Hi, new to BIAB and have narrowed it down(mostly due to money concerns) to buy either the 2020 Pro BIAB or the 2019 MegaPak. Anyone have any idea on how different the 2020 version is from the 2019, and which one would I get more out of?
I am on a Mac and the style of music I will mostly be working on would be a kind of Alternative(not grungy) with electronic type undertones(think Depeche Mode or New Order).


Another question is would I need one of the UltraPak versions in order to use add ons like the "Loops With Style Pak"?

Welcome to the forum!

As you undoubtedly already know, both the ProPAK and MegaPAK include the full version of Band-in-a-Box for Mac. However, both packages have limited content compared against the amount of content available in the UltraPAK or Audiophile PAK.

My advice is to get the largest package you can afford with the intent of learning as many program features as you can. Many new users concentrate on the content and become frustrated at not being able to use styles, RealTracks or RealDrums that are not available to them. You can avoid much of that frustration by enjoying what you have and learning the program.

The MegaPAK has about three times the content as the ProPAK so you will get frustrated less often if you have the MegaPAK. However if you want to learn to become proficient and efficient using the program and it's features the ProPAK works just as good as the MegaPAK.

I started with the ProPAK. While learning the program and features I saved my money with the understanding I could upgrade to the UltraPAK during a new release sale.

Thanks! You've helped me lean more toward the MegaPak. Though I also was wondering about the difference in sound quality of the 2020 version to the 2019 version(of which I would be getting the MegaPak for). Is there much difference or is it mainly the new features that the 2020 version gives?
I'm imagining that the 2019 version has pretty decent sound already. And I can always upgrade from there, right?
Thanks again!

Band-in-a-Box for Mac 2020 includes updated software that improves how audio is time and pitch shifted. This improvement can make audio sound better when the program makes extreme adjustment to audio so the audio will match the chord sheet. For that reason alone 2020 audio may sound better than the same audio created by 2019.

If you're purchasing either package with the intent of finding a lot of content that matches " Alternative(not grungy) with electronic type undertones" you might be disappointed. Both packages offer content in a variety of genres. Check out the demos to determine if the examples matches your music vision.

Again remember the ProPAK and MegaPAK contain the same program. So the ProPAK will not sound different than the MegaPAK. My advise was to get one or the other if your main intent at this time is to learn how to use the program.

You will have a better chance of finding content that matches that song vision with the 550 hours of MegaPAK audio content than the 340 hours of ProPAK audio content. At the same time, the audio content in either package is minuscule when compared to the 3,100 hours of audio content in the UltraPAK or Audiophile.

Thank you again for your replies! They have been very helpful.
Yes, I have looked at some of the demos and with my Korg Workstation I believe I can make it work to my style of music, as if I read it correctly BIAB can be used with other DAWs like Garageband to mix things together. I am not expecting BIAB to be able to give me a whole song by itself, but we'll see on some of them. I have found some interesting and possibly useful sounds on demos of some of the music tracks.
Basically I am looking to give my songs a fuller sound that I haven't been able to do with just my Korg despite all of its features.

SterlingHolobyte,

Please update this thread with your final choice and what criteria led to your selection.