Tracktion Software

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Fri Apr 27, 2018 8:41 pm

Greetings all,

As noted in the Subject, I am brand new to DAWs, and I have one basic need for them.

I compose jazz and orchestral music using Musescore—developed for ease of music notation and not for sound—and, therefore, I need something to turn my scores into the most real sound I can get (this is only for my own personal enjoyment with no professional needs...at the moment!).

So, as I understand it, I can take a MIDI file of my comps and put them in a DAW to get the best sound I can get. I know I need VSTs...I guess they are, but is this something that Traktion will do for me with relative ease (compared to how sophisticated and complicated some of these DAWs look to be)?

If not, could you please give an honest answer and refer me to a product that would be more suitable for me.

Thanks very much.

Rock · Post by **Rock** » Fri Apr 27, 2018 8:56 pm

The free version will be offer you plenty to get you started and also satisfy your question. You can upgrade if you fall in love with the software and want the latest features. The older version is in no way crippled and was what many of us were using a couple of years ago. There are plenty of free tutorial videos to get you started as well. Give it a try.

Naenyn · Post by **Naenyn** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 1:21 am

Completely agreed with Rock; just try out the free version and see how it feels to you!

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 2:01 am

Great, thanks. Now, real quick here, how close to getting a feel for what Waveform will the free version (Tracktion 6, I believe it is) give me?

I mean, Waveform is looking and sounding very good, particularly in how I think (reviews are all saying the same thing, which content is right up my alley). That's why I ask.

Thanks again.

jabe · Post by **jabe** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 3:05 am

Depending on what type of jazz you're aiming for, you might like to take a look at the plug-ins created by Garritan. They have sound examples on their website. They have a set called Jazz and Big Bands 3, which I'm hoping to acquire at some point (for use with Waveform). I need jazz to have a brass/sax lead, and JABB 3 has some sound samples I like a lot.

https://www.garritan.com/products/jazz-big-band-3/

This is the JABB 3 manual in PDF form - 111 pages: https://wpmedia.garritan.com/wp-content ... March5.pdf

Michael L · Post by **Michael L** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 3:19 am

...or consider composing in Notion and get the Jazz Bundle of instruments....

jochicago · Post by **jochicago** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 4:13 am

Starkman wrote:Great, thanks. Now, real quick here, how close to getting a feel for what Waveform will the free version (Tracktion 6, I believe it is) give me?

Limited opinion as I don't use W9 outside of testing the demo, but T6 through W9 are essentially the same vein with the addition of a few cool features and bug fixes. But for your needs specifically, sounds like what you need is the ability to bring in the MIDI content, and apply high quality instrumental samples on top (VST or soundfonts). For that specific need I don't know if there's something in W9 that would give it an advantage over T6. The only thing I can think of is if you end up buying an expensive VST instrument pack. Then you *might* have problems getting the licenses to work on T6 (just cause it is older) - but I would suggest crossing that bridge when you get there.

Most multisampler instruments don't have the type of orchestral sound quality that would satisfy composers. So from that perspective even buying Studio One wouldn't get you much further because the instruments quality in Presonus' sampler is also something you'll most likely want to skip right over.

I would start with T6 so you can get the hang of things. T6 is easy to learn and very powerful compared to other DAWs, so it is a pretty good place to start and if later you decide to upgrade to W9 or even go with a different DAW, all the learning you do in T6 goes with you. The next big task is to get your hands on quality orchestral sounds. I would start with SF2/Soundfonts:
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/sound ... -sfz-files

Lots of decent free stuff (but not much better than decent). The truly high quality stuff will come in VST packages that have a rich interfaces to let you manage the expression of the instruments. But starting with the SF2 stuff will get you half way there and let you put together a decent rendition of your MIDI work.

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 4:44 am

Oh, definitely familiar with Garrison, having used it with Finale. Thanks for the reminder.

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 4:46 am

Michael L wrote:...or consider composing in Notion and get the Jazz Bundle of instruments....

Well, I'm pretty in with Musescore, but the sound from Notion makes it tempting, were it not for limited funds.

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 4:56 am

Jochicago,
Thanks very, very much for the input. I heard that T7 is free now, but if not I'll definitely get T6 and go from there. It feels good to have pretty much narrowed this down.

I should note that I'm definitely not after the absolute best sound (probably way too expensive to do), but a good, decent sound that won't leave me thinking "MIDI!" Would work fine.

Oh, and thanks for the sfz link.

Thanks again.

jabe · Post by **jabe** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 4:17 pm

Starkman wrote:Jochicago,
Thanks very, very much for the input. I heard that T7 is free now, but if not I'll definitely get T6 and go from there. It feels good to have pretty much narrowed this down.

I should note that I'm definitely not after the absolute best sound (probably way too expensive to do), but a good, decent sound that won't leave me thinking "MIDI!" Would work fine.

Oh, and thanks for the sfz link.

Thanks again.

I haven't seen T7 being free yet (no announcement, no email), and it doesn't look like it is on the website, but I expect it to become free soon, which means in the next few months. I believe T6 became free in May last year; a search in the forum would fix up the date it was announced.

Starkman · Post by **Starkman** » Sat Apr 28, 2018 5:50 pm

You know, it might have been a free (30-day) trial or something I read about T7. That was probably it.

TSC · Post by **TSC** » Mon Apr 30, 2018 5:33 pm

T7 is available free through OEM hardware purchases - look for applicable Behringer/Mackie products

jochicago · Post by **jochicago** » Tue May 01, 2018 1:20 am

Starkman wrote:Jochicago,
Thanks very, very much for the input. I heard that T7 is free now, but if not I'll definitely get T6 and go from there. It feels good to have pretty much narrowed this down.

No problem. Look into Sforzando for playing the SF2 soundfonts. It's as easy as drag and drop, and it is free:
https://www.plogue.com/products/sforzando/

I got T7 included with my Behringer USB interface, which I like plenty. Here is my review of the unit:
viewtopic.php?f=102&t=503594

But T6 is a great piece of software too.

Tracktion Software

KVR Audio

Brand New To DAWS - is this one right for me