Done with Audacity, trying to find something new

[GnRguitarist]

I've been using Audacity to record for a while now, but there is always some sort of problem with it and I have no intention of going on with it. What should I purchase that's better than Audacity and in the area of $400-$500?

[Moseph]

I've been using Audacity to record for a while now, but there is always some sort of problem with it and I have no intention of going on with it. What should I purchase that's better than Audacity and in the area of $400-$500?

1) What featuers do you consider vital? What didn't you like about Audacity that you definitely want to change in your workflow with the new software?

2) That's sort of a big jump, from "free as in beer" to $500. Audacity is a pretty cool program, but there are a lot of things it cannot do, but your entry level payware will handle pretty easily. I'm betting you could probably make good use out of something that's only $100 and be satisfied with the result. I'd instead invest in some hardware components, like a nice audio interface. Most of them will come with decent OEM software that should have a feature set a bit more robust than Audacity for recording.

[GnRguitarist]

My problem with Audacity is that it isn't often reliable. I'll record something like a drum track and while I'm trying to record over it the drum track will skip around. This is a problem that just started a couple weeks ago.

[Moseph]

Yeah, that sounds like a hardware issue to me. My guess is that you're using a native soundcard? Maybe Soundblaster or RealTek?

Generally, software has minimal effect on performance in audio work. Audacity in particular is very low-impact.

If you're on Windows, I'd start by doing a search for ASIO4ALL and see if you can't solve the issue with different drivers.

Obviously, this is all based on the conjectures of my best guess, so more detail about your particular performance failures would be helpful.

[GnRguitarist]

That's about the most detail I'm able to give. I'll have a track I've already recorded playing, and while recording a new track over it, the recorded track will stop for a second and then begin playing off beat. Is that probably an issue of interface? I'm not really using a soundcard I just plug into the microphone input in my computer and record from there.

[Moseph]

Yeah, I'd start with new hardware. Well, actually, new drivers first, since the ones I mentioned (ASIO4ALL) are free. Google can show you the download spot.

If you get that all figured out and are still experiencing problems, then you'll probably want to take that $400, and use it to invest in an audio interface (either USB or Firewire) for about $100-200, depending on the featuers you want.

More good news: depending on the interface you ultimately choose, you will probably get some OEM software with the interface that will handle all your basic needs, meaning you wouldn't need to spend more money on different software if Audacity still isn't floating your boat after upgrades.

[GnRguitarist]

I recently moved all of my Audacity programs and my music programs from disc C on my computer to disc E. Do you think that could be the problem?

[Aaron]

For $500 US you can get an M-Box 2, and that comes with Pro-Tools included.

Out of interest, what are the specs for your computer? It may be a memory issue..

[GnRguitarist]

I will look into the MBox 2. I have been eyeing this for a while now:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Tascam-DP01-Digital-8Track-Portastudio?sku=241106

How exactly does this work and would I be able to get recordings that sound like/better than the ones I have here:

http://www.myspace.com/paperstik

[Seafroggys]

May I say that Cubase LE, OEM software that came with my Firestudio, is quite powerful and really does all that I need. I mean, sure I can't through on 5 insert effects onto each track (limited to 2) but why should you be able to? Already its far more powerful than anything used in the 60s/70s, which is really what I compare to.