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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
Good points, John. Hmmm, is that once or twice I've agreed with you this year? 
Bob
Bob,
Keep this up and your rep is down the tubes!
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I think Tommyc is on the right track here.
How many of us have kids or grandkids that would dearly love a suggestion
as to what to get us for Christmas or Father's Day (although 2011.5 missed that one by a bit this year) or even a birthday for that matter?
And if you have a "significant other", they may be equally happy with getting you a BIAB upgrade as a gift. Mine is ecstatic when she doesn't have to shop for me, to try and "guess" at something I "might" like. So I go ahead with the upgrade and we're both happy.
As an aside, I only upgrade once a year at Christmas.
Nothing pressing for me that can't wait 6 months.
LLOYD S
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I used to own a alarm company, and i would go out to give someone an estimate for an install. I would every once in a while get the "Wow that is a lot, I was hoping it would be less" They would quote some ad from the radio or paper for a $199 special. sure if you want the front door and the back door only great go for it. Interesting statistic Of all those $99 or $199 or $399 specials offered, the average end sale was $1,495. No one could run a business selling $199 specials, in fact the sales managers would have their heads if they sold those with any consistency. It was a get what you paid for issue. I knew what it took to keep my business open, with insurance, bonding, licensing, gas, truck repairs, materials, labor, and other cost.
What has this to do with PG music. Here once again is a get what you paid for situation. If you upgrade every 6 months you spend a certain amount of money, every year a different amount of money, every two years even more so, but you get what you paid for. The program and features you want, when you want them. I am sure PG charges what they can get for what they offer, and it is not an unfair price. It might be a lot in this economy for some, but certainly not a lot for what goes into it. They know there business model, and the cost there in. They offer what the bring to market, for a price they can be successful with.
It is like any thing we purchase, we have the option to buy or not. You can go to a expensive 5 star steak and seafood rest, or Denny's. It is up to your budget. If you can afford the 5 star, great. If not don't suggest they lower their prices, To accomodate your budget, get a Grand slam and be happy. I want to own and update several programs, and also want a lot of gear, sadly it is not all in the budget, so my upgrade money goes to PG, since i get the most bang for my buck there. Two years ago i could not afford one upgrade and let it ride. My choice, i had to pay a bit more the next time around.
HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB/RB 2026, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 11 , Presonus Audiobox USB96
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I Thought Denny's was 5 star?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Anonymous
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Quote:
It is like any thing we purchase, we have the option to buy or not. You can go to a expensive 5 star steak and seafood rest, or Denny's. It is up to your budget. If you can afford the 5 star, great. If not don't suggest they lower their prices, To accommodate your budget, get a Grand slam and be happy.
I should let this go because it is an extremely valid point. However, I am a smart ass my nature, so.....
Get ready for it....
On my birthday on June 27th, I had breakfast at IHOP, lunch at TGI Fridays, dinner at Denny's and a scoop of ice cream at Baskin-Robbins on my way home. And I didn't spend a penny all day.....
So the punch line is, if I order BIAB on my birthday, is there a birthday freebie?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 69
Enthusiast
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OP
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Posts: 69 |
Hi Silvertones, I didn't mean that as an insinuation by naming the topic Pricings getting further out of reach?. I just mean that $299 for an upgrade for Audiophile is pretty expensive but that's probably the best that PG can do. I just got Cubase 6 for $169 Cdn. but I don't have to worry about another upgrade probably for a year or two. For $299 US I've got to decide whether it's worth it for me that's all because the way I use it is fairly minimal as I explained earlier in the thread. And I've never been happy with the MIDI side of things, it just doesn't generate much that is useful for me. Another interesting program that is also pretty expensive is Rapid Composer. This program is supposed to generate phrases, but it looks like a huge learning curve and they seem to be developing it as they go.
Fivehands
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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John, Denny's is not 5 star, it is more "moons over my hammies!"
Eddie, did you get all that off the senior menu!
HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB/RB 2026, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 11 , Presonus Audiobox USB96
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I COULD have used the senior menu, but it was birthday freebie day!! 3 meals and dessert and I spent not one penny!!!
(Well, I left tips....)
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 3,173
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Quote:
Hi Silvertones, I didn't mean that as an insinuation by naming the topic Pricings getting further out of reach?. I just mean that $299 for an upgrade for Audiophile is pretty expensive but that's probably the best that PG can do. I just got Cubase 6 for $169 Cdn. but I don't have to worry about another upgrade probably for a year or two. For $299 US I've got to decide whether it's worth it for me that's all because the way I use it is fairly minimal as I explained earlier in the thread. And I've never been happy with the MIDI side of things, it just doesn't generate much that is useful for me. Another interesting program that is also pretty expensive is Rapid Composer. This program is supposed to generate phrases, but it looks like a huge learning curve and they seem to be developing it as they go.
299$ is indeed pretty expensive considering that the audiophile user has to shell out considerably more at the outset for that version. Considering the price of hard drives nowadays and how easy it is to image a drive with the audiophile files I would have thought that $199 would be a more realistic price.
musiclover
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
299$ is indeed pretty expensive considering that the audiophile user has to shell out considerably more at the outset for that version. Considering the price of hard drives nowadays and how easy it is to image a drive with the audiophile files I would have thought that $199 would be a more realistic price.
Well, let's get back to one thing here. To a guy with the choice of driving the Hummer or the BMW to work, $299 is nothing. To me with a Kia Rio, it is borderline expensive. To the guy with the 1999 Pontiac Sunfire, $299 is off the charts. Money is always relative. I lost my job in May and have NOTHING, so $2.99 would be expensive right now, much less $299.00.
The point is how much utility you get for your dollar. For what BIAB does, if you use it to it's fullest and use it every day, it is a bargain. To a guy who goes to his attic music studio and spends 2 hours up there once a month, not so much. Also consider how much a standard sequencer like Sonar costs and what BIAB does that Sonar doesn't.
This whole discussion is kind of moot because $300 doesn't mean the same thing to everybody.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 618
Journeyman
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Journeyman
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 618 |
Hi MarioD,
I know this is way off the topic, but I'm really glad you post what happenned with your truck.
When it happenned to my Pontiac, I thought well maybe it's tune up time or it's just showing it's age.
My Pontiac was really peppy. I loved having that decent sized car and I could zip around if I need to.
Then since I always kept track of my gas milage, I saw it go down into the teens and never come back up. I was really heart broken I thought now I have a slower car and it guzzles gas too. I spoke to my mechanic and he told me it was the ethanol. I never even knew they were putting it in the gas. It was in the gas up here in upstate NY for a couple of years before they put stickers on the pumps saying ethanol.
So now I have an 18 yera old Bonneville in almost Excellent condition that runs like a pig.
Without gas prices going up, we all got ripped off.
Sorry bout my rant, but they ruined my car and many others. My neighbor has an old Cutlass that's beautiful and now it runs like a dog.
Wayne,
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
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Quote:
Another little thing that annoys me is when a new user appears say around october or november and asks about the program, not many long time uers say "hey buddy its a great program but Please if you can wait to christams time and buy it in the sale you will save $$$$$$$ that way" Its as if its a well kept secret that first time visitors are not allowed to know.
I beg to differ.
MANY of us who post here often have taken the time to explain this to new coustomers.
We also try to explain that purchasing the largest package that you can afford, that includes ALL the styles is the much better option.
On top of that, if you upgraded or purchased within 30 days of a new release, PGMusic has been dynamite about giving you the new program for the cost of the older one.
Yet there have been those who did not pay heed and then complain...
--Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 24,848
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Redguitar - you have a PM.
Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,116
Expert
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Expert
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Posts: 1,116 |
Quote:
299$ is indeed pretty expensive considering that the audiophile user has to shell out considerably more at the outset for that version.
For a new buyer, the closest equivalent to the audiophile version is the Everything Pack and the Audiophile is only $100 more expensive than that, ($669 compared to $569). Maybe that is considerably more, I don't know. I do know for certain that I paid $199 for my audiophile upgrade during the sale, and considered it worth the money.
Quote:
Considering the price of hard drives nowadays and how easy it is to image a drive with the audiophile files I would have thought that $199 would be a more realistic price.
I don't claim to have your knowledge about how cheaply a company could go about buying hard drives from an outside vendor, buying and maintaining imaging equipment, hiring talent the likes of Brent Mason to record music, do the recording, engineering, software development, marketing, sales, shipping, video production, software support, website maintainence, and still sell a hard drive full of great stuff for 199 bucks but if you know how to do it, I'll put up the money and we can go into business together.
Keith
2026 Audiophile Windows 11 RYZEN THREADRIPPER 3960X 4.5GHZ 128 GB RAM 2 Nvidia RTX 3090s, Vegas,Acid,SoundForge,Izotope Production,Melodyne Studio,SONAR,3 Raven Mtis
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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To run a business the size of PG ( i looked them up) take money. If you sell 5000 upgrades @ $99 each that is only $495,000 deduct the cost of hiring players, paying office staff, code writers, and tech support, building lease, insurance, taxes, phone, computers, lights, and many other things that gets burned up very fast.
I think the whole point of this thread, is that difficult times have hit many of us. Economic troubles are everywhere. We sometimes get frustrated when the very hobby we love become expensive to us personally.
Just remember there is not reason to upgrade if you can't afford it at the moment. Just really enjoy the version you have.
HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB/RB 2026, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 11 , Presonus Audiobox USB96
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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Last Chance! The Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® Special Ends Today (May 31, 2026) at 11:59pm PDT!
Time really is running out! Save up to 50% on Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® upgrades and receive a FREE Bonus PAK—only when you order by 11:59 PM PDT today!
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Another exciting new addition is the amazing new AI-Notes feature, which can transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI. View the results in notation or play them back as MIDI, and choose whether to transcribe an entire track or transcribe specific parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
Check out all the 202 new RealTracks (in sets 468-488)!
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-For UltraPAK customers, this includes 12 new RealStyles.
- MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
- MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
- Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
- Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
- Playable RealTracks Set 5
- RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
- SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
- iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
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- MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
- Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
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- RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
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Learn more about the Bonus PAK and 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!
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