PG Music Home Forums PG Music Product Forums Band-in-a-Box for Windows How Come The Demos...

Playin in the band- I don't think you're on the wrong track with your inquiry. You're just misguided. And judging from your observations on how great the online demos are, your knowledge of a well put together chart and musical sound are of a beginner level. I don't mean that as a put-down mind you. But anyone who claims the demos are the best they've heard has limited knowledge of the whole process, and at the very least, the software itself.

First off, can we hear some of your work please? I don't take anyone particularly seriously when they say anything, claim anything, or give advice until I hear their work. Then I truly know where they are coming from musically.

But, you are right to question. It's no small chunk of change to buy this software. I guess you can buy the least expensive package, which isn't a ton of scratch. But the better packages are some bucks, for sure. And it's the bigger packages that offer the most flexibility right out of the box. I questioned this software, the sound of it, and the usefulness of it for my working style before I bought too. So, you're right to question. Where you run off the tracks is how you're reasoning it all out. I believe that's because you're a youngin. A kid.

Here's the difference between my reasoning before I bought, and yours.

- I questioned sound quality. I listened to the demos and heard the potential to sound great. The potential to augment my multitrack recordings. The potential to fit into a professional multitrack production. You hear the demos as the best it can sound and the best results the software can give you. Amusing, really- and very telling.

- I listened to other peoples work with the software to help balance my desicion. Another perspective, if you will. And I listened to a LOT of samples. But that didn't factor in at ALL to my desicion. That only tells me how good someone else is, not how good I CAN BE WITH IT. You listen to other peoples work and judge how good you'll be with it. Wrong. Again, telling. Great sounding work with biab is only really a reflection of how good THAT person is, not you. It CAN give you an idea of how good things can sound, true. It'd be nice to hear tons of amazing work, to help with a desicion right? But that trap is common to the inexperienced. Believe me when I tell you- the best of software will sound like ASS in the hands of the inexperienced. That goes for ANY software, or gear for that matter. The industry is chock full of people spending thousands of dollars for the next peice of gear or software that's gonna make their work sound amazing. Retailers depend on it! Truth is, only people with enough knowledge and experience realize that any software or gear is only an EXTENSION of their ability, and not the ability itself.

In the end you are actually right in a way. Biab isn't a magic bullet. It won't make you sound like a rock star all on it's own. Writing a chart and putting some instruments in it will not automatically make an awesome sounding product. It's simply another tool- a very powerful tool. Give it to someone with advanced talent, and they'll make an awesome sounding track. It has that potential. Not always by just using the program stock, but with integration with your own live tracks- assuming THOSE performances are good enough too. People with advanced skills don't base THEIR potential on demos! LOL! If you're observing enough, the potential with this software is obvious. Give it to someone with intermediate skills, and you can make a wonderful track. A real toe-tapper. It may not sound completely authentic. It may sound a bit ridgid. A bit forced. The mix may be questionable. This software gives enough power to hang yourself quite frankly, at the intermediate level. The power REALLY comes in at the beginner level. These folks can't even play an instrument. They can't fathom what the first chord in a piece of music should be, let alone the next. And yet with this software, they can make a song. For many people that's where the true joy is- just creating music. Not grammy worthy music. Just music. Their OWN music. That's the beauty of what biab has become now, and where it's headed. It's absolutely useful for seasoned pros, and a godsend for beginners. Kudos PG.

If you want to make rock or pop records and you can't hear the potential of biab to help you in that cause, the answer is actually very simple. Get yourself a rockin band, rehearse your asses off, hit record, and make a record. No body is twisting your arm to buy this software. If you think it could help you, give it a spin. But if you think biab alone will make you an amazing recording artist, or sound like an unblieveable mixing engineer, or automatically pop out grammy winning results, you are, as I believe you to be, an inexperienced youngster. Whether biab will get you where you want to be is completely up to YOUR ability.

Good luck.

Dan