Unlike in the 70s or the 80s, recording music is really easy nowadays. You can even do it at home. Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell even won several Grammys for the album that they recorded in their bedrooms. And if they can do it, why can’t you? All you need is a mic, a sound card, a pair of headphones, and most importantly, a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). But with so many options of DAWs in the market, which one should you choose? Well, I will write a series of DAW reviews to help you. And in this article, I will start with Pro Tools.

(Avid Pro Tools / Facebook)

Out of all the popular DAWs that people use today, Pro Tools is probably the most famous one. And it’s probably because it’s one of the oldest ones on the market. It was released in the 80s and it is still one of the most powerful audio recording and editing software today. That is probably why a lot of professionals love to use it for mixing and mastering. And if you go to a professional recording studio, most likely they will use Pro Tools to record your audio. And the reason behind it is that it has all the things you need to edit audio. Additionally, you can also use third-party plugins to enhance your work. 

(James Kovin / Unsplash)

I have tried Pro Tools myself, and I have to say that it is a very good DAW. Since it is the most used audio editing software, I usually set up my work in Pro Tools before sending my music to the people who mix and master my music. They most likely use Pro Tools, so they would appreciate me laying down the work for them. However I personally think that Pro Tools is better for audio editing purposes rather than for music creation. Unlike other DAWs, Pro Tools doesn’t come with a variety of sounds in its library. So if you want a good MIDI sound, you need to buy separate VSTs. Another downside of Pro Tools is that it might not be beginner friendly. Pro Tools keeps updating its features, however, it never deletes its old ones. So, the layout of the DAW might be too cluttered, and you will see features that you might never use. And the biggest con of Pro Tools is the fact that they changed their perpetual license to subscription. So, if you choose to use Pro Tools, make sure that your subscription does not end in the middle of your project.

(Techivation / Unsplash)

In the end, I think that Pro Tools need to walk so other DAWs can run. It laid the foundation of how a DAW is supposed to be. And if you want to work as an audio engineer professionally, then you better be an expert in Pro Tools, because it is still the most used audio editing software in the industry.