Best no frills, straightforward, unencumbered DAW for tracking/composing in 2020/21

[yul]

Hi!

"disclaimer" : I am using Mulab. It's great, really. I made an entire album with it.
I am looking for a 2nd DAW to complement it or to challenge it (if that makes any sense).

It would be geared towards composing/tracking using VST's mainly and some audio recording (vocals).

In terms of workflow I just want the least steps possible between inspiration and recording. No useless clicks, menus, selections, paths, folders, ...this drives me nuts!

However, a well integrated project browser does make sense though.

I did check latest Waveform/Tracktion (owned it a long time ago). It's almost there but there is something about the whole feel that I am still on the fence with.

Then I was looking at AIR's Ignite. Seems to fit the bill but user base is nearly nonexisteng. Anyone ever tried it?

I did have some very speedy creations using Renoise at the time. It's a big change for sure. Does it support audio spanning over multiple patterns now?

Any other suggestions welcome. Thanks!

[Psuper]

For super basic track recordings, pretty much anything if you make it so. However Reason would be on the short list -- too light on features for too long (though I used it for 15 years as my main DAW), however if you're looking for a solid step above an old school 4 track, that would be one choice.

[Chapelle]

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[billcarroll]

Is this where we come to list all the DAWS, and then someone will turn the thread into a Reaoer thread?

Seriously though, Studio One v5 gets my vote. Are there frills in there? Yes, but also simplicity and speed. The frills stay out of your way unless you need them.

[W23]

I’ve always thought that Reaper was always the best no-nonsense alternative that still did everything a modern DAW is supposed to do. It may seem a little complex the first time you open it, but the user guide is really helpful, and it’s basically free. They would really like for you to pay $60, but that just removes the nag screen you get when you first open it. I don’t use it as my regular DAW, I just had a crappy 10 year old laptop lying around that I wanted use for messing around with some old 32 bit VSTs, and Reaper totally fit the bill. I mean c’mon, it’s free!

[yul]

Thanks for your responses.

Reaper: I should have mentioned I did use it a while back It's very good but I tended to get very distracted. It reminds me of SONAR. But now I see people customizing it. It's always in the back of the mind I guess.

Reason : this is my friends main and he does pumps a lot of stuff (crap too sometimes). Thanks for reminding me of it! It did seem very stable and seq panel was clean. The wires though...

Renoise : good to know you can stretch an audio across patterns! However it looks more like an "option" than an actual top level feature. Will need to see in in action (I will check youtube).

Studio One : great mention I kept overlooking it since I thought it only supported audio or vst (which ever it was then). If it supports both, I will have a look as the look and feel was quite nice at the time.

Cheers

[pdxindy]

Does someone make/share a Reaper configuration that is simple with lots of stuff and options hidden from view?

[pbognar]

Also check out a Mixcraft demo. Very intuitive. There is a 50% off sale on right now, and the basic version (less vsts and vstis) is $49.

[yul]

Thanks

[cryophonik]

Maybe I missed it, but are you on a Mac or PC?

My first thought is to stick with the "lite" version of one of the major DAWs, like GarageBand, Studio One Artist, etc., to minimize the bloat.

[alberto_balsalm]

I think Studio One is the most straightforward and streamlined DAW that I've tried so far.

I find that DAWs by and large either have a Frankenstein monster sort of problem where they just add features and stitch together bits and pieces over the years, and the whole thing becomes a bit of a disjointed mess (Cubase and Sonar are kinda like that). Or they stick to one particular paradigm and refuse to change and/or adjust the workflow too much (kinda like Live or FL Studio). Studio One, as far as I remember, started out as a streamlined Cubase (ex-Steinberg devs), and they more or less stuck to the idea of delivering a DAW with a very straightforward workflow without too much nonsense and weird extra features hidden god knows where.

Reaper can be straightforward, but you have to massage it a little bit (well, more than a little bit, but it's manageable). It's certainly the most lightweight and easy to install DAW at least. The main problem is that while it is highly configurable, it's not exactly user friendly, not very organized, and you'll likely spend a fair bit of time tinkering with it.

[yul]

Thanks so much. Yes I am on PC

I will check S1 out as it seesm to have evolved a lot. Mixcraft looks nice as well.

[flugel45]

Another nod to Mixcraft.

Also, it should be mentioned that Studio One Artist (v5) now includes VST support, so for some users who only use a DAW for simple songwriting/recording tasks, S1 Artist may be all they need. You can check out the feature comparison list here:
https://www.presonus.com/products/Studi ... e-versions

[Jafo]

Tracktion. None of that nonsense in which a track appears horizontally on top and vertically on the bottom. Busses are just tracks. Need to route two tracks through a plugin? Just tell track A and track B to go through track C.

[ReleaseCandidate]

Tracktion. None of that nonsense in which a track appears horizontally on top and vertically on the bottom.

It does also have the mixer 'on the bottom', or what are you talking about?