Gallery: Audio-Editing Apps for Bedroom Beatmasters
01overview
Some of Top 40's biggest hooks were born in the bedroom. But the days of the Tascam cassette studios and the delicate Nagra reel-to-reels are long gone. Now, the freshest ideas don't get cut to tape, they get converted directly to bits, and there are a slew of software apps available for building songs from scratch. Read the individual reviews:[Avid ProTools 9](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=791) [Adobe Audition for Mac (beta)](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=788) [Apple GarageBand](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=789) [Tascam Portastudio for iPad](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=790) Some musicians only use software as a sketchpad for quick demos. Others sweat over their keyboards until they've crafted a full-fledged, radio-ready jam. As a result, there are a wide range of capabilities to be found in today's selection of studio software. From the beginner-level [GarageBand](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=789) and the [Tascam PortaStudio](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=790) app for the iPad, all the way up to top-tier production suites like [ProTools](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=791) and [Audition](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=788), there's an app to match whatever level of depth you need. We asked Victor Krummenacher -- *Wired* magazine designer by day, songwriter and [Camper Van Beethoven](http://campervanbeethoven.com/) bassist by night -- to test some of the more popular ones here. Victor went the extra mile and composed a song using each of the apps he reviewed. You can hear the resulting tracks at the bottom of each review. The lesson we learned is that whether you've got an iPad, a notebook PC or a pricey studio rig, there's a piece of software out there to suit your need. And while you're shopping around, maybe grab an app to help you tune that guitar, m'kay?
02avid-protools-9
Avid ProTools 9 --------------- The standard-bearer for audio editing software, [ProTools](http://www.avid.com/US/products/Pro-Tools-Software) is already the choice of most major studios and serious home recorders. But this update is a true reinvention, as it marks the first time ProTools can be used as a fully self-contained music-mixing ecosystem. Read the other reviews: [Adobe Audition for Mac (beta)](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=788) [Apple GarageBand](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=789) [Tascam Portastudio for iPad](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=790) ProTools has historically been offered only in partitioned versions, segregated by the hardware options it was packaged with. These ranged from affordable interfaces like the M-box to the pro-level HD setups that went into the several thousands of dollars. ProTools 9 still supports tiered pricing, but the base offering has been massively improved, and it can now be used without any additional hardware (save for a security dongle). To create our demo, we recorded a session in a professional studio, then edited it down to a 48-track song on only a stock MacBook Pro. With the dramatic increase in the number of available voices in a given song, it's like an entire mixing room you can bring on an airplane. In fact, we did our entire editing session while sitting in coach on a coast-to-coast flight. For sensitive ears, ProTools no longer requires proprietary analog-to-digital software. Users are also now free to connect to any analog or digital surface that supports the HUI protocol (a common one). These changes suggest that Avid has noted a user shift to more flexible competitors like Cubase and Performer. The response is exactly what it needed to be. __WIRED:__ Industry-standard software easily adapted to home use. As portable as the computer you install it on. Massive flexibility to fit the needs of the user. __TIRED:__ Pro Tools upgrades typically mean a new round of third-party plug-ins, due to compatibility issues; the two-hour phone wait for horrendous customer service knocks it down a point. __Listen:__ <audio controls=""><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/protools_toe_in_the_water-dugmix.ogg" type="audio/ogg"></source><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/protools_toe_in_the_water-dugmix.mp3" type="audio/mpeg"></source>\[dewplayer:http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/protools\_toe\_in\_the\_water-dugmix.mp3\]</audio> $600, [Avid](http://www.avid.com/US/) __Rating: 8 out of 10__
03adobe-audition-for-mac-beta
Adobe Audition for Mac (beta) ----------------------------- Though still in beta, Audition -- which marks the Mac debut of this previously PC-only offering -- is an intuitive and robust pro-level program aimed more at multimedia sound production than pure music recording. Read the other reviews:[Avid ProTools 9](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=791) [Apple GarageBand](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=789) [Tascam Portastudio for iPad](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=790) Like ProTools, Audition relies on the familiar sound-editing interface and mixes waveform and multitrack options on a single screen. The software comes with a substantial batch of built-in plug-ins and makes easy work of importing and editing third-party loops. The huge loop library from Audition 3 is missing, but we're hoping that's a beta-only omission. Audition can interface with a number of I/O hardware options and can quickly begin tracking live audio. Multimedia sound engineers will be content with it as-is, though musicians will note the absence, at least in beta, of an operable MIDI interface. The former might be the intended audience, though, as one could easily see this being bundled with the next update to Adobe's Creative Suite to create a true multimedia content-creation package. __WIRED:__ Easy, uncluttered interface; professional processing presets and plug-in flexibility. A great option for radio and multimedia audio. __TIRED:__ Lacks the recording utilities and controls of a true music-editing suite. Would be better with the previous version's full loop library. No downloadable help file. __Listen:__ <audio controls=""><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/audition_red_ribbons.ogg" type="audio/ogg"></source><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/audition_red_ribbons.mp3" type="audio/mp3"></source>\[dewplayer:http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/audition\_red\_ribbons.mp3\]</audio> Free (for now), [Adobe](http://www.adobe.com/) __Rating: 7 out of 10__
04apple-garageband
Apple GarageBand ---------------- iLife 11 includes the latest version of Apple's 8-year-old home recording software. As expected, Garageband is elegant and intuitive, though short of a true pro-level solution. Read the individual reviews:[Avid ProTools 9](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=791) [Adobe Audition for Mac (beta)](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=788) [Tascam Portastudio for iPad](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=790) Even novice users can quickly create original music using the app's preloaded sound loops and drum kits. The in-app synthesizer can be used to create and control countless additional sounds, but it also allows for a midi/USB keyboard, which is a much better option. GarageBand supports a long list of analog-to-digital hardware interfaces for recording live instruments. And Apple's $99 Jam Pack add-ons expand the sonic potential with large banks of beats, voice loops, and even symphonic instruments. Actual editing capabilities, however, are limited. GarageBand doesn't allow for the sort of robust and precise track manipulation of higher-end options. If working with ProTools is like using a surgical scalpel, this is more like cutting with a steak knife. __WIRED:__ Great tutorial videos make an already easy-to-use product even easier. Large built-in library of sounds and loops. Includes guitar and keyboard lessons for casual to intermediate musicians. __TIRED:__ So-so midi interface; inability to build sophisticated rhythm loops that can change time signature of fluctuate tempo within composition. Experienced musicians will quickly outgrow it. __Listen:__ <audio controls=""><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/garage_band_the_trenches.ogg" type="audio/ogg"></source><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/garage_band_the_trenches.mp3" type="audio/mp3"></source>\[dewplayer:http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/garage\_band\_the\_trenches.mp3\]</audio> $49 (for iLife suite) [Apple](http://www.apple.com/) __Rating: 6 out of 10__
05tascam-portastudio-for-ipad
Tascam Portastudio for iPad ---------------------------- When Tascam unveiled the first Portastudio in 1979, it launched what today is a firmly entrenched culture of home recording. Countless musicians used the four-track, cassette-based Portastudio to experiment, record demos, and even produce entire albums; Bruce Springsteen's "Nebraska" being the most famous example. Read the other reviews:[Avid ProTools 9](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=791) [Adobe Audition for Mac (beta)](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=788) [Apple GarageBand](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/2011/03/pr_musicstudioapps/?pid=789) So it was an interesting development when Tascam announced a Portastudio app for the iPad. Borrowing heavily from the popular Porta One model of the 1980s, the app's interface is instantly recognizable to anyone who has used a four-track and easy to learn for novices. Using the built in mic of the iPad, you fire up the app, engage a track, record, and repeat until you've got your four-track demo. Mix down occurs by adjusting levels on the screen. When you're finished, the app exports a .wav file to iTunes that you can email to friends, post online, or import into a full digital-audio workstation for more refined editing. Unlike its predecessor, however, the Portastudio app feels more like a diversion than a serious creative tool. File management is based on labeled little digital "cassettes." It's a fun visual metaphor, but one that is carried too far— you actually have to wait for them to "rewind." This shouldn't be so in a digital setting. Song length is automatically limited to five minutes. OK, that might be a nice barrier against self-indulgence for some, but it still feels limiting. The app also lacks its hardware forebear's "bounce" function, which allows the blending of multiple tracks onto the fourth (without which, "Nebraska" wouldn't have been possible.) Despite this, the idea of an iPad-based Portastudio is too good to pass up. Hopefully Tascam will recognize the potential and work toward fulfilling it in future updates. __WIRED:__ Four-track recorder the iPad! Familiar, intuitive interface. Make your own album for the price of an album. __TIRED:__ But we're digital here. Why not eight tracks? Or 16? Favors nostalgia over innovation and ends up falling short. __Listen:__ <audio controls=""><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/tascam_love_of_my_dreams.ogg" type="audio/ogg"></source><source src="http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/tascam_love_of_my_dreams.mp3" type="audio/mp3"></source>\[dewplayer:http://stag-komodo.wired.com/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/tascam\_love\_of\_my\_dreams.mp3\]</audio> $10 [Tascam](http://tascam.com/) __Rating: 4 out of 10__
