Today’s top 5 post will gather the best Digital Audio Workstations that the top-of-the-line professionals use day to day. In the house music world, production is obviously a crucial aspect so this post will name and analyze the top 5 programs for house music production. I included some cool tutorial videos so be sure to check those out while you’re reading through. Without further ado, here is Top 5 Digital Audio Workstations:
1) Apple’s Logic Pro
Logic is by far the most advanced and the absolute best production software around. Although many have different opinions, a majority of the professional producers currently run on Logic. The most recent version, Logic Pro 9, is quite similar to previous versions but with every new edition, the smallest changes make the biggest differences. There are hundreds of key commands that make navigating extremely easy, the overall display of the program is gorgeous, and (to be quite blunt) the program is incredible. One downside is that Logic takes a bit of time to get used to and learn so I wouldn’t recommend it for first time producers. Here’s a general tutorial of the program:
And as a bonus because it was #1, Logic Pro deserves another video of a pretty cool Pryda-Melo remake:
2) Ableton Live 8
Ableton’s Live 8 is also one of the leading DAWs in the professional world. It’s known for two things: extended variety in production and extremely compatible/simplistic live performance functions. The layout itself consists of two major windows, the Arrangement and the Session areas. The Arrangement window displays all of the audio files and midi files and provides an easy way to cut, copy, drag, and do whatever with your files; the automation is also a very key item in the Arrangement view. The Session window shows where the original plug-ins, modules, and audiofiles are put and also where the mixer is located. Ableton is very well known for its extraordinary time-stretching functions and also for its simplicity. Check out a cool video of a few tutorials on Ableton Live 8:
3) Digidesign’s Pro Tools
Pro Tools has been another industry standard and is very well known in studios for recording live audio rather than producing using plug-ins or samples. I personally have never used Pro Tools but from what I know, it seems every similar to Cakewalk’s Sonar in the way it looks and works. I do know that an amazing up-and-coming producer, Shane Silver, uses Pro Tools and is making some killer tracks. Here’s a basic video on recording in Pro Tools:
4) Image-Line’s FL Studio
FL Studio has been a standard for the best-of-the-best and for the first time producer. I know that Norman Doray, Laidback Luke, and Afrojack both use FL Studio frequently but also it is a great choice for someone interested in music production for the first time because of its simplicity. The program revolves mostly around a step sequencer and an arrangement window that feeds off of that sequencer. A few things I love are the sequencer because you can make a bouncing beat in a matter of seconds and also I love how the samples are organized on the side and in the arrangement view. A few things I don’t like are the mixer and the way FX work, both just seem to be a hassle to be but here is a great video of Norman Doray in the studio making his “Phazing” remix using FL:
5) Propellerhead’s Reason 4
Reason is also a great program for first time producers because it is strictly midi in the arrangement and you order plug-ins in a rack style similar to a physical studio. This helps producers learn how to actually handle a patch bay and connect synths to things such as FX and compressors using patch chords. Reason is great to start off with but can become very limiting because the mixer doesn’t offer a lot of flexibility and the fact that you can’t drag an audio sample into the project bothers me but here is a nice tutorial showing you how to make a bassline with Reason:
