Subject:Should I or shouldn't I?

Posted by: rhcarr

Date:1/22/2003 12:53:18 PM

I had mentioned in an earlier post that I haven't used ACID as my main production tool in quite some time...this decision coincided with the advent & flooding of the market of VSTi's. As they were an acceptable alternative to forking over tons of cash for hardware synths, I simply shifted my focus from ACID to Cubase. However, in my opinion, Cubase was bloated with features that I hardly, if ever, used at all. After hearing of the ACID 4.0 release, I figured that I could simply migrate back over and pick up where I left off. However, perusing this forum, I've seen an overwhelming majority of users complaining about the bugginess of the program.

So, should I take the plunge? My fear is that with all of the user complaints, I've not seen any instance where a rep from SonicFoundry has jumped into a thread an addressed how the company plans on dealing with the many issues that seem to plague the current release...any thoughts?

Easy,
Bob

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: antonio

Date:1/22/2003 1:12:33 PM

Well, from my standpoint as a fairly new user of A4Pro, I think it's a great piece of production software!!! This was my very first Sonic Foundry purchase and venture into the Acid world and I absolutely love it!!! I was kinda disappointed with the drum loops at first, but now since i've learned how to construct my own drum loops with the "one-shots", it's really starting to get fun and very creative for me!! As for the "bugginess" of the program, I really haven't experienced any yet(knock on wood 3x)!! The program has ran rock solid for me thus far. What I love about A4 Pro is the ease of use and the fact that every loop can be matched with any given tempo(there's a technical term for this, but i can't recall it now...beatmapped maybe? someone help me here)! Take the plunge. I don't think you'll be disappointed!!!

peace
Antonio

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: Iacobus

Date:1/22/2003 3:08:00 PM

Forums are always a magnet for those who are having trouble with a program, no matter what app.

Remember that reps from SoFo are not actually obligated to respond here. If a user is having trouble, I always suggest contacting SoFo via the email form or even giving them a phone call. The user has a better chance of solving their problem that way than coming through this channel.

If anything, check out the ACID 4.0 demo and judge for yourself.

HTH,
Iacobus

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: rhcarr

Date:1/22/2003 3:38:34 PM

You're right, of course...if Steinberg's rep was built on the input of its forum users, that company would've folded a number of years back. As for the demo, I'll just go ahead and DL it; do you know, offhand, what the restrictions (other than save features) are on the demo? I'd hate to group them in with what I might otherwise think is a software stability issue;)

Easy,
Bob

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: liquid

Date:1/22/2003 5:01:20 PM

I almost never had problems until I decided to shift to 24 bit...consider that.

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: dkistner

Date:1/22/2003 5:04:18 PM

This whole 24-bit issue...I never even considered that might be a problem.

If you do all your dry waves in 16-bit, then switch to 24-bit only when you've gotten your VSTis and such out of the way and want to start adding in some effects and such, would that help? Or does it just defeat the purpose?

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: Iacobus

Date:1/22/2003 6:22:45 PM

I can't remember offhand, but I do know that one of the restrictions is that you can't render in MP3 format. Also, I believe you can use the demo for an unlimited time and anything you render to something like WAV will have digital noise automatically inserted randomly.

HTH,
Iacobus

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: fresnog

Date:1/23/2003 2:25:28 AM

Another demo limitation is a song length of 2 minutes maximum.
No prob if you like the Minutemen.
Otherwise, you will get cut short.

Fresnog

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: Jacose

Date:1/23/2003 2:50:29 AM

It does not help.

24 bit is only useful at the recording stage, for extra headroom so to speak.

after that, it is good to keep it in the 24 bit realm for editing purposes, but other wise, it is utterly stupid to convert to 24 bit after recording.

Subject:RE: Should I or shouldn't I?

Reply by: dkistner

Date:1/23/2003 4:34:22 AM

Thank you, Jacose. My scoring program exports to 16-bit waves, which I guess is roughly akin to recording at 16-bit.