KVR Audio

machinesworking · Post by **machinesworking** » Thu May 02, 2013 8:57 pm

DP is really really deep. There's a ton of things to learn at first. If you're wanting a streamlined interface and user experience like Live or Studio One then it's possible DP isn't for you at all. Like most deep programs you're going to get more out of it the more you know it.

Me, I'm one of the people that liked Logic pre-Apple buying them. I think Apple made concessions on the UI based on the amount of idiotic support requests they got and not on features that make sense to a Pro User. The quick example would be that in the Mixer every hidden track in arrange gets hidden in the mixer and visa versa. Often I would want to hide audio tracks in the Arrange page and MIDI tracks in the Mixer, only possible if you set up permanent windows in the Environment as of Logic 8.

Conversely in DP8 every track in the Sequence and MIDI editors, plus of course the Mixer can be shown of hidden extremely quickly. There are multiple mix downs with separate plug ins available per Sequence/Chunk, there are multiple Sequence/Chunks available per open project etc.

LawrenceF wrote: I am - so far anyway, day one caveat - not a fan of how VI's are managed and have not yet learned how to use multi-outs with VI's. I'm looking for anything resembling a plugin or instrument browser.

DP handles VI's like external instruments, which is odd for a single instrument, but a Multi is simple really. With something like Kontakt you assign a rack in Kontakt to out 3-4 create an Aux or audio track to output to and assign the input to Kontakt 3-4. DP publishes multi instruments as external audio outputs, same with mono instruments. so you could for what ever reason assign the same output to multiple tracks.

If you haven't found it in the manual for some reason to create tracks it's Menu->Project/Add Tracks. In the input to an aux, audio etc. track, you have to ad New Mono Bundle or New Stereo bundle.

Everyone has different takes on what to do with V-Racks, I sometimes don't use them if a song idea is pretty solid before I write it into DP, but if I need to re-arrange the song, figure out verse chorus etc. type stuff I load everything into V-Racks, this way the actual sequence is just audio files and MIDI data. This makes it super fast to throw out ideas by either loading chunks/sequences into a blank sequence or using the Song Window to move around parts like building blocks.

koolkeys · Post by **koolkeys** » Thu May 02, 2013 10:06 pm

For those of you wondering what's so special about DP, it's important to get normal paradigms out of your head. It's easy to go in looking for a Studio One or Reaper workflow, but it's not really designed around that.

I highly recommend watching some videos at Groove3 or elsewhere, or even MOTU's own page:

http://www.motu.com/products/software/dp/video.html

For an example of what makes DP so attractive, and for an example of the depth that some of us are talking about, look at the video on scoring for video on that page. DP is HUGE in the scoring world, and has been used in everything that Peter Jackson directs, such as the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, the Hobbit, etc. And he's just one.

It's been used on stage by dozens of very top name acts from U2 to Motley Crue for everything from backing tracks and instruments to lighting and pyrotechnic control, etc.

So it's one of those programs that isn't really based around some of the more common KVR preferences of workflow. But when you dig, you get a lot of power for the price tag. For general music production, I wouldn't trade what I get in Studio One for anything right now. But I can definitely see the power in DP.

Brent

VitaminD · Post by **VitaminD** » Fri May 03, 2013 2:41 am

It does seem deep.. however, I can't get around the micro fonts, tedious MIDI editing, and squished view.

Not that I was in the market for a 3rd host at 500 USD

To me, this seems as if the developers from Live, Cubase, and Microsoft Excel got together and made an Audio Host.

koolkeys · Post by **koolkeys** » Fri May 03, 2013 2:56 am

VitaminD wrote:It does seem deep.. however, I can't get around the micro fonts, tedious MIDI editing, and squished view. Not that I was in the market for a 3rd host at 500 USD

To me, this seems as if the developers from Live, Cubase, and Microsoft Excel got together and made an Audio Host.

LOL, possibly.

On a related serious note, Digital Performer has been around five years longer than Cubase, eight years longer than Samplitude, and almost as long as Excel(two years difference from Excel's first encarnation before it was called that).

I know you were joking, but still fascinating to see how far DP has come and how much time it's been maturing.

Brent

machinesworking · Post by **machinesworking** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:15 am

I love Excel, best program Microsoft ever wrote. I love Live. I was/am a Logic user but I like certain things about Cubase.

The tiny font thing is a PITA, a lot of older DAWs have this issue for sure. This guy makes some great custom GUI mods for it that help a bit (I have no idea if he will be able to port them to Windows though?) -
http://ampguimods.net/dp_themes.html

The Excel analogy is dead on, it's a great program but it's a bit overwhelming how many choices you have as far as how to lay out a song etc. It's about as open ended as it gets now that Logic got tamed.

trusampler · Post by **trusampler** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:29 am

As far as the release for Windows computers, I welcome it.Glad Motu opened the door on this software for the masses.Samplitude dev's and Logic dev's should take notes.

koolkeys · Post by **koolkeys** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:31 am

trusampler wrote:As far as the release for Windows computers, I welcome it.Glad Motu opened the door on this software for the masses.Samplitude dev's and Logic dev's should take notes.

Samplitude is already on Windows. Has been for a long time now.

Brent

hibidy · Post by **hibidy** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:40 am

Er, in fact Samp is doze only, isn't it? Maybe that is what he meant, that platform specific co's should "take notice".

machinesworking · Post by **machinesworking** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:47 am

I'm up in the air about that. A single platform DAW allows a developer to worry about one codebase. Sure it's more flexible, but I would guess that if Cubase or Live etc. was mac or pc specific it would be more likely that bugs were squashed quickly... of course the extra revenue and extra employees one can hire doing both platforms flies in the face of my 'theory'.

hibidy · Post by **hibidy** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:50 am

Well we know with sonar that isn't the case

koolkeys · Post by **koolkeys** » Fri May 03, 2013 3:51 am

hibidy wrote:Er, in fact Samp is doze only, isn't it? Maybe that is what he meant, that platform specific co's should "take notice".

Ahhhhh, gotcha.

Sorry, I was confused, lol. Yes, that's probably what he meant.

Brent

trusampler · Post by **trusampler** » Fri May 03, 2013 4:04 am

koolkeys wrote:
trusampler wrote:As far as the release for Windows computers, I welcome it.Glad Motu opened the door on this software for the masses.Samplitude dev's and Logic dev's should take notes.
Samplitude is already on Windows. Has been for a long time now.

Brent

But not Mac from what I remember.

koolkeys · Post by **koolkeys** » Fri May 03, 2013 4:07 am

trusampler wrote:
koolkeys wrote:
trusampler wrote:As far as the release for Windows computers, I welcome it.Glad Motu opened the door on this software for the masses.Samplitude dev's and Logic dev's should take notes.
Samplitude is already on Windows. Has been for a long time now.

Brent
But not Mac from what I remember.

lol, yes, that was pointed out to me. I actually knew that, but read your statement incorrectly. My bad!

Brent

tooneba · Post by **tooneba** » Fri May 03, 2013 5:27 am

machinesworking wrote:I love Excel, best program Microsoft ever wrote. I love Live. I was/am a Logic user but I like certain things about Cubase.

The tiny font thing is a PITA, a lot of older DAWs have this issue for sure. This guy makes some great custom GUI mods for it that help a bit (I have no idea if he will be able to port them to Windows though?) -
http://ampguimods.net/dp_themes.html

The Excel analogy is dead on, it's a great program but it's a bit overwhelming how many choices you have as far as how to lay out a song etc. It's about as open ended as it gets now that Logic got tamed.

Live has one of the smallest font in the DAW and many claim PITA on high resolution screen. Is Live as old as DP? And someone said DP8 has been newly coded so your assumption doesn't make sense to me. Personally I'm fine with small font though.

machinesworking · Post by **machinesworking** » Fri May 03, 2013 6:47 am

tooneba wrote: Live has one of the smallest font in the DAW and many claim PITA on high resolution screen. Is Live as old as DP? And someone said DP8 has been newly coded so your assumption doesn't make sense to me. Personally I'm fine with small font though.

Lol! That's probably why I never was that bothered by the font in DP, Live is my other main DAW.
I thought Cubase had tiny fonts here and there as well, but I have been known to be wrong.

Digital Performer for Windows finally released! with demo!