DAW discussions

[Berni]

Originally Posted by MBTC

Yeah, once I play around with arrangement view more, it definitely feels easier to get used to. One thing I will say about Live, if dealing with limited screen space (i.e. gigging on a laptop for example), the UI layout feels better designed for that. I need lots of pixels and I think Cubase works well on a big/dual monitor(s), but it tends to rely more on separate windows like FLStudio than Ableton which keeps things docked and tidy. For my (existing) workflow, the big screen approach works best. Maybe that will change in the future... I can see how the screen space usage is important for those on the go.

One thing that made it kind of an unfair contest -- my Ableton version is "lite", which means it is not time limited but came with very limited (i.e. crappy) instruments. Cubase on the other hand is a trial (only 30 days), but fully functional, and it's got some killer instruments and tools.

One thing that sucks is Cubase seems to release new versions often and they're going to ding me on the upgrades -- hope they're worth it. That's one thing about FLStudio... pay once and that's it... forever, unless you want to buy more of their plugins (some of which are good). I bought it many versions ago around 2007 yet still run the latest version. From what I can tell Ableton doesn't upgrade or ding as often, which I think is a good thing.

You can use one (session) or the other (arrangement) or both, they are not mutually exclusive. Once you get your head around the idea you realise what a really creative tool live is...& then you get into the routing possibilities...

[MBTC]

Originally Posted by Berni

You can use one (session) or the other (arrangement) or both, they are not mutually exclusive. Once you get your head around the idea you realise what a really creative tool live is...& then you get into the routing possibilities...

I definitely see the creative aspect. The CPU usage (which might be a problem that's limited to VST wrapping on the PC only) is a big concern of mine. Unfortunately this "lite" version I have only allows me to add up to four instruments, so I cannot really put it to the test beyond adding a few heavy CPU eating synths and comparing. I wish they would just give me either a limited trial like Cubase, or something with a more logical functional limitation (like the FLStudio trial lets you do anything you want except save a project).

I did a little research on this, and apparently the CPU use picture on the PC does not seem to get much better. One guy was saying he can load an identical project side by side in Live and Cubase, and the CPU usage is 60% in Live and 15% in Cubase. That's really a big deal for the way I work, CPU for VSTs is everything and is really the only reason I have a need for hardware synths (other than the fact I like them). Again, could be a PC thing only and a non-issue on the Mac.

[Berni]

Originally Posted by MBTC

I definitely see the creative aspect. The CPU usage (which might be a problem that's limited to VST wrapping on the PC only) is a big concern of mine. Unfortunately this "lite" version I have only allows me to add up to four instruments, so I cannot really put it to the test beyond adding a few heavy CPU eating synths and comparing. I wish they would just give me either a limited trial like Cubase, or something with a more logical functional limitation (like the FLStudio trial lets you do anything you want except save a project).

I did a little research on this, and apparently the CPU use picture on the PC does not seem to get much better. One guy was saying he can load an identical project side by side in Live and Cubase, and the CPU usage is 60% in Live and 15% in Cubase. That's really a big deal for the way I work, CPU for VSTs is everything and is really the only reason I have a need for hardware synths (other than the fact I like them). Again, could be a PC thing only and a non-issue on the Mac.

You can try the fully working suite version for free for 30 days
https://www.ableton.com/en/trial/

[MBTC]

Originally Posted by Berni

You can try the fully working suite version for free for 30 days
https://www.ableton.com/en/trial/

Nice! Thanks, I missed that, good to know and I will definitely check it out. It even says I can run it side by side with existing 8 install without impact.

[Berni]

Originally Posted by MBTC

Nice! Thanks, I missed that, good to know and I will definitely check it out. It even says I can run it side by side with existing 8 install without impact.

Yeah they are both seperate beasts. I have 8 & 9 on my computer with no conflicting issue's.