PG Music Home Forums PG Music Product Forums PowerTracks Pro Audio Can anyone comment on PowerTracks Pro Audio as a DAW?

I was browsing around looking at Band in a Box and it seems like a neat program. But I want one where I can record myself and edit my recordings and supplement them.

I've been looking at this program here, which is PowerTracks. It seems to have three versions (Pro Audio, PowerPAK, and MultiPAK), and the differences are a greater variety of RealDrums to choose from and the fanciest package also has 1-2 MultiTracks.

I have a laptop, audio interface, SM57, and I aim to record my guitar through a Fender Mustang cheap-o modeler amp. Basically, just a simple bedroom setup.

I'm also considering mixing my guitar recordings with MIDI tracks (probably ported from notation software so I can write tracks like sheet music), so I'm wondering if this is a good option...

Powertracks is a very decent DAW. It will do what you want. Some will come along and bash it and tell you it is lacking but it will get it done. Another choice is to purchase band in a box, it comes with Real Band which is power tracks with band in a box generation capabilities built in it will allow you to create many tracks to go along with your projects. Having both band in a box and Realband is a powerful package. If you can afford it buy the ultra pack.

A simple option to get started is to buy the basic powertracks and then in December when the new release of band in a box comes out on sale buy the full package then. You will be familiar with the basic and and some experience under your belt.

I got this,...

PowerTracks as a bare daw seems completely unappealing to me, especially when you consider how much more powerful Reaper is and reaper is what $60 bucks. And if you're on Windows Cakewalk by Bandlab can still be nabbed free for now.

@okarimnvo
I am a longtime user of PowerTracks Pro since v3.0 (I purchased it 1995). I stopped working with v2018.

I'd go for Reaper. Add JJazzLab for arranging/accompaniment.

All.

Re Reaper and Powertracks (ptw).

As an avid Reaper user from v0.99 i feel however i must come to the defence of ptw as i created a ton of songs using both reaps and ptw as my primary song creation tools for many many years ...
I used both 'together' for song creation for ages.

i'm posting this out of concern that a person new to music production contemplating a purchase of ptw might be put off…and i feel this would be a shame as i consider for a paltry cost of a few burgers…ptw is a super deal and offers a ton of value in its own right and features. As Rob said…ptw will get the job done.
but let me add that imho if ptw was the only tool available on the market that the great George Martin/beatwells would still create great songs....due to great talent.

I also want to see ptw to continue to be developed and grow and prosper as I feel alternatives are good for musicians.

some history…and i hope i come across as unbiased because i think both reaps and ptw are great in their own way.

In past eras using both reaps/ptw combo i was also sometimes using commercial studios/session players as the budget allowed.
In summary I was using the reaps/ptw combo to create guide song tracks I then took into commercial studios.
so the reaps/ptw combo saved me a ton of money re song development and testing out song concepts…as i only needed to use commercial facilities for the 'icing on the proverbial song cake'.

Now here are the interesting salient points.

..re ptw…some studios used to say to me 'my goodness it does what ?'....'for just peanuts ?'. They were often floored once I showed them ptw tricks and capabilities at a cost of a few cups of tea/coffee.
..re reaps. as above some studios were floored…but told me i was 'nuts' to think
'shareware'...would one day command a large world market share.
to say i was ridiculed in those early days of reaps is an understatement....lol.
but i stood my ground because i had a background in tech and thus i know a brilliant piece of software engineering when i see it as ive managed in a previous career some pretty demanding industry systems.
What I find highly amusing is…over time…those that ridiculed me in those early reaps years probably became users from what I see on the forums.

so let's wrap things up…YES reaps is a great product…but i wouldnt dismiss ptw out of hand. I still have a fondness for the ptw product and some very happy memories creating songs with ptw. which is why i now use ptw's big brother realband(rb).
(I now use the biab/rb/reaps combo.)

Now let me offer a comment re reaps.
What troubles me a tad is…yes the recent versions of reaps offer a dizzying array of features..BUT like anything there can be downsides as this can be a problem for folks new to creating songs due to the learning cycle.
a reason why i suggest new folks start with reaps around version 2.
(I did a ton of songs in version 2 reaps with ptw.)
Why version 2 you might ask ?
Why do I like version 2 a lot ?...simple..
..for me it was a simpler lighter weight and very nimble user daw environment.
..for me at the time it mirrored the big studio gear i was using.
..it's not just a multitrack recorder but also runs vst and the pg dx plugins i like.
plus a big bonus is audio edit features. plus like ptw it comes with its own suite of plugins/fx.

In closing imho for someone new to creating songs i feel the reaps version 2 plus ptw combo is still a valid solution. each one having its strengths and in ptw's case offering a plethora of midi and other useful features.

therefore imho it's not a question of ptw versus reaps.
also let me say putting things in perspective song producers of the distant past would have been in creation heaven to think for the princely sum of around 120 bucks they could get 2 daws ie the reaps/ptw combo.

So to anyone new i would suggest you at the very least go through the plethora of ptw features ... .and maybe consider the reaps version 2 plus ptw combo.
anyway pg offer a 30 day money back on its products so whats not to like ?

also one other thing i liked for many years about the reaps/ptw combo was while musos i knew were often wrestling with lots of usb dongles and other licence schemes…i was just creating songs. I dislike intrusive schemes of this nature.

I hope ive presented an interesting perspective on reaps and ptw.

Merry xmas to all.

om