It's not and has never been about sound quality. It's about the functionality of Real Band vs other DAW's. Sure you may not need the features, but some of us do. And it's not necessarily about being a pro, it's more about the convenience of working easily on the projects and doing things a certain way.
I've seen folks use Audacity to record with but I can't imagine their workflow. Yikes...!!!
Having a fully functional and full featured DAW just makes life in the studio easier.
One more thing I don't think RB does.... and correct me if I'm wrong.... I don't believe it lets you set up sub busses for like kind things. I love using vocal sub busses and guitar sub busses to make my guitars and vocals cohesive with the same exact reverb and EQ settings. Busses are an indispensable tool in the way I work. If you've never used them, once you try them you will be hooked. As a side... it also cuts down on the number of individual FX that are needed. AND.... it lets you keep your tracks totally clean and dry. That's really, really useful when doing audio editing on the fly. Seriously useful.
PG is now selling Cakewalk's Music Creator. That is one sweet little DAW. Not a "fully featured" DAW like it's big brother SONAR.... but still way more functional than Real Band. When I first started using PG stuff, I was using MC4, and it did everything I needed easily. I commend PG for adding MC7 to their store. They should use it as a guide when they think about adding functionality to RB. Make RB do the things that MC can do and in a similar, easy to use, way, and they will have a WINNER!!
Last edited by Guitarhacker; 09/13/1612:12 PM.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
One more thing I don't think RB does.... and correct me if I'm wrong.... I don't believe it lets you set up sub busses for like kind things. I love using vocal sub busses and guitar sub busses to make my guitars and vocals cohesive with the same exact reverb and EQ settings. Busses are an indispensable tool in the way I work.
I'm correcting you because you are wrong. AUX Sends .. 8 of them. If that is not enough you can resort to SubGroups (another 15, as 1 has to be the main out).
Use the AUX Send dials in the Mixer to send the signal to the AUX channel (1-8) Use the Port assign to send it to a subgroup if you need to (again; almost twice as many of these are available) I think you can send a Track to an AUX (making 8 effects available) .. or multiple AUX channels making 4 X 8 theoretically .. then route the AUX to a Subgroup making another exponential amount for the total. It's different in RB, I admit, but quite a few options are there.
Image below shows AUX send and Subgroup Port routes. AUX in yellow, Subgroups in Red .. (of course combinations of each are available, evidenced by my additional AUX sends being sent to a secondary SubGroup)
Last edited by rharv; 09/13/1601:04 PM.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome Make your sound your own!
One more thing I don't think RB does.... and correct me if I'm wrong.... I don't believe it lets you set up sub busses for like kind things. I love using vocal sub busses and guitar sub busses to make my guitars and vocals cohesive with the same exact reverb and EQ settings. Busses are an indispensable tool in the way I work.
I'm correcting you because you are wrong. AUX Sends .. 8 of them. If that is not enough you can resort to SubGroups (another 15, as 1 has to be the main out).
Use the AUX Send dials in the Mixer to send the signal to the AUX channel (1-8) Use the Port assign to send it to a subgroup if you need to (again; almost twice as many of these are available) I think you can send a Track to an AUX (making 8 effects available) .. or multiple AUX channels making 4 X 8 theoretically .. then route the AUX to a Subgroup making another exponential amount for the total. It's different in RB, I admit, but quite a few options are there.
Image below shows AUX send and Subgroup Port routes. AUX in yellow, Subgroups in Red .. (of course combinations of each are available, evidenced by my additional AUX sends being sent to a secondary SubGroup)
Thanks... that;s what I needed to know. Next time I'm in the RB daw I'll check it out.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Im noticing I enjoying playing with the biab chords displayed.
1. Can I record a high quality guitar solo on the single track supplied -
b. and export it to a DAW?
2. Any DAWS that show the chords being played in real time , Like Biab?
{ I may have answered my own question -- I just looked at Real band - does it do this?
So far I didn't get too far in real band, and have been using my other DAWS. }
thanks
To get back on topic, the first part of the question has been answered but the second part has been missed since we got sidetracked with the pros/cons of RB.
Yes, RB does this two main ways. First, it has the same chord grid that Biab has so just click the chord grid and see it highlighting the chords as the song is playing. Second, RB also has full notation including a Lead Sheet. You can open that up and see the chords as well while the song is playing.
My advice is to take the time to watch all the RB videos and get familiar with the program. Depending on what you like or need, RB could be enough by itself.
I know what you mean about needing busses, Herb. RB has had AUX Sends and SubGroups for a long time. Once again, how it is implemented may be different than most other DAWs, and thus people miss it.
I use these a lot, like you do in Sonar.
Once I've used, say, EQ, OBTune, compression and delay on a vocal track (not uncommon), I often need to send it to an AUX buss with a reverb, or maybe two AUX busses (one for the room that gets shared with other tracks and one for ring of that individual track) .. don't get me started on live drums routing. You can record them as well as you can, but they are gonna need some work, and busses and subgroups and ..
Heck, one of first things I do in a mixing project is load Ambience in AUX 1 slot .. I know I'll end up using it and might as well start enjoying it now..
"We've more similarities than differences" That was an inside joke; it was a song a few of us on the forum did a few years back.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome Make your sound your own!
..... RB has had AUX Sends and SubGroups for a long time. Once again, how it is implemented may be different than most other DAWs, and thus people miss it.
Is it possible to use AUX Sends & Subgroups with Midi/Synth tracks or only audio?
Back to the original post; Has anyone tried PGs Audio To Midi Converter, generate the midi track off of a single track of recorded guitar or piano, interpret the midi chords, import to your DAW of choice?
On the side topic; I started using the AUX Busses once I figured out I had to scroll to the right in the mixer view to find them. Maybe some are missing them simply because they are not in the immediate view. I like it this way. Helps keep the screen uncluttered and gui features are larger than some DAWs that have too much crowded on one screen. I have Tracktion, Music Creator 7, Audacity, all get used for one thing or another but, RealTracks is my main DAW for almost everything. That might only be due to my basic workflow usually starts with a few BIAB track and also because PowerTracks was my first DAW and the activated Fly-By Hints are very helpful too me.
..... RB has had AUX Sends and SubGroups for a long time. Once again, how it is implemented may be different than most other DAWs, and thus people miss it.
Is it possible to use AUX Sends & Subgroups with Midi/Synth tracks or only audio?
Not sure if this would help: This is a set of 8 VST plugins, that can create up to 8 aux busses in any VST host.
Each plugin has the following controls:
1: a level fader to control the output level to the bus (in send mode), or from the bus (in receive mode)
2: a switch to change from send to receive mode (click on the led display)
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: The Newly Designed Piano Roll Window
In this video, we explore the updated Piano Roll, complete with a modernized look and exciting new features. You’ll see new filtering options that make it easy to focus on specific note groups, smoother and more intuitive note entry and editing, and enhanced options for zooming, looping, and more.
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe
This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.
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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)
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Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
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FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
Join Tobin as he takes you on a tour of the new user interface in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®! This modern GUI redesign offers a sleek new look with updated toolbars, refreshed windows, and a smoother workflow. The brand-new side toolbar puts track selection, the MultiPicker Library, and other essential tools right at your fingertips. Plus, our upgraded Multi-View lets you layer multiple windows without overlap, giving you a highly flexible workspace. Many windows—including Tracks, Piano Roll, and more—have been redesigned for improved usability and a cleaner, more intuitive interface, and more!
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 28 RealTracks and RealDrums!
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Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
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Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 21 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 28 RealTracks and RealDrums!
Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and a brand spankin’ new XPro Styles PAK! In this, the 10th edition of our XPro Styles PAK series, we’ve got 100 styles coming your way! We have the classic 25 styles each from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, and rounding out this volume's wildcard slot is 25 styles in the Praise & Worship genre! A wide spanning genre, you can find everything from rock, folk, country, and more underneath its umbrella. The included 28 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 10 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
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