Sly, the main reason I use a separate DAW is I prefer tools that are specialized and focused on doing what they do best. I don't wanna start yet another DAW debate here but I have found RealBand to be quite slow and clunky compared to a more modern DAWs such as Reaper (of course, RealBand does something no other DAW can do, namely generate RealTracks but I find I can use BIAB for that purpose and it is very fast by comparison.)

So, for me, I love using a state-of-the-art DAW that is designed to the latest GUI standards and that is constantly being updated! And I know some folks will say the GUI is no big deal (I remember the same folks at every stage of the computer revolution...they preferred command line over GUI...green screen over color...dot matrix over laser...and on and on!!) But the truth is the GUI is your interface into the software and if it is cumbersome and counter-intuitive that will slow you down considerably in your mixing!

With all of that said you should definitely try RealBand and see if it works for you because it is included in your package! But I'd advise giving something like Reaper a try as well and then decide for yourself which is easier and more efficient to use!