I prefer the MIDI tracks for all the reasons I elaborate on this page http://www.nortonmusic.com/midi_vs_loops.html

However, I don't like them on my sound card, I don't like them on the VSC, so I play them on an external MIDI sound source and they sound great.

Plus they are editable, I can have holds, shots, and dozens of other things that the real tracks won't give me (see the web page mentioned above). Plus they load instantly and don't take humongous storage space on my hard drive.

IMHO The problem with MIDI tracks is not that they are MIDI, but with the cheezy synthesizers built into most sound cards.

As far as realistic guitar sounds are concerned, I've played the following clips (made with MIDI and a good sound module) on 3 guitar forums, not telling the users that they were made with a synthesizer, and not only did I get many compliments on my guitar playing, but not one person on the guitar thought they were synth guitars. Note: I did come clean after a while and the guitarists were still amazed.

http://www.nortonmusic.com/mp3/_oldtimeguitar.mp3

http://www.nortonmusic.com/mp3/_personalchoice.mp3

And since they are MIDI guitar leads, I have complete editing control without owning a recording studio.

I'm not saying that the Real Tracks have no value. I'm just saying that for the kind of music I play and for the kind of editing I do, they are not for me but for somebody else. They both have their pros and cons and neither one is intrinsically superior to the other. Fortunately we have both so we can choose the one that suits us the best, or as Mac has always said, mix and match to our heart's content.

Insights and incites by Notes

Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com

100% MIDI Super-Styles recorded by live, pro, studio musicians for a live groove
& Fake Disks for MIDI and/or RealTracks