Way Over priced

Lawrent-Fournier wrote on 4/19/2022, 5:08 PM

I just purchased a small mixer wirth a USB out to use with Samplitude. The mixer came with free software for a program called Audacity. Sorry Magix, but I just discovered something far easier to use and with exceptionally good quality. In many cases, the FX stuff make is significantly superior to yours. By the way, I am a guitar/music teacher that creates play along music for my students to practice with. I use a windows 10 and an HP Core 15 computer.

Comments

Eric-Weik wrote on 4/20/2022, 6:53 AM

I have used both for years, since early 2000s, I prefer ACL, layout is better, and it is faster than Audacity. But each is own...

Graham-Hawker wrote on 4/20/2022, 6:59 AM

The mixer came with free software for a program called Audacity.computer.

I don't think comparing Audacity to Samplitude is a reasonable comparison. One is an audio recorder and one is a DAW (which includes audio recording). A more sensible comparison would be Audacity and Sound Forge. The last audio project i did I used both. Audacity was better for some things and Sound Forge for others. Many programs have very good open source competitors. But some people still pay for Microsoft Office or ArcGIS.

browj2 wrote on 4/20/2022, 9:57 AM

@Lawrent-Fournier

Hi,

Audacity does not live in the same world as Samplitude Pro X. If all you need is a simple recorder and editor, Audacity is fine. Beyond that, forget it.

Can you record MIDI with Audacity? Do you get a multitude of VST instruments? Can you even use one in Audacity? Do you get in-depth cleaning and restoration tools? Can you modify the BPM along the timeline? Can you record 30 or more inputs at once? At least 2 inputs at once? Does it have a Takes manager allowing you to pick the best parts of a multitude of takes? Does it play video so that you can score a video? Does it have a scoring mode? Does it have detailed mixing and mastering capabilities? And so on. I don't think that you know what Samplitude is capable of.

As for FX stuff in Audacity being superior to that in Samplitude Pro X, I highly doubt it. Otherwise, the professionals would be using Audacity and not Samplitude. BTW, there is a forum dedicated to Samplitude Pro and Sequoia.

John CB

Lawrent-Fournier wrote on 4/21/2022, 6:58 AM

Thank you all for your comments. I am not slamming the program, I am slamming the price. My problems with Samplitude is simple, for my purposes, it is far too complex. To me, more expensive should be accompanied by more useable. Compared to Audacity, and even Sound Forge, it is not. With respect to the comment about more professionals using Samplitude, that is a promotional line used by at least 80% of the audio recording programs that I looked.

SP. wrote on 4/21/2022, 7:04 AM

@Lawrent-Fournier You can get Samplitude Pro X4 Silver for free

http://dl04.magix.net/2019/SamplitudeProX4Silver/Program/SamProX4_Silver_INT_200121_07-59.exe It comes with most effects of the full priced version, but with no additional plugins. It is limited to 8 tracks. This could be a good deal for you.

browj2 wrote on 4/21/2022, 7:34 AM

@Lawrent-Fournier

With respect to the comment about more professionals using Samplitude, that is a promotional line used by at least 80% of the audio recording programs that I looked.

Excluding Audacity, I presume. If you were able to join the Samplitude forum, you would see that it is a different world where the pros reside.

At the other end is Magix Music Maker, which is free and can probably do more than Audacity (VST instruments, MIDI). Purchase the Premium Edition to unlock most features and I think that one is way beyond Audacity. It is much less complicated than Samplitude.

I use Music Maker rather than Samplitude unless I'm doing something complicated, which is not often.

Also, there is Samplitude Music Studio which is a cut down version of Samplitude Pro X and much less costly.

To me, more expensive should be accompanied by more useable.

The programs are simple if you just do simple things, but detailed to do complex things. Samplitude is not complicated if all you want to do is record and export.

John CB

Lawrent-Fournier wrote on 4/21/2022, 8:37 AM

Thank you browj. Your assumption that I do not reside with the pros is probably correct. My "profession", so to speak, is music instruction and I am rated as one of the better teachers. As a music teacher, I am a full pledged supporter of "live" music, which means, when I do recordings, I rarely, if ever, use instruments such as VST, or Garritan (which came with Finale). I do use them when writing music with Finale as a means of being able to listen to arrangements for multiple instruments or voices. With respect to MIDI, I have not had an issue with using MIDI to convert a few audio files into Finale scores using what I believe is called GM or SoftSynth channels. (I still haven't found anything, VST or otherwise that mimics flamenco strumming as well as a person, but I'm told, people are working on it.) I just finished going through the ads of different programs and I guess I could sum up my issue this way. In most of them, they inlcude lines like "good for both the amateur and professional alike" when in fact, they should distinquish that their higher end prograsms are really for the pros. I started doing recordings more than 30 years ago with a little four track cassette recorder. Now my students are coming in with what I think are very reasonable arrangments that they do live on their phones. You are very correct in that it really depends on what you want to do.