DAW Trends in 2024

[jules99]

What are some recent trends in DAW updates that seem to be a broader trend?

A couple of years back, adding Ableton-style clip launchers were all the rage in DAW updates, before that analog emulations.

Then in recent years, many DAWs (FL Studio, Bitwig, and Ableton come to mind) updated their sample browsers, while others (Like Logic, Reapder or Cubase) so far avoided doing so.

Are there any overarching trends this year that many DAWs catch up to (or decidedly don't)? With AI slowly creeping into plugins and DAWs, this is likely going to be the next wave of "game-changing" features. But what other trends or commonly added features have you noticed?

[jamcat]

Is this an INTRANCER thread?

[imrae]

AI features seem to be coming, jury is still out on their "game changing" impact. I'm rather hoping the auto-smoothing-EQ fad will die soon; resonances are a good thing in moderation and people are attacking them on sight.

Untrue that REAPER has done no work on sample browsing, by the way. But as ever with REAPER it is a steady trickle of incremental improvements.Try searching the changelog for "media explorer".

Speaking of REAPER, I think FX containers are becoming more expected. They added one recently, Reason upgraded the Combinator, in Bitwig they are a big part of the experience. Waves have tried to fill the gap with a (pretty nice) chain plugin and then followed it with an... ambitious... update. DDMF and Blue Cat have of course had some well-regarded plugins in that space for a while; but it strongly feels like something the DAW should handle.

[xbitz]

probably the surround workflows

[chk071]

Is this an INTRANCER thread?

I wondered too.

[jules99]

Be sure, I don't post here for engagement or to sell anything, let alone badly done presets. I'm just here for interacting with other plugin nerds.

[machinesworking]

I thought for sure Bitwigs sandboxing was going to be the next trend, but i get the impression there are issues with implementing that in CPU saving DAWs like Reaper and the other dual buffer DAWs. Reaper hints that it should only be used on suspect crashy plugins for instnance.

AI will be implemented, but I think unless someone gets the basic XO features of similarity search just right it's going to be a gimmick.

Personally what I would love to see is UX improvements as forefront. I would like to see DAWs improve on existing features they quickly implemented to keep up, then don't even pay attention to anymore. For instance in Logic the old plugins have GUIs from 20 years ago, that don't scale. In DP it's the same, and DP needs content browser improvements. In Bitwig the touch features are more or less abandoned, the multi monitor support got soundly trounced by Live's far superior implementation. Improving on old features doesn't sell like AI drummers do though.

[eluherlu]

Let me guess.. Stem separation?

[VOODOO U]

Let me guess.. Stem separation?

For thieves that can't write if their spleen depended on it.
Stem separation and A.I........ welcome to the modern P Diddy producer.

[runagate]

The fact that the answer to this question isn't MIDI 2.0's MIDI-CI protocol makes my soul hurt.

https://midi.org/midi-ci-specification

[vurt]

no idea, my host is at least 6 years old.

[WackyZoundz]

Preset/AI/visual-only processing. Outsourcing as much as possible from composition to performance to sound design to mixing and mastering.

[elnn]

I thought for sure Bitwigs sandboxing was going to be the next trend, but i get the impression there are issues with implementing that in CPU saving DAWs like Reaper and the other dual buffer DAWs. Reaper hints that it should only be used on suspect crashy plugins for instnance.

you need a separate process for each plugin to sandbox, and then to communicate with that process. it is costly performance-wise. i think it would become a feasible to start implementing it for other daw devs whenever processors as capable as apple m1 become the norm.

(by the way, AUv3 plugins are sandboxed.)

as for trends? ai (we’re in an experimental phase, so we’ll see for what it’s actually useful.) and, sadly, more devices (ie. more engineering as opposed to more design).

The fact that the answer to this question isn't MIDI 2.0's MIDI-CI protocol makes my soul hurt.

https://midi.org/midi-ci-specification

I agree. But OS APIs for it are not yet complete and there are no capable example devices yet. Apple has made it really easy to transfer from midi 1.0 to 2.0. I think it’s more in the hands of hardware developers. Increased throughput requirements will require new development tactics and microchips, I guess.

Users are a problem as well. Many lack the musical sensitivity to make higher resolutions really useful. Many even proclaim as much, taking pride in how unnecessary such resolutions would be, opinions we shouldn’t authorize too much for their lacking the skills necessary to control an instrument to such a degree that this resolution would make a difference. So sadly, this technology is just not in high demand. We currently have, what, 3-5 controllers built sensitive enough for this?

[eLawnMust]

DAW trends in 2024?!... Pretty much intensely painful & ripping sodomy from all angles yet so many used to it... I think DAW trends of 2004 much better proposition...

[VOODOO U]

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