Yes you are correct RB is different in that area from BiaB for the reason that it is was developed as a companion to BiaB. It is where BiaB tracks go to be mixed and mastered. Some folks prefer other DAWs to do that and that is everyone's personal choice since we all mix differently.

One thing i did was to buy (on sale) the Harrison 32c channel strip plugin and a couple high end mastering plugins and i set up a template in RB with the first one on each channel and a solid mastering setup on the output. This gives me a first class DAW right in RB.

I also find the PG plugin far better than i first thought. The reverb and limiter are pretty good. RB has very powerful Midi tools, but the audio mastering was a tad lacking. As i said the plugins are better than i thought but they require a lot of setup to get exactly what i like. The same is true as well with other plugins. The Reaper plugin are nice but also require a lot of fiddling to get what one wants.

Adding the 32c channel strip gives me a plugin that i can dial in as needed with a lot of visual feedback. Especially the compressor. It allows you to slowly raise the level until you just see it start to react. This keeps you from over compressing tracks. The EQ is very responsive and give a warm old school vibe. This tool would work great in Abelton and Sonar. I have used it in Reaper as well and got stellar results. I used to have Studio One and Sonar on my computer but got tired of updates and changes to multiple software packages. I deleted both. i also bought Harrison Mixbus on a sale Love it but rarely use it anymore. I bought Reaper since it is somewhat inexpensive. I use it when i need something RB does not do in a way i like. It does get used rarely now. Since PGM added the ability to clean up the GUI and the upgraded comping tools VST3 and a few other cool things i find BiaB and RB to get it done faster and more efficient. That just me though. My needs are relatively simple. I do not use a lot of midi unless it is in a backing track file i download or I can't find a RTs i like.

Just some of my musings. Much success to you.

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.