Product Description

Sibelius is as intuitive to use as a pen, yet so powerful that it does most things in less than the blink of an eye. Created by musicians for musicians, Sibelius gives you the freedom to do whatever you want, the way you want to. Clear, elegant designThe Sibelius screen is simple and intuitive, so you can concentrate on writing music without the constant distraction of menus and dialog boxes. To look around the music, just click and drag the page ? it really feels like you?re moving manuscript paper in front of you. Alternatively, drag the Navigator to move smoothly through many pages at once.You can even choose different colors and textures for the paper and desk on the screen. Sketch & refineSibelius 3 lets you change music whenever you like. Sketch a solo flute piece, then add a whole orchestra to create a concerto. Write in sounding pitch, then make a transposing score with one click. Add extra bars at the start of a score, and Sibelius instantly reformats every page ? far more flexible than pen and paper.If you completely change your mind, Sibelius lets you undo up to 10,000 operations, and keeps backups of 40 previous versions of your music.Sibelius saves you time by spotting all kinds of mistakes such as rhythms that don?t add up, or notes that are too high/low to play (see picture). Sibelius knows every instrument?s range, which you can adjust for players of different abilities. Text & lyricsSibelius puts different types of te... ... Read more

Features

• Designed for students, educators, and professional composers
• Software for writing, playing, printing, and publishing music notation
• Scan in printed music; high-quality sounds for playback
• Saves time; elegant and intuitive; school feature sets
• Publish music world-wide or create personal CDs and MP3s

Reviews (8)

Outstanding!
I've used Cakewalk, Voyetra, Finale, and virtualy every other music publishing program and this is the first one that I can say is worth every penny.The functionality, convinience and versatility of this program goes unmatched and the look of your scores in the end is so good that people will swear you were published by Hal Lenard!If you're a student who hopes to make composition your future, invest in this program.If you're an established composer who is using some other program, dump them and move to Sibelius.I've only had my copy for two days and I'm a devoted consumer.

Flashy, crappy and frustrating
As a long time user of Sibelius 1.4 I looked forward to Sibelius 3. I have always been very happy with the older version of Sibelius - it is easy to use and the results are very pleasing. Sure, there were some limitations and a few improvements could have been made, but overall, Sibelius 1.4 was a great resource for musicians, composers and arrangers.

Now what is wrong with Sibelius 3? I think that the question should be "What is right with Sibelius 3?". I don't know where to start? Let me just say that unless you're after a "quick fix" for score making, this product is inferior and inadequate.

If you're making scores of Baroque or Renaissance music with Sibelius 1.4 and you're thinking of upgrading to Sibelius 3, forget it! Stick with what you have or consider Finale or some other music score making system.

Sibelius 3 is a waste of money.

This is terrific music notation software
Sibelius 3 is music notation software that not only grows on the musician, but with the musician. It has tremendous possibilities, very advanced features, a multitude of choices.
It is essential to learn the shortcuts from the outset - mouse manipulation is irritating, as with other music software, but working with shortcuts produces miraculously quick results. This is a program for very serious musicians. The features are exactly right, stimulating creativity. I have used this program with children as well - it takes about an hourfor the average child to acquire the skill to work meaningfully with Sibelius. In a word, terrific.

Powerful Yet Easy to Learn
I have always written music the old-fashioned paper-and-pencil way and have never been capable of producing a fair copy in ink.So in order to give a more permanent form to some dreadful music I've accumulated in notebook sketches -- my aural communication to the ages -- I've been looking into music notation software.I ended up buying Sibelius 3.1, although Finale 2004 was also a strong contender and I downloaded the demo versions for both.Finale has a reputation of being difficult to learn and use, so I decided on Sibelius.

After just two days -- about twelve hours using the program -- I have mastered it to the point of being able to do cross-staff beaming and other moderately "advanced" things.It is essential to know how to select passages and input notes, but this is well explained in the clear and comprehensive User Manual and once you get this far, the rest pretty much falls into place.

The screen is attractive and uncluttered, with a large useful workspace.That the program is very well-designed is clear from the start, and as you use it and encounter inevitable problems (such as not enough space for an inserted clef, reshaping of ties, etc.) you will really appreciate the ability of the program to recover from errors in an intuitive way.Sibelius just has a way of "doing the right thing", which from a programming perspective is very difficult to achieve.And once you have discovered the joys of copying (which depends on a mastery of selection), you will find you can create fair copies even faster than you could write out a sketch using pencil and paper.

Highly recommended!

Software for the common/professional musician
My background is in both arranging and composing and playing professionally here in the New Mexico area.Having used both of the top music software's for the last few years I find that when I have to do a project for profit, I always use Sibelius.
Both programs perform equally well, but Sibelius is by far the easiest and most logical to learn and use. The learning curve is very shallow.Everything is very intuitive and easy to find.The use of hot keys and simple, logical key presses and not the mouse make this program quick and through.You do not have to spend time going from menu to menu to find what you need.It can do everything I have ever needed in the way of arranging and composing.From Big Band Jazz to Orchestral works, it is all there.The finished printed work is beautiful to behold.I would highly recommend Sibelius to anyone who wants to get started producing work right away.The latest Sibelius V.3.1 is probably the most advanced product I have found.I have recommended it highly to all my musicians friends, and I have made many converts to Sibelius. ... Read more

Product Description

Practica Musica, Ars Novaâs award-winning music theory and ear training program, has been updated and is now better than ever! Available for the first time for both Macintosh and Windows, Practica Musica 4 sets a new standard for music education software. Each Practica Musica 4 activity has four levels of difficulty making the program suitable for beginners and advanced musicians alike. It allows instructors unprecedented control over many aspects of each activity. Instructors can create their own specialized activities using either computer-generated source materials or custom-created example libraries. And new activities can be downloaded from Ars Novaâs website and added to Practica Musica 4 as they become available. Students also can use Practica Musicaâs simple composition tools to create and print music -- perfect for class assignments. Includes the textbook "Exploring Theory with Practica Musica" (Evans), which has both written exercises and references to a library of special Practica Musica activities designed to support the text, including the ability to hear all the music examples. QuickTime Musical Instruments (Mac) is now supported, as are SoundBlaster-compatible sound cards (PC). Input is via an on-screen piano keyboard, on-screen guitar fretboard, the computer keyboard, or an external MIDI keyboard. OMS and USB MIDI are supported. ... Read more

Features

• Practica Musica Activities:
• Pitch Matching
• Chord Ear Training
• Pitch Reading
• Chord Progression Ear Training

Reviews (1)

If only I had had Practica Musica when I was a music student
I took music theory classes for two years in college, got my undergraduate degree in music, became a professional musician and never felt like I really understood music theory until a fellow musician told me about Practica Musica. The really great thing about using this program is that you can practice and practice and practice each new thing that you learn until you really know it. You always know if you're getting it because the program gives you constant feedback (something I didn't get in school!) This product has really helped me with ear training. When you give an incorrect answer you can compare your answer with the correct one. Hearing the two side by side is very helpful. Practica comes with a great theory book written just to go with the software. It's written for someone who knows nada about music, but it covers just about everything I studied in school and I have to confess that I learned a lot from it.
I found the software easy to use and I'm not a techie. I haven't tried any of the other music theory software, but my friend uses it to teach music fundamentals at a CC and she told me that it's the best out there. I can believe it. ... Read more

Product Description

FL Studio is a full-featured sequencer perfectly suited for creation of complex songs and realistic drum loops, with 32 bit internal mixing and advanced MIDI support. The resulting song or loop can be exported to a WAV/MP3 file and all MIDI events can be exported to a standard MIDI file. FL Studio is a pattern based sequencer, which means you create your songs in pieces (patterns) using the Step Sequencer and the Piano Roll view and then weld those pieces together using the Playlist window (the Playlist also supports full-featured audio tracks with hard drive streaming). ... Read more

Features

• High-precision mastering and special effects filters - reverb, compressor, procedural equalizer, distortion, phaser, flanger, bass boost, delay line and others
• Sequencing methods for realistic drum loops, and complex instrumentals like advanced piano roll, arpeggiator, keyboard tracking and real-time gate
• Unique note properties morphing ability -- pitch, cutoff, resonance, panning
• 68 mixer tracks to work with - 64 insert and 4 send tracks - supporting up to 8 filters each, with ASIO input support and the ability to create mixer chains
• Integrated procedural equalizer, volume and panning for each mixer track

Reviews (1)

A great sequencer! but not an all in one solution
I use FL Studio frequently. It's my primary sequencer for Drums and melody.Well at least when I'm clicking notes on a grid.It actually snaps the notes to grid (something Sonar 2.0 didn't do)
As far as original melody creation and midi sequencing it's a joy to use.
Plus it supports VST effects. and I actually Like it's effects.(The EQ is nice to work with, as is the fast distortian)
Now down to why I gave it trhee stars...
For some reason It won't let me use ASIo 2.0 (even though sonar will)which makes inputting notes from my keyboard almost pianful) so I simply use the grid, or enter notes into sonar (sonar 2.0 I've seen it for $15 on ebay), my solution is to get an m-audi card to replace my OLD Soundblaster card.that should fix that problem.
Loops are difficult to control in teh playlsit window, you either have the loops snap to cell or beat (which I don't like because I don't have very much control) amd when I turn off snap to grid it's very difficult to sequence one loop after another it's too easy to put a loop to far away from the previous loop or accidentally overlap loops.
I'll get acid for all my loop sequencing needs.

The bottom line:
The only sequencer that you'll ever need (if you have a low latentcy soundcard) but not a good all in one solution.
In the future (once I get acid) I will convert my orignal material to wav and sequence in ACID ... Read more

Product Description

Music Notation/Publishing Software ... Read more

Features

• Rhyming Dictionary helps songwriters find the right rhyme for any lyric
• Enter your music in a traditional staff, or display it automatically for a TAB staff
• An extensive library of special symbols and shapes used with notation and for over 50 fretted instruments
• Input notes with a MIDI guitar and see instant TAB notation
• Advanced music scanning technology and optical character recognition helps musicians scan sheet music and turn it into a Finale file

Reviews (3)

Not an OS X application
What it doesn't say here nor on the finalemusic.com website is, this is an OS 9 ("classic") application. If you have managed finally to dispense with all your "classic" Mac applications, you'll want to think twice before ordering this one. It's so "classic" that the Installer tells you it can't be run under OS X but you must REBOOT into OS 9 before installing!

This was a shock, because the same company's Finale NotePad -- surely the best value in free software anywhere! -- does run native in OS X.

Great for a Beginner or Advanced Musician-at a low price
I received this software on Christmas this year in addition with a MIDI keyboard. This software is excellent! Some say that they prefer Sibelius software but I disagree. This software gives you the power to enter notes in seconds, play with a swing feeling, print, and publish to the web in seconds. If people tell you that this software is aggravating then they do not know what they are talking about. Even if you don't have a MIDI connection, you can simply type notes in on your computer keyboard. If you do not trust what I am saying, go to www.finalemusic.com and download Finale Notepad software. If you also do not want to spend $75 on this software, buy Finale Printmusic! software. for $46.88. on this website. And, if you buy this software and master it, you can upgrade to Finale which is possibly the world's best music producing software.

Powerful program but aggravating
This is a powerful piece of notation software.It can transcribe MIDIs, has all kinds of articulations, its notations extends to ALL instruments (not just guitar), can sheet music in from a scanner and read it and convert it, and it can convert regular sheet music into tab (very useful if you got shafted by a songbook that claimed to have guitar notation but only had the chords in a fretboard diagram not the notes), and you can also make your own midis and switch between keys effortlessly.The negatives are that it is not easy to use.Some things seem out of place for example when placing chords you have to click on another menu apart from the Chords menu to get the program to display the fretboard diagram of the chord, replacing notes in either tab or standard music notation is very tedious and sometimes aggravating, placing articulations can be tedious as well, the program will lag your system, and last but definitely not least it has the terrible and annoying habit of changing the tab numbers you copy between measures if your using a certain template with standard notation above it.If you think you can handle all of that then this program might be for you. ... Read more

Product Description

Updates any existing Logic Gold/Platinum 5 or 6 or Logic Pro 6 user to Logic Pro 7. The upgrade significantly expands Logic Proâs abilities by offering 3 new software instruments, 10 new effect plug-ins, and Apple Loops Support. It also provides an elegant method for expanding DSP resources by tapping multiple Macintosh computers on a network. XSKey will be immediately updatable via the internet when user first runs new version. ... Read more

Features

• Compose, record, edit, and mix music in any studio environment
• Complete music studio for musicians, engineers, and producers
• Advanced audio processing and world-class MIDI sequencing
• New instruments and effects; state-of-the-art loop composition tools
• More processing power using networked Macs

Features

• The Uno is a complete USB-to-MIDI solution, equipped with a USB connection to your computer, and a 1-in/1-out 16-channel MIDI connection to your MIDI devices
• The Uno works for Windows and Macintosh operating systems
• Its single MIDI In and Out connectors make it perfect for connecting a keyboard or controller to your computer quickly and easily
• Since it is powered by the USB port, the Uno is convenient and great for portable use

Reviews (5)

Good except for one obnoxious thing...
I bought this from EBay in January 2004, and from what I see today Amazon is offering an excellent price.

On first appearance, this software looks to be complciated to learn.The thing is, they packed it with more features than I personally would ever need.If you have the patience, you can really get some neat things out of the software.I played around with it, but eventually discarded the manual and started using it just like my old tape-drive 4-track recorder.Build-in metronome?Cool.Don't need it.Built-in effects?Might use it someday.Not today.So - you can get off the ground with the basic pretty quickly.One really neat thing is graphicly selecting regions that you want to punch in before hitting record.All in all, really good.

There are a couple of clunky thing about it that you can work around easily - if you try to record a track before selecting an input device, for example, that track isn't going to work again (so just deleted it and make a new one).Double-clicking a Cakewalk file from file explorer results in an error, so bring up the application first, then load the file.I haven't run into any really drastic bugs, but makes me wonder when I will.

Okay - my big beef - you have to pay extra to enable mixing down to MP3.I personally find it very obnoxious to buy a fully-featured, production piece of software - and then they want MORE MONEY - $30 - to enable what should be a standard feature.You can mix down to plenty of formats, sure, but let's face it, you'd expect MP3 to be a pretty standard format to use.I feel cheated and not respected as a customer of the product when the developers resort to this kind of money-grubbing.

Well, I was going to give 2 starts because of the MP3 thing, but to be fair, overall this is a really nice piece of software, so it deserves a balanced review.Happy recording!

Powerful but hard
I bought the program, so that I could be able to record MIDI. I have an Casio WK-1800 keyboard, which I thought to connect to my computer. I connected the keyboard with a Yamaha UX-16 Midi in/Midi out to USB connector. I have gone through zillions of e-mails with support, and they don't seem to be able to make it work.

Otherwise, the program is a powerful workhorse, only if you spend hours and hours of figuring everything out. As an first-timer, I don't recommend this product. But as an professional, go for it.

Good value - if you have the patience
I bought this as a home recording novice. Whereas my prior home recording experience was limited to a microphone and an office tape recorder, my knowledge of desktop computers and how they operate is extensive. Novices be aware that Cakewalk has a steep learning curve with regard to troubleshooting. Don't expect to install and be recording right away. This is a very complex program and it seems the possibilities for conflicts with other software on the computer is endless. I can't imagine having to wrestle with this beast not having the computer knowledge that I have. For example, to avoid dropouts I have to set my soundcard and Cakewalk audio mode to ASIO. It will not record in the standard MME mode and to this day I have no idea why and have explored every possible soundcard conflict to no avail.

That being said - if you are up to a couple weeks of trying to defeat the beast, Cakewalk does provide a tool for you to make pro-quality digital recordings at a bargain price. You have unlimited tracks for audio and MIDI instruments. I only use the audio tracks to record guitar and bass compositions. The drum machine included in the software is kind of weak so I recommend getting a CD of professional drum loops. With a good drum loop I can record a bass line, rythm guitar track, and lead guitar track with sound quality that match any store-bought CD I own.

The options to tweak your sound are practically infinite. So you are limited only by time and your imagination.

If you think it will be too much of a hassle, I understand. Otherwise, if you have the courage and determination, you will eventually reap the rewards.

The Jury is Still Out
After an apparently successful installation, the "Wave Profiler," module repeatedly crashed my machine. Installation of the patch offered by Cakewalk did not seem to be of any help.

At present, I am able to record MIDI. Due to the aforementioned problem with wave profiler, however, I am unable to record instruments through mic/line input.

I believe this software does have potential. Hopefully I will be able to realize it in the near future. This reveiew will be updated accordingly.

Cakewalk Home Studio just keep getting better and better!
Cakewalk products just keep getting better and better. Possibly the best all-around home studio recording software packages in it's (low!) price range. Cakewalk Home Studio 2004 includes a whole whack of goodies, including some very serious new tools for musicians. The best part is that Home Studio is nice and easy to use.

If you're a musician stepping into the world of digital recording, Cakewalk Home Studio gently eases you into a creative recording environment, providing you with everything you need to turn your computer into a powerful multitrack recording studio.

With lots of pro level features not found in most other recording software packages, Home Studio 2004 records up to 24-bit / 96 kHz audio and is designed to let you focus on the creative process of making music.

Home Studio also includes the great sounding EDIROL Virtual Sound Canvas DXi. With over 990 sounds and drum sets, this little 'extra' is actually a HUGE bonus with the software.

One of Home Studio's many pro-level features is support for multi-channel audio cards. This is great if you want to record more than one instrument or audio track at once - perfect for recording live bands with each musician recorded to a separate track.

Want to create some killer drum tracks? It's easy to 'paint' drum tracks with the simple 'click and drag' feature. You can record unlimited audio and MIDI tracks, mix with real-time audio and MIDI effects, and then burn your masterpiece to CD with Pyro Express CD maker and WAV ripper. Home Studio 2004 supports ACID-format, MP3, WAV, WMA and MIDI files.

For anyone wanting to enter the magical world of digital recording, this product is truly an excellent choice... ... Read more

Product Description

Sibelius is as intuitive to use as a pen, yet so powerful that it does most things in less than the blink of an eye. Created by musicians for musicians, Sibelius gives you the freedom to do whatever you want, the way you want to. Clear, elegant designThe Sibelius screen is simple and intuitive, so you can concentrate on writing music without the constant distraction of menus and dialog boxes. To look around the music, just click and drag the page ? it really feels like you?re moving manuscript paper in front of you. Alternatively, drag the Navigator to move smoothly through many pages at once.You can even choose different colors and textures for the paper and desk on the screen. Sketch & refineSibelius 3 lets you change music whenever you like. Sketch a solo flute piece, then add a whole orchestra to create a concerto. Write in sounding pitch, then make a transposing score with one click. Add extra bars at the start of a score, and Sibelius instantly reformats every page ? far more flexible than pen and paper.If you completely change your mind, Sibelius lets you undo up to 10,000 operations, and keeps backups of 40 previous versions of your music.Sibelius saves you time by spotting all kinds of mistakes such as rhythms that don?t add up, or notes that are too high/low to play (see picture). Sibelius knows every instrument?s range, which you can adjust for players of different abilities. Text & lyricsSibelius puts different types of te... ... Read more

Features

• Designed for students, educators, and professional composers
• Software for writing, playing, printing, and publishing music notation
• Scan in printed music; high-quality sounds for playback
• Saves time; elegant and intuitive; school feature sets
• Publish music world-wide or create personal CDs and MP3s

Reviews (1)

The best in the world
This software is absolutely the best out there.
It does notation, scanning and web publishing, and includes world class sounds and the ability to burn CDs. ... Read more

Product Description

Synthesizers, samplers, drum machine, ReCycle-based loop player, mixer, effects, pattern sequencer and more. As many of each as your computer can handle. Reason is an infinitely expandable music workstation on a CD-ROM, complete with its own realtime sequencer. Reason 3, the latest version of Propellerhead's award winning music production instrument, is now shipping. Synthesizers, samplers, drum machine, REX file loop player, professional mastering tools, mixer, vocoder, world class effects, pattern sequencer and more. As many of each as your computer can handle. Reason is an infinitely expandable music workstation on a CD-ROM, complete with its own realtime sequencer. Reason 3.0 is a virtual studio rack with all the tools and instruments you need to turn your ideas into music. ... Read more

Features

• New Reason 3 features include: The Combinator - Save sounds and patterns as a combination
• MClass Mastering Suite - Pro level mastering software
• Includes NN-XT Sampler and Maelstrom Granular Synth
• Play Rex files using the Dr Rex loop player / Add effects like reverb
• Control everything with the Reason Virtual Studio Rack Mixer

Reviews (2)

DUBROOM.com Review on REASON 3.0: The DUB is in there
After reviewing this program for a week, with a computer matching the minimum reuirements, I am more than convinced.

Without the use of any gadget or sound other then REASON 3.0 and the Computer with qwerty-board and mouse, I was able to create some DUB vibes allready.

DUB? Yes!

Reason 3.0 is the first program that enables you to create professional DUB music with one piece of software alone. That shouldn't come as a too big surprise, given the fact that Propellerhead Software is responsible for REBIRTH, another great piece of software that has brought some producers to pretty high heights.

Talking about high heights, Reason 3.0 is in that same position. Is it the Propellerhead, or something different? I wouldn't know. But I do know, that they have once again set the stanard for the "Virtual" Studio for many years to come.

Written Exclusively for AMAZON.com
See an in-depth review on dubroom.com

It's very easy to make very cheesy music with this
This is basically a very nice program with everything you need to make your own tracks. The only problem is that it very much pushes you in the direction of producing ultra-standard music that lacks personality. The synths sound super-cheesy, which isn't helped by the often horrible presets. The provided demo-songs are point-in-case. Why they are included is beyond me, since they often sound plain terrible and are not a very good ad for the program. This can also be contributed to the included sound-library, which is mediocre at best. You'd best use your own sounds.

For churning out run-of-the-mill trance and hip-hop this is not a problem at all. You might be able to produce several ok sounding tracks a day with this program. People who want to push the envelope a bit will have to put in a lot of effort though. Reason *does* offer the material for experimentation and the hard-working and resourceful musician will find ways to make new sounds. Just don't expect anything like Reaktor or MAX/MSP and get used to to preparing and loading lots of samples, with only a minor role for the bland synthesizer modules. ... Read more

Features

• Compose, record, edit, and mix music in any studio environment
• Complete music studio for musicians, engineers, and producers
• Advanced audio processing and world-class MIDI sequencing
• New instruments and effects; state-of-the-art loop composition tools
• More processing power using networked Macs

Product Description

Cubase SX3 takes music production to a new level by adding more than 70 new features including powerful Audio Warp Realtime Timestretching, an intuitive Play Order Track, convenient Inplace Editing and many new editing functions. For the first time, a native music production system combines full-featured audio and MIDI recording and editing, virtual instruments and powerful audio mixing with the added flexibility of loop- and pattern-based arranging and mixing. Cubase SX3 supports Windows XP and Mac OSX and works with a multitude of audio interfaces. Add to that the seamless integration of external audio and MIDI hardware, and Cubase SX3 redefines music production technology. ... Read more

Features

• Native music-production system with powerful audio mixing
• Full-featured audio and MIDI recording and editing; virtual instruments
• Powerful audio-warp realtime timestretching; intuitive play-order track
• Works with a multitude of audio interfaces; convenient inplace editing
• Seamless integration of external audio and MIDI hardware

Features

• Record instruments and vocals from your audio CDs and edit or alter them -- add them to your own compositions
• Easy editing tools - paste, mix, edit, delete or cross-fade audio on your PC
• VU/PPM meters for RMS playback and record monitoring - watching volume during recording just got easy
• Eliminate dropouts and missed audio in the start of a track with prerecord buffering
• Choose from over 40 audio effects and processes with more than 200 presets -- dramatic fades, delays, and other new effects

Reviews (1)

The BEST Professional Audio Editing Package Ever
I have spent considerable time working with audio editors on MacOS and Windows. Or I should say, I would have, had I been able to find anything comparable to Sound Forge.

Sound Forge is only available on Windows, but I recommend it to MacOS users who are willing to use whatever tool is best suited to their needs. Sound Forge will spoil you, I promise.

I had heard all about BIAS Peak being the best audio editor available, so I, a Sound Forge user, tried it out. No how, no way. If you're using BIAS Peak, I urge you to investigate Sound Forge. Spend enough time with it to get used to it and you will never want to go back.

Sound Forge has a fantastic user interface. It does not try to dazzle with eye candy though its appearances are pleasent and well thought out. Because of that, it is lightning fast, efficient, easy and logical. The on-line help is complete, well laid out, and linked to most of the areas of the software where you might want to call it up for context-sensitive help (another thing that makes me completely disdainful of BIAS Peak). The waveform displays and zooms are lightning quick and clear and easy to work with. What you see is what you get. No eye candy to dress it up.

This software has all the features you need and none of the crap you don't. It works on almost any PC (no need for super fast machines to crunch eye candy). Supports plug-ins for addon effects. One of the included effects is a form of convolution reverb (using sampled impulses to create new environmental reverbs or special effects) and it is worth the price of admission alone!

Spoil yourself. Try Sound Forge. ... Read more

Features

• Work with up to 24 staves per system, and 8 voices per staff
• Piano, percussion & guitar tabs are readily available and easy to work with
• Manual and automatic centering of staves
• MIDI output to any external device
• Format & print your sheet music for any printer

Reviews (6)

Fun making music
I have been really having allot of fun with Play Music. I hope to get a keyboard to use with this for christamas.

Easy music writer
Thsi program is very easy to use and is all I need to make my songs.

Excellent product for a great price!
This is a great program and is well worth the money. I've written many original compositions with this software with no problems. I use the program to write and print my arraignments at church and it's more than paid for itself. Anyone who has the need for an easy to use and stable notation program should buy this program!
Happy Musician.

Fun with Play Music
I really like this program. I am going to keep writing and printing my songs to be a real composer someday. I play my keyboard with this program and its like a recording studio. Thanks for all of the FUN.

Bugs among the notes!
This is an easy to use program, but watch out for the bugs. The most serious problem is that if you save a score as a MIDI file, all the repeat & end signs that you may have put in the score disappear. There is another peculiar problem with the program: if you cut & paste notes, chords or dynamic signs too often, they either stop playing or keep playing at places on the score where you removed them from. The "manual" tells you to keep clicking on a little brush symbol to redraw the score, but that doesn't always solve the problem. One annoying feature of the program is that every time you play your score, the note palette closes. So, if you want to add a few notes, listen to the score & then add a few more notes, you have to keep opening the note palette. After a while this becomes tedious.

I suggest you spend your money on something better.

Frustrated Musician ... Read more

Features

• Work with hundreds of one-shot drum samples for use in Impulse
• Complete MIDI recording, editing and pattern creation -- plus sequencing, combination and reorganization of MIDI clips
• New Ableton instruments -Simpler, for creative sample-based synthesis and Impulse, for dynamic percussion sound design
• Track-to-track I/O routing for complex mixes, post-effects recording, MIDI-to-audio conversion, submixing and synth layering
• Unlimited audio and MIDI tracks, inputs and outputs

Reviews (3)

Fantastic
This has to be the easiest to use audio production program out on the market today. It is so simple to create tracks on the fly, and to edit them is a breeze. If you are wanting to use this program to play live then you can load premade tracks or even just build a track live.

You can do almost anything with this program, although it does take a little bit of getting use to, like all audio programs. I would highly recommend this program to people starting out in music production (this was the first program i used), and couple this with the Ableton Live 4 Power book, you will be able to create all most anything. I highly reccommend it to anyone wanting to make music.

Happy music making :)

Hands Down the BEST live audio software
Don't listen to the nay-sayers, Ableton's Live is a marvel of modern technology. It's innovative "elastic audio" engine can instantly and intelligently load loops and sounds in tempo. Live makes it easy to walk on stage with nothing more than a handfull of loops and compose music instantly...impovisationally. I started using Live about two years ago when a friend suggested it. At first I saw it as a DJ tool, but quickly realized the compositonal value it has. With the complete and intuitive MIDI implementation of Live4, it has edged it's way even closer to that coveted DAW abbreviation. When i make music on my computer, I use Live as the central program, it's THAT GOOD.

Anyone who would dismiss Live as anything but easy, powerful and intuitive is obviously an amatuer who doesn't realize genius when it's green and white logo pops up on thier screen.

Nice if its free
Whos mainly doing live recordings will be frustrated with this application. First it needs a lot of time yet to find out how to make a simple recording, because there are several steps to take. Maybe its a good application for DJs, I dont know because I am not into this, but as a simple recording program I would recommend Garageband - I do classic music ensemble recording with multitrack overdub and was always frustrated with the confusing interface of Ableton live. I just want to open a program and click on record, not first for each function study the manual. So I am much more happy with Garageband. If "Live" is freeware it would be acceptable, but for 300 Bucks I am awaiting something better! ... Read more

Product Description

For the musician, project studio producer, or dance/remix artist whos looking for more value, Home Studio Version 2 XL provides all the capabilities of Home Studio Version 2, plus additional DirectX plug-ins, a DXi Sampler, and an additional CD of audio samples. ... Read more

Features

• ReWire support integrates Home Studio 2004 with Project5, Reason & other ReWire synths
• Supports multi-channel audio cards
• Up to 24-bit/96 kHz audio resolution
• Pattern brush and Drum Editing Grid
• Pyro Express CD maker and WAV ripper

Reviews (3)

Can't blame the software for nothing!
After reading this review, I thought I would like to ask that person:Does this software tend to give him a hard time when he record music?Or does he tends to toy around for nothing and yet complaining that the software didn't do well like that?Or is the computer hardware setup other than the Sound Blaster card are responsible for the problems that Cakewalk Home Studio 2004 XL is having?Before you ever complain, consider the main factors in which Cakewalk is dealing with: what type of computer you have (could be Popular name-brand or custom-built)?Are the chipset on the mothrboard stable enough to handle the audio and MIDI data flowing in and out of the computer via soundcard?What type of drivers you're using for your computer hardware?If that seemed to be the case, then I would suggest that you should make some minor upgrades for your computer that should be stable or make a new computer that is strictly for audio/MIDI recording!This means no installing unwanted application programs that's gonna mess up your work flow.If you know computers and how to build one, fine.If not, then you should buy a good computer that you can use for audio recording/MIDI sequencing.You could check out DAWBOX computers; they're really great at affordable prices.Go to their website at www.DAWBOX.com.As for Cakewalk Home Studio 2004 XL, from my experience, it is a very good program!It has plenty of good features including ReWire support.The only way to use this software, for starters, is that you need to read the manual (both hard copy and on-line) to get the most out of it and start experimenting!Also you need to setup the audio settings for your soundcard and the driver in Cakewalk Home Studio.Once you start using the program a little more, it'll be easier for you at the starting point in which you can record and make good music!You can't blame on this software or any other audio/MIDI software for nothing!!You don't know that this software IS good on others depending on their reference and their computer setup they have.As for me, I have Home Studio 2004 and the latest Home Studio Version Two among other Cakewalk programs in my software collection.This one is very good.

Don't buy this software.
I, like many others, have a SoundBlaster card. Cakewalk has numerous problems with SoundBlaster. It took me two hours to figure out how to just get some sound out of Cakewalk. I recorded a ten second vocal test but it wouldn't play back, nothing came out. Turns out there's some deeply embedded setting you have to change in the software that you can only figure out after hours of searching through online chat-rooms.

The metronome doesn't work through the speakers, it only comes out of the PC's internal speaker or MIDI. Being a musician I have no need for MIDI.

I'm a 16-year techie who happens to also be a musician. This is one of the worst pieces of software I have used in my entire adult life. If you're a musician who just wants to sit down, press record, play some music, stop, play it back, tweak it a little, add more tracks, etc....sounds simple right? Don't buy this software. You will be screaming at the top of your lungs for a whole day and then putting it on eBay in an attempt to try and recoup the $150 you just spent on it.

Outstanding
First off, this is a great package. If you know all the details and you just want to know what someone who has actually used it thinks, I love it, and I recommend it completely. But everyone has different needs, so Home Studio XL isn't the perfect package for everyone.

If you're a total novice and you want to get started learning how to make music on your computer, Home Studio is a good, powerful, diverse package. On the other hand, you will probably look at all the stuff on the screen when you open it for the first time and be absolutely stumped about how to get it to play music. There are some tutorials in the manual and online help that will get you started. Even better, there's a full-featured downloadable demo from cakewalk.com (with save disabled) that will allow you to try before you buy. If you want to see what you're getting into before you spend your money, try the demo.

If you're trying to figure out what you can do in Home Studio, it does just about everything you're likely to need. Build music out of loops, record your own audio tracks, compose your own music, add effects to the tracks -- Home Studio does it. Both Home Studio and XL come with a good general-purpose software synthesizer (Virtual Sound Canvas) that can sound like a whole orchestra of good-quality instruments, and XL comes with the Dyad DXi sampler which allows you to play any sampled sounds in the SoundFont format. XL comes with a good starter library of SoundFonts, and there are literally thousands of SoundFonts available free on the internet. Home Studio also comes with a good library of effects -- reverb, chorus, EQ, delay, etc. -- and XL comes with some nice extras. For people who know their way around recording, the dynamics processing tools (compressor, limiter, etc.) will be really useful, and the SpectraFX channel processor allows you to add several different effects to a number of tracks (with individual settings for each track) without overloading your processor. The other nifty toy is the full version of AmpSim (the basic HomeStudio has AmpSim Lite), which allows you to process your tracks through the sound of an overdriven (or fuzzy, or other effects) ampilfier. If you want to toughen up your tracks, AmpSim is a very nice tool. Both versions of Home Studio also come with DreamStation, a good basic analog-style synth where you can adjust the controls to create a good variety of synthesized sounds. You can also buy a wide variety of third-party synths and FX to plug into Home Studio using DXi.

For me, the Dyad sampler alone justified the extra price, because I have a lot of SoundFonts, and I wanted to be able to create a more versatile array of sounds than a Sound Canvas can generate on its own -- custom drum kits, sounds of specific synthesizers, a different acoustic bass. Still, if the $50 is a deal-breaker, the basic Home Studio already comes with a terrific array of features. If you change your mind, you can always upgrade.

If you are mostly looking at other budget software, it's hard to go wrong with Home Studio. The looping features are at least as good as Acid, and they're as easy to use. And it has all of the other features that give it a lot more power and versatility than Acid. There's only two reasons I can think of to buy anything other than Home Studio: you're a student for whom even $100 is an impossible amount of money to spend, or you want something that has fewer features and an easier learning curve. If either of these is the case Plasma, Music Creator, or Guitar Tracks might get the job done, depending on what set of features you need. However, except for a couple of stray plug-ins, Home Studio has all the features of all of these programs put together, plus some more besides, so you may find yourself upgrading before long.

The one other caveat is that if you work primarily in guitar, I think Cakewalk Guitar Tracks Pro is a better choice. While the AmpSim effect is pretty nice for casual use, if you're doing serious guitar work, ReValver has a lot more power to give you the amp sound you're looking for. You can buy GT Pro and upgrade to the full version of Revalver (Cakewalk has a discount) for about the price of Home Studio XL, and that's probably going to work better for you. If you want the other features of Home Studio but also do guitar work, AmpSim isn't bad, but you may end up buying ReValver as an add-on.

One last category of people that I recommend Home Studio for is people who spent most of their money on an expensive pro-grade package and are looking for an affordable sequencer to use it with. For example, Home Studio is ideal to host Reaktor synthesizers (or any other high-end soft-synths) using DXi. It supports 96/24 audio, high-quality MIDI sequencing, control automation, and everything else you need to get the most out of a really nice softsynth. One warning: if you want to use VST-only synths or effects, you'll have to get a VST adapter (there's a free one with limited power, and several that you can purchase), since Home Studio doesn't support VST natively. Alternatively, if you bought an integrated softstudio like Reason or Project5, but you need a sequencer that can record its own audio and play it back alongside the softstudio tracks, Home Studio will integrate using ReWire and do the job perfectly. However, if you're integrating it with pro-grade packages, you may only want the basic version of Home Studio, because if you have effects and synths that cost you hundreds of dollars, the ones you get with the XL upgrade may not be all that useful. ... Read more

Product Description

ReFill version of Sonic Realitys OmniSoundz ... Read more

Features

• OmniSoundz universal approach means that musicians using any software sampler supported by OmniSoundz or OmniSoundz ReFill can exchange or transmit small Standard MIDI Files with calls to General MIDI instruments and hear the same high-quality sounds
• Excerpted from Sonic Realityâs professional sound archives, OmniSoundz ReFill offers real playable instruments that would normally cost hundreds of dollars in sample libraries
• Instruments include stellar grand pianos, orchestral strings, acoustic & electric guitars, pads, ethnic instruments, brass, woodwinds, saxophones, vocal chorus, analog synths, wine glasses, dulcimer, music box, acoustic drums, percussion and much more
• OmniSoundz ReFill represents a new quality standard for GM and SMFâs

Product Description

Music Notation/Publishing Software For Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP and Macintosh OS 8.6 - OS X ... Read more

Features

• Quality page layout
• The score window in Score Writer allows you to notate your music quickly and easily
• You control all notation elements with the mouse or computer keyboard
• Extensive text handling functions make it easy to add or edit lyrics, page text, measure text and rehearsal marks
• Move staves on the page with a click of the mouse -- even resize the music on the page

Reviews (1)

Great software for anyone!
Score writer is a great program for all ages. It is an easy way to create and print sheet music. It has lots of features to explore with and can be fun just to doodle with. I have tried other score writing programs but I would pick this one amoung others because of its ease of use. ... Read more

Product Description

Digital Performer is an integrated digital audio and MIDI sequencing production tool. It provides a comprehensive recording, playback, and editing environment for a large variety of audio applications. Digital Performer allows you to simultaneously record and playback multiple tracks of digital audio and MIDI data in a totally integrated, creative environment. Digital Performerâs award-winning multitrack sequencer design, combined with nondestructive digital audio editing capabilities, provide you with unprecedented flexibility and control over the music that you make. Digital Performer literally replaces racks full of recording gear. You get the capabilities of a multitrack digital recording system - automated 32-bit digital mixer, reverb, effects, EQ, and compression. All of this integrated with the award winning sequencing capabilities of Performer.Requirements for MOTU Audio SystemIf you would like to play and record audio tracks in Digital Performer, you will need a Power Macintosh 120MHz 604e or better running System 7.6.1 or later. You will also need at least 32Mb of free physical RAM (not virtual memory) to run Digital Performer . That means if you use System 9 or later, you must have at least 128MB or more of physical RAM. We recommend a Macintosh G4 with 256MB of RAM for optimal performance. ... Read more

Features

• Digital Performer 4.5
• Digital Audio Midi Workstation Software
• Mac OS X support - run Digital Performer on the worldâs most advanced computer operating system
• Plug-in latency compensation
• Support for CoreAudio

Features

• Includes automatic tuner, metronome, recorder, and chord dictionary
• Offers the first 40 lessons from eMedia Guitar Method
• Full-motion video demonstrates important guitar fundamentals
• Learn to tune the guitar, hand positionings, easy chords, and more
• 20+ songs taught with notation and variable-speed animated fretboard

Features

• Mono / Polyphonic (up to 64 voices)
• Stereo synthesizer
• Absolutely pure and top quality sound (aliasing-free), just like the original Moog sound
• Can be used alone or as a virtual instrument
• Supports 32 bits / 96kHz

Features

• Features internal 32 bit floating point mixing, up to 96kHz stereo
• High-precision mastering and special effects filters - reverb, compressor, procedural equalizer, distortion, phaser, flanger, bass boost and more
• Full-featured sequencer lets you create songs in pieces and weld those song pieces together into a full composition
• Work with a wide range of effects for your added instruments - reverb, phaser, flanger and more
• Route the mixer tracks in new ways to create complex mixing chains