Bitwig Studio 3 gets 10 out of 10 from MusicTech Review

[jonljacobi]

I think Bitwig just found an audience in the modular crowd that would sustain it. Just look at the number of posts about that versus the other features. I also think that’s a primary interest of theirs. As a plain DAW, it still has a ways to go.

[EnGee]

The Grid is wonderful but it is not the main reason I chose Bitwig! For me it is the workflow and design first.

I actually feel Bitwig has given me the absolute freedom to choose my OS and environment that I prefer. Few Daws run on Linux natively, for example. This is freedom also, isn't it?

Reaper is another great DAW, but Bitwig was the main reason that I returned to use Linux as my main OS. It has been about one week using Ubuntu as my main OS and rarely logging in Windows. If it stays stable like this now, I might never buy Windows and hardware that doesn't work with Linux like this sad Maschine in front of me!

I appreciate the drum machine, the Grid and other synths anyway. It comes also with a great sampler/sampled based synth as well and there is no obligation of course to use these instruments and effects. The modulators can give my 3rd party synths even more value

I really don't care if the media gives Bitwig a 10 of 10 marks or 4 of 10 marks!! For me it is a good product and I like using it. Why should I really care that much about what the others say if I'm happy (or not happy) with the product?

Choose what works for you, if it is because of the Grid or not! All are legitimate reasons in my world!

[THE INTRANCER]

There's no support of Native Instruments Reaktor on Linux...that's another one to add to my previous list... that would be a huge hole I'd miss with having many plugin ensembles I've bought in addition to those available vie NI's user library and the huge number I've downloaded over the years, if I ever did consider using Linux as an alternative platform.

[EnGee]

If NI supports Linux, I would be in musical heaven

[antic604]

Sound on Sound's review of Bitwig 3 (actually also covering additions in 2.4+ like Sampler) is up, although to read it all you need to buy the .pdf article (it's GBP1) or wait few weeks. It's very positive:

https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-3

[SLiC]

Sound on Sound's review of Bitwig 3 (actually also covering additions in 2.4+ like Sampler) is up, although to read it all you need to buy the .pdf article (it's GBP1) or wait few weeks. It's very positive:

https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-3

SOS has to be about the most well respected music magazine out there, it’s the only one I subscribe to. Great to see such a positive review in such a highly regarded magazine, hopefully we will see more regular and extensive Bitwig contributions in the monthly DAW sections.

[Tearing Riots]

Isn't it odd to give a daw 10/10 due to having modular ability like a plugin like this one:
https://karmafx.net/products

And with KarmaFx synth you are free to use any daw you like - freeeeeeeedom! It's been around for more than 10 years, if it wasn't 15 even I ran the free version.

To me a daw should just hold clips and plugins and allow editing audio/midi and automation/tempo, good grouping abilities like VCA's and done. No fancy sounddegrading stuff like stretching/pitchshifting. No content, synths or anything - that I keep 3rd party - again freeeeedom.

But KarmaFx doesn't allow me to use vsts inside of it, does it?
I get where you're coming from, I really tried to make it work using Reaktor inside Reaper. Adding hardware, keeping everything in sync was really cumbersome. That's also core functionality for a DAW, not sure a plugin can ensure that.

Don't really care about the timestretching as well (slicing ftw), notes > midi though

[antic604]

SOS has to be about the most well respected music magazine out there, it’s the only one I subscribe to. Great to see such a positive review in such a highly regarded magazine, hopefully we will see more regular and extensive Bitwig contributions in the monthly DAW sections.

Agree, I love their stuff! And they've been pretty thorough - and positive - in their Bitwig coverage:
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-135
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-2

[dellboy]

I actually feel Bitwig has given me the absolute freedom to choose my OS and environment that I prefer. Few Daws run on Linux natively, for example. This is freedom also, isn't it?

For the last week I have gone down the Linux rabbit hole and have experimented with various DAWs using that OS.

After trying various DAWs I concluded that BItwig is the only DAW worth bothering with on Linux.

Trouble is, after knocking together a song to see if it is a viable alternative to Windows it went pop! - - and disappeared.

Bitwig has never crashed on windows, so I am wondering if Linux is as stable as they say it is ?

[EnGee]

Which Linux are you using?

It never crashed with me in Ubuntu 18.04 using Alsa driver. Ubuntu itself has crashed several times but it was because of the nVidia driver mostly. In general you need to be patient with Linux till you reach a stable system.

I have installed today Tracktion 7 and it works without problems. Reaper also seems stable and the also the demo of Renoise! I'm using Presonus iTwo and it seems to work great with Alsa driver So, I don't really what magic is there in my configuration

[SLiC]

SOS has to be about the most well respected music magazine out there, it’s the only one I subscribe to. Great to see such a positive review in such a highly regarded magazine, hopefully we will see more regular and extensive Bitwig contributions in the monthly DAW sections.

Agree, I love their stuff! And they've been pretty thorough - and positive - in their Bitwig coverage:
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-135
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/bitwig-studio-2

Makes you realise just how much has been added since V2!!

[dellboy]

Which Linux are you using?

Bionic 8 Puppy Linux was the one it crashed in. I was just using the basic setup and native Alsa driver, nothing else. I have tried Ubuntu Studio - AV Linux - MX Linux and others. I guess the culprit is Puppy Linux, but I prefer it to all the other bloated stuff.

[SLiC]

I think Bitwig just found an audience in the modular crowd that would sustain it. Just look at the number of posts about that versus the other features. I also think that’s a primary interest of theirs. As a plain DAW, it still has a ways to go.

It has definitely attracted the modular and experimental crowd but even at V2 (pre grid) it had also overtaken Live as a production tool for loop based/live music production in my opinion (I was a Live user since V4) and Live has a missive user base to tap in to.

Bitwig is definitely more developed as a plain DAW than Live is, and at they rate it is developing with 2-3 updates a year, I suspect it will start to rival some 'plain' DAWs soon. Until then Bitwig and S1 cover all bases for me.

[dellboy]

There's no support of Native Instruments Reaktor on Linux...that's another one to add to my previous list... that would be a huge hole I'd miss with having many plugin ensembles I've bought in addition to those available vie NI's user library and the huge number I've downloaded over the years, if I ever did consider using Linux as an alternative platform.

Is the grid a viable alternative to Reactor ?

I own NI Komplete and have been messing with Bitwig on Linux and I not missed it. A lot of the appeal for me is to downsize and declutter and just use native Linux stuff.

[EnGee]

Which Linux are you using?

Bionic 8 Puppy Linux was the one it crashed in. I was just using the basic setup and native Alsa driver, nothing else. I have tried Ubuntu Studio - AV Linux - MX Linux and others. I guess the culprit is Puppy Linux, but I prefer it to all the other bloated stuff.

I thought to try other distributions but first Bitwig was tested on Ubuntu, so this is the recommended one (the normal one, with Unity desktop or Gnome). People has working one with Manjaro (which I liked a lot), but why complicate things. They are all Linux! Just make sure to enable 3rd party when you install Ubuntu and install the nVidia drivers later instead of the xorg ones, otherwise it will keep freezing. This is in the case of nVidia. Other cards, I really don't know. Anyway, Ubuntu has a very nice community and very good resources: