Indeed. I have used the MSEGs but I find a 'paintbrush' much more intuitive and and more precise (especially bc with an automation lane in the Edit view I can see the notes above rather than seeing a completely separate MSEG screen).
Feature(s) which keep MuLab from being your primary DAW?
-
- KVRian
- Topic Starter
- 696 posts since 15 Sep, 2003
"Music is directly tied to the technology of a culture."
"Modular gear is the craft beer of music."
"Modular gear is the craft beer of music."
-
- KVRist
- 65 posts since 9 Apr, 2023
There are some things that would be useful. Coming from MPC DAW, I miss being able to hit a key on the controller, and seeing a visual cue where I am on the scale in the DAW. So it takes me a few extra effort seconds to figure out where I'm at on the scale without the visual cue, because I'm a plinker who cant play keyboard. Another thing MPC did that was useful, is when you move a note around in the grid, it would play itself once in the new position, so you can hear the new key its in. If you're fishing around for a specific key, you could drag that around quickly until you found it. It doesn't work quickly like that without that little auto trigger. But EVERYTHING ELSE, about Mulab is SOO BRILLIANT, I cant think of anything that I miss enough to ever look back. I UNDERSTAND the design philosophy. Being so lightweight, slim and focused. I like things that are intuitively obvious. Yet streamlined for infinite modular expansion. Its BRILLIANT! I've never done modular before, that Kontakt thing was too obtuse. But MuLab made it worth figuring out. And its FUN to do now. MuLab is ENJOYABLE to work with. It seems more like an INSTRUMENT, then a program or app. It reminds me of the first time that I had an SP-1200 many years ago, and it didn't feel like a "drum machine" to me, like an 808, it was an instrument. It had horns and James Brown inside and anything I could put in it. It was almost an entire studio, in the form of a drum machine. Thats what Mulab feels like to me.
-
- KVRAF
- 2626 posts since 8 Sep, 2009
To me, MuLab is the uber-luxury version of the instrument- and midi-racks in Ableton Live.
That's why I bought it after testing it for a couple of days. And I think that's the beauty of MuLab: you can make it what you want it to be.
Sometimes an extensive command center with streamlined controls for a bunch of tools, arranged in a single (master) panel with your own GUI pleasing your needs and taste, sometimes a power synth by combining several (sub-)synths, and sometimes an FX-box filled with creative plugins in the VST-folder, triggered in various ways.
tl;dr: Looking forward to exploring the possibilities.
That's why I bought it after testing it for a couple of days. And I think that's the beauty of MuLab: you can make it what you want it to be.
Sometimes an extensive command center with streamlined controls for a bunch of tools, arranged in a single (master) panel with your own GUI pleasing your needs and taste, sometimes a power synth by combining several (sub-)synths, and sometimes an FX-box filled with creative plugins in the VST-folder, triggered in various ways.
tl;dr: Looking forward to exploring the possibilities.
-
- KVRist
- 169 posts since 14 Feb, 2021
Nada!
MuLab is already a professional and capable music production system. The issue doesn't lie with MuLab, but rather with you. Do you want proof of that? Buy the latest Ableton or Logic and let us know here if, because of that, in a year, your music is playing on the radio or if you've become a recognized musician. If that doesn't happen, will you still blame the tool for not meeting your standards?
In my honest opinion, having that "reverse-sidechaining-with-automation-push-in-to-vst3-bus-master-sender-mixer" will not help any musician create the next Billboard hit.
MuLab is improving "naturally," and that is a good thing. Jo is doing a great job, and there is nothing in MuLab stopping me from pursuing my musical endeavors. Once I realized that the problem was with me, instead of blaming the tool, I decided to improve myself.
MuLab is already a professional and capable music production system. The issue doesn't lie with MuLab, but rather with you. Do you want proof of that? Buy the latest Ableton or Logic and let us know here if, because of that, in a year, your music is playing on the radio or if you've become a recognized musician. If that doesn't happen, will you still blame the tool for not meeting your standards?
In my honest opinion, having that "reverse-sidechaining-with-automation-push-in-to-vst3-bus-master-sender-mixer" will not help any musician create the next Billboard hit.
MuLab is improving "naturally," and that is a good thing. Jo is doing a great job, and there is nothing in MuLab stopping me from pursuing my musical endeavors. Once I realized that the problem was with me, instead of blaming the tool, I decided to improve myself.
-
- KVRAF
- 2626 posts since 8 Sep, 2009
Bear in mind that almost every one of us already uses a fav DAW, probably after trying a couple of them, with all their goodness as well as flaws (which we have learned to deal with).
Newbies, instead, will look after "the best" and will receive the ever-same answers, providing them with the Top-5 or so names of the industry. You can't expect them to favor 'swimming against the river'. Adding to that, the mass of tutorials - both youtube-style or seriously decent commercial ones - for those who want to learn and make their way into music production is equally existent for those Top5 (or 10) DAWs.
Face it: MuLab is a niche product for those who know how to use it.
Newbies, instead, will look after "the best" and will receive the ever-same answers, providing them with the Top-5 or so names of the industry. You can't expect them to favor 'swimming against the river'. Adding to that, the mass of tutorials - both youtube-style or seriously decent commercial ones - for those who want to learn and make their way into music production is equally existent for those Top5 (or 10) DAWs.
Face it: MuLab is a niche product for those who know how to use it.
-
- KVRAF
- 4872 posts since 25 Jan, 2014 from The End of The World as We Knowit
I chose MuLab as a newbie, not by swimming against some river of others’ opinions, but by feeling which tool was most expressive for me. Many people make their artistic decisions that way. MuLab’s consistent design language helps me find my own way of using it.
Face it: KVR social media is a niche, not the norm.
Face it: KVR social media is a niche, not the norm.
F E E D
Y O U R
F L O W
Y O U R
F L O W
-
- KVRAF
- 2724 posts since 28 Mar, 2008 from a Galaxy S7 far far away
My first daw was Muzys! Then I found out that Luna, the first incarnations of MuLab, was made by the same developer. So I waited for Luna to mature a bit. In the meantime, I tried Ableton, Reason, Reaper, FL Studio and even LMMS. All of which are nothing but bloatware imo. None of them actually make any attempt at making life easier for the user, it's all about what features they can cram in to become top dog! Although, Reaper is probably a little different in that respect.
The industry has become obsessed with 'clips.' they're everywhere, even hardware has become clip-based! Yet so many people out there have asked on different forums about manufacturers making linear based sequencers for their hardware. Do they listen? No!
Where did this originate? Well, I came into software in 2005, so I don't know which came first, but I'd bet it was Muzys, ie, Jo. Now that's what you call innovation! I might not like clips, but it seems many do, and I get that for live performance, it's probably difficult to beat.
At that time, I could be wrong, but I believe the only other clip based daw was Ableton! Doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened to Muzys! But then, we wouldn't have MuLab, which I think everyone who's used both, would agree that MuLab is by far an easier to use product and is far superior in many ways.
I do wish MuLab kept the original skinning, and we all know the wish list is sooo long that one man can never do it all, but for what it is right now, there's nothing as easy to use and rock solid as MuLab!
One of my favorite features is the fact it is portable! When you're system crashes and dies, or you migrate to a new computer, I laugh at people who have to install all that software and plugins when all I do is unplug my portable hard drive and plug it into my new system!!!
Seriously though, portable software has become so good I don't know why everyone doesn't use it! And why every developer doesn't design it that way!
So to cut a long story short, Jo, I thank you for the last 18 years of fun I've had using your software and I for one am looking forward to the future of MuLab!!!
PS. Not only that, look at the value of what you're getting considering the prices of DAW's!
The industry has become obsessed with 'clips.' they're everywhere, even hardware has become clip-based! Yet so many people out there have asked on different forums about manufacturers making linear based sequencers for their hardware. Do they listen? No!
Where did this originate? Well, I came into software in 2005, so I don't know which came first, but I'd bet it was Muzys, ie, Jo. Now that's what you call innovation! I might not like clips, but it seems many do, and I get that for live performance, it's probably difficult to beat.
At that time, I could be wrong, but I believe the only other clip based daw was Ableton! Doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened to Muzys! But then, we wouldn't have MuLab, which I think everyone who's used both, would agree that MuLab is by far an easier to use product and is far superior in many ways.
I do wish MuLab kept the original skinning, and we all know the wish list is sooo long that one man can never do it all, but for what it is right now, there's nothing as easy to use and rock solid as MuLab!
One of my favorite features is the fact it is portable! When you're system crashes and dies, or you migrate to a new computer, I laugh at people who have to install all that software and plugins when all I do is unplug my portable hard drive and plug it into my new system!!!
Seriously though, portable software has become so good I don't know why everyone doesn't use it! And why every developer doesn't design it that way!
So to cut a long story short, Jo, I thank you for the last 18 years of fun I've had using your software and I for one am looking forward to the future of MuLab!!!
PS. Not only that, look at the value of what you're getting considering the prices of DAW's!
-
- KVRAF
- 2626 posts since 8 Sep, 2009
In fact, the first somewhat popular clip or pattern-based sequencer was the Creator on Atari (former trials started on Commodore 64).
It's the Homo Erectus bro of Logic Pro, which still has some of his DNA inside (no wonder if you google the history of C-Lab, Gerhard Lengeling, Emagic ...).
It's the Homo Erectus bro of Logic Pro, which still has some of his DNA inside (no wonder if you google the history of C-Lab, Gerhard Lengeling, Emagic ...).
-
- KVRAF
- 2724 posts since 28 Mar, 2008 from a Galaxy S7 far far away
What I mean is that my opinion is they are bloated with the things I don't need or want. Like my file manager, XYplorer, they have so many features I don't use and most apps have no way of hiding those things or customising what is shown or even reorganising it completely. Reaper, like XYplorer, is one of the better ones in that case as it can be customised completely... if you know how at least!!!
-
- KVRist
- 34 posts since 10 Sep, 2006
My vote for top feature: More integration - ARA, VST3
-----------------------------------------
I'm a long time Mulab user since it was Luna (so not as long as some, but there it is ~ 20 years.) I would describe myself as a hobby user.
As I've gotten older, time has become more valuable to me. I'm willing to open my wallet if it will allow me to do the things I love more quickly; I'm less interested in dealing with frustrating tech to save a few bucks.
MuLab is mostly quite good in this regard; it works intuitively, it's solid, I understand the workflow, etc.
However, lately I've been wanting to record vocals, and this is where I find that I find MuLab has a weakness vs. other DAWs. This last Christmas, I received a certain pitch correction software package that doesn't integrate with MuLab given the lack of ARA / VST3. This means all vocals need to be exported, edited, and reimported. And then I'm not going to hear what the revisions sound like in the mix until I re-import.
Note that the github of said pitch correction software seems to have references to CLAP, so maybe they will release ARA with CLAP, but I do have other plug-ins that can take advantage of VST3.
-----------------------------------------
I'm a long time Mulab user since it was Luna (so not as long as some, but there it is ~ 20 years.) I would describe myself as a hobby user.
As I've gotten older, time has become more valuable to me. I'm willing to open my wallet if it will allow me to do the things I love more quickly; I'm less interested in dealing with frustrating tech to save a few bucks.
MuLab is mostly quite good in this regard; it works intuitively, it's solid, I understand the workflow, etc.
However, lately I've been wanting to record vocals, and this is where I find that I find MuLab has a weakness vs. other DAWs. This last Christmas, I received a certain pitch correction software package that doesn't integrate with MuLab given the lack of ARA / VST3. This means all vocals need to be exported, edited, and reimported. And then I'm not going to hear what the revisions sound like in the mix until I re-import.
Note that the github of said pitch correction software seems to have references to CLAP, so maybe they will release ARA with CLAP, but I do have other plug-ins that can take advantage of VST3.
-
- KVRAF
- 7171 posts since 8 Feb, 2003 from London, UK
I'd imagine most VST3 plugins (maybe other than from Steinberg) will have CLAP versions issued sooner than MuLab will have VST3 support. Similarly for Celemony / PreSonus and ARA, I guess.
-
- KVRAF
- 2724 posts since 28 Mar, 2008 from a Galaxy S7 far far away
I like to think so. Tbh, there's only a small minority of plugins in VST3 I would want anyway, so I'm not too bothered either way.
-
- KVRist
- 131 posts since 6 Mar, 2022
Midi split and midi knife tool to split midi notes. I'll keep buying upgrades regardless as its a great daw but we need the ability to split midi! If it can be done do tell how.
-
- KVRAF
- 2255 posts since 21 Nov, 2015
While truly appreciating CLAP; I also have to state that VST3 is getting more and more important as time goes by. Right now there are quite a few I cannot use, as new Developers dont get a VST2 - License from Steinberg anymore (for quite some time now actually).
These Circumstances will not change and there will be more and more Plugins not making it into MuLab that way.
+1 for VST3 - Support.
These Circumstances will not change and there will be more and more Plugins not making it into MuLab that way.
+1 for VST3 - Support.
The art of knowing is knowing what to ignore.
