Looking for a secondary DAW (for mixing/mastering) which will eventually become my primary DAW (for all things)

[chk071]

Studio One has some annoying behaviours with midi (from memory).

I agree. Just today, I had big issues to do a split keyboard performance with a multitimbral VSTi. Works in any other DAW I tried out of the box, when you set the track to transmit on all MIDI channels. In Studio One, you need to activate split channels in your keyboard settings, set both separate channels for the VSTi and separate channels for the MIDI input, and then it works. Total PITA, especially as I first had to figure that out, with literally only a single site I found on the net explaining it. Argh.

Basically, Studio One obviously only allows a single MIDI channel for a track. Which is, like, weird, and not something I experienced in any other DAW.

[musicproducerdee]

I switched to Bitwig and Studio One for a while after using Reaper for many years. Eventually I switched back to Reaper as the one stop shop. Bitwig is not great for audio editing, Studio One has some annoying behaviours with midi (from memory). But I could see Studio One as purely for mixing and mastering - it was very solid and has good online tutorials.

I have tried Reaper a lot of time and have actually tried to like it. I just can't, it seems undone and incomplete to me. The GUI is just, well, not there. Yes, I can edit it on the surface level, but getting deeper into functionality, it's same old non GUI. I can't stand that, no matter how powerful of a DAW it is.

I think I'm probably gonna go for Studio One. I like their mastering page and it has all the metering. It looks neat and is somewhat customizable to taste, with color schemes and the new GUI that can hide stuff on the UI. Let's see. I have used S1 before, and didn't really need many online tutorials, it was pretty decent to figure out. Cubase, I'm probably gonna need some brushing up to do.

[neverbefore]

I switched to Bitwig and Studio One for a while after using Reaper for many years. Eventually I switched back to Reaper as the one stop shop. Bitwig is not great for audio editing, Studio One has some annoying behaviours with midi (from memory). But I could see Studio One as purely for mixing and mastering - it was very solid and has good online tutorials.

I have tried Reaper a lot of time and have actually tried to like it. I just can't, it seems undone and incomplete to me. The GUI is just, well, not there. Yes, I can edit it on the surface level, but getting deeper into functionality, it's same old non GUI. I can't stand that, no matter how powerful of a DAW it is.

I think I'm probably gonna go for Studio One. I like their mastering page and it has all the metering. It looks neat and is somewhat customizable to taste, with color schemes and the new GUI that can hide stuff on the UI. Let's see. I have used S1 before, and didn't really need many online tutorials, it was pretty decent to figure out. Cubase, I'm probably gonna need some brushing up to do.

I dont think Reaper in its basic form is what most people end up using - Reaper really needs the SWS extensions and various Actions that people have written. Almost all are free and once you get used to using them then Reaper is incredibly powerful. But if you dont like that way of working I can definitely see Reaper as a no.
Studio One is a good choice, hope it works out

[machinesworking]

I switched to Bitwig and Studio One for a while after using Reaper for many years. Eventually I switched back to Reaper as the one stop shop. Bitwig is not great for audio editing, Studio One has some annoying behaviours with midi (from memory). But I could see Studio One as purely for mixing and mastering - it was very solid and has good online tutorials.

I have tried Reaper a lot of time and have actually tried to like it. I just can't, it seems undone and incomplete to me. The GUI is just, well, not there. Yes, I can edit it on the surface level, but getting deeper into functionality, it's same old non GUI. I can't stand that, no matter how powerful of a DAW it is.

I think I'm probably gonna go for Studio One. I like their mastering page and it has all the metering. It looks neat and is somewhat customizable to taste, with color schemes and the new GUI that can hide stuff on the UI. Let's see. I have used S1 before, and didn't really need many online tutorials, it was pretty decent to figure out. Cubase, I'm probably gonna need some brushing up to do.

First off, I'm on a Mac so I use Digital Performer for mixing and mastering. There is a Windows version, but IMO some PC/plug in configurations are not so great with it, people either say it's solid or crashy.

That said if I was in your shoes I would put the work into Reaper. That means fixing the GUI up, and customizing it to fit your needs. This is entirely possible, I essentially went back to DP because I like the articulation mapping, and it has a basic Clip Launcher like Live and Bitwig, but barring the articulations I would have stuck with Reaper.

Yes, some parts of it are 1998 looking, and it's overtly nerdy at times, but it's by far the most CPU friendly, customizable DAW there is. Mastering wise, nothing beats Reapers rendering choices, pretty much any controller that Bitwig can use, Reaper can use thanks to Moss's scripts. The last version of it has a customizable theme, which is finally decent enough looking to where I didn't skin it, just adjust the colors of the default theme. Anyway that's what I would do. The other choices aren't terrible either, Studio One has a dedicated mastering section, and Cubase is great for mixing. We live in an age with at least a dozen great choices.

[dellboy]

I agree. Just today, I had big issues to do a split keyboard performance with a multitimbral VSTi. Works in any other DAW I tried out of the box, when you set the track to transmit on all MIDI channels. In Studio One, you need to activate split channels in your keyboard settings, set both separate channels for the VSTi and separate channels for the MIDI input, and then it works. Total PITA, especially as I first had to figure that out, with literally only a single site I found on the net explaining it. Argh.

Basically, Studio One obviously only allows a single MIDI channel for a track. Which is, like, weird, and not something I experienced in any other DAW.

One of the things I like about Studio One is the gadget for spliiting the keyboard. Why could you not use this to accomplish your task? I guess its because you were trying to do it all on one track with a multitimbral VSTi? I gave up "multitimbral" when hardware rompler boxes became obsolete, so why are you still going that route with VSTi's?

[chk071]

Because some VST instruments give you the option to play them multitimbral, so why use several instances for something you can do in one instance?

It's also a pretty common thing. Many Kontakt instruments are multitimbral. Studio One is the issue here, not multitimbral instruments.

And, your workaround only works with several instances of a plugin, not with multitimbral plugins with several layers.

Again, I figured out how to do it. It just requires a lot of steps, instead of just one step, i.e. setting the track to receive all MIDI channels, not just one, like Studio One. It's absolutely piece of cake in Cubase and in Savihost.

Granted, it's not something I do every day, but, Presonus shouldn't really act as if it was a total niche scenario.

[Igro]

Whem people are saying that they cannot master in given DAW, what does it even mean? What exactly is preventing them from doing this? Examples?

[bharris22]

I think this is the exact purpose for which Harrison Mixbus was created:

https://harrisonconsoles.com/product/mixbus/

It often goes on sale, when you can pick it up for $59 or so, I think. Plus, there's a free demo so you can try it out to see if you like it.

[dellboy]

Because some VST instruments give you the option to play them multitimbral, so why use several instances for something you can do in one instance?

It's also a pretty common thing. Many Kontakt instruments are multitimbral. Studio One is the issue here, not multitimbral instruments.

And, your workaround only works with several instances of a plugin, not with multitimbral plugins with several layers.

Again, I figured out how to do it. It just requires a lot of steps, instead of just one step, i.e. setting the track to receive all MIDI channels, not just one, like Studio One. It's absolutely piece of cake in Cubase and in Savihost.

Granted, it's not something I do every day, but, Presonus shouldn't really act as if it was a total niche scenario.

Kudos that you have the patience and knowledge to do that. Now I think about it, having a default template with Sampletank set up multitimbrally with different instruments on separate midi channels is a good idea. Makes a good starting point for a song.

[musicproducerdee]

I switched to Bitwig and Studio One for a while after using Reaper for many years. Eventually I switched back to Reaper as the one stop shop. Bitwig is not great for audio editing, Studio One has some annoying behaviours with midi (from memory). But I could see Studio One as purely for mixing and mastering - it was very solid and has good online tutorials.

I have tried Reaper a lot of time and have actually tried to like it. I just can't, it seems undone and incomplete to me. The GUI is just, well, not there. Yes, I can edit it on the surface level, but getting deeper into functionality, it's same old non GUI. I can't stand that, no matter how powerful of a DAW it is.

I think I'm probably gonna go for Studio One. I like their mastering page and it has all the metering. It looks neat and is somewhat customizable to taste, with color schemes and the new GUI that can hide stuff on the UI. Let's see. I have used S1 before, and didn't really need many online tutorials, it was pretty decent to figure out. Cubase, I'm probably gonna need some brushing up to do.

That said if I was in your shoes I would put the work into Reaper. That means fixing the GUI up, and customizing it to fit your needs. This is entirely possible, I essentially went back to DP because I like the articulation mapping, and it has a basic Clip Launcher like Live and Bitwig, but barring the articulations I would have stuck with Reaper.

Yes, some parts of it are 1998 looking, and it's overtly nerdy at times, but it's by far the most CPU friendly, customizable DAW there is. Mastering wise, nothing beats Reapers rendering choices, pretty much any controller that Bitwig can use, Reaper can use thanks to Moss's scripts. The last version of it has a customizable theme, which is finally decent enough looking to where I didn't skin it, just adjust the colors of the default theme. Anyway that's what I would do.

I did give Reaper a lot of thought. I even tried various skins and skinned it like Logic and other DAWs that I like. Still a no go for me. I'm a person who like things that are visually appealing. It's sparks creativity within me and makes me feel good, therefore helping me make better music. With Reaper I always feel like, it's okay, I'm just making it work, not really enjoying it, and I'm not about that.

EDIT: This is why I mentioned no ProTools and Reaper in my OP. I already made my decision about them. Honestly, it was always between Studio One and Cubase.

[chk071]

Because some VST instruments give you the option to play them multitimbral, so why use several instances for something you can do in one instance?

It's also a pretty common thing. Many Kontakt instruments are multitimbral. Studio One is the issue here, not multitimbral instruments.

And, your workaround only works with several instances of a plugin, not with multitimbral plugins with several layers.

Again, I figured out how to do it. It just requires a lot of steps, instead of just one step, i.e. setting the track to receive all MIDI channels, not just one, like Studio One. It's absolutely piece of cake in Cubase and in Savihost.

Granted, it's not something I do every day, but, Presonus shouldn't really act as if it was a total niche scenario.

Kudos that you have the patience and knowledge to do that. Now I think about it, having a default template with Sampletank set up multitimbrally with different instruments on separate midi channels is a good idea. Makes a good starting point for a song.

True, you could do a track or song template for that.

[gentleclockdivider]

Because some VST instruments give you the option to play them multitimbral, so why use several instances for something you can do in one instance?

It's also a pretty common thing. Many Kontakt instruments are multitimbral. Studio One is the issue here, not multitimbral instruments.

And, your workaround only works with several instances of a plugin, not with multitimbral plugins with several layers.

Again, I figured out how to do it. It just requires a lot of steps, instead of just one step, i.e. setting the track to receive all MIDI channels, not just one, like Studio One. It's absolutely piece of cake in Cubase and in Savihost.

Granted, it's not something I do every day, but, Presonus shouldn't really act as if it was a total niche scenario.

I am not sure if I understood you correctly , but studio one is perfectly capable of adressing muliple midi channels on a multitimbral synth .
Here I loaded ONE instance of reaktor with has 3 instruments , each receive on their own midi channel .
You then create three new tracks in studio ONE and point them to the main reaktor instrument , obviously you have to set the midi channel for each track .

[chk071]

Well, exactly. In any other DAW, you can use all MIDI channels on a single track.

[gentleclockdivider]

Well, exactly. In any other DAW, you can use all MIDI channels on a single track.

Why would you want to do that , wouldn't that be confusing ?
Like I wrote , perhaps I am missing the point here ( probably )

[vurt]

Well, exactly. In any other DAW, you can use all MIDI channels on a single track.

Why would you want to do that , wouldn't that be confusing ?
Like I wrote , perhaps I am missing the point here ( probably )

you can view just the channel you are working on, or have it overlayed on other channels.
so you can switch between to get an overview, all on the same piano roll.

more useful for classical type arrangements id say personally, but whatever gets you where you want to be!