RSSWhich should I buy: Pro Tools HD or Studio 9?
General buy Pro Tools HD, Studio 9 No Comments
It’s difficult to answer that question without first discerning which products you’re referring to, as there is a confusing number of home recording and video editing software products with “Studio 9” in their titles. Only one is a serious contender for Pro Tools’ title as king of the home studio hill.
The first Studio 9 we’ll peek at is somewhat of a fossil. It’s an outdated entry-level video editing product from Pinnacle, released in 2004. Chances are you’ve stumbled upon it in an internet search, but it really isn’t a relevant product for our purposes.
FL Studio 9 is next, a reasonably capable music recording and editing program from Image Line (the “FL” in the title stands for “Fruit Loop,” the original name of the company). It’s a bit clunky to work with at first, but users report a very positive experience once familiar with the interface. It boasts a powerful suite of software instruments, effects, and signal processing tools, and is a good buy for the serious home recording enthusiast.
Apple’s Logic Studio 9 is rapidly gaining popularity, due in no small measure to its exceptionally well designed user interface, rich software instrument and effect library (particularly for electric guitar), surround sound features, soundtrack mixing and editing program, and live performance management suite. It is the complete package, and is remarkably affordable given its mind-blowing depth.
That brings us to the big kid on the block, Digidesign’s Pro Tools line. While it’s not self-contained like Apple’s offering, requiring some pricey additional hardware to translate instrument or microphone output into computer-speak, it is perhaps the most recognizable name in recording software. And for good reason. The feature list reads like War and Peace, the sound quality is every bit as good as most professional studios can achieve, and the interface is accessible (though not as user-friendly as Logic’s).
Perhaps this is the best way to put it: if you’re interested in producing very high quality home recordings and don’t mind an interface that’s geared more toward the audio engineer, buy Pro Tools HD. If you’d prefer a self-contained, high-end home studio with Apple’s signature usability and functionality, then Logic is for you. Either way, you can’t go wrong.