New to music creation and editing

[sean121]

Recently I have developed a new passion for music recording and creation but I have no idea what to do and where to start. So, I am here looking for some advice on what software should I go for as a newbie. I watched some youtube videos on this subject and they were suggesting softwares like Audacity, Logic pro X, garageband, FL studio, walk band, etc.

I am not sure which of these software would be an ideal choice for a beginner.

​​​​​​​Any suggestions?

[bones]

It's probably best to start with something free and there are plenty of options to consider. Reaper is free for personal use, and is very popular, or there is Cakewalk, which has a long and proud heritage. There are also free or cheap versions of some other host applications, like Traktion's Waveform-Free. FL Studio is a very popular option but the cheapest version is still $100. If it was me, I'd go for Cakewalk.

[alexawiliams784]

For a beginner if you ask me I would suggest you to go for Gargeband and then slowly move towards more advanced DAW like Reaper, Ableton, Logic Pro X, etc. It is simple to use and has an easy interface with lots of in-built instruments and mixing features.

I am currently using Reaper on my windows system I wish I could use garageband on my windows system but it is only designed for MacOS right? Or is there a way to run it on Windows?

[sean121]

Thanks! I will try the cakewalk then. What about Audacity it is free as well right?

[Christophe]

Thanks! I will try the cakewalk then. What about Audacity it is free as well right?

Audacity is not a DAW, it is a audio editor, a DAW allows you to edit midi and to arrange song.

[Christophe]

you can try the free version of Studio one :
https://shop.presonus.com/Studio-One-4-Prime
and Music Maker :
https://www.magix.com/us/music/music-ma ... s/#c902005

[bones]

Thanks! I will try the cakewalk then. What about Audacity it is free as well right?

They are two different things. Audacity is an audio editor, where you play around with samples, .wav files or mp3s. For example, I use an audio editor to take my finished songs and turn them into mp3s.

These other things are much more sophisticated. You can write and arrange music, generate sounds from scratch (Audacity needs you to put the sound in), add and/or record parts like vocals or guitar, add effects and then render out a finished song. They are basically whole studios in a single application.

If you want to give Cakewalk a go, there are plenty of beginner tutorials on YouTube to get you started.

[Teksonik]

I'll give a +1 to Cakewalk by Bandlab. I was a Cakewalk customer all the way up to Sonar X3 and the new Bandlab version is even better so I'm using it instead. It's still being actively developed.

There might be a bit of a steep learning curve but there will be a curve for any DAW and CW is fully functional with no limitations and has some very nice built in instruments and effects. You will not likely outgrow it for some time nor will you run into limitations like some of the other free DAWs have (limited track count, no VST support etc)......

[HYPNAGOGIA]

+1 for Cakewalk from me as well.
It's by far the most feature rich from all of the free options out there.
The UI can feel a bit cluttered, but once you get the hang of it, it's quite good.

Other free DAWs have limitations - often quite severe:

• Pro Tools First:
  - 16 MIDI/instruments tracks
  - no input monitoring
• Waveform Free:
  - no customizable layouts
  - majority of creation tools missing
• Studio One Prime:
  - no VSTs
  - limited buses
  - no sample formats importing
  - 2-in/2-out audio support
  - 10 native plugins (versus 32 in Artist version and 41 in Professional)
  - 1 instrument (versus 5 in Artist and Professional versions)
• LMMS:
  - no audio recording
• Podium Free:
  - MIDI interface limited to 1 input and 1 output
  - no 64-bit mixer engine support
  - no plugin multiprocessing
  - no ReWire
• Magix Music Maker:
  - max 8 tracks
  - max 8 effects
  - no instruments

Honorable completely free and unlimited mentions:
- SoundBridge
- Reaper: not quite free, but the demo has no limitations

[Teksonik]

Reaper now has a 60 day demo limitation. In the past it was unlimited.

Reaper 050420.png

It may still work past the 60 days but in the spirit of fairness it should be purchased after the 60 days.

Reaper would be my recommendation for a low cost DAW if Cakewalk wasn't free. I'm still on Reaper 4.77 because it simply works for me without any bugs and I've found a really nice skin for it that I'm not sure will work in version 5+. Makes it one of the best looking DAWs in my opinion.

MuLab is another DAW that has always interested me. Not enough to buy it although it is only 69 euros. It feels the closest to Orion to me.

https://www.mutools.com/mulab-product.html

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[HYPNAGOGIA]

It feels the closest to Orion to me.

I'm curious. In what way does it seem closest to Orion?

Personally, I don't think anything out there is like Orion, which is why I'm probably finding it so hard to move on from it. They all have linear workflow in some shape or another, save for FL with it's clunky pattern system and Ableton Live/Bitwig with those launch clips. And MuLab to me seems like just any other linear DAW, just unintuitively worse. It doesn't seem to me like it's very new user friendly.

[sean121]

Thanks! I will try the cakewalk then. What about Audacity it is free as well right?

Audacity is not a DAW, it is a audio editor, a DAW allows you to edit midi and to arrange song.

Okay! Got it.

[sean121]

Thanks! I will try the cakewalk then. What about Audacity it is free as well right?

They are two different things. Audacity is an audio editor, where you play around with samples, .wav files or mp3s. For example, I use an audio editor to take my finished songs and turn them into mp3s.

These other things are much more sophisticated. You can write and arrange music, generate sounds from scratch (Audacity needs you to put the sound in), add and/or record parts like vocals or guitar, add effects and then render out a finished song. They are basically whole studios in a single application.

If you want to give Cakewalk a go, there are plenty of beginner tutorials on YouTube to get you started.

Thanks for explaining. Yes is I am gonna start with cakewalk and I found this youtube channel by the name of "Home studio simplified". There is a complete tutorial set of 24 videos about cakewalk.

[Teksonik]

I'm curious. In what way does it seem closest to Orion?

MuLab.png

Personally, I don't think anything out there is like Orion,

The good thing about Orion is it's perfect for beginners. The bad thing about Orion is it's perfect for beginners.

FL with it's clunky pattern system

After using FL Studio since version 3 I don't find it clunky at all. In fact it makes Orion seem really clunky and so very limited. I would have recommended FL here but to get full functionally it does cost quite a bit for a beginner and the community can be pretty unforgiving of beginners.

But it's all to each his own. With Cakewalk being free now it's hard to recommend anything else. At least until someone is dead sure they want to pursue music and is ready to spend some money. Then they might find Bitwig, FL Studio, or Studio One etc worth the investment.

[sean121]

Or is there a way to run it on Windows?

Maybe this article can help you. It is a very long process to run GarageBand on windows though if you have time and energy then only go for it. https://thegaragebandpc.com/