Hi thailoneous.

You won't be sorry with the UltraPlusPAK.

    If you're interested in having a listen to something I created earlier this year using BIAB 2012, the link is below. With the exception of the strings and my singing, everything you hear came from BIAB.

    ... link to a song using BIAB 2012

    This might give you a small glimmer of just how far BIAB has come since your 2007 version!

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Will the manual/help features with U-Pack be sufficient for me (novice) to use the features.


People generally seem to find them sufficient. There's also these forums for help

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Do I really need the videos that come with the E pack to make full use of the features of the software?


There's a large number of free videos under "Support". If you scroll to the bottom of the video tutorial webpage, there's a link to get them all in .zip format.

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... am I to use Music Creator instead of Audacity? (Cunning plan no 1 from PGM?) fyi, I also have a free version of Sonar which I recd.and never used when I bought a Roland FP7 piano. I am starting to clutter up my head and pc, which I so strongly wanted to avoid. Your guidance in these will be most appreciated.


Ultimately, all of the programs do the same thing. The choice is simple. Go with what you are most comfortable with. If you like Audacity, stay with that.

The above being said, BIAB 2012 comes with Realband which is also a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). This has the unique ability to load in BIAB files and work with Realtracks in ways that no other DAW can. It would be worthwhile getting a working knowledge of this program even if you decide to stay with Audacity.

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... when will 2012 go on special discounts?


There are usually specials on offer somewhere between the beginning of July and mid-August. That is, around about now. This is when the ####.5 versions appear (i.e. 2012.5). If you can wait a week or so, I suggest you do. Historically, the ####.5 versions always have many new features.

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So with my PC specs Win 7/64, 8 gb ram, M-Audio interface, SM58 mic, and 2012/TTS1, Selmer Ref 54, I am good for another 5 years?


As long as you and your computer keep going, you're good!

Hope this helps,
Noel