By simondsouza
On 13th September 2004
Version: 1.6
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simondsouza
3 of 7 people found
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PROS
Tracktion is a very good audio sequencing program, and in my opinion can be considered a 'professional' audio application.
It's simple, straightforward and does the job with style and flair.
There's a great user forum here at KVR.
It doesn't crash
The licensing system is easy to use.
It's cheap.
It encourages creativity and has improved my workflow.
The final mix plug in that comes with the latest version is awesome. I have been mastering some studio recordings and it really puts the sparkle on them.
It's file management system is great, once you get the hang of it.
Online help is brilliant.
Plug-in Delay Compensation is fully implemented as is Freeze.
Racks are wicked for multi VSTis and complex routings
CONS
MIDI editing is basic, though fully functional
The manual isn't as complete as it could be.
Timestretch algorhythm is not very good at all.
CONCLUSION
Buy it, if only to give the big sequencer companies a slap with a kipper. It is powerful, easy to use and has an indefinable sound quality all of it's own.
Well done Jules! |
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By powercenter
On 27th June 2004
Version: 10.3
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powercenter
1 of 8 people found
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Well for me,the gentleman who designed this obivously
has been to hell and back,not in regard to months of hard work developing this beauty,err no,to have put up with all the doggy coded hosts one had to endure before Tracktion.
This has to be the best value for money out there,Yep,its
cool,its got big style and so user friendly,This is a big shout to the developer of Tracktion,please,take a break,you probadly need a good holiday ,maybe India(goa ?) or blackpool ?
If the former,me coming too
Just got your name....Hey jules
Awesom ! xx |
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Last edited : 3rd July 2004
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By tezza
On 27th January 2004
Version: 1.5
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tezza
4 of 4 people found
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Tracktion is fast and efficient. Both in terms of application performance and in terms of learning curve and workflow. After a quick skim through the getting started guide, I was able to hit the ground running and be productive.
This is really my first serious attempt on computer assisted music making. I have played around with some of the better known Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) sequencing software out there, and I found all of them had a steep learning curve.
Tracktion is EASY to use.
Tracktion is good value for money. You don't pay for fancy features you don't need (which will only clutter up the interface anyway). Everything you REALLY need is there: a midi sequencer, a multi-track audio mixer/arranger (including time/pitch stretching), and a VST plugin and ReWire host. Tracktion makes a fantastic (cheap and simple) multi-track multitrack recorder.
One of the things I found difficult with other software is using "busses" to map audio to whatever hardware you have running. Tracktion handles this elegantly with no need for busses. It has icons (on the left) for each recording input source. You just drag them to the track you want recieving the input and hit record. Drag 'em around as you work -- no need to access some stupid device setting menu all the time.
I HATE TOOLBARS and WINDOW PANES cluttering up my screen and obscuring stuff. Tracktion's interface sweeps them all away and you can see EVERYTHING you need to see. It also scales very well at different resolutions meaning it is still very useable on a small 1024x768 display (my laptop).
I like how it manages files. All files for a project can optionally be saved as a single compressed archive (uses lossless audio compression -- ogg vorbis I think). These archives also allow you to add information about yourself plus artwork (like in Reason). Important details like this are well thought out by the programmer. It's a theme you'll find continued throughout the software.
The licencing system is quite good. You can run it on 2 computers (uses the CPU's id code). ie. studio+homePC, laptop+home, laptop+studio ... you get the idea. It's such a small pricetag anyway... If you need to run it on more boxen, buy more licences, they are cheap anyway.
Tracktion still has a couple of insignifigant niggling issues, so it is not perfect. I still think the midi editor could use some polishing. This will come in future releases. Check out the forum on this site to see users discussing these issues. Having said that, on the whole, Tracktion is a pleasure to work with. And really, ya simply cannot go wrong for the price -- there's just no comparrison in terms of value-for-money. I'd be surprised if they keep the price this low for subsequent releases. So do yourself a favour, check out the demo and see if you like it too. |
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By futureweaver
On 8th October 2003
Version: 1.4.0.15
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futureweaver
2 of 2 people found
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I'm new to this and wanted something to experiment with. I took a scan of all the "budget" hosts on KvR, downloaded and tried some, and also looked at the demos of some of the "big names". I registered Tracktion within hours, because it just stood out several miles from everything else. The amount of information packed into the relatively uncluttered UI, and the ease with which it can be manipulated, is astonishing.
If your background is in computers you'll breathe a sigh of relief at finding something that actually uses the computer UI to advantage, rather than making it look just like a 1950s Wurlitzer (or whatever). If your background is in studio and performance hardware I suppose you might find the absence of conventional knobs and buttons – and the fact that “there's no mixer!” – a bit unsettling, at least to start. But I'd still say give it a try – and you don't need the mixer, because equivalent functionality is provided in a much more intuitive way. Tracktion really does show up how pricey first-generation "lets make it like the physical hardware" apps have failed to take advantage of the plasticity and richness of the computer interface.
Finally, I tried it on my teenage son, who took to it instantly - "wicked", he said, high praise indeed! Again it was the quick and intuitive interface that appealed. If like me you're a beginner, especially with a computer background, I'd say you can't go wrong for 50 quid. |
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Last edited : 8th October 2003
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By pHz
On 22nd April 2003
Version: 1.3
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pHz
9 of 9 people found
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although its still young and in development i see tracktion [along with energyXT] as one of the most exciting recent developments in the virtual studio concept
its strength is in the way it comes at the sequencer paradigm from a new direction - it does NOT want to be another cubase/logic/sonar clone - neither is it trying to do the fl studio/orion/reason software studio thing - what jules [the developer] appears to have done is to look at the main jobs a sequencer is required to do [record & manipulate audio / sequence midi & vst / apply effects & mixdown] and find the BEST [in workflow terms] way to accomplish these tasks regardless of the 'traditional' way of tackling them
the obvious difference in tracktion is the gui - everything is [as much as possible] accessible on one page - no swapping screensets or delving through loads of open windows to perform even simple tasks - nothing in tracktion is more than 2 or 3 clicks [or keypresses - tracktion has an impressive and intuitive set of definable hotkeys] away
the resulting lack of a mixer may throw some users at 1st but once you get your head round the mixerless paradigm it makes perfect sense - you still have access to all the usual mixer functions - its just the access to them is on a track by track basis rather than through an irrelevant hardware imitation
tracktion was originally conceived as a multitrack recorder and so you would expect its audio handling capabilities to be strong - they are - it boasts the usual editing featureset [non-destructively] and also offers timestretching and a VERY intuitive way of manipulating audio [as mentioned elsewhere - possibly only acid does it better]
because of its origins its midi capabilities are not as strong as with audio but they are rapidly catching up - its integration of the piano roll into individual midi parts may be confusing at first but is incredibly fluid and intuitive once you get used to it and the ability to manipulate multiple midi parts at once is very useful
to be honest the built in effects are capable rather than great [except the paragraphic eq which is excellent] but when you can apply vst effects to individual parts as well as tracks and easily shift the signal chain around this isnt really an issue
tracktions project management features are often overlooked but are a great asset to the application and is an area [like the track freeze function] where it is ahead of most other sequencers out there [except maybe logic]
having said all this - the 2 greatest strengths of tracktion are the supportive community that has rapidly grown up around it [just check the forum here at K-v-R] and the human approach that jules has taken - he actually listens to users and implements their ideas / fixes their discovered bugs at a very rapid rate
bottom line - at this price point there just isnt a more intuitive sequencer - nor one with more potential for future development - hmmmnnn - junction filters :-) |
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By valley
On 21st April 2003
Version: 1.3
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valley
9 of 9 people found
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It would be easy to think 'oh, yet another budget sequencer' and pass Tracktion by. There are after all a number of quality low priced sequencers on the market, and generally they all offer fairly similar feature sets.
So what makes Tracktion worth taking a look at? Actually, quite a few things. With Tracktion, Raw Material Software have made a serious effort to present a slightly different approach to the virtual studio idea. There is nothing so revolutionary here that you will not be able to pick it up quickly, but the changes are definately evolutionary, and many of them may leave you wondering why no-one has done this before.
Firstly, there is no hardware mixer motif. Instead plugins become part of the track that they belong to. The keyword in Tracktion is WYSIWYG. The whole mix, from MIDI/audio data through to final mixdown is presented as a single cohesive whole. All of the functionality is there, it has just become more seemlessly integrated into the arrange window than many people will be familiar with.
The loss of a mixer is an example of how Tracktion attempts to bring a faster workflow by reducing the increasingly arbitrary lines between composition, processing, and mixing. You'll either love this or you'll hate it, but whatever your views, it is great to see developers bringing fresh ideas to the table.
MIDI editing is a little rough around the edges in the current release (although like everything in Tracktion, improvements come on an almost daily basis). Even here though there are some good design choices, not least of which is the manner in which many MIDI clips can be edited simultaneously.
Working with audio in Tracktion is simplicity itself. All editing is 'in place' and non-destructive. Pitch shifting, splicing, and processing are all provided. Only Acid for me feels more fluid and powerful for manipulating audio sections.
Plugin support is good, and problems are generally fixed very quickly, Automation for non-MIDI CC parameters has been added with v1.3.
Performance and stability are both very good.
Developer support is second to none. Go read the Tracktion forum here on KvR for evidence of that.
A mac version is planned soon too.
All in all Tracktion is very much worth your time to check out. What are you waiting for? |
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| Latest 6 reviews from a total of 6 |
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