Considering switching from Ableton to Bitwig.

[Seluvis]

Long time Ableton user but considering the switch. Looking for feedback on any major drawbacks of Bitwig?
Luckily I haven't purchased any max for live stuff so I am not going to miss out on the dedicated Ableton stuff. I am not using any of the built in synths in Ableton although I do use some of the effects.

Visually Ableton is starting to look very tired to my eyes regardless of what skin I use whereas Bitwig looks very pleasing to me which helps a lot. Not sure how long it will take to transition but both daws seem to share many work flow similarities.
Feedback from Ableton users who have made the switch appreciated including those that returned back to Ableton for whatever reason.

[qtheerearranger]

Bitwig flaws

No retrospective midi record
No groove pool - swing system is mid in bitwig
No drag and drop of tracks to browser for track presets etc.

Flaws compared to Ableton specific:
Browser is not nearly as good as Ableton in general. But it’s not horrible.

[ksandvik]

Feature-wise they are so close I never bothered switching myself.

[oobesan]

Bitwig flaws

No retrospective midi record
No groove pool - swing system is mid in bitwig
No drag and drop of tracks to browser for track presets etc.

Flaws compared to Ableton specific:
Browser is not nearly as good as Ableton in general. But it’s not horrible.

At least it's not as bas as Logic's "browser"

[apoclypse]

Personally I like the way Ableton looks. There is no doubt that Bitwig looks better but imo looks aren't everything. Bitwig also doesn't have a built in theming system so there is that.

IMO Bitwig 6 is very nice, but Ableton has so many features that I really like. Sometimes I wish the two would just merge.

Bitwig's browser imo, is the best browser in any DAW. It's fast, it smart, its context aware. They kind of messed up the experience of using it a bit when they updated it in version 5, but overall still very nice. I'm not really a fan of Ableton's browser, it just feels clunky to use, but it is speedy.

Drum Machine imo isn't anywhere near as nice to use as Drum Racks. Choke groups in Bitwig still sucks and they essentially haven't touched the Drum Machine device in a very long time.

I like Bitwig's more modular approach to their instruments but that can be a pain too. Like I just want a decent 2 OSC Wavetable synth but you'd have to build that using their modular environment Grid. I don't care that much about the grid and don't need or want to have to dive into a whole modular interface to setup a Wavetable synth. I keep hoping they will setup a container like Polymer that we can edit and add our own modules to at some point. I'm not asking for much I just need a two or 3 OSC synth, with a dual filters, noise and sub. You'd have to build that in Grid in Bitwig. I don't need or want to deal with cables or logic.

Routing in Bitwig is not as straightforward as Ableton. You can do routing but be prepared to deal with a lot of audio receiver devices. That's both a good and bad thing. Good because you can really do some crazy routing setups, bad because it can get very complex very quickly. The same with sidechaining etc. Very versatile but can get complex if you are not used to the setup coming from Ableton.

Like others swing groove etc is very rudimentary/ non-existent. I don't even like how Ableton does it but Bitwig is somehow worse imo.

No retro record. This imo is Ableton's real killer feature and frankly their implementation is the best out of any DAW I've used, except maybe Studio One. Bitwig doesn't have it at all.

Finally I just don't like how Bitwig handles upgrade pricing. It feels predatory somehow to me, but I know a lot of folks don't feel that way. All I know is that I paid $180 bucks for an Ableton 12 upgrade more than 2 years ago and have gotten pretty major updates to the DAW since for no extra charge (with more to come). Do with that what you will.

[dayjob]

audio editing is different. do try the demo. when editing multiple tracks it can be quite annoying though it is improved with recent updates.

idk why you have to switch..just use both.. if you like bitwig then get into it and see how it goes.. keep live in case you miss something in it and want to use it for a track or two… so instead of switching think of Adding bitwig as a new set of tools.

[Seluvis]

Thanks for the replies and feedback very much appreciated, I'll probably hold off a little bit longer and wait for a sale of some sort. In the meanwhile I am slowly preparing my older projects for export just in case.
Cheers.

[Yorrrrrr]

After a long time in Ableton Live I switched to Bitwig because I found it was a better software for me. Mainly because of these features:

- Modulation system (system-wide, amazing modulators, audio-rate, etc..)
- The Grid (more user friendly and straightforward when compared to Max for Live)
- Clip launcher alongside timeline (Makes more sense than Ableton's clip vs arrangement view)
- Hybrid tracks
- Inspector panel
- Better GUI overall, more visual feedback, prettier, more flexible.
- Flexibility
- Containers
- Note FX (prefer them over Ableton MIDI effects)
- Better audio editing
- Better browser (context-aware)
- Plugin sandboxing
- Better stability
- Better PDC/latency handling
- Better CPU (especially in large projects) and GPU performance
- Multiple projects open at the same time
- Voice stacking
- Operators
- Better automation system (v6+)
- Clip alias (v6+)
- Better scale awareness (v6+)
- Custom keyboard shortcuts
- Better, faster personal workflow
- Better track grouping
- Better bouncing system
- Better view for mixing
- Better sidechaining features
- CLAP plugin compatibility
- Better (interactive) help view
- Commander tool
- Some better stock devices
- More optimized for sound design/production/mixing
...

However, I miss from Ableton:

- MIDI capture
- MIDI comping
- Some MIDI tools (v12+)
- Some Max for Live specific devices
- Alternate themes/colors
- Some better stock devices (Simpler with slicing, Operator, etc.)
- More optimized for live performance
...

[Seluvis]

After a long time in Ableton Live I switched to Bitwig because I found it was a better software for me. Mainly because of these features:

- Modulation system (system-wide, amazing modulators, audio-rate, etc..)
- The Grid (more user friendly and straightforward when compared to Max for Live)
- Clip launcher alongside timeline (Makes more sense than Ableton's clip vs arrangement view)
- Hybrid tracks
- Inspector panel
- Better GUI overall, more visual feedback, prettier, more flexible.
- Flexibility
- Containers
- Note FX (prefer them over Ableton MIDI effects)
- Better audio editing
- Better browser (context-aware)
- Plugin sandboxing
- Better stability
- Better PDC/latency handling
- Better CPU (especially in large projects) and GPU performance
- Multiple projects open at the same time
- Voice stacking
- Operators
- Better automation system (v6+)
- Clip alias (v6+)
- Better scale awareness (v6+)
- Custom keyboard shortcuts
- Better, faster personal workflow
- Better track grouping
- Better bouncing system
- Better view for mixing
- Better sidechaining features
- CLAP plugin compatibility
- Better (interactive) help view
- Commander tool
- Some better stock devices
- More optimized for sound design/production/mixing
...

However, I miss from Ableton:

- MIDI capture
- MIDI comping
- Some MIDI tools (v12+)
- Some Max for Live specific devices
- Alternate themes/colors
- Some better stock devices (Simpler with slicing, Operator, etc.)
- More optimized for live performance
...

Thanks for making such a detailed post. Appreciated.
I am moving closer to Bitwig especially after your post because your feature list aligned with mine.