What's a good DAW to switch to from Cakewalk?

[3ptguitarist]

I currently have Cakewalk and ableton live lite 10. I'm a little interested in switching DAWs to something that has more of a userbase and is updated regularly such as Cubase 10 pro.

I'm into metal, electronic, hiphop beats, and piano all through software except guitar. I'm not a serious musician. I'm just doing this for fun right now.

I've used cakewalk for a long time and I wonder if I should just stick with cakewalk for my musical needs. But I feel like the userbase and interest with cakewalk has gone downhill. Seems like pro audio manufacturers don't support cakewalk anymore when they tall about daw support. For example, arturia's keylab mk2. So this kinda makes me want to get a new daw.

What do you guys think?

Hmmmm...you've already got some excellent advice; but Cakewalk's future may actually be in *FAR* better hands and shape then it's been in years. You see: word that came to me from inside (I forget where and this was years ago) is that Cakewalk had become one of the most bloated companies in the industry - way too high of a payroll/fat expenditure sheet for what it actually was. So it's demise was in the cards - that it's ip is now owned by a small group of people who seem to care is a miracle - bigger companies/harder falls don't always fare so well. Anyway: Cakewalk has a chance. Looking at it from the perspective of Joe average Cakewalk user: I still seem to have access to virtually everything that I've bought over the years in my migrated Bandlab account - I just tested it. Amazon S3 servers feed the downloads, too! Anyway: if you've made the jump to something else, great! But just looking at Bandlab's site; their recent NAMM visit:

https://www.bandlab.com/cakewalk_team

The thing is I want a daw that had a huge following so I can find advice and tips more easily than a daw that has a smaller following. Seems as if cakewalk's following has shrieked though theres still a sizable amount of users. Also, hardware support seems to have diminished as a company such as Arturia doesn't list cakewalk as a daw they have a midi keyboard setup for their keylab mk2 series. So there is concern about that with other hardware and in the future.

[zzz00m]

Setting up a MIDI keyboard controller should be a snap in Studio One. The user guide page 16 explains it all.

Set Up Your MIDI Devices
All MIDI-capable hardware devices are collectively referred to as External Devices in Studio One. There are three types of External Devices: Keyboards, Instruments, and Control Surfaces. While each device type functions in a slightly different way, there is one menu to add and configure any External Device. The menu can be found by navigating to Studio One/Options/External Devices/Add Device (Mac OS X: Preferences/External Devices/Add Device).

I got it work in some ways, but I'm unable to get the pads or buttons to switch patches. But that seems to be an issue with vst's in general and maybe theres a deeper method I need to follow beyond the options with studio one 4 to get that to work

Yep, switching patches with VST instruments is a can of worms, and I'm not aware of a DAW with a guaranteed solution for that problem. Most VSTs these days use proprietary patch browsers. The Native Instruments NKS system offers one solution, as does the Akai VIP program, using keyboards that provide dedicated integration with the plugin mapping.

[3ptguitarist]

Setting up a MIDI keyboard controller should be a snap in Studio One. The user guide page 16 explains it all.

Set Up Your MIDI Devices
All MIDI-capable hardware devices are collectively referred to as External Devices in Studio One. There are three types of External Devices: Keyboards, Instruments, and Control Surfaces. While each device type functions in a slightly different way, there is one menu to add and configure any External Device. The menu can be found by navigating to Studio One/Options/External Devices/Add Device (Mac OS X: Preferences/External Devices/Add Device).

I got it work in some ways, but I'm unable to get the pads or buttons to switch patches. But that seems to be an issue with vst's in general and maybe theres a deeper method I need to follow beyond the options with studio one 4 to get that to work

Yep, switching patches with VST instruments is a can of worms, and I'm not aware of a DAW with a guaranteed solution for that problem. Most VSTs these days use proprietary patch browsers. The Native Instruments NKS system offers one solution, as does the Akai VIP program, using keyboards that provide dedicated integration with the plugin mapping.

I have an arturia keylab 61 mk2 and I haven't been able to setup patch changing on it. I may end up getting a kontrol s61 mk2 fot the nks support and displays to use for patch changing.

[Psuper]

My timeline after hardware:

Cakewalk
Cakewalk/Reason
Sonar w Reason Rewired
Reason/Reaper
Reaper w/ Reason Rewired

Reaper is all you need really.

[THE INTRANCER]

If you like going to dentist and having your teeth pulled, use Reaper...if you like going to the swimming pool, use Studio One, if you like to climb mountains with a mountain bike... use Cubase, if you like throwing coal into the fire of a steam train from the early 1900's use Bandlab.. If you like climbing long long ladders and cleaning every little spec of dirt off windows, use Reason.
.....

[Steve Bolivar]

If you like going to dentist and having your teeth pulled, use Reaper...if you like going to the swimming pool, use Studio One, if you like to climb mountains with a mountain bike... use Cubase, if you like throwing coal into the fire of a steam train from the early 1900's use Bandlab.. If you like climbing long long ladders and cleaning every little spec of dirt off windows, use Reason.
.....

Lol
Where's FL in this?

[Hink]

ummm...in the 1st 3 words?

[3ptguitarist]

If you like going to dentist and having your teeth pulled, use Reaper...if you like going to the swimming pool, use Studio One, if you like to climb mountains with a mountain bike... use Cubase, if you like throwing coal into the fire of a steam train from the early 1900's use Bandlab.. If you like climbing long long ladders and cleaning every little spec of dirt off windows, use Reason.
.....

Which one do you use and prefer?

[zzz00m]

I'm going to guess that he likes the swimming pool!

I'm exploring that pool as well, and the water's fine! Come on in!

IMHO the rest of his analogies are a bit over the top. But as entertainment, rather than advice, it is amusing.

I would agree that Cubase is for hardware engineers, and Cakewalk is a bit behind in the state of the DAW art. Cubase may be the best choice for those stuck with 90's external hardware, but Cakewalk can handle the same hardware, for free!

[3ptguitarist]

Btw what other midi features does cubase have over studio one? I figure I'll mostly be messing with the piano roll and some midi fx for that. I don't know what midi features cubase has over studio one that would greatly benefit me.

[zzz00m]

Btw what other midi features does cubase have over studio one? I figure I'll mostly be messing with the piano roll and some midi fx for that. I don't know what midi features cubase has over studio one that would greatly benefit me.

DAWs such as Cubase, and a few others, began as MIDI sequencers back in day. They later evolved into digital audio workstations after adding audio recording and editing features.

The deeper MIDI features of Cubase refer to having ease of control over an external MIDI hardware studio. Not referring to controller hardware here, but actual instruments. Things like MIDI sysex, patch management, & MIDI event editing.

If you strictly use VSTi, then the Studio One workflow is fine, not missing much. All of my plugin instruments work.

Piano roll works great, and there is an interesting arpeggiator available in the Note (MIDI) FX section of each instrument track.

For Studio One 4, they have upgraded the Impact XT and Sample One XT samplers, as well as added a step sequencer and drum editor mode. You can access the pattern editor in any selected .instrument track by navigating to "Event/Insert Pattern"

Studio One was developed by some ex-Cubase programmers. It has a much younger code base, and appears to be leaner and meaner. Cubase still contains a bunch of legacy features.

[jancivil]

I have to revise my assessment of Cubase and drums editing. This is some RTFM shit I found yesterday. If you instantiate an Instrument Track (I never did, using always the vst rack to) so I never simply saw this appear but there is the option to take a drum map from instrument. Which instead of setting up twice is just the once. The instrument has to support it but BFD3 does. Groove Agent does, another thing I never use.
You have to save it as its own .drm to edit it but that's trivial to do.

[jancivil]

BTW I used to make a lot more money as a bike messenger because I could handle the hills of SF when others wouldn't/couldn't so

Never cared about any "90s hardware" either.

[Dasheesh]

i went from tape to digital to ableton to reaper.

my suggestion is reaper, after cakewalk you will take right to it.

[3ptguitarist]

Btw I'm really thinking about getting a kontrol s61 mk2 keyboard and want compatibility with a daw. The only daws that are compatible are ableton, logic, and cubase. So this may make me get cubase pro 10 instead. I use komplete 11 and maschine mk3 so cubase may work better for me.