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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 928
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 928 |
I know this has been covered a zillion times before (slightly less than “a good bedroom amp”). But if I list some specifics maybe someone can provide the perfect answer for me.
I have already purchased and tried the following sequencers and don’t care for them:
Ableton Live
M-Audio Session
PG Power Tracks
Reaper
I also own (and use) Magix Music Studio.
It is the closest thing to what I’d want but whenever I do have a question, Magix’s support is useless. And I suspect there is a language problem there.
It is unbearably frustrating to expect an application to behave in a certain (logical) way and it doesn’t.
Here are my list of desired attributes:
Price: Less than $150.
Demo version: Must be able to try before purchasing.
Country of origin (and support): Must be native English speaking.
Layout and design: Basic. Simple. Little or no bells and whistles.
Operation: Straightforward. Direct. Visual representation of tracks. No “automation” or “wizards.” No cutesy “Apple-like virtualness.”
Windows-like WYSIWYG: I expect highlight-select-copy-paste to work like any other PC program.
Dongle: None.
If you can recommend any, please let me know.
Thanks!
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Joined: Jul 2002
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what is PG Power Tracks lacking for you
Lenovo YOGA 900 Window s 10 Home 64bit M4 pro Mac mini 1tb HD 24GB mem casio wk7500 presonus audiobox i2 usb interface
casio wk-7500
biab & realband 2025 everything pk both with Current builds
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Joined: May 2000
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Joined: May 2000
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Yeah, MTS gets a lot of good reviews from users.
I didn't care for Live or Reaper either when I tried them (or Protools or Audition for that matter) although Reaper gets a lot of Kudos from users too, especially in the stability dept.
Again, given your list of 'needs' I'm not sure what in PowerTracks is lacking for you..
.. and some of the best forum support you'll find is right here..
actually I like RB a little better than PT, but PT can easily get the job done for most people.
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Joined: Jan 2002
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In the past I would have recommended Tracktion from Mackie. But they basically have abandoned the code leaving users in the dust. My Tracktion 2 is a stability workhorse and for me, it's visual oriented track representation and signal flow for both MIDI and Audio fit my mental paradigm like hand-in-glove.
I too have tried Live - but it really is aimed at loop and pattern based on/off composition.
I have a very old version of Magix - didn't like that it was 2 separated applications for audio and midi tracks at the time.
PTPA was fairly simple, but began to lag behind the times for plugin support; slowly crawling back to usability.
Without a clear definition of where simplicity is lacking it's quite difficult to provide any further direction.
I got very tired of the multi-window stackup that can occur with nearly all DAW programs. That's what really attracted me to Tracktion. Some Apple users speak of similar one-screen simplicity with Garageband and it's big-brother, Logic. The last version of Tracktion actually stepped away somewhat from the simple and the added complexity tanked it so it seems.
Good thing the Tracktion 2 is still cranking away. One thing I miss with it is that it has no notation editing for midi - something which PTPA actually excels with.
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 95
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 95 |
hi I don't know if you already know this site http://support.magix.net/boards/samplitude//index.php?&CODE=00you need to create a login. The Newcomer forum and Samplitude forum cover a lot of questions. You might find help here if you have questions on Music Studio since this is basically a light version of Samplitude. Daniel
BIAB 2012 (ASIO) on Vista 32, Dual-Core 2.0Ghz with 4GB Memory. Main DAW is Samplitude (11 & ProX) and I like Spaghetti. BTW: Today is a good Day to have a Good Day.
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Joined: Jan 2008
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Sonar home studio is $140. studio xl is $209.
I have sonar 7 on an xp machine as well as BIAB & RB and a delta 44 that can plug into a 16 channel sound craft mixer that has direct out for each channel. This is far more than I will ever use but nice to have. Sonar has always done whatever I needed since before it was sonar.
Hope this helps, Wyndham
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Joined: Oct 2009
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I have to say go with Reaper. The price is right. It is very powerful. The support is awesome. Reaper gets updated frequently. Trial version is uncrippled.
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If you can't wrap your brain around PT, the i second Macs suggestion, MTS is the best i have ever used. And I have tried them all.
HP Win 11 12 gig ram, Mac mini Sonoma with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2025, Realband, Reaper 7, Harrison Mixbus 9 32c , Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app.
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Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 271
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Apprentice
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 271 |
Ditto on Sonar/Cakewalk stuff. I'm STILL using Home Studio 2004... I've tried a lot of them and still come back to it because it is simple and produces great for me. Of course it helps that I know it inside out.
Bobby
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.
i keep a copy of Cakewalk Version 3.0 always available for just this purpose. From the last century. Has all the MIDI-editing I need and it loads FAST.
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 280
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 280 |
Quote:
I have to say go with Reaper. The price is right. It is very powerful. The support is awesome. Reaper gets updated frequently. Trial version is uncrippled.
But what if he fears the Reaper?
Like the man said, "ain't that a kick in the head!"
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Joined: Aug 2000
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To tell the truth I don't know why you don't just download Audacity. Only it does not work with midi. Audio only. But it's totally free and has a ton of bells and whistles you can use or not use. There are some features about Audacity I can post here: 1. It's free.
2. It has a ton of rather techy plugins you can download if you need them.
3. It will record audio just as well as some of the best programs I've used.
4. It has noise removal and does it so well I use it for that all the time on my recorded tracks.
5. You can slide your audio tracks around by default.
6. Great for cleaning out between track areas because you can expand the tracks verticle and horizontal. There are tons of other things I can think of but for simplicity this will do. Powertracks main drawback is it will not handle outboard equipment like Sonar and other biggies like that. But: 1. It is one of the best midi controllers around.
2. It is a powerful audio tool.
3. Has the TCHelicon built into it for making harmony tracks.
4. Has a piano roll editor. An excellent one, I might add.
5. Has a host of midi/audio plugins.
6. Does handle most VST/VSTi plugins. (This is where PTW falls down is in handling VST)
7. It will do mono or stereo tracks
8. Is a simple program to run and operate.
9. Very inexpensive. Around $50 now, I believe. I don't know what the future holds for PTW but it was just recently updated so that it will send the TCHelicon to the new Real Band program. The biggest problem with PTW (and Real Band as well) is the lack of handling outboard equipment such as, mixers and the like. Will not run heavy duty controled programs like Jam Stix. Now for the money and what you can produce with it Real Band is the killer program. With it you can create your music like Band in a box does, then edit it with the audio/midi side like PTW does only way more powerful. The use of Real Instruments makes it almost a must have for musicians. With Real Band you have a full blown arranger DAW. The price varies from a little around $100 all the way up to high $500 or so. Just depends on what you want it to come with. I highly recommend this program to anybody on this planet. With Real Band you have it all. Just my 2¢ worth. Others mileage my avary.
Russ Anyday above ground is a good day Computer is Hp Pavillion Vision 6 Ghz quad core AMD processor 8 Gig memory 1 TB hard drive 6 GB hard drive Windows 7 Premium Loose nut behind the keyboard 
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Quote:
Ditto on Sonar/Cakewalk stuff. I'm STILL using Home Studio 2004... I've tried a lot of them and still come back to it because it is simple and produces great for me. Of course it helps that I know it inside out.
Bobby
Same here with Sonar 5.2. It does everything I need a sequencer to do.
Russ is absolutely correct when he said Audacity has the best noise removal around. You should have this in your arsenal just for this reason.
I'm in a fitness protection program. I'm been hiding from exercise.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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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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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.
Watch the video.
You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
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.
Watch the video.
You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
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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!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 10 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch 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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