KVR Audio

cowby · Post by **cowby** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 3:35 am

I have some major DAWs in my PC but I just changed from Cubase 7.07 to Studio one v2 (Now my main DAW) because I love the mixer, drag-n-drag and Neat UI. That being said, I d/l bitwig last weekend.

Correct me if I am wrong, Cubase/Studio S1 are linear sequencers where bitwig is good at pattern based. Though I love to produce Dance tunes (EDM if you don't mind the term) but I couldn't click with it. May be I couldn't find some very basic shortcut command like :

Metronome : C and Shift C in Studio one but what's in bitwig ?
Recording : this really killing me. S1 used "*" key how about bitwig ??

Have visited here btw...
http://bitwigtutorials.net/tutorials/gl ... tudio.html

As I said I love S1 but I would love to hear your comments if another DAW will give you better work flow or even inspiration ? All I can see bitwig is very promising ... They care about the users and they listen ! Do I need to put more effort on Bitwig and dig out the goodies from it ?

Regards!
Cowby

xbitz · Post by **xbitz** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:19 am

Bitwig isn't pattern based, it can only loop clips same way as Ableton Live do it, maybe the automation(modulation) looping is bit more advanced in it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxhWUQ_M46M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neUNqsGtEZs
but there is no linking between the clips(so there is no ghost/shared/linked clips feature in it) dunno why otherwise because it would be supercool if it can do the same as Project5 can do it

about the basic workflow, BWS+Push

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPHI-BHKk8o

Brian Bollman has a supergood series https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... aRHYWDncW8 BWS in and out

SLiC · Post by **SLiC** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:36 am

To answer your question, yes.

I am a cubase 8 and live 9 suite user, tried bws when it first came out for about 10 minutes and took an instant and irrational dislike to it as it wasn't quite cubase (but had the linear editing and tools that I love ) and wasn't quite Live (but had the clips and pattern asked production option),

Long story short I tried it again after the 1.1 update, finished a song with it very quickly, had fun doing it and discovered tons of things that bws is better at than live and cubase that as it turns out are more important to me than a lot of other stuff. For the last month I have only used bws and think I may be using it now as my main (and possibly only) DAW....until live x lands anyway

cowby · Post by **cowby** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 9:50 am

okay thanks guys will try the demo this weekend.

Just tell me what is the short cut key of the Record button ? Right now, I use the mouse click....

moss · Post by **moss** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:08 am

cowby wrote:okay thanks guys will try the demo this weekend.

Just tell me what is the short cut key of the Record button ? Right now, I use the mouse click....

It's F9. See "Help->Commander..." in Bitwig for a list of all key-commands.

xbitz · Post by **xbitz** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:26 am

the strongest point of BWS is the modular based device in device building concept (which has unlimited deep) + has an inner unified modulation system of the top of it, for example how do u build in S1, or Cubase or in etc. a synced LFO driven send unit like this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_96-qwBXPAc
(do u need sidechaining too, just drop the device above into the Dynamics device and u have it )

BWS has a very lovely audio(and note) receiver device which can extract the audio from any point of other tracks (worth to check the 1.1 related videos on their official channel https://www.youtube.com/user/bitwig/videos ) ofc. it can be macroed too in the same way as AL can do it with its Instument Racks

SLiC · Post by **SLiC** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:41 am

When using BTW for the first time, I recommend just using it in linear mode for a while (a lot of fun can be had editing the audio in the lower clip view) and then just use it as a clip launcher for a while (again, you have audio editing of clips unlike Live) before doing anything with the 'hybrid clip & linear' views!

Layered editing- view and edit all of your separate midi tracks together with audio tracks as a background (great for seeing where things don't line up) - use numbers 1-5 to switch tools a la cubase tools (cuts, paste, slice)

Modulation system is IMHO the best available in any DA -Things to enjoy- use the 'containers' to use an audio clip to modulate any parameter on your VSTi's

Adds new live and flexibility to any instrument, can of course save all this as a chain (just like Live). Audio effects can of course also be modulated per note or by audio tracks - mind boggles! Easy parallel processing using instrument or effects containers (mini racks within racks basically)

Expression 'per note'- timber, velocity, micro timing etc- very easy to use.

Automation- super easy to add, view and tweak.

All the fine of live - one click convert audio to sampler/drum kit- chop it around then bounce it, chop it again in clip view as audio (cant do that in Live) - really easy to half time then double to make drum fills and glitches (2 clicks), reverse and stretch, change pitch etc.

The 1.2 update is out in a few weeks (beta) adding a far superior 'everything' browser with hot swap (can hoy swap everything from samples in a drum kit to patches whilst playing for auditioning) and a really cool looking implementation of 'group tracks'

xbitz · Post by **xbitz** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 11:40 am

SLiC wrote: Audio effects can of course also be modulated per note or by audio tracks - mind boggles! Easy parallel processing using instrument or effects containers (mini racks within racks basically)

yepp, this view is quite unique (so the per-note automations can be combined with note based envelopes which can be combined audio based modulations + the standard track automations also can be added to the top of it ofc. as free running clip ones) in the DAW

maybe FL has similar one but without the device bar (so without direct modifying possibilities)

woodsdenis · Post by **woodsdenis** » Fri Jan 30, 2015 4:34 pm

I think their demo policy is very cool, I play around with it every new release, it's definitely getting there . Some really clever ideas. It's very genre specific , you won't find the film score bods using this as a primary DAW but being focused is not a bad thing. It will never compete with Cubendo or PT, nor should it .

cowby · Post by **cowby** » Sat Feb 21, 2015 8:54 am

I found that the midi routing requires more steps than using Studio one. I tried to use say an arp / phrase generator in order to "drive" Predator... In studio one it is pretty easy just select the arp/phrase generator as an input and enable the monitor switch on the soft synth track.

I watched the demo on how to do the same thing in Bitwig in Youtube. Hummm... It is quite complex to get the same result. What is your approach to do the midi routing ?

xbitz · Post by **xbitz** » Sat Feb 21, 2015 10:30 am

cowby wrote: What is your approach to do the midi routing ?

the basic case is simply dropping it after the arp inside the same track, if u want to record the out of the arp it has to be routed to an other track, device level routing been introduced in BWS 1.1.6(released yesterday)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYN9cHEPxQU

Nightpolymath · Post by **Nightpolymath** » Sat Feb 21, 2015 5:16 pm

cowby wrote:
As I said I love S1 but I would love to hear your comments if another DAW will give you better work flow or even inspiration ? All I can see bitwig is very promising ... They care about the users and they listen ! Do I need to put more effort on Bitwig and dig out the goodies from it ?

Regards!
Cowby

Inspiration, most probably. It's easier to compare different versions of the same chord progressions, or arpeggio snippets, for instance. The downside for me, at least, is that I tend to lose focus and ramble on in a lot of different directions when there is an actual track waiting to be finished. The left brain in me likes to think linearly with a clear goal in the end. So it's a constant struggle between trying out different ideas and being disciplined enough to work on the structure of a track without any distractions. I don't know if all of this makes sense, though.

paterpeter · Post by **paterpeter** » Sun Feb 22, 2015 8:56 am

TBH, when BWS came out I was quite disappointed to see that it's still linear only. The kind of music that works well with a clip launcher is typically inherently "pattern based". I might have missed something, but completely disconnecting from the pattern idea in the arrange seems a wasted opportunity to me. I pretty much lost interest in BWS at that moment.

Dazed Veins · Post by **Dazed Veins** » Sun Feb 22, 2015 9:08 am

Hit me with your rhythm stick
Hit me, hit me
C'est si bon, mm? Ist es nicht?
Hit me, hit me, hit me
Hit me with your rhythm stick
Two fat persons, click, click, click
Hit me, hit me, hit me

xbitz · Post by **xbitz** » Sun Feb 22, 2015 4:49 pm

paterpeter wrote:TBH, when BWS came out I was quite disappointed to see that it's still linear only. The kind of music that works well with a clip launcher is typically inherently "pattern based". I might have missed something, but completely disconnecting from the pattern idea in the arrange seems a wasted opportunity to me. I pretty much lost interest in BWS at that moment.

the multi-layer editing is clip based (not track one) so u can make the same changes on them at once

unfortunately this trick working only with MIDI notes and velocity values (luckily the first ctrl+a select the given row in the arrangement view so it's working fast) but quite big help if u have to modify some MIDI note based something

Can't click with Bitwig with Linear Sequencing mind set ?