KVR Audio

harryupbabble · Post by **harryupbabble** » Thu Apr 14, 2016 8:42 pm

Most of the "limitations" in this list are "i-can_live-with-that" kinds. It's just that, to me, some limitations are not limitations at all.
I'm not sure if this is a complete list. I got most of this information from the Bedroom Producers website:

REAPER - 60-day time trial

Podium Free - MIDI interface setup is limited to one input and one output
- 64-bit mixer engine option is disabled
- Plugin multiprocessing is disabled. (only one CPU core used to process the plugins)
- ReWire is disabled
- Surround-sound playback is disabled

Tracktion 4 - registration required

Studio One 3 Prime - no VST plugin support
- only one virtual instrument included

Pro Tools | First - only three projects can be stored
- network connection required
- CPU hog

Linux Multimedia Studio - some stability issues
- relatively steep learning curve
- no audio recording

Samplitude Pro X Silver - only up to eight tracks per project
- only two busses per project
- complex menus

MuLab Free - only eight VST plugins per project
- only four tracks per project

Renoise - not sure if it belongs in this list

Based on this info, I decided to choose Podium Free as my main DAW because I can live with all it's "limitations" because they are not limitations to me.
Plus the workflow is similar to REAPER's and I'm used to that. It's also pretty stable. The only super-minor "con" I found so far is that VST plugins
that works in REAPER doesn't work in Podium Free. But there's not that many of those. On the other hand, Podium Free accepts the Trifex Buzzrizer plugin
while almost all the others rejects it. Is this also the case in other people's computer setup?
Below are the plugins rejected (on my computer) by Podium Free:

Antress\ModernDeathcore.dll
slim slow slider\SideChCompMn.dll
slim slow slider\SideChCompSt.dll
slim slow slider\SideChGate_mono.dll
slim slow slider\SideChGate_st.dll
Phonics\Mono To Stereo.dll
DSK Music\DSK DrumZ - 8bitZ.dll
Softrave\ElectroBassLandscapes.dll
Sound Magic\Neo_Piano_Mini.dll
SuperRiff\SuperRiffBass.dll
Manda Audio\MT-PowerDrumKit.dll
Antress\ModernFlashVerb.dll
Open Ambience Project\SHEPPi Free Spatial Enhancer.dll
Variety Of Sound\epicVerb.dll
RealDigital\RD DIGITAL PIANO .dll

I have a total of 1141 .dll plugins in my "tested" VSTPlugins folder that all work in REAPER (except the Trifex BuzzrizerLight) and about another 10,000 more in my "untested" VSTPlugins folder.
And Podium Free only rejected 15 of the "tested" ones.... still pretty damn good, I say.

But I really wish that Sound Magic\Neo_Piano_Mini.dll and Manda Audio\MT-PowerDrumKit.dll were not rejected.

If other users have found additional disadvantages or cons of using Podium Free, or managed to have it accept my list of rejected
VST plugins... please share the knowledge. Thanks.

harryupbabble · Post by **harryupbabble** » Mon May 02, 2016 9:35 pm

I found out today that by using Image-Line's MiniHost as a plugin inside Podium Free...
pretty much all the plugins that was rejected by Podium Free are NOW WORKING.
Yeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaah!!!

Also, I found out that the master track is not the only track "bounceable".
All tracks are "bounceable" and therefore CPU load can be greatly reduced.
Double yeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaah!!!

jabe · Post by **jabe** » Mon May 02, 2016 10:48 pm

It's always important to have thousands and thousands of plug-ins.

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Mon May 02, 2016 10:53 pm

Good that you found something which works for you. I couldn't at all work with Podium Free, because the inability to multiprocess plugins is a huge bummer for me. I can't use more than 2 or 3 demanding plugins in it without the CPU maxing out. In fact, when i first tried, i was like

because i didn't know of that limitation, and i thought it wasn't optimized at all. Shame, because otherwise it's surely the most complete free host out there. But that limitation is a PITA for me.

Zexila · Post by **Zexila** » Mon May 02, 2016 11:02 pm

Know this is off topic post, but let's keep it bumping, who knows, maybe someone on topic see's it because of it.

Anyways, If you ask me I would rather get fully featured content packed even expensive DAW and ditch all this jazz and just make music instead, sincerely, tried to get in all this Windows madness with freebies and all, don't know, maybe I'm too stuck with my own thing, maybe, but even for someone starting out, if you are reading this, get best DAW you can and make music with it, it's not worth your time or your money, leave it for when writers blocks strike somewhere down the line.

But seriously, from this list, really wish that I can digest Tracktion because there's T6 license collecting virtual dust on my account, but overall, if one can get into Tracktion 4, he hit the spot really because that 4 can serve him quite good as it seems.

Other than that, MuLab is nice, if anyone is into it, getting full license is such an score overall than, sure with this limitations, it's hard not to hit the limit, but if you think it's the one, go for it.

Guess same could be said for Podium, good demo if you like the thing before buying, go for it ASAP and make better music without limitations.

Still feel there's not much there, wish dev's set free one of the prior releases like Tracktion did, older, but usable.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:20 pm

harryupbabble wrote:Samplitude Pro X Silver - only up to eight tracks per project
- only two busses per project
- complex menus

I don't think it is free any longer, can't be downloaded from Magix

Seems to be bundled with gear, or magware

Kumi_27 · Post by **Kumi_27** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:36 pm

Tracktion T5 - registration required. Except that a full version

And only 30$ upgrade to T7

stanlea · Post by **stanlea** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:39 pm

Ardour 5

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:42 pm

stanlea wrote:Ardour 5

Not a turn key system.

Users need to be more engineers than musicians having to build the free version themselves.

sprnva · Post by **sprnva** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:45 pm

I don't know if it's unique to the Mac version, but Pro Tools First kept losing my login info. Not very good for a DAW that requires a network connection to run. By contrast, Studio One Prime doesn't have any trouble with this.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:50 pm

sprnva wrote:Studio One Prime doesn't have any trouble with this.

No, loading third party plugs is Studio One Prime's problem

Kumi_27 · Post by **Kumi_27** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:52 pm

Numanoid wrote:No, loading third party plugs is Studio One Prime's problem

The problem goes deeper, because even Studio One Artist has the same problem.
Must be something wrong in the core code

***

BTW. there are some other "magware" DAWs too:
- Bitwig 8-track
- Samplitude X2 Silver

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:56 pm

Kumi_27 wrote:BTW. there are some other "magware" DAWs too:
- Bitwig 8-track
- Samplitude X2 Silver

And their problem is that they are not freeware

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 5:58 pm

There is a good overview at BPB:

http://bedroomproducersblog.com/2015/11 ... -software/

Just need to update that T5 is now the top free model

Robert Randolph · Post by **Robert Randolph** » Wed Aug 31, 2016 6:01 pm

Numanoid wrote:
stanlea wrote:Ardour 5
Not a turn key system.

Users need to be more engineers than musicians having to build the free version themselves.

Not really. It's quite easy to get it free via your distro's package manager.

Cons And Limitations Of "Free" DAWs