current version is 7.3....

Yeah dude, I thought about upgrading to do the review, but then I changed my mind to help show the power of pro tools.

I'll post some screen shots of 7.3 in a little while.

Very much looking forward to them. I've got Pro Tools M-Powered 2-4 days ago, it looks good (I'm upgrading my current studio to finish off some work before I move into my new HD studio later... I might even write another thread on my upgrade)

But what a great reply, much information present. A pleasure to read.

Elec.

[ATC2]

Thanks Electronic...!
As a beginner a comprehensive explanation of things is very helpful and you've done that.
I'm still not too sure of what sequencer to go with, I've been considering PT and this has been very insightful. Cheers...

[djeru]

Thanks for the review, I found it very helpful.

I've been screwing around for quie a while, but I'm about to actually take a genuine shot at this. And I've been researching daws. I use Ableton Live for what it's made for, but I can't imagine using it as a primary sequencer. I've played with Logic and DP5, and I've watched people demo HD2 (worked at GC last summer).

After watching the PT accellerated videos and reading this reivew (you hit on some of the workflow-features that I'm craving in Logic and Live) I've all but decided on Pro Tools M-Powered. I'm kindof wary about being limited to 32 audio tracks, but...I think it should work okay.

It "bothers" me though, that I keep reading articles about people swearing by Logic, which was the first sequencer I had experience with. It's just so weird to work in.

I'm pretty annoyed at being locked into digi/m-audio hardware as opposed to being able to use focusrite, presonus, or motu. But I don't know if it's that big of a deal for what I'll actually be doing. Any time I use a mic, I'll probably be using a tube preamp, and I'm using almost all soft synths anyway.

And people rave about logic mostly for its plugins...with the exception of Space Designer, I already have most of the ones people love in Express...or something else that I like as well or better (reDrum, Trash, etc.).

I'm kinda thinking out loud here, but I'm pretty sure the end of the month will see a new Pro Tools M-Powered user.

[Electronic]

Thanks guys, it makes it worth while writing the review.

I think going M-Powered would just make things ''cheaper''. You get the exact same version of Pro Tools, but its compatible with M-Audio gear... which means you don't have to go for the 002 or cheaper, the Mbox.

Pro Tools M-Powered is going for $250 or £165 in the UK - You could even find it cheaper on Ebay? If you look on Ebay, just make sure its unregistered and everything else is fine.

djeru, you said that you work a lot on Soft Synths... so I take it that you work mainly in box then? I think its a good choice these days, so I don't think that the hardware limitations would effect you that much - I could be wrong... but as long as things stay 'in the box' then it could only mean less worries 'outside the box'.

As for the 32 Audio Track limit... I think there is ways around it. You could get your self an old version of Pro Tools for very, very cheap these days and install it on another PC (or older PC) and Sync them up... if you have another PC that is (even though now, I have officially departed from the PC due it crashing 4 TIMES IN A ROW! But still, a lot of work can be done on a PC for a lot less money than a MAC) May be I should write a thread on my PC nightmare...

Elec.

[the_gadore]

a very nice review... very informative... thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience on using the software...

[djeru]

Thanks guys, it makes it worth while writing the review.

I think going M-Powered would just make things ''cheaper''. You get the exact same version of Pro Tools, but its compatible with M-Audio gear... which means you don't have to go for the 002 or cheaper, the Mbox.

Pro Tools M-Powered is going for $250 or £165 in the UK - You could even find it cheaper on Ebay? If you look on Ebay, just make sure its unregistered and everything else is fine.

djeru, you said that you work a lot on Soft Synths... so I take it that you work mainly in box then? I think its a good choice these days, so I don't think that the hardware limitations would effect you that much - I could be wrong... but as long as things stay 'in the box' then it could only mean less worries 'outside the box'.

As for the 32 Audio Track limit... I think there is ways around it. You could get your self an old version of Pro Tools for very, very cheap these days and install it on another PC (or older PC) and Sync them up... if you have another PC that is (even though now, I have officially departed from the PC due it crashing 4 TIMES IN A ROW! But still, a lot of work can be done on a PC for a lot less money than a MAC) May be I should write a thread on my PC nightmare...

Elec.

Yeah, I did some soul searching and bought an mbox 2 mini. And I'm loving it. The interface is small enough to take to a coffee shop and it was only $300...since I can't see recording more than off my DJ mixer or my guitar, which will be at most 2 mics going through tube pres anyway.

I wish it didn't need the interface to be connected to start, but...I've still got Ableton if I want to sketch something out while i'm bored in class.

I know my next 3 purchases are going to be Hybrid, Reason, and Xpand...it's just a matter of what order and when.

[antontmg]

This was very helpful. I was looking at Cubase very hard but after reading some post on this section of sequencers; I think I might stay away from Stienberg!

So now it looks like Sonar and thanks to your review PTLE is looking promising to me.

[crytek]

Thanks for the input. My only gripe with mbox2 is that it lacks inputs & outputs. I have an emu sampler and I want to be able to feed the audio form my emu (all 8 outputs) into the mbox2. With my traveler I can do that, but I really dig the pro tools software. Of course, I can do it if I shell out thousands of dollars to buy the top end hd systems, but so far, this is just a hobby for me. This is my biggest gripe. If it wasn't for that, I'd be sold.


Any suggestions?

[nanashiwanderer]

well theres also the 002R which is 1100$ (about the cost of the traveler and M-Box put together), and has ADAT/Spidf and has 8 analog ins 4mic pres.

[crytek]

well theres also the 002R which is 1100$ (about the cost of the traveler and M-Box put together), and has ADAT/Spidf and has 8 analog ins 4mic pres.

DUDE!!!


Now I'm seriously considering taking the plunge into pro tools. Just gotta sell my traveler plus cubase sx3 and hopefully I'll have enough to get this.


Thanks!!!

[nanashiwanderer]

Well If you have those two i dont know why youd want to go to protools except to have protools, Cubase is more powerful than protools le. Then again the work flow may grab you.

Keep in mind theres a slightly cheaper route than digidesign. You can buy M-Audios interfaces and run protools M-Powered (250$) which is the same except for no video features. The delta1010, FW1814 are choices but these are a down grade from the motu sound.